Frank Conforti honored with emeritus status
Frank D. Conforti of Blacksburg, Va., associate professor of human nutrition, foods, and exercise in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech, was conferred with the title, “associate professor emeritus” by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors during the board’s quarterly meeting Nov 6.
The title of emeritus may be conferred on retired professors and associate professors, administrative officers, librarians, and exceptional staff members who have given exemplary service to the university and who are specially recommended to the board of visitors by Virginia Tech President Charles W. Steger. Nominated individuals who are approved by the board of visitors receive an emeritus certificate from the university.
A member of the Virginia Tech faculty since 1991, Conforti advanced the knowledge and understanding of the functional roles of ingredients in a food system and made significant contributions in research related to food quality. In 2002, he received the College of Human Resources Outstanding Teacher, and was named the Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise Outstanding Teacher in 2005.
He also engaged in several national professional technical honorary societies, and he served as the president of the Virginia Tech chapter of Phi Kappa Phi, the oldest and largest collegiate honor society dedicated to the recognition and promotion of academic excellence in all disciplines.
Conforti received his bachelor’s degree from the City University of New York, Lehman College; a master’s degree from City University of New York, Hunter College; and a Ph.D. from Virginia Tech.
Nationally ranked among the top research institutions of its kind, Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences focuses on the science and business of living systems through learning, discovery, and engagement. The college’s comprehensive curriculum gives more than 2,200 students in a dozen academic departments a balanced education that ranges from food and fiber production to economics to human health. Students learn from the world’s leading agricultural scientists, who bring the latest science and technology into the classroom.
Founded in 1872 as a land-grant college, Virginia Tech is the most comprehensive university in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is among the top research universities in the nation. Today, Virginia Tech’s eight colleges are dedicated to quality, innovation, and results through teaching, research, and outreach activities. At its 2,600-acre main campus located in Blacksburg and other campus centers in Northern Virginia, Southwest Virginia, Hampton Roads, Richmond, and Roanoke, Virginia Tech enrolls more than 28,000 undergraduate and graduate students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries in 180 academic degree programs.
