Joseph Kennedy (professor)

Joseph P. Kennedy is a Distinguished Professor of Polymer Science and Chemistry at the University of Akron, noted particularly for inventing a polymer coating for a drug-tipped stent that is highly compatible to human tissue, and that was successfully commercialized by Boston Scientific.^[1]

Personal[]

Joseph Kenedi spent his youth in Budapest, Hungary during World War II and the beginning of the Cold War. His father was killed by the Nazis, and his mother was imprisoned by communists. In 1948, he was kicked out of the college where he earned his first degree in chemistry, "for being too bourgeois".^[2]

At age 19, he fled to Austria as an illegal immigrant. He gained citizenship upon earning his doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Vienna, and he then completed postgraduate work at the Sorbonne in France.

In 1954, he immigrated to be close to family in Canada, and to take another postdoc position in Montreal. There he met Ingrid, who later became his wife.

Following many years of success in his field, Kennedy accepted an Honorary Doctorate from Kossuth University in 1989. He was also elected a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 1993.

Career[]

Kennedy's first employment in America was in 1957 with the chemical company Celanese Corp. in Summit, N.J. He later joined Exxon, where he held a series of positions with increasing responsibility.

His interest in pure science eventually led him to seek a position in academia. In 1970, he accepted a position with the University of Akron, where he helped to develop the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering.

Awards[]

Döbereiner Medaille, F. Schiller Universität, Jena, DDR, 1985
Honorary Doctorate (Doctor Honoris Causa, D.H.C.), Kossuth University, Debrecen, Hungary, 1989
Elected External Member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 1993
George S. Whitby Award for Excellence in Teaching and Research, Rubber Division, Am. Chem. Soc., 1996
Award for Distinguished Service to Polymer Science, Society of Polymer Science, Japan, 2000
Charles Goodyear Medal, Rubber Division, American Chemical Society, 2008
Honorary Doctorate (D.H.C.), The University of Akron, 2008
Elected Fellow of American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), 2010
Heart Champion Award, American Heart Association, 2011
Ohio Patent Legacy Award, The Ohio Academy of Science, 2011

References[]

^ Smith, Robert L. (September 6, 2012). "Joseph Kennedy, Akron's King of Polymers, proves inventors are young at heart". Plain Dealer. Retrieved 24 Sep 2014.
^ Kennedy, Joseph P. (1999). "Living Cationic Polymerization of Olefins. How Did the Discovery Come About?" (PDF). J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 37 (14): 2285–2293. Bibcode:1999JPoSA..37.2285K. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0518(19990715)37:14<2285::AID-POLA1>3.0.CO;2-P. Retrieved 24 Sep 2014.

[1] Smith, Robert L. (September 6, 2012). "Joseph Kennedy, Akron's King of Polymers, proves inventors are young at heart". Plain Dealer. Retrieved 24 Sep 2014.

[2] Kennedy, Joseph P. (1999). "Living Cationic Polymerization of Olefins. How Did the Discovery Come About?" (PDF). J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 37 (14): 2285–2293. Bibcode:1999JPoSA..37.2285K. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1099-0518(19990715)37:14<2285::AID-POLA1>3.0.CO;2-P. Retrieved 24 Sep 2014.

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