Index
Scholarships
The Robin B. Kinnel Scholarship
The Robin B. Kinnel Scholarship was established by Peter N. Schlegel, M.D., Class of 1979, in honor of Robin B. Kinnel, Ph.D., Silas D. Childs Professor of Chemistry Emeritus and Lecturer in Environmental Studies. It is awarded with preference given to students pursuing either a major or a minor in mathematics or chemistry.
Robin B. Kinnel earned his A.B. in chemistry from Harvard and a Ph.D. from MIT. Following two years of post-doctoral work at Stanford, he joined the Hamilton faculty in 1966. His original research was in physical organic chemistry, which yielded to the study of the chemistry of natural products, particularly those from the marine environment.
Dr. Kinnel was named as the College’s first associate dean in 1972 and, shortly thereafter, also became advisor for students pursuing pre-med studies. In 1977, he returned to full-time teaching. Over the next 20 years, summer studies at the University of Hawaii, coupled with several sabbaticals, focused on his fascination with the marine environment. This led to a number of publications about naturally occurring compounds with unusual structures and promising biological activity. His most recent studies have explored the structures of small peptides in solution, carrying out syntheses of compounds isolated from cyanobacteria, and attempting to synthesize peptidomimetics useful against breast cancer.
In addition to being Professor Emeritus of Chemistry, Dr. Kinnel is also a lecturer in environmental studies.
Peter N. Schlegel, M.D. majored in chemistry at Hamilton. During his time on College Hill, he was a volunteer with the Oneida County Ambulance Corps. He went on to earn his M.D. from Dartmouth in 1983. This was followed by six years at Johns Hopkins; first as a general surgery intern and resident and subsequently as chief resident in urology. His professional career has included Fellow-in-Residence and Staff Scientist for The Population Council, Visiting Fellow at the Royal College of Surgeons and Assistant and Associate Attending Surgeon at New York Hospital. He has been a Visiting Professor in countries including Austria, Israel, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and Brazil. In 1991, he went to Cornell Medical College where he rose through the ranks from Assistant Professor to his current post as James J. Colt Professor and Chairman of Urology; as well as Professor of Reproductive Medicine at The Weill Medical College of Cornell University; a Staff Scientist at The Population Council, Center for Biomedical Research; and a Visiting Associate Physician at The Rockefeller University Hospital. He is Urologist-in-Chief at The New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Dr. Schlegel is an internationally acclaimed expert in the treatment of male infertility. He has been honored with the American Infertility Association Award for Special Contribution and Continued Devotion to Family Building (1999), the Edwin Beer Program Award from the New York Academy of Medicine (1996-98) and the New Investigator Award from the American Foundation for Urologic Disease (1993-95). Additionally, in 1998 he won first prize in the Ambrose Reed AUA Socioeconomics Essay Contest and, in 1995, was recognized by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine as author of the Male Reproduction/Urology Prize Paper.
Dr. Schlegel established this fund in part to honor Professor Kinnel for his many years of service to the College; and particularly for his role as advisor and mentor.
May 2015
Please note: The named scholarships profiled on these pages are awarded as part of the College’s need-based financial aid packages. These funds help ensure the Hamilton Promise of keeping education affordable through meeting a student’s full demonstrated financial need.
Materials published here were diligently researched and written by students who strived for historical accuracy.
