OSU professor to be honored as National Academy of Inventors Fellow

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Dr. K. Darrell Berlin, Regents Professor of Chemistry at Oklahoma State University, has been named a National Academy of Inventors Fellow. 

Election to fellow status is a high professional distinction for academic inventors who have demonstrated a prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development, and the welfare of society.

“I am deeply honored to be elected NAI Fellow,” Berlin said.

Berlin specializes in organic and medicinal chemistry and is recognized as a pioneer in the development of agents to treat a variety of cancers, as well as bacterial infections and heart arrhythmias. He was named an American Chemical Society Fellow in 2011, and also holds the distinction of being the first faculty member to be recognized as an OSU Regents Professor on campus for demonstrating a distinguished record of nationally-recognized scholarship in his discipline. 

Berlin will join other NAI Fellows for formal induction, on April 6, 2017, during the organization’s sixth annual conference at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. In honor of their outstanding accomplishments, the fellows will be presented with a special trophy, medal, and rosette pin.

Berlin, who began his work at OSU in 1960, has been a recipient of several awards including the Oklahoma Chemist Award, Outstanding Alumni Award at North Central College,  Regents Distinguish Teaching Award, Regents Distinguished Research Award, and the Oklahoma Medal for Excellence in University Teaching from the Oklahoma Foundation for Excellence. He and his colleagues have published over 325 papers and supervised over 100 doctoral, masters and post-doctoral students. Berlin earned a bachelor’s degree from North Central College and his doctorate from the University of Illinois.