African Scholars Receive Endowed Professorships
Tuesday, Sept. 11,  2007

Reported by Jake Weber

Foreign languages professor Emmanuel Yewah (left) and sociology professor 'Dimeji Togunde (right) were honored with endowed professorships at Albion's Opening Convocation, held in August. Dave Trumpie photo

ALBION, Mich. — Albion College is pleased to announce the awarding of endowed professorships to two exceptionally respected and talented faculty members. These awards were presented at the College’s opening convocation, held in late August..

Foreign languages professor Emmanuel Yewah received, for a second consecutive term, the Howard L. McGregor, Jr. Professorship in the Humanities. Yewah’s scholarly interests include Francophone literature, African cinema, law and literature, gender studies, literary theory, and rhetoric and ideology. His pioneering interdisciplinary work in the role of law in African literature has resulted in the establishment of an annual panel at the meetings of the African Literature Association. A popular teacher as well, Yewah was Albion’s New Teacher of the Year in 1988 and received the student senate “Student’s Choice” teaching award in 2000. in 2007 he was named “Scholar of the Year” by the Albion Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.

The John S. Ludington Trustees’ Professorship in the Social Sciences has been awarded to sociologist ‘Dimeji Togunde. Chair of Albion’s anthropology and sociology department as well as its ethnic studies program, Togunde has broad teaching interests in family, population, and environmental policies, immigration, and social change and development in Africa. He is a past recipient of the President’s Advisory Committee on Intercultural Affairs Award for Contributions to Multicultural Education at Albion College.

Togunde and Yewah are currently co-editing a book, “Across the Atalntic: African Immigrants in the United States.

The Howard l. McGregor, jr. Professorship in the Humanities was established through a gift from philanthropist Howard McGregor, who was the longtime chairman of National Twist Drill and Tool Company of Rochester, Michigan. His daughter, Katharine Mcgregor Rogers, graduated from Albion College in 1970, and his granddaughter, Katharine Altherr, is a 1998 alumna.

The John S. Ludington Trustees’ Professorship in the Social Sciences was endowed by John S. Ludington, Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Stahl, the Corning Incorporated Foundation, the Dow Corning Corporation, and the Charles J. Strosacker Foundation to honor faculty members in the social sciences.

Albion College’s endowed professorships recognize truly distinguished teaching and research, and represent one of the highest honors available to the faculty. Professorships are supported by the generous gifts of alumni and friends of the College. Recipients are chosen by the Board of Trustees upon the recommendation of the Faculty Affairs committee, the vice president for academic affairs, and the president. The awards consist of annual funding to be used for innovation in teaching and the classroom, and for support of continued scholarship and professional development.

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