Milestones:
50 years of science n 1963, an age of typewriters and black-and-white TV, Charles “Dutch” VanRy ’64 officially joined the new physics department as a student. He was one of just three physics majors in the department’s first graduating class, overseen by the late Professor Emeritus Robert “Duke” Sells. There were only nine science faculty members back then. “I had always been interested in physics, and since it was all brand new, I thought it would be kind of exciting, which it was,” says VanRy. “It was pretty innovative, at the time, what they were trying to do.” Fifty years later, VanRy returned to campus for PhysicsFest on Aug. 30 and 31 to celebrate the physics and astronomy department’s golden anniversary. The department now has nine faculty of its own — along with 220 students — and a dis-
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PHOTO BY KEITH WALTERS ’11
Distinguished Teaching Professor of Physics Emeritus Jerry Reber, left, Dean of the College Savi Iyer, and Professor of Physics and Department Chair Charles Freeman at the 50-year celebration.
tinction. Geneseo awarded more bachelor's degrees in physics in 2011-12 than any other physics departments in the country in which a bachelor's is the highest physics degree offered, according to the American Institute of Physics. Interest in the field has grown throughout the decades. In 1973, there were just 47 majors in the program; by 1983, the number had more than dou-
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bled. Geneseo has made a major investment in the hard sciences — now the school’s most popular discipline — including expanding laboratory and other resources in the Integrated Science Center. At PhysicsFest, students, alumni and emeriti networked, toured labs, and stargazed from the rooftop observatory. “We feel very connected with our alumni and we feel like our
View photos from PhysicsFest — go.geneseo.edu/physics50photos.
alumni are an important part of the department and wanted to invite them back to campus so that they could participate in the celebration,” says Professor of Physics and Department Chair Charles Freeman. That closeness, says Freeman, comes from the family-like atmosphere that started 50 years ago, and professors’ commitment to undergraduate education, in and out of class, by offering opportunities including conferences and participation in research projects such as determining the age of star clusters and modeling the extinction of light from aerosol particles. Ryan Rickert ’10, an assembly technician at Moog Inc., a company that develops mission control technology, says Geneseo’s program taught him lasting lessons. “It’s given me a lot of educational skills that I can apply in the real world like analytical skills. Also, it taught me to actually work hard,” says Rickert. “The physics major is not easy and it kind of whipped me into shape.” — By Chelsea Butkowski ’15
Doty Hall is now the main campus entrance he college has a new front door — actually, a new front building — that is prominently changing the first impression visitors receive when entering campus. Doty Hall opened in September and now houses numerous offices originally in Erwin Hall and elsewhere on campus, including the offices of the president and all of the vice presidents. “People coming onto campus often thought Doty was part of campus and now it finally is,” said David Norton, acting director of facilities planning and construction at the college. “The building fits in well architecturally with the campus and places offices with heavy public contact at the forefront.” Erwin Hall will remain open to house primarily student-related functions such as financial aid, the Office of the Dean of the College and international student services.
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Doty also houses a state-of-the-art recital hall with seating for 208 and a unique all-purpose meeting area, the Tower Room, for preor post-recital receptions or meetings. The building incorporates numerous energy efficient elements, including geothermal heating and cooling, and captured rainwater for treatment and use in toilets. New York State owned the building for various functions over time, most recently serving clients of the Office of People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD). OPWDD has returned to Doty and rents one floor of the renovated building. PHOTO BY KEITH WALTERS ’11 Holcomb was razed to make way for construction of the new athletic stadium. Letchworth Dining Hall is also undergoing major renovation, scheduled for completion in April 2014. Bailey Hall renovation should be is completed May 2014 and will be the new home of the social sciences. — By David Irwin Fall 2013
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