Aaron Fobian, Ph.D., and Shinichi Kano, M.D., Ph.D., were recently named to endowed professorship positions in the UAB Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology.

Fobian became the fourth holder of the Tate Jordan Thomas Professorship in Psychiatric Medicine in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology.

The Tate Jordan Thomas Professorship was established in honor of the late Tate Jordan Thomas of Alexander City, Alabama, who received extended care at UAB Medical Center prior to her passing in 1992. The Thomas family determined that the professorship should be used to support research and teaching activities within the Center for Psychiatric Medicine, with a particular emphasis on affective disorders.

“I am honored to receive the Tate Jordan Thomas Professorship in Psychiatric Medicine,” Fobian said. “This endowment will help expand my research developing novel treatments for functional neurological disorder (FND) and allow for additional investigation into the most effective way to disseminate evidence-based mental health treatments with fidelity. This will be incredibly beneficial to individuals with FND, as evidence-based treatment options are currently lacking.”

Kano became the first holder of the UAB Endowed Professorship in Mental Health Research in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurobiology.

The UAB Endowed Professorship in Mental Health Research was previously named the Neurosciences Endowed Program Support Fund and exists to support faculty in their efforts related to medical breakthroughs, research, teaching, and clinical care.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to receive this endowment,” Kano said. “It empowers us to advance our research into novel discoveries in neurobiology underlying psychiatric disorders, develop innovative therapeutic methods, and share this knowledge through education.”