John T. Ho

Dr. Ho attended High Schools in Hong Kong: St. Joseph’s College, St. Paul’s Co-ed; He received his B.Sc. in Physics and Mathematics from the University of Hong Kong in 1965 and his Ph.D. in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1969.

He held faculty positions at the University of Pennsylvania (1969-1974) and the University of Houston (1974-1975), before joining the University at Buffalo.

John joined UB’s faculty in 1975 and built a distinguished career as an experimental condensed matter physicist, earning him election as a fellow of the American Physical Society, among other honors. Throughout his esteemed career at UB, he was devoted to mentoring our faculty and students, and in particular our international population, helping them achieve excellence at UB and beyond.

He was Associate Professor of Physics from 1975 to 1983, Professor of Physics from 1983 to 1995, Associate Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics from 1983 to 1998, Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics from 1984 to 1985, Director of the Interdisciplinary Natural Science Program from 1984 to 2000, Chairman of the Department of Statistics from 1987 to 1989, and Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 1998 to 2000.

“From 2000- 2006 John served as a Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Physics where his duties included teaching, research and service at all levels. He served as the Director of Graduate Studies, and on many national review panels, including one for the U.S. Department of Education. In his research, John did elegant experimental work on liquid crystals exploring phase transitions.”

“From 2006 until 2015, John served as Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Dean of the Graduate School. Through his leadership, John had a profound impact on our entire graduate enterprise, enhancing graduate student and postdoctoral scholar support and development, helping UB achieve strong graduate enrollments, including record enrollments in several years, and raising the overall prominence and quality of graduate education at UB, among many other accomplishments. As a leader, John’s commitment to the success of UB’s graduate programs, students and faculty was matched only by his professionalism and integrity. “

An exemplary university citizen, John brought his student-focused perspective to approximately 130 important committees that contributed to UB’s strength and excellence, including the Middle States reaccreditation and HUB implementation teams. This extraordinary commitment to our university, students and faculty – as well as his strong service to his professional societies – earned John the richly deserved designation of SUNY Distinguished Service Professor.

He has been SUNY Distinguished Service Professor of Physics since 1995. His academic honors include DuPont Young Faculty Award (1970), Fellow of American Physical Society (1990), and John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellow (1990-1991)and more

Charles F. Zukoski, Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs said “UB is stronger because of John’s many contributions. He was a consummate university citizen and colleague and will be greatly missed.”

Dr. Ho is survived by his wife Martha F. Leung two sisters Yuen Yee Ho, Wei Yee Ho and one brother Ting Lam Ho.

The campus community is invited to a memorial gathering on Tuesday, October 18 at 3:30 PM in the Center for the Arts Screening Room to remember John and honor his distinguished legacy.

In lieu of flowers, donations should go to the John Ho and Martha Leung Scholarship Fund. John Ho and Martha Leung Scholarship was established in 2015 with a generous endowment by our colleague Professor John Ho and his wife Dr. Martha Leung. The Scholarship aims at providing support to physics graduate students in their academic pursuits. At present the scholarship is used to recognize academic achievement of early-career graduate students, particularly those who come to UB unsupported.

Donations may also be made to Hospice Buffalo, Inc. and Roswell Park Cancer Institute

Arrangements by Dengler, Roberts, Perna Funeral Home