Congratulations to Dr. Johnny Peterson Upon His Retirement

RETIREMENT DAY: Dr. Johnny Peterson with three of his former students, all current employees at UTMB.  Left to right: Dr. Scott Moen, Dr. Peterson, Dr. William Lawrence and Dr. Linsey Yeager were a few of the many who had wonderful things to say about their years working with Dr. Peterson.

After “48 years, seven months and seven hours at UTMB,” Dr. Johnny Peterson, a favorite UTMB professor and an internationally recognized bacteriologist, who has authored more than 150 publications and been cited by other researchers nearly 3,800 times, has retired from UTMB.

His career was celebrated on August 31 at the Galveston National Laboratory, with former students, past and present members of his lab, and colleagues from UTMB and across the country joining in from both Galveston and remotely to tell their favorite “Dr. Peterson stories.”  Without fail, those stories had a common theme: Dr. Peterson loves science, and he is a really nice man.

Dr. Peterson came to UTMB in 1972 after receiving his PhD from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School.  At just 25 years old, he was the youngest medical school faculty member in UTMB’s history at that time.  His early offices were in the Ashbel Smith Building (Old Red).

Dr. Charles Mouton, UTMB Provost, presented Dr. Peterson with a Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. Among those attending his event in Galveston was one of his very first post-doctoral students: Dr. Clifford Houston, who came to UTMB in 1979 and who is currently Professor Emeritus and the UTMB Ombudsman.

In fact, Dr. Peterson is responsible for numerous careers at UTMB.  Dr. Scott Weaver, chair of the Microbiology and Immunology Department and Research Director of the GNL, said one of the main reasons he came to UTMB was because of Dr. Peterson, who was one of the faculty who interviewed him more than 26 years ago.

“Johnny was so welcoming and friendly, and he told me about both the good and bad parts of working at UTMB.  I really appreciated that.  I have also spent more time working with him on the Institutional Biosafety Committee over the years than probably anyone else.  I always knew if Johnny was reviewing a protocol, it was going to be a thorough review.  He's a very accomplished scientist,” Weaver said.

Three of Dr. Peterson’s former students who have been employed at UTMB since completing their doctorates provided their perspective on working with and learning from Dr. Peterson.

“If we had to be in the lab working, Dr. Peterson was there too,” said Dr. Linsey Yeager, a biodefense project manager and research grant writer at UTMB who used to work in his aerobiology lab and who had Dr. Peterson as her faculty mentor.

Dr. Yeager also recalled a time when her purse was stolen from her car after dropping her children at daycare.  “I called Dr. Peterson to tell him what was going on, and he was on his way to Galveston and turned around and came to my daycare and helped me file the police report. He even gave me lunch money because he knew my money was stolen.  He was always so caring like that.”

“He hates taking vacation, and there have been times when he is supposed to be on his way out and he is still here.  He's just incredibly dedicated like that," said Dr. William Lawrence, another of his former students and the assistant director under Peterson for the Aerobiology Division at the GNL.  Dr. Lawrence will be leading the efforts of the Peterson Lab going forward.  

Dr. Ashok Chopra, who has worked closely with Dr. Peterson for many years, fondly recalled flying with Johnny, who was a licensed airplane pilot who enjoyed flying with his friends and colleagues. Dr. Chopra noted that Peterson has been well-funded by the National Institute’s of Health his entire career, which has allowed him to mentor many students and contribute significantly to medical research.  His primary research activities have focused in the areas of toxin-mediated bacterial diseases, including cholera, anthrax, and salmonellosis. The majority of the lab's recent research is focused on the evaluation of drugs, monoclonal antibodies, and vaccines that block the pathogenesis of anthrax.

“Johnny’s aerobiology lab is a very unique resource and one of the jewels in the crown of the GNL,” said Dr. Jim Le Duc, director of the national lab. Dr. Peterson's Aerobiology Division has recently been collaborating with UTMB investigators to perform SARS-CoV-2 aerosol studies.

While Dr. Peterson’s last day was officially August 31, he has been appointed Professor Emeritus with all the privileges associated with that status.  So of course no one was surprised to see him in the GNL on Sept. 1, heading for his lab to see what was going on.

Congratulations to Dr. Peterson on his retirement and new appointment.  After nearly 49 years, he really deserves it!