Wayne State University officials extended a warm welcome last month to 48 new faculty participating in a three-day orientation program designed to acquaint them with Detroit and the university.

For some of the participants, the Aug. 24 day-long bus tour of Detroit was their first extensive look at the city and Wayne State’s campus. The exploration of Detroit was presented by WSU’s Detroit Orientation Institute offering participants a glimpse into the city’s cultural areas, architecture and residential options. A historical video and discussion were also a part of the program.

Day 2 opened with welcoming remarks by Wayne State University President Irvin D. Reid and brief statements by other WSU administrators. Provost and Senior Vice President Nancy Barrett spoke about the highly selective process that is used in hiring new faculty and the importance of their success to the future of the university.

The third day of the orientation program provided new faculty with an introduction to the human resources office and the benefits available to Wayne State employees. Professor Hilary Ratner, vice president for research, offered an overview of the research office, a description of the resources available to WSU faculty and services that she and her staff provide.

Among the university’s outstanding faculty recruits this year are leading scholars in their respective fields of expertise. Professor Cheryl E. Waites joined the faculty of WSU’s School of Social Work as an associate professor and associate dean. She has extensive experience in social work education and social work practice in child welfare, aging and work with African American families. She has excelled in teaching, scholarship and academic and administrative leadership roles. Waites’ scholarly interests are aging and intergenerational practice, social justice, best practice with African American families and communities and social work education.

Professor Marjorie Beeghly joined the Department of Psychology, in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, as an associate professor specializing in cognitive and social psychology across the lifespan. She was formerly an assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Senior Research Associate in the Child Development Unit at Children’s Hospital in Boston, Mass. Beeghly has contributed to major publications in the areas of child language, mental retardation, effects of cocaine exposure and maternal depression.

Wayne State’s Department of Chemistry announced the appointment of David Crich as the A. Paul and Carol C. Schaap Professor of Chemistry. Professor Crich is a world-renowned organic chemist, whose most recent position was Distinguished Professor of Organic Chemistry at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Crich is the author of more than 250 peer-reviewed publications in the field of organic chemistry, and his work has resulted in the award of numerous patents. His current research focuses on the areas of synthetic methodology development, with emphasis of stereocontrolled oligosaccharide synthesis and, most recently, new ligation methods.

Wayne State University is a premier institution of higher education offering more than 350 academic programs through 11 schools and colleges to nearly 33,000 students.