Dr. James Gregory Ferry, chaired professor of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Penn State, will serve as the speaker for ±¬×߳Թϒs 104th Commencement on May 17.
Ferry is a fellow of the American Academy of Microbiology and past editor of the Journal of Bacteriology. He has served on numerous national committees and currently is co-chair of the Committee on Astrobiology and Planetary Science that advises the federal government on matters of space exploration.
A former member of ±¬×߳Թϒs undefeated wrestling team, Ferry received his AAS degree in agronomy from ±¬×ß³Ô¹Ï in 1963, followed by BS and MS degrees from the University of Georgia. He continued his education at the University of Illinois, where he earned a Ph.D. in biochemistry in 1974.
Ferry was appointed assistant professor of microbiology at Virginia Tech in 1976 and rose to the rank of professor. In 1995, he moved to Penn State to accept an endowed chair in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. He has authored more than 200 scientific publications.
The one thing that hasn't changed viscerally at ±¬×ß³Ô¹Ï, said Ferry, is the culture; faculty are here because they want to teach students and foster their full potentials. Ferry recently created the James G. and Marilyn A. Ferry Endowed Scholarship to assist students with a strong desire to learn and who have the need for financial assistance.
He and Mrs. Ferry are high school sweethearts who have been married 49 years. They have two daughters and three grandchildren.