The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has announced the election of Morgan State University’s Willie E. May, Ph.D. as a 2019 AAAS Fellow. May, who serves as Morgan’s vice president for the Division of Research and Economic Development (D-RED), was among the more than 400 newly elected leading scientists from around the world to have earned the lifetime distinction of AAAS Fellow, in honor of their invaluable contributions to science and technology. Fellows are elected each year by their peers serving on the Council of AAAS, the organization’s member-run governing body, and May was selected for his international leadership in the measurement and standards infrastructure of science and technology.
The honor of being elected an AAAS Fellow began in 1874 and is officially acknowledged with the presentation of a certificate and rosette. Dr. May will receive his certificate and rosette this February in Seattle, Washington during the AAAS Fellows Forum, a part of the Association’s Annual Meeting.
“It is with the deepest gratitude and humility that I accept this appointment as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science,” said Dr. May. “I look forward to a continued commitment in support of the global leadership needed in the advancement of measurement standards and science and technology infrastructure.”
As the policymaking body of the AAAS, the Council annually elects Fellows with the expressed intent on preserving the integrity of the Association and the esteemed honor conferred upon those who have been granted fellowship in the world’s largest multidisciplinary scientific society. Collectively, AAAS Fellows represent an exclusive body of diverse scientific thought-leaders whose efforts on behalf of the advancement of science or its applications are scientifically or socially distinguished.
The 443 newly elected Fellows represent each of AAAS’s 24 sections, from neuroscience and psychology to social, economic and political sciences. The honor recognizes diverse accomplishments, including pioneering research, leadership within a given field, teaching and mentoring, fostering collaborations and advancing public understanding of science.
In order to be considered for the rank of Fellow, an AAAS member must be nominated by three previously elected Fellows, the steering group of an AAAS section, or the organization’s CEO. Nominations go through a two-step review process, with the relevant steering group reviewing nominations in their section and the AAAS Council voting on the final list.
At Morgan, in his role as vice president for D-RED, Dr. May supports research throughout the University and oversees IP and commercialization efforts. He previously served as the U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and as the director of Major Research and Training Activities at the University of Maryland, College Park. His laboratory-based research is described in more than 90 peer-reviewed technical publications. Recently, he was selected to become a member of the Consumer Reports Board of Directors. Dr. May joined the University in May of 2018.
The entire list of all 2019 AAAS Fellows can be viewed online.
About Morgan
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified doctoral research institution offering more than 125 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland’s Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.
