On February 7, 2014, the University of Alabama System Board of Trustees appointed John F. Kearney, Ph.D., distinguished professor in the UAB School of Medicine Department of Microbiology. This is one of the University’s highest honors bestowed on faculty by the Board.

Kearney’s work has brought worldwide recognition to UAB. He is an internationally recognized expert in monoclonal antibodies and their source: immune cells known as B cells that produce the antibodies necessary to fight off infections and other immune threats.

Kearney came to UAB as a postdoctoral fellow in 1974 and joined the microbiology faculty in 1977. In addition to his primary faculty appointment in the microbiology department, Kearney holds several other appointments at UAB including senior scientist in the UAB Comprehensive Cancer Center and UAB Center for Disease Preparedness, as well as a professor in the Division of Developmental and Clinical Immunology.