January 16-17, 2003

ITEM 118-2002-R0103    Authorization to Confer the Title of Professor Emeritus of Statistics upon Martin A. Hamilton; Montana State University-Bozeman

THAT: Upon the occasion of the retirement of Professor Martin A. Hamilton from the faculty of Montana State University, the Board of Regents wishes to express its appreciation for his service to the University, the Montana University system, and the people of the State of Montana.

EXPLANATION: Dr. Martin Hamilton received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Statistics from the University of Wyoming in 1961 and 1962, respectively. He was a Fulbright Scholar in Biostatistics at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland in 1963. He then earned his Ph.D. in Statistics from Stanford in 1968 and joined the Mathematical Statistics and Applied Mathematics Section of the Biometry Branch at the National Cancer Institute as a Staff Scientist. In 1970 he joined the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Montana State University, with a stint as a visiting scientist in the Biometry Branch of the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences during 1978-1979. He was promoted to Professor of Statistics in 1980. Dr. Hamilton had joint appointments in the WAMI Regional Medical Education Program during 1976-1985 and 1990-1991 and a joint appointment with the Department of Microbiology during 1983-1988. Since 1991 he has served a joint appointment with the Center for Biofilm Engineering, including one year as Acting Director.

Dr. Hamilton has overseen the growth and development of the graduate programs in statistics since his arrival in Bozeman. He has directed the dissertation work of 6 Ph.D. students while at MSU, starting them on successful careers of their own in the field of statistics. He has served on the graduate committees of dozens of MSU graduate students. His teaching at both the undergraduate and graduate levels has been superb.

Dr. Hamilton was recently elected a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, which is major recognition in the field. Early in his career he received a prestigious National Institutes of Health (NIH) Research Career Development Award. He has also received the Charles and Nora L. Wiley Award for Meritorious Research from MSU and the College of Engineering Outstanding Research Award. The journal, Environmental Science and Technology, recognized the 1977 paper, "Trimmed Spearman-Karber Method for Estimating Median Lethal Concentrations in Toxicity Bioassays," by Martin Hamilton, Rose Russo, and Vance Thurston (all from MSU) as one of the top ten papers in that journal in over 35 years. It was described as "high-impact environmental research" that has "significantly advanced or changed the environmental sciences." His pioneering work with microbiologists and toxicologists has brought statistical rigor to areas that had previously not used statistics.

Dr. Hamilton has been extensively involved in grant work in statistics and its applications. He has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense, as well as several large companies such as Procter and Gamble, Clorox Corporation, and SC Johnson. He has also provided service to the national statistics community, including work as an Associate Editor for the Journal of the American Statistical Association.

Dr. Hamilton is still active in statistical research at the Center for Biofilm Engineering (CBE). He helps CBE management by serving on the Executive Committee and as the Coordinator of Finance, Development, and Operations. He is the current President of the Montana Chapter of the American Statistical Association. He also continues to advise graduate students at Montana State University and is a great asset to the university and the state of Montana.

For these and other contributions, the Board of Regents of Higher Education is pleased to confer upon Dr. Martin A. Hamilton the rank of Professor Emeritus of Statistics at Montana State University and wishes him well for many years in the future.