Milestones
Frank J. Studer, who taught physics at Union from 1930 to 1943 and then served as a research professor at the College, died March 29 in Bethesda, Md. He was ninety-six.
The Gordon Gould '41 Professorship in Physics, established in 1995, honors Studer. Gould, who discovered the basic concepts of the laser, says Studer sparked his interest in the physics of light.
A graduate of the University of British Columbia, Studer received a master's degree from the University of Washington and a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin. After fifteen years at Union, Studer went to work at the General Electric Company's Research and Development Laboratory, where he developed advances in the light measurement field until his retirement in 1966.
He is survived by his wife, Katherine; a son; a stepdaughter; and two granddaughters.
Frederick Hartwig, a former professor of political science at the College, died May 27. He was fifty-six.
A graduate of Lawrence University, he received his Ph.D. from Northwestern University and joined the Union faculty in 1968, specializing in quantitative analysis, or polling data. He left in 1983 to join Peter D. Hart Research Associates in Washington, D.C., where he became senior vice president. He worked with pro-democracy groups in Chile and with the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs to moderate focus groups in post-apartheid South Africa. Survivors include his companion, Debbie Klingender, of Washington, D.C.; his former wife, Johanna Petersen, of Schenectady; a daughter, Karen; and a son, John.
A memorial service will be held Oct. 18 at 11 a.m. in Old Chapel.
On leadership
Edgar Letriz '92, assistant dean of students, has accepted a new position as assistant dean of Yale College. While making the announcement at the annual awards reception for the Academic Opportunity Program, he offered the following thoughts on alumni leadership:
“Leadership can only be defined by the service one renders to society and the humility and force with which it is exacted. Leadership by its own right demands a selfless giving of the soul for the greater humanity of the masses. It is not offered for the taking. Rather, it is earned to be shared with others. Such are the true qualities of a leader….
“I go to Yale for a number of purposes and with several obligations in mind. Of the most pressing of these is my obligation to Union… [M]y greatest obligation will be to extol her virtues and com
plement her unyielding success in forming an individual firmly grounded in a solid foundation of tomorrow's future. All that I've accomplished thus far and all that I wish to accomplish, as irrelevant or daunting as the task may be, I owe in a large part and careful measure to this College. To make her look good by all comparison is the very least I can do. To make her look splendid and, by so doing, to allow her to take her rightful place among the finest of liberal arts colleges, is what we all must do.”
Zolner '76 to lead GMI
Joseph P. Zolner '76 has been named director of the Graduate Management Institute, responsible for student recruitment, accreditation, fundraising, and placement.
Zolner has been special projects consultant at Harvard University's Institutes for Higher Education. Previously, he was director of the Graduate School of Business Administration at Northeastern University.
The appointment follows a recently-completed strategic review of GMI, which recommended a full-time director.
“Because of its outstanding faculty, relevant curriculum, and attractive student/faculty ratio, GMI has already established itself as a first-rate provider of graduate management education,” Zolner said. “My goal is to support the faculty in their continuing efforts to make Union's MBA programs even stronger.”
Zolner, who earned his undergraduate degree in psychology, has a master's degree in public and private management from Yale and a master's degree and doctorate in education from Harvard.
Two seniors to teach in China
Seniors Jesse Karotkin and Joseph Quini have won fellowships to teach English next year at Capital Normal University in Beijing.
The two were selected to participate in a new program run by the United Board of Christian Higher Education in Asia. The program allows graduating students of ASIANetwork member institutions-including Union-to teach English at colleges and universities in the Peoples Republic of China. The program is supported by a grant from the Freeman Foundation.
Karotkin and Quini will take part in a summer orientation program (funded by the Amnity Foundation) before leaving for China. Both say their desire to teach in China arose from their term abroad at Nanjing Normal University.