Posted on May 27, 2010

The College recognized a number of alumni and others at ReUnion 2010.

Dr. Ronald Weinstein ’60, a medical researcher and scholar known as a pioneer in the field of telepathology, received the Eliphalet Nott Medal. Weinstein is a native of Schenectady with a long association with the University of Arizona. Named for the president of Union College from 1804 to 1866, the award recognizes the perseverance of alumni who have attained great distinction in their fields.

Three received Alumni Gold Medals from Union’s Alumni Council in recognition of distinguished service to the College: Charles Snow ’50, retired president of a surety investigation and appraisal firm; Stephen Ciesinski ’70, a Schenectady native living in Palo Alto, Calif., technology investor and former chairman of Union’s Board of Trustees; and Nancy Eppler Wolff ’75 of New York City, a child psychologist, author and trustee.

Therese McCarty, vice president for Academic Affairs, received the Faculty Meritorious Service Award.

Their citations follow:

Dr. Ronald S. Weinstein ’60 – Professor, Researcher, Entrepreneur

You are widely known for your success as a scholar, researcher, educator, administrator, inventor and entrepreneur. But it is your pioneering work in the fields of telepathology – which uses technology to transfer image data between remote locations-that has revolutionized health care and made a difference worldwide, particularly in the diagnosis of bladder and breast cancer. You earned a bachelor’s degree from Union in your native Schenectady and took your medical education at Albany Medical College, Massachusetts General Hospital and Tufts University. You served an internship and residency in pathology at Massachusetts General. You served in the U.S. Air Force, doing research in environmental toxicology at the Aerospace Research Laboratory at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. After three years as an associate professor at Tufts, you were named professor and chair of pathology at Rush Medical College in Chicago, a post you held for 15 years before you were named head of pathology at the University of Arizona. When you stepped down from that position recently, you had completed 32 years as an academic department head. Known as the “father of telepathology,” you have transformed the nascent field into a major academic, research and clinical area. You authored the first paper on telepathology in 1986. You invented robotic telepathology and the Array Microscope, for which you have earned a number of patents. With these breakthrough technologies and a steady stream of research papers and three books, you have revolutionized diagnostic services to tens of thousands in dozens of countries including many developing nations. Your passionate teaching, research and service have been recognized worldwide by a number of professional societies, research organizations and educational institutions. We are proud that you have attributed the foundation of your academic career to your experience here at Union College. Dr. Weinstein, it is my pleasure to present you with the Eliphalet Nott Medal, with which we recognize the perseverance of alumni who have attained great distinction in their fields.

Charles E. Snow ’50 – You’ve done just about everything an alumnus can do: Alumni Council, Terrace Council Membership Committee, Friends of Union Athletics, Alumni Club, Travel Program, Admissions Interviewer, Associate Class Agent and ReUnion Leadership Agent. Even as you earned your Juris Doctorate from Albany Law School, raised four children with your wife, Pauline, volunteered with local charities in the Albany area, and built a successful career – retiring as president of your own surety investigation and appraisal firm – you found time for your alma mater. Even the lure of fly fishing couldn’t distract you from forming a lifelong relationship with the College. Perhaps you explained this dedication best in a ReUnion questionnaire: “On Union’s campus, I spent the best years of my life, met some of my closest friends and know I’ll always be welcomed. Its high standards of education and its small college approach blessed me with a background I shall always appreciate.” On behalf of the Alumni Council, I am pleased to recognize your commitment and generosity to Union by presenting you with this Alumni Gold Medal, citation and certificate.

Stephen J. Ciesinski ’70 – You arrived at Union in 1966, a Schenectady kid following in the footsteps of your father, Adam Ciesinski, Class of 1941. You showed boundless energy, quickly establishing yourself as a serious student, stellar athlete and committed leader. You made the dean’s list on your way to degrees in electrical engineering and German. You played football and lacrosse, earning All-American honors on the gridiron. You were president of the Block U society. You were a member of Chi Psi fraternity, Delphic Honor Society and President’s Council. You won the Elias Peissner Prize for your proficiency in German studies. After Union, you went on to an MBA from Stanford University and a successful career as an entrepreneurial founder, executive, advisor and investor in a number of technology firms. As an alumnus, you’ve kept up that energy. A member of the Board of Trustees from 1993 to 2007, you served as chairman of the board your last five years. You have been a tireless promoter of a number of important initiatives including the Minerva system, the blending of liberal arts and technology, international study, undergraduate research, campus improvements and development.  Steve, we also extend our gratitude to your wife, Diane, and your sons, Zachary and Nicholas, for sharing a husband and father.  As a token of our thanks for all you have done for your alma mater, I am pleased to present you with this Alumni Gold Medal, citation and certificate.

Nancy Eppler-Wolff ’75 –   To call you “involved” with Union would be a vast understatement. As a trustee for the past 12 years, you have promoted a number of programs ranging from Admissions to the Annual Fund. Three years ago, with your brother, David, Class of 1982, you launched the popular alumni symposium series, which each year brings together leading experts to tackle issues such as immigration, health care and energy. Most recently, you became chair of the new President’s Council, a group of alumni leaders who lend their expertise to issues affecting the College and higher education in general. As a prominent child psychologist, you have literally written the book on how parents can develop confident children by encouraging them to explore their limits. You and your husband, John, have raised three confident kids, two of whom we’re pleased to have as part of the Union family. Nancy, as one of the first women admitted at Union, you arrived in 1971 ready to take on the vast opportunities of the newly-coed College. Besides your studies, you were active in Sigma Xi, the honorary research society, and studied the roots of progressive education in England during a term at the University of London. Through your confident leadership as an alumna, you have ensured that those opportunities continue for future generations of students. On behalf of the Alumni Council, I am pleased to recognize your confident leadership by presenting you with this Alumni Gold Medal, citation and certificate. 

Therese McCarty – Since you joined the Union faculty in 1987, you have done wonders for this institution. Not only have you inspired and enlightened students across disciplines, you’ve also used your energy and ingenuity to help the College grow, evolve and improve its high standards of excellence. Among your many contributions are your service as chair of the Economics Department, chair of the Faculty Executive Committee, your membership on the Minerva Council, and your participation in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program at the Kenney Community Center. You also helped oversee and orchestrate the two-year, self-study of Union, which was part of the recent Middle States Commission reacrreditation process.  You did the same with Union’s Strategic Plan, becoming an integral leader who worked tirelessly and intelligently to develop this crucial roadmap for the College. All of these contributions make Union a better place for its students, who you care most about. I know your proudest moments come when your advice to them makes a significant difference in their lives. Though, I have to say, you should also be proud of the amazing job you do each June, correctly pronouncing the names of all our graduating seniors. It is my pleasure to recognize you, a remarkable leader and mentor, with the Alumni Council’s Faculty Meritorious Service Award.

The College’s engineering division presented Outstanding Alumni Engineering Awards to seven: Kenneth Haefner ’55, retired engineer for GE; Johanna Wellington ’92, GE Global Research; Robert Briody ’02, Innovative Test Solutions; George Powers ’00, VidSys Inc.; Lewis Hallenbeck, ’40, retired, New York State Department of Transportation; Jenny Moon Lippmann ’03, John M. McDonald Engineering; and John Harnden Jr. ’50, retired engineer for GE.

Posted on May 27, 2010

On a warm Saturday afternoon, the College officially dedicated Messa House in honor of a gift from Frank L. Messa ’73 and his wife, Colleen, to highlight ReUnion 2010.

More than 2,000 visitors descended on campus for the annual celebration of Union’s graduates, which began Thursday and continued through Sunday.

Together, they enjoyed traditional favorites like the Alumni Parade, fireworks show and Gala Dinner. There were also presentations from notable alumni in a variety of fields and to mark the Memorial Day weekend, a celebration to honor the College’s service men and women.

Click here for more images from throughout the weekend in our photo gallery.

Members of the Messa family joined College officials, including President Stephen C. Ainlay and Stephen Dare, vice president for College Relations, to rename Blue House, one of the College’s seven Minervas. The Messas, longtime benefactors to the College, recently gave an unrestricted gift of $2 million.

Recalling the day when he first stepped onto the Union campus in 1969, Messa said there was no doubt where he would go to college.

“I just knew, as many students do, when you are home," said Messa, who is chairman of Union’s Board of Trustees. “And I was home."

Calling Union a special place, Messa thanked a number of his former faculty and staff members in attendance whom he now calls friends; his college roommates who remain his "three best friends in the whole world"; and his family, including his mother and his wife, Colleen. The Saratoga Springs couple has three children: Christopher, Peter and Keri ’08, who was a member of Blue House when she was a student.

"I'm 59 and I still get goosebumps when I come up Library Lane and walk up to the Nott Memorial."

At Union, Messa earned a bachelor’s degree magna cum laude in political science. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and was a finalist for the Albert C. Ingham Prize, given to the student in social sciences judged to have done the most outstanding scholarly work.

Following graduation from Albany Law School in 1976, Messa joined the Ayco Company, a local tax and financial consulting firm. He retired in 2006 after 30 years with the firm.

Messa and his family have provided funds for the renovation of Frank L. Messa Rink at Achilles Center, renovation of Schaffer Library, and establishment of the Frank Messa ’73 Endowed Scholarship and the Steinway Piano Fund for the Taylor Music Center. Messa also has created endowments for the hockey program and women’s athletics.

"This gift shows the Messa family's underlying commitment to academic programs at Union," said President Ainlay. "They have asked everytime, 'what is it I can do for you.'  I will tell their story as long as I am president of this college. We're deeply grateful for all you have done."

To read about Messa's gift in the Daily Gazette, click here.

Also Saturday at Alumni Convocation in Memorial Chapel, the College presented Alumni Gold Medals, the Faculty Meritorious Award, parade trophies and class gifts. The ceremony closed with the traditional Senior Handshake between the Class of 2010 and the 50th ReUnion Class, welcoming the senior class into the alumni body.

Dr. Ronald Weinstein ’60, a medical researcher and scholar known as a pioneer in the field of telepathology, received the Eliphalet Nott Medal. Weinstein is a native of Schenectady with a long association with the University of Arizona. Named for the president of Union College from 1804 to 1866, the award recognizes the perseverance of alumni who have attained great distinction in their fields.

Three received Alumni Gold Medals from Union’s Alumni Council in recognition of distinguished service to the College: Charles Snow ’50, retired president of a surety investigation and appraisal firm; Stephen Ciesinski ’70, a Schenectady native living in Palo Alto, Calif., technology investor and former chairman of Union’s Board of Trustees; and Nancy Eppler Wolff ’75 of New York City, a child psychologist, author and trustee.

Therese McCarty, vice president for Academic Affairs, received the Faculty Meritorious Service Award.

The College also honored outstanding engineering alumni at the Engineering Awards Reception.

For more on the award winners click here.

Other highlights of the weekend included talks by Kathy Magliato ’85, a cardiothoracic and heart transplant surgeon, and author of “Healing Hearts: The Memoir of a Female Heart Surgeon”; Marisa Silveri ’95, a Harvard Medical School/McLean Hospital neuroscientist; Nancy Eppler-Wolff ’75, author of “Raising Children Who Soar”; and Ira Rutkow ’70, a surgeon and author of “Seeking the Cure: A History of Medicine in America.”

The annual Garnet Blades Golf Tournament to support the men’s ice hockey team was held at the Mohawk Club Friday. The sponsor of this year’s event was the Boyd family, whose two sons, Scott '96, past president of Garnet Blades, and Ryan '99, both played hockey during their four years at Union. The family sponsored the event in memory of their mother, Pam Boyd, a founding member of the Garnet Blades, who passed away suddenly last year.  The successful tournament was sold out.

Posted on May 27, 2010

As the season for enrollment of the Class of 2014 comes to a close, it’s time to say hello to prospective members of the Class of 2015. Many of them will be on campus Monday, Memorial Day, for Jump Start Open House (formerly known as Junior Jumpstart).

More than 200 students are expected to attend. The day begins with registration at 8:15 a.m. and includes the ever-popular “Admissions Game,” with tips on writing a memorable essay; tours and sessions about academic and student life, athletics and financial and merit aid; and a session on the Leadership in Medicine program.

A luncheon in the Grant Hall Courtyard will cap the day.

Posted on May 26, 2010

A number of faculty members have received National Science Foundation and other competitive awards in recent months to support a range of research projects and field work.

Valerie Barr, professor and chair of the Computer Science Department, was granted $27,000 for an NSF CPATH “Research Experiences for Teachers Supplement.”

The award builds upon Barr’s “CPATH: Campus Wide Computation Initiative – A New Model for Computing Education” grant. Two teachers from Bard High School Early College in New York City will participate in activities that mirror the work at Union by consulting with faculty who have added computational components to their courses.

Karen Brison, professor and chair of the Anthropology Department, has received $96,983 for “A Cosmopolitan Ethnography of Global Pentecostal Networks: the View from Fiji” under the University of California’s Pentecostal and Charismatic Research Initiative (PCRI).

The award, which runs through May 31, 2012, has been issued through USC’s prime sponsor, the John Templeton Foundation.

Holli Frey, assistant professor of geology, has received a $35,000 Research Corporation-Single Investigator Cottrell College Science Award to support her field work on “Weathering of volcanic rocks and their influence on regolith and water chemistry in the Deschutes Basin, Oregon.”  

Frey will conduct a preliminary chemical analysis in the field and then continue her research at Union. Working with undergraduate research assistants, she will use a variety of techniques and instrumentation.

Joanne Kehlbeck, assistant professor of chemistry, received $309,950 through the NSF MRI-Recovery Act program to acquire a 400 MHz NMR spectrometer. The funding comes from stimulus dollars from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The grant runs through April 30, 2013.

Rebecca Koopmann, associate professor of physics, has received a GSU Subaward of $3,230 for a UAT Summer 2010 Stipend (within the NSF Undergraduate ALFALFA Team project). The project begins June 1 and runs through Aug. 31.  

This award enhances the existing collaborations under the project and enables new research opportunities for an undergraduate.

Kathryn Lesh, professor of Mathematics, is the recipient of an NSF Focused Research Group Collaborative Research Project award of $141,896 through May 31, 2013.  

The funds will be used to probe “The Calculus of Functors and the Theory of Operads: Interactions and Applications” in collaboration with researchers from the University of Georgia, University of Virginia, Kansas State University and the University of Notre Dame.

Many parts of the project involve sophisticated use of category theory, a subject that is increasingly impacting applied subjects like computer science.

Ashok Ramasubramanian, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, has been awarded a prestigious Fulbright Fellowship that will enable him to conduct research and teach biomechanics in Sri Lanka.

Posted on May 24, 2010

 WTEN, the ABC affiliate in Albany, did a story on group of student volunteers who are helping a teen battling a life-threatening illness.

 The students raised $3,500 to help give the sick teen's bedroom a makeover through a New Jersey-based program called "Healing Spaces."

To read about their efforts and to view video clip, click here.