Release date: April 28, 2008
Contact: Elaine Justice at 404-727-0643 or elaine.justice@emory.edu

Lewis, de Waal Named 2008 AAAS Fellows

Emory University Provost Earl Lewis and Frans de Waal, director of the Living Links Center at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center at Emory, have been named 2008 fellows of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences (AAAS), one of the nation's oldest and most prestigious honorary societies.

"I am thrilled, obviously, to be so honored and delighted to represent Emory University as a new member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. I look forward to a growing list of Emory faculty so honored in future years," says Lewis, who is also Asa Griggs Candler Professor of History and African American Studies.

"I am very honored by the recognition from this prestigious organization, and also happy to be in the company of the provost of our university," says de Waal, who also serves as C.H. Candler Professor of Primate Behavior at Emory.

Lewis, who holds degrees in history and psychology, is author and co-editor of seven books, among them the award-winning "To Make Our World Anew: A History of African Americans" (Oxford University Press, 2000). His most recent works are "The African American Urban Experience: Perspectives from the Colonial Period to the Present," co-edited and published by Palgrave Macmillan (2004), and the co-written "Defending Diversity: Affirmative Action at the University of Michigan," published by the University of Michigan Press (2004).

A member of the National Academy of Sciences since 2004 and the American Philosophical Society since 2005, de Waal is a world-renowned primatologist and best-selling author. He is widely recognized for his behavioral and evolutionary work with great apes as well as for 10 books, two of which The New York Times named "Notable Books of the Year." In 2007 TIME magazine named de Waal a leading scientist and thinker in its Top 100: the People Who Shape Our World special issue.

Drawn from the sciences, the arts and humanities, business, public affairs, and the nonprofit sector, the 190 new Fellows and 22 Foreign Honorary Members are leaders in their fields and include Nobel laureates and recipients of Pulitzer and Pritzker prizes, Academy and Grammy awards, and Kennedy Center Honors.

"The Academy honors excellence by electing to membership remarkable men and women who have made preeminent contributions to their fields, and to the world," said Academy President Emilio Bizzi. "We are pleased to welcome into the Academy these new members to help advance our founders’ goal of ‘cherishing knowledge and shaping the future."

The 212 scholars, scientists, artists, civic, corporate and philanthropic leaders come from 20 states and 15 countries, and range in age from 37 to 86. Represented among this year’s newly elected members are more than 50 universities and more than a dozen corporations, as well as museums, national laboratories and private research institutes, media outlets and foundations.

The new class will be inducted at a ceremony on October 11, at the Academy's headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Emory University (www.emory.edu) is one of the nation’s leading private research universities and a member of the Association of American Universities. Known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities, Emory is ranked as one of the country's top 20 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, the state's largest and most comprehensive health care system.

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