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2006 Annual Banquet
University of Massachusetts - Lowell Chapter of Sigma Xi Local Events
UMass Lowell Chapter
2006 Annual Banquet, Wednesday, 3 May, 2006
Officers of the Local Chapter
Officers of the UMass
Lowell chapter of the Society of Sigma Xi with Banquet speaker, Dr. Alan Lightman. Seated, from the left: Dr. Sandy McDonald, At-Large (Sciences); Dr. Mary Elizabeth
Hooker, At-Large (Health and Environment); Ms Elizabeth
Fortin, Chapter Administrative Assistant. Standing, from the left: Dr. Art Mittler, Treasurer; Dr. Aram Karakashian, Awards Officer; Dr. Lightman; Dr. Bob Gamache, Vice President; Dr. Jim Whitten, Secretary; and Dr. Bob Tamarin, President of the UMass Lowell Chapter. Missing is Dr. Gil Brown, At-Large (Engineering) who had
another commitment.
2006 C.
Daniel Cole Undergraduate Research Awardees
Students competing for the C. Daniel Cole Undergraduate Research prizes must
participate in the annual Undergraduate Research Symposium at UMass Lowell and
then make a special presentation to the Cole Committee, composed this year of
the officers of the local chapter of Sigma Xi. The three winners were also inducted
into Sigma Xi as Associate Mmembers. From the left: Dr. Jim Whitten, Secretary
of the local chapter, Joshua Ariemma (Physics, 2nd Prize), Paul Alcorn (Physics,
3rd Prize), and Scott Jobling (Electrical and Computer Engineering, 1st Prize).
Prof. Charlie Steele Memorial Scholarship Winners
Ursula Steele (center), widow of Professor Charlie Steele, presents the
Professor Charlie Steele Memorial Scholarship to (left to right): Lawrence
Poitier (Electrical and Computer Engineering), Kassiani Kotsidou (Electrical
and Computer Engineering), Steele, Ning Zhong (Computer Science), and Chapter
President, Bob Tamarin. The awardees are international graduate students,
chosen by faculty members from Computer Science, Mathematics, and Electrical
and Computer Engineering. Prof. Steele was the founding member of the Computer
Science Department.
LaTorre Family Scholarship Winners
The LaTorre Family Scholarships are funded generously by
L. Donald LaTorre, a 1960 UMass Lowell graduate in Textile Chemistry. Don
is currently the Chairman of the Sciences Advisory Board of the College of
Arts and Sciences, an alumni group that helps the Dean of Sciences develop
resources for the Sciences. (Don was unable to make the Banquet this year
because of travel obligations.) From the left in the photo above: Dr. Bob
Gamache, Vice President of the local chapter, Florian Limondin (Computer Science),
Ryan Hill (Mathematics), and local chapter President Bob Tamarin. There were
two other winners who could not attend the Banquet, Pulkit Chaudhury (Biology)
and Jessica Garue (Chemistry).
Kennedy Family Scholarship
This was the inaugural year for the Kennedy Family Scholarship,
supported from a generous endowment donation by John F. Kennedy, a 1970 Mathematics
graduate of UMass Lowell (known then as Lowell Tech). John is also a recent
addition to the Sciences Advisory Board of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Shown above with John is the inaugural award winner, Athina Mantzouranis,
a junior Biology major.
High School Teacher of the Year
The UMass Lowell chapter initiated the High School Teacher of the Year Award
in 2004 to honor an outstanding high school science or math teacher, one responsible
for instilling in students an excitement about the sciences and technology.
Shown above (middle) is Dennis Gleason, a math teacher at Malden Catholic High
School (Malden, MA), our 2006 winner. Presenting the award is Art Mittler, chapter
Treasurer. Dennis is accompanied by, from the left: Richard Hickey, Malden Catholic
HIgh School Mathematics Department Chair (and UMass Lowell Physic Alum), Trish
Gleason, Dennis's wife, Gleason, Mittler, and Brother Thomas Puccio, Principal
of Malden Catholic High School. Our awardee has B.S. and M.S. degrees in Aerospace
Engineering from Notre Dame University and before becoming a high school teacher
was President of Beverly Microwave Division of Communications and Power Industries
in Beverly, MA. At Malden Catholic High School, Dennis has developed the four-year
Honors Program, has infused modern technology into his teaching, and mentors
the Math Team. Most recently, he inaugurated the Robotics Club. Those who supported
his nomination spoke glowingly of Dennis as a masterful and inspirational teacher
and role model.
Induction
of New Full
Members
New full members of Sigma
Xi are shown above. From the left: Mr. Amol Chandekar (graduate student, Chemistry),
Ms Chantana Saelim (graduate student, Chemistry), Dr. Jim Whitten, Secretary
of the UMass Lowell chapter, Dr. Marina Ruths (Chemistry), Dr. Young-kyun
Kwon (Physics), and Dr. Daniel Schmidt (Plastics Engineering).
Guest
Lecture
Our
Banquet Speaker this year was Dr. Alan Lightman of the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology (above right shown talking with guests Susan and Lloyd Kannenberg
after his speech). Novelist, essayist, physicist, and educator, Dr. Lightman
is perhaps best known for his book, "Einstein's Dreams." He fascinated
an audience of about 80 people with a talk in which he contrasted the worldviews
of physicists and novelists. His talk was entitled:
"The
Physicist as Novelist:
The similarities and differences in the way scientists and artists view the
world"
Special
thanks to our Secretary, Elizabeth Fortin, for making all the arrangements for
our Banquet.
Check back in the fall
for information about the 2006-2007 awards competition and the 2007 Banquet.
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