RICHARDSON, Texas (Nov. 5, 2003) – Dr. Zsuzsanna Ozsváth, for many years a distinguished literary scholar and historian in the School of Arts and Humanities at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), has been appointed to hold the university’s newly created Leah and Paul Lewis Chair of Holocaust Studies.
The chair was endowed in honor of Leah and Paul Lewis by their daughter and son-in-law, Miriam Lewis Barnett and Mitchell Barnett, with the support of many family members, friends and admirers of their path-breaking work to raise awareness about the Holocaust. Over more than three decades, Mr. and Mrs. Lewis built more than 15 memorials dedicated to the victims of the Holocaust in synagogues, centers and museums throughout the United States.
In recognition of his leadership, then-President Jimmy Carter appointed Paul Lewis to the United States Holocaust Memorial Commission in 1976. Leah Lewis died in 1981 and Paul Lewis in 1984. Dr. Ozsváth is the founding director of UTD’s Holocaust Studies Program, which has established an international reputation for its curriculum of education, research and public service concerning the Holocaust and 19th and 20th century European history and Jewish culture. Appointment to the new chair will enhance her leadership of the program and its activities.
UTD Provost Hobson Wildenthal commented, “The Holocaust Studies Program, with its combination of scholarly research, education at both the undergraduate and graduate levels and its distinguished lecture series, is one of the distinguishing hallmarks of UTD. The program’s success is a result of Dr. Ozsváth’s passionate dedication and charismatic leadership, and the creation of the Lewis Chair is a highly fitting tribute both to her and the program.”
In 1995, Ozsváth was a co-recipient of one of the most prestigious Hungarian literary awards, the Milán Füst Prize of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. She has given lectures at conferences and professional associations and has published numerous books, articles and papers related to Holocaust studies. In 1990, Ozsváth received two prestigious honors, the Fulbright Award and the IREX Award. Both programs send U.S. university faculty and professionals abroad and allow visiting scholars to come to America for studies and research.
Appointments of faculty members to named and endowed chairs and professorships are made in recognition of extraordinary professional excellence and achievement. In addition to the honor attached to such recognition, the holders of these appointments receive special budgets for the support of their research, which expands the general level of university support for such faculty activities.
About UTD
The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls about 13,700 students. The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university’s web site at www.utdallas.edu.