Alumni News
Alumni News
Time, five years of it, has vanished much too quickly even while I oversaw the department as chair.
I was convinced that time would drag because of what I imagined to be onerous administrative
responsibilities. A few were burdensome tasks, but most were not at all. Also, five years
of "chairing" seems like an impressive accomplishment, but I cheated. In fact, Connie served
for a year and Charlie for a semester as acting chairs while I was leading Off Campus Study Groups
to Manchester, England and Wollongong, Australia. By the time you read this, Bruce will be firmly
implanted as our new chair, a very good appointment for the department.
Much happened during my tenure as chair, largely because of the hard work of our committed
faculty and talented students. I basically had to make sure that I, as chair, did not interfere with the
ongoing work and vision of our faculty and staff. What follows is a brief overview of some very special
achievements.
Connie was promoted to full professor and Amy to associate professor; Karen and William "passed" their third-year
reviews. Jodi McNamara is our new administrative assistant, the person whom I most relied on for critical help in
executing my duties as chair. Charlie and Bruce were honored by the University by being appointed to the William R.
Keenan Jr. Chair and the Harold Orville Whitnall Chair, respectively. Last year, Rich finished two terms as Director
of the Natural Science and Mathematics Division and is back with us, teaching and doing research, where he belongs.
Art took a year-and-a-half-long leave to direct the Tectonics Division of the National Science Foundation in Washington,
D.C. and has just recently rejoined the department. Charlie was recently featured in a Nova special on the fate of
Venice as sea level rises. Karen received the Biggs Earth Science Award from the Geological Society of America. Di
and Dave continue to be the solid bedrock figures of the department, helping faculty and students alike in countless,
invaluable ways. Remarkably, this hodgepodge of people works cooperatively and selflessly for making our geology program
the very best that it can be. Having an infusion of fresh ideas and boundless energy from new faculty has helped us
immensely in rejuvenating and improving our department.
What else has happened recently? Well, the Environmental Geology concentration is solidly in place, and is beginning
to attract more majors, although our classical geology concentration continues to be the department's workhorse. Our
seven-weeks-long summer field program is better than ever, beginning with an eastern leg mostly in the Adirondacks and
upstate New York, and ending with a popular western leg in Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Arizona. Based on exit interviews
with graduating seniors, this off-campus geology program continues to be the stellar academic experience for the vast majority
of our majors. Other extended field excursions have been offered as well, including trips to the Bahamas, California,
and Washington. Research opportunities for students abound as never before, with many venturing to Antarctica, the
Galápagos Islands, Canada, and the Adirondacks with their mentors. Finally, our collection of instruments for research
and teaching is unparalleled for institutions like our own. Upgrades and acquisitions during the past five years
include a new XRF/XRD, an inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometer, a stable isotope ratio mass spectrometer
(currently being assembled), and a just funded grant for a new SEM. Perhaps the biggest news is the active planning
for a new interdisciplinary science building to be shared by geology, physics and astronomy, geography, environmental
studies, among others; Charlie (see his enclosed article) is overseeing and "sheparding" the planning stage of the new
building project. Last but not least is the citizenship deportment of our faculty who teach numerous First-Year seminars,
Core Science Perspective courses, Core Distinction courses, and an assortment of introductory courses that satisfy the
science distribution requirement. The future of geology at Colgate looks brighter than ever.
Contributions to GeologyWe all want to thank those who have donated to the geology department over the last three years. If you are planning to give money to Colgate, you can specify that your contribution go directly to the Geology Department. The department's discretionary fund pays for the publication and distribution of this newsletter and other departmental projects. If you wish, you can specify that your donation goes into one of our endowed funds for students: The Norma Vergo Fund or the Bob Linsley/James McLelland Fund. The following have contributed to the department since the last newsletter (our apologies if we have missed anyone!).
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