BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The University of Alabama System Board of Trustees appointed Ferris Ritchey, Ph.D., a professor emeritus in the University of Alabama at Birmingham(UAB) Department of Sociology and Social Work at its Sept. 18 meeting.

Ritchey, who retired in June, is a former department chair. He is credited for his role in the development of the UAB Medical Sociology Ph.D. Program, one of only two in the nation.

Ritchey is a nationally known scholar in sociology who has published 40 articles and two books on topics ranging from homelessness and poverty to medical malpractice, patient satisfaction, the professionalization process in health-care fields, statistical methods and analysis and the measurement of learning outcomes in higher education.

For more than 20 years he studied the causes and consequences of homelessness, and he was a member of the Board of Directors for Metropolitan Birmingham Services for the Homeless.

He received the President's Award for Excellence in Teaching in the School of Social and Behavioral Sciences in 1995 and the 2009 Ellen Gregg Ingalls/UAB National Alumni Society Award for Lifetime Achievement in Teaching.

About the UAB Medical Sociology Program

The UAB Medical Sociology Program trains students to assess the influence of cultures, organizations and communities on individual beliefs and behaviors and how these factors impact the physical and mental health of individuals and groups. Known for its innovative and interdisciplinary approach to education at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, UAB is an internationally renowned research university and academic medical center. Click here to learn more about applying to UAB.