George Williams
and Carl George are doing something they never
got to do before retirement. They're working together.
The collaboration between the
biologist (George) and the computer scientist was nurtured by the new Emeritus
Center, a sort of incubator in
which retired faculty share office space and ideas.
“We're here to serve,” said George
of his colleagues' desire to stay engaged with the College, noting that a
number of retirees collaborate with current faculty, teach classes and advise
students.
“Nothing is to be gained from
having our faculty suddenly retire,” said President
Roger Hull at a reception on Thursday at the center. “The institution has a
need and an obligation to keep the faculty who have contributed so much for so
many years.” Hull said he liked the
idea of retirees “getting together to share experiences” for the benefit of the
College.
The center, with offices for a
dozen retirees and room for more, is on the third floor of Old Chapel. Desks
are set in close proximity in two large rooms, an arrangement that George says
fosters camaraderie.
The quarters are also convenient
for a number of retired faculty who continue to teach, said James Underwood,
who meets students and advisees at the center. Faculty have kept their phone
numbers. Most are using the computers and some of the equipment they had before
retiring.
“We're probably the only college
our size that has given space to retired faculty,” said Dwight Wolf, associate
dean for academic services and planning, who coordinated the center along with
Dean of Faculty Christie Sorum and the retirees.
In the center are Bill Fairchild,
Carl George, Jim Underwood, Dick Shanebrook, George Williams, Twitty Styles,
Bob Sharlet, Margaret Schadler, Sigrid Kellenter, Ted Bick and Ken Schick.
“I was struck by [President Roger
Hull's] concern about helping faculty transition into retirement,” said
Underwood, busy with writing on Abraham Lincoln and William H. Seward and
speaking to alumni in Washington.
“It's been my life here on
campus,” said Sigrid Kellenter, who retired last year from teaching German.
Like some of her colleagues, she has audited a number of classes (including
beginning Spanish and world religion and music) and has plans to take others in
music theory, English literature and the social sciences.
Twitty Styles, who retired from
biology several years ago, has taken more than a dozen classes in “disciplines
I never had a chance to look at before.” He has been taking classes in visual
arts, art history and music, because he enjoys the “mental gymnastics.”
George, kept busy with his
research and with his work on behalf of the Association for the Protection of
the Adirondacks, calls his transition, “when I got my
new wheels.”
“Get it?” he asked the crowd at
the reception. “It's re-tire-ment.”