Claude E. Welch, Jr. University of Buffalo, USA

Claude Welch, SUNY Distinguished Service Professor and Professor of Political Science Emeritus, taught at the University of Buffalo from 1964 to 2017. His academic specializations include African politics, the roles of armed forces in politics, and human rights. His teaching awards have come from Political Science students, the Undergraduate Student Association, and the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching. Welch published fourteen books and ~40 chapters and articles in academic journals. In 2006, he received the first-ever Lifetime Achievement Award given by TIAA and the SUNY Research Foundation. Welch was also given a Lifetime Achievement Award for human rights by the American Political Science Association in 2014, and the Distinguished Scholar Award for human rights by the International Studies Association in 2015. Finally, Welch received the University at Buffalo’s President’s Medal, 2016, for “signal and extraordinary service to UB.