Walter Soares Leal: For the Love of Teaching

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When Walter Leal was offered a scholarship to leave his native Brazil and begin graduate education in Japan, he was required to become proficient in both Japanese and English—two languages he had never spoken—within six months. He accomplished this challenge, eventually earning both his master’s and Ph.D. degrees. He was then offered a research scientist position with the National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science in Tsukuba, Japan, eventually becoming head of the Laboratory of Chemical Prospecting for six years. Leal was the first foreigner to be granted tenure at that institution.

Leal holds degrees in chemical engineering (B. Eng., 1982, Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil), agricultural chemistry (M.S., 1987, Mie University, Tsu-Mie, Japan), and applied biochemistry (Ph.D., 1990, University of Tsukuba, Japan), and completed a postdoc (1991) in entomology at the National Institute of Sericultural and Entomological Science, Japan.

In 2000, Leal accepted a position as associate professor of entomology at the University of California–Davis. Two years later, he was promoted to professor, and six years later, he became chair and led the department to a No. 1 ranking in the country. He is currently a distinguished professor of biochemistry at UC–Davis.