Peter J. Kennelly honored with emeritus status

Mark Owczarski

14 May 2024

Peter Kennelly. Photo courtesy of Virginia Tech.

Peter J. Kennelly, professor of biochemistry in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech, has been conferred the title of professor emeritus by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.

The emeritus title may be conferred on retired faculty members who are specially recommended to the board by Virginia Tech President Tim Sands in recognition of exemplary service to the university. Nominated individuals who are approved by the board receive a copy of the resolution and a certificate of appreciation.

A member of the Virginia Tech community since 1989, Kennelly made significant contributions to the field of biochemistry through his work in Archaea, focusing on signal transduction mechanisms. He was the author or co-author of more than 40 research papers in peer-reviewed journals, in addition to several articles, book chapters, and reviews, and for more than 20 years, served as coauthor of the highly respected international teaching textbook, Harper's Illustrated Biochemistry.

At Virginia Tech, Kennelly served as head of the Department of Biochemistry from 2005 to 2015, and served again as interim head from 2022 to 2023, delaying his retirement to serve in that role.

As department head, he expanded the research portfolio to include biomedical areas such as pathogenic microorganisms, the interactions of pathogen with their insect vectors, and drug discovery. He also recruited nine new tenure-track faculty, enhancing the quality and diversity of the department and grew the undergraduate program from 300 to 600 students. He secured accreditation of the Virginia Tech biochemistry program by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB).

Kennelly also played a lead role in developing a state-of-the-art mass spectrometry incubator to perform modern “-omic” analyses and assist investigators in developing new projects through a combination of training, assistance in grant writing, and the opportunity to generate preliminary data free of charge.

In service to his profession, Kennelly served as a member of the ASBMB's Education and Professional Development committee and later received the ASBMB'S 2024 William C. Rose Award for Exemplary Contributions to Education.

Kennelly received his bachelor's degree from the Illinois Institute of Technology and a Ph.D. from Purdue University.