NEW HAVEN – David Levine, chairman of the Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) Art Department and an expert on art history, has been selected Connecticut State University Professor by the state Board of Regents for Higher Education.

Southern, Central, Western and Eastern Connecticut State universities are allotted up to three such professors. The award is presented in recognition of excellence in the areas of creative activity (research), teaching and service, and includes a peer review process. Levine fills an SCSU vacancy left by the recent retirement of Joseph Solodow, professor of philosophy.

“As Southern’s newest CSU Professor, David joins a small and very select group of outstanding faculty members who continue to make significant contributions to their respective fields of study,” said Robert Prezant, provost and vice president for academic affairs at SCSU, at a recent ceremony to recognize Levine. “He was evaluated for this recognition by a committee of his peers, who used as their measurement the highest standards of academic excellence….He is a consummate researcher and an outstanding teacher.”

Troy Paddock, chairman of the university’s CSU Professor Advisory Committee, said the panel concluded that Levine met or exceeded the standard of excellence required.

“Dr. Levine’s most significant research has been a new interpretation of the bambocciata, an anti-heroic genre painting style invented by Dutch artists in Rome,” Paddock wrote. “His work has been singularly responsible for a reassessment of the work of these figures. To redefine a field is no small achievement. He has co-edited or co-authored three books and written 17 articles, essays or book chapters. He has presented papers in North America and Europe.”

Paddock said Levine’s departmental colleagues and students hold him in high esteem, adding that Levine’s service to the university has been exemplary.

“Dr. Levine has served on every committee in the Art Department,” he said. “He played a leading role in establishing the Judaic Studies minor and has served as its coordinator on two different occasions. He is also a valued member of the Honors College and has served on numerous university-wide committees.”