Joseph Kennedy (professor)

Joseph P. Kennedy (18 May 1928 - 21 July 2024^[1]) was a Distinguished Professor of Polymer Science and Chemistry at the University of Akron,^[2] noted particularly for inventing a polymer coating for a drug-tipped stent that is highly compatible to human tissue,^[3] and that was successfully commercialized by Boston Scientific^[4] and credited for saving the lives of 6 million patients.^[5]

Kennedy spent his youth in Budapest, Hungary during World War II and the beginning of the Cold War. His father was killed by the Nazis, and his mother was imprisoned by communists. In 1948, he was kicked out of the college where he earned his first degree in chemistry, "for being too bourgeois".^[6]

At age 19, he fled to Austria as an illegal immigrant. He gained citizenship upon earning his doctorate in biochemistry from the University of Vienna, and he then completed postgraduate work at the Sorbonne in France.

In 1954, he immigrated to be close to family in Canada, and to take another postdoc position in Montreal. There he met Ingrid, who later became his wife.^[7]

Following many years of success in his field, Kennedy accepted an Honorary Doctorate from Kossuth University in 1989. He was also elected a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 1993.

Kennedy's first employment in America was in 1957 with the chemical company Celanese in Summit, N.J. He later joined Exxon, where he apprenticed under Robert M. Thomas,^[8] and held a series of positions with increasing responsibility.

His interest in pure science eventually led him to seek a position in academia. In 1970, he accepted a position with the University of Akron, where he helped to develop the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering.

• Döbereiner Medaille, F. Schiller Universität, Jena, DDR, 1985
• Honorary Doctorate (Doctor Honoris Causa, D.H.C.), Kossuth University, Debrecen, Hungary, 1989
• Elected External Member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 1993
• George S. Whitby Award for Excellence in Teaching and Research, Rubber Division, Am. Chem. Soc., 1996
• Award for Distinguished Service to Polymer Science, Society of Polymer Science, Japan, 2000
• Charles Goodyear Medal, Rubber Division, American Chemical Society, 2008
• Honorary Doctorate (D.H.C.), The University of Akron, 2008
• Elected Fellow of American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), 2010
• Heart Champion Award, American Heart Association, 2011
• Ohio Patent Legacy Award, The Ohio Academy of Science, 2011