Arye Nehorai, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Electrical and Systems Engineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) at Washington University, was installed as the Eugene and Martha Lohman Professor on March 7, in a ceremony in Whitaker Hall.
Nehorai joined Washington University January 1, 2006, succeeding R. Martin Arthur, Ph.D., the Newton R. and Sarah Louisa Glasgow Wilson Professor of Engineering, who had served as interim chair since 2002.
“We are fortunate to have such a distinguished researcher, professor and inventor as Arye Nehorai join our university, and equally fortunate to receive this wonderful gift from Eugene and Martha Lohman,” said Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton, “This is an excellent example of how our alumni and friends’ gifts enable us to secure world-class faculty.”
Nehorai received a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering from the Technion, Israel, and received a doctorate in electrical engineering from Stanford University. His research areas include signal processing, biomedicine and communications.
Over the course of his career, he has received more than 25 grants, and currently serves as lead principal investigator on three multi-university grants as well as two others. He holds two patents, and is the recipient of numerous awards in his fields of endeavor.
He is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) and of the Royal Statistical Society.
In addition, he has published nine book chapters, 100 journal papers, 130 conference papers, and has served on 11 editorial boards for scholarly journals. He has served as editor in chief of the IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing.
From 1995 to 2005, Nehorai served on the faculty of the University of Illinois at Chicago. Before that, he taught at Yale University.
“Arye will add great distinction to this excellent department and invigorate its leadership,” said Christopher I. Brynes, Ph.D., dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Edward H. and Florence G. Skinner Professor of Systems Science and Mathematics. “I’m confident that the challenges that await this profession in the 21st century will be ably met by Arye’s vision and dedication.”
Eugene W. Lohman received a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering from Washington University in 1928. After graduation he joined family members in managing the William J. Lohman, Inc. agency. In the mid-1940s they established the New Jersey-based Chelsea Fan and Blower Company, which was sold to Allied Thermal Company in 1966. In addition to serving as president of the firm until his retirement in 1971, Lohman also ran a brokerage business and had a seat on the New York Stock Exchange.
In 1994 he received the School of Engineering & Applied Science’s Alumni Achievement Award, and a year later he was given the Robert S. Brookings Award, for exemplifying, through his commitment and generosity, the alliance between the University and the St. Louis community.
Over the years, the Lohmans have been generous supporters to SEAS. In addition to funding this professorship, they established a scholarship fund that has benefited more than 100 students in the School. Martha Lohman died in 1996; Eugene Lohman died in 2000.