The last professor to be hired by the College as a fully tenured professor was Professor of Political Science Uday Mehta, who was hired in 2000.
An acclaimed researcher in the field of physical chemistry, Leung's expertise is in small molecule gas spectroscopy. She is the author of many journal articles, some of which she co-authored with her undergraduate students.
"She's a very prolific author and researcher," said President Tom Gerety. "She gives us just the kind of research and teaching strength we want."
In 1998, Assistant Dean of the Faculty Sarah Sutherland left Amherst for a similar position at Mount Holyoke College, so movement between the five colleges is rare but not unheard of.
"Professor Leung is a physical chemist whose work has won her national recognition, whose creative and innovative teaching has earned her accolades from faculty and students, and who is just a tremendously wonderful human being," said Professor of Chemistry Patricia O'Hara, the chair of the department. "We count ourselves incredibly lucky to have her join our department."
In most cases, newly hired members of the faculty are given the position of assistant professor, a tenure-track position. After three years, they are considered for renewal and are considered for tenure three years after that.
Once the chemistry department decided to offer Leung the position, an ad hoc committee was formed to determine the title Leung would be offered. The committee recommended to Dean of the Faculty Lisa Raskin and the Committee of Six that Leung be granted a full professorship.
"We wouldn't get someone like Helen without [a tenure offer]," said Gerety. "You bring leadership into a department. You bring in somebody whose success you can know."
"[Offering tenure to a new hire] is the exception, not the rule," he said.
"On a more personal note, I have been at Amherst for almost 20 years and this will be the first time that I will have a senior woman colleague in chemistry," said O'Hara. "I'm more than thrilled."
Currently, Leung's research work is being funded both by the National Science Foundation and the Dreyfus Foundation, both highly reputed organizations.
Members of the College's student advisory group, headed by Philip Chau '02, interviewed Leung and recommended her as the top candidate in the applicant pool.
Born in Hong Kong, Leung received her undergraduate degree from California State University (CSU) at Northridge in 1983, where she majored in biology and chemistry. She received her Ph.D. in physical chemistry from Harvard University, where she studied under renowned chemist William Klemperer. She completed a year of postdoctoral work at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, before gaining professorship at Williams College, and then ultimately moving on to Mount Holyoke in recent years. She is the wife of Professor of Chemistry Mark Marshall.