SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL SCHOOL
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES
SCHOOL OF ALLIED HEALTH SCIENCES

October 2, 1979

Joshua Lederberg, Ph.D.
President, Rockefeller University
New York, NY 10021

Dear Dr. Lederberg:

I am writing on behalf of the University of Texas Health
Science Center at Dallas to invite you to serve as our
"Jonsson Visiting Professor" for 1980-81. This Professorship
was established in 1977 to honor the Jonsson family. As I

am sure you know better than most people, Eric Jonsson and
his family, like the other founders and leaders of Texas
Instruments, have been remarkable in their support of higher
education and scientific research, not only here in Dallas
but across the country.

The visit of the Jonsson Professor serves as the leading
academic event of the year on our campus. We normally
schedule activities over three full days and four evenings,
although the same activities could be spread out over four

or five days if you preferred to have a less intense itinerary.
Most of the time is reserved for informal meetings with small
groups of faculty and students. In addition, we would ask
that you deliver two 50-minute lectures, one to a regularly
scheduled faculty research seminar and one as the "keynote”
speaker for our Graduate Student Research Forum (during which
six of our students present brief papers that have been
selected from abstracts submitted to a faculty committee).

We are extending this invitation a year before the event, in
the knowledge that it is difficult for a person in your
position to carve out time for an extended out-of-town visit.
Our own schedule for 1980-81 is still quite flexible, and
almost any week you might choose would be acceptable for us.
In general, October and November have been times when other
events on campus have been few. February and March are also

5323 HARRY HINES BLVD. DALLAS, TEXAS 75235 (214) 688-3111
Dr. Lederberg
October 2, 1979
Page two

months with less competition from other activities and national
meetings. But any time would be fine, and if you believe you
might be able to accept our invitation, I would ask that you
suggest one or more dates that would be most convenient from
your own standpoint.

Incidently, as you may realize, you already have a connection
with the Jonsson Professorship: it was during Lewis Thomas'
visit as the first Jonsson Professor that you, he, and Pat
Haggerty met in our Faculty Club to discuss your accepting
your present position. The other Jonsson Professors have been
Fran¢gois Jacob and Peter Medawar. It will be a signal honor
for our school and, I know, a pleasure for the Jonsson family,
if you will be able to join this group as one of the school's
Jonsson Professors.

Finally, I should mention that we will be able to provide
transportation and all expenses for the visit. The Professor-
ship also carries with it an honorarium of $3,000.

Again, on behalf of the faculty and students here in Dallas,
I want to say how very pleased we would be to have you be the
Jonsson Visiting Professor for 1980-81. If you have any
questions, please do not hesitate to write or call.

Sincerely yours,

Pk Bebb Thok

Kern Wildenthal, M.D., Ph.D.
Dean
Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences

KW:ms