(President Lawrence also attended Art's festschrift and delivered some very nice opening comments. Below is the text of a letter he provided ahead of time to Art.)

July 18, 2014

Dear Art,

There are few duties for a university president that are more rewarding than recognizing the outstanding contributions of a faculty colleague. At the invitation of your colleagues, I wish to mark the occasion of the Festschrift in your honor being held at Brandeis University next week.

Over the course of your career, you have been a "triple threat"—an eminent scholar and scientist, a beloved teacher and mentor, and an individual who has served the Brandeis community with distinction as Director of the Volen National Center for Complex Systems.

The audience at your Festschrift will be familiar with your tremendous scientific accomplishments including the Baltes award, years of continuous NIH funding in ever more competitive times, and two NIH Merit Awards. These are tangible signs of the contributions you have made to the study of sensory and cognitive changes in aging. We are grateful for the clinical implications of your work, which have never been more important as the population of the United States continue to age. Your adoption of technologies like functional MRI studies is a superb example of an eminent scientist pushing the boundaries of knowledge to the benefit of those who need to understand the links between hearing and cognition—and your publication record can only be described as prolific.

You are a beloved teacher and mentor who has had a tremendous impact on both graduate students trained in your lab and on undergraduates who were able to work with you over the course of your career—dozens of whom have gone on to prolific scientific careers of their own—potentially influencing the arc of thousands of lives through their own teaching, research, and service.

Finally, you have led a nationally recognized scientific institute with distinction, contributed to the community in a variety of ways through service on countless committees, and have served with all eight Brandeis presidents.

As your community gathers to honor you, I wish to convey my personal gratitude and that of your Brandeis University colleagues for more than 45 years of exceptional dedication and service.

Sincerely,

Frederick M. Lawrence