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Memoir
Robert G. Craig
Regent's Proceedings 70
Regent's Proceedings 70
Robert G. Craig, Marcus L. Ward Professor of Dentistry, retired from active faculty status on August 31, 1993.
Professor Craig received his B.S. degree in 1944, his M.S. degree in 1951, and his Ph.D. degree in 1954, all from the University of Michigan. He worked as a researcher for two companies in New York State before joining the University of Michigan in 1955 as a research associate in the Engineering Research Institute. He joined the faculty of the School of Dentistry as an assistant professor in and was promoted to associate professor in 1961 and professor in 1965. He also served as chair of the Dental Materials Department from 1969-87.
Since coming to the University, Professor Craig has distinguished himself as a dental scholar, researcher, administrator, and teacher, who has had a direct impact on the practice of dentistry worldwide. He is the editor of Restorative Dental Materials, 9th edition (1993) and co-author of Dental Materials: Properties and Manipulation, 5th edition (1992), two books used as texts and references throughout the world, as well as co-author of seven other textbooks and author of over 250 publications in scientific journals. His main research interests include biocompatibility of materials, properties of polymers (both elastomers and composites), surface effects of materials, and experimental stress analysis.
Professor Craig has served on almost all of the standing committees within the School of Dentistry and has served as a member and chair of the University's Budget Priorities Committee. He is active in many professional organizations, has served on the editorial boards of the Journal of Oral Implantology and the Journal of Oral Rehabilitation, and has been the assistant editor of the Journal of Biomedical Materials since 1983. Among his honors are the prestigious Wilmer Souder Award in Dental Materials (1975), the Clemson Award for Basic Research in Biomaterials (1978), and the Hollenback Memorial Prize from the Academy of Operative Dentistry (1991). He was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Geneva in Switzerland in 1989 and was named the Marcus L. Ward Professor of Dentistry at the University of Michigan in 1990.
The Regents now salute this distinguished health sciences editor by naming Robert G. Craig the Marcus L. Ward Professor Emeritus of Dentistry.