In an effort to spur a minor in human anatomy and keep the program running, the U biology department is raising funds to create an endowed professor chair.
The new position will bring in a high-quality human anatomy professor and will be named after John Legler who, with professor Marc Nielson, have spent almost 50 years teaching anatomy at the U.
“An endowed professorship (is) an attractive way to bring in the very best teachers and researchers in a particular area,” said Neil Vickers, chairman of the biology department.
Legler began teaching in 1959, and when he retired, handed the reins over to his former student, Nielson, who has been teaching the only human anatomy class since 1987.
The biology department held a kickoff ceremony at the Body Worlds Exhibit at The Leonardo on Tuesday night to announce the position and an additional $15,000 donation for the chair from former students of Legler who graduated more than 20 years ago.
John Skedros, a surgeon for the Utah Bone and Joint Center, announced that he and his family, which includes siblings who were students of Legler long ago, were contributing to the chair in honor of their former professor.
Vickers said they are still raising funds for the position and will need about $2 million to make sure the position supports itself. He said with the Skedros family donation and silent auction at the kick-off, they probably have about $25,000 so far.
The campaign to raise funds for the chair is part of the U’s $1.2 billion capital campaign drive that will last until 2013 and part of a larger goal to push forward with the integrative human biology program.
The program, which will be a collaboration between biology and anthropology, will educate students in four main areas, including human form, evolution and behavior. Vickers said it will also help students understand the effect humans have had on the ecosystem.
Nielson said that the program will help students interested in medical or health professions. To help prepare students even more, Nielson offers a teacher assistant opportunity for undergraduate students that many have come back to say was the best part of their education.
“Drs. Legler and Nielsen have instructed close to 30,000 students, many of whom have gone on to careers in many health science professions,” Vickers said. “It’s a unique class that allows undergraduates to work with cadavers and human dissection.”
Mary Ann Battle, who graduated from Nielson’s class in 1994 and is now a licensed physical therapist, said the class really prepared her for her future career.
Although the new position won’t be filled for another few years, Vickers said the human anatomy minor should be established by Fall Semester 2009. He said they hope to create an anatomy major but that it won’t be ready for a while.
Vickers said the department invited alumni who took classes from Legler and Nielson and have gone on to work as doctors or in health science professions to recognize the distinguished professors and encourage them to donate to the chair.