Gabor Forgacs has been named the Karel K. Czanderna '77 and W. Dan Shirkey '80 Professor in Physics at Clarkson University.

Forgacs is distinguished university professor and executive and scientific director of Clarkson's Shipley Center for Innovation.

The center's mission is to foster the exchange of ideas between the various schools on campus and industry, prepare the faculty and students for the 21st century entrepreneurial workplace and translate discovery-driven Clarkson innovations into the marketplace.

"Dr. Forgacs exemplifies the faculty member at Clarkson University who excels in teaching, advising, research, and technology commercialization," said Provost Thomas C. Young. "Having his leadership recognized by this generous gift from Karel and Dan is wonderful and very appropriate."

"I am honored by my appointment to the Karel K. Czanderna '77 and W. Dan Shirkey '80 Professorship in Physics," said Forgacs. "I am deeply grateful for Karel and Dan's generosity to support my work in the area of physics and the Shipley Center."

Forgacs received his Ph.D. at the Roland Eötvös University, Budapest, and Landau Institute of Theoretical Physics, Moscow. He moved to the United States in the 1980s from the Institute of Physics of the French Atomic Energy Agency in Saclay to accept an appointment at Clarkson.

He was on the physics faculty of Clarkson from 1986-2000, returning to Clarkson in 2009, after joining the faculty of the University of Missouri-Columbia as the George H. Vineyard Professor of Biological Physics, where he continues in a limited role.

Forgacs is the author of more than 150 peer-reviewed journal articles and several books. He co-authored an internationally-known textbook on the subject "Biological Physics of the Developing Embryo." He has lectured at numerous national and international conferences.

Forgacs is a pioneer of "bioprinting," a novel engineering technology to build tissues on demand. He is the scientific founder of Organovo Inc., and Modern Meadow, biotech companies focused on commercializing the tissue printing technology respectively for regenerative medicine and the ethical fabrication of animal products. He has performed consulting activity for several Fortune 500 and mid-sized companies.

Karel Czanderna grew up in Potsdam, NY. After receiving her bachelor's degree in physics at Clarkson in 1977, she received her Ph.D. in materials science and engineering at Cornell University. Dan Shirkey also has a bachelor's degree in physics, which he earned at SUNY Brockport. He met Karel when he arrived at Clarkson for his master's degree in physics, which he completed in 1980. He later earned an MBA at Cornell. They married in 1985.