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Hamilton alumni, students, and colleagues send well-wishes and thanks to four members of the faculty who will enter the world of retirement at the conclusion of the 2022-23 academic year. We asked each of them to reflect on their time on College Hill and what’s next.

Gordon Jones, the Stone Professor of Natural History and Professor of Physics, was recently announced as the winner of the American Physical Society’s 2021 Prize for a Faculty Member for Research in an Undergraduate Institution.

President Joan Hinde Stewart recently announced the appointment of eight Hamilton faculty members to endowed chairs.  Doug Ambrose (history),  Brian Collett (physics), Martine Guyot-Bender (French), Gordon Jones (physics), Tim Kelly (mathematics), Heidi Ravven (religious studies), Patrick Reynolds (biology) and Michael “Doc” Woods (music) received appointments. All are effective July 1.

Hamilton College Dean of Faculty Patrick Reynolds announced the promotion of four Hamilton faculty members to the rank of professor. Brian Collett, physics; Heather Merrill, Africana studies; Cheryl Morgan, French; and Lisa Trivedi, history, were promoted effective Oct. 3.

Steven Laurent Cunden ’18 is this summer helping to further develop the robotics technologies used in the Physics 245 course, Electronics and Computers. Cunden is working with the class instructor, Associate Professor of Physics Brian Collet, on enabling the relatively simplistic robotic arms used in the course to receive and react to positional feedback.

Lots of “oohs” and “ahhs” and a couple shrieks were heard in the Taylor Science Center during spring break when two groups of local third-grade students visited for some hands-on science learning with the help of Hamilton’s science faculty. For more than 20 years, Professor of Biology Dave Gapp has organized “Science Exploration Days” which bring classes of elementary school students to Hamilton for guided tours and short lessons in various areas of science.

Four main forces govern the behavior of all matter in the world around us: gravitational, electromagnetic, strong nuclear and weak nuclear. Physicists believe that, at large enough energies, these four forces can be described by a single theory rather than four separate theories. Working for his second summer under Professor of Physics Brian Collett and Professor of Physics Gordon Jones, Edward Lamere ’11 is working on a project to increase the accuracy of an experiment that links the electromagnetic and weak nuclear forces called aCORN.

Hamilton College's highest awards for teaching were presented on May 9 to five faculty members. Professor of Biology Ernest Williams Jr. received the Christian A. Johnson Professorship; Associate Professor of Physics Brian Collett was awarded the Samuel & Helen Lang Prize for Excellence in Teaching; Associate Professor of English Catherine Gunther Kodat received the Class of 1963 Excellence in Teaching Award; Assistant Professor of Anthropology Haeng-Ja Chung was honored with the John R. Hatch Excellence in Teaching Award; and Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology Mark Oakes received the Sidney Wertimer Award.