Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Congratulations to our Physics and Astronomy Class of 2017


Our graduates should be proud of everything they have accomplished and will accomplish in the next chapter of their lives.  The physics degree is one of the most challenging one, but these kids hung on to their dreams, and made them true.   They survived and had tons of fun in the meantime, and their finish line is crossed now.  Their degree may be their latest and greatest accomplishment, but it is also the grand opening of the door to a new beginning.  

It rained with cats and dogs, but look at these smiles, who couldn't care less about those drench-y drops:



Smack in the middle you should spy our newly minted department head: Chris Hughes.  Dr. Hughes is of course well-known to the JMU community, and was selected for this new leadership role from a national pool of applicants.  During his interview, he shared a compelling vision for the future of physics and astronomy on campus, including strategies for recruiting and retaining a diverse community of faculty and students in the department, advancing the department’s role in producing physical science teachers to address pervasive shortages in the state, pursuing opportunities for collaborative engagements through the new Madison Accelerator Lab, and continuing to grow the department’s national reputation for innovation in the integration of teaching and research. 
It feels like we all graduated this year, to a new era we are certainly looking forward to.



We take this opportunity to let you know about a grand series of awards that we celebrated last month, even if it includes some of our majors who have not walked the stage this year, but will do so next year (a.k.a, juniors).  Maybe this announcement is in fact not too late, as some of these listings will explain the galore of colors hanging on top of the purple on many of our graduates: 


OUTSTANDING SENIOR PHYSICS MAJOR
     Catherine A. Witherspoon
OUTSTANDING JUNIOR PHYSICS MAJOR
     Nicholas J. Duncan
PHYSICS UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH AWARD
     Ian C. Davenport
PHYSICS SERVICE AWARD
Justin D. Leas
PHYSICS TEACHING AWARD
Zachary J. Marinelli
PLANETARIUM SERVICE AWARD


Margaret C. Blackman
TUITION SCHOLARSHIPS
    Don Chodrow Scholarship
       Nicholas J. Duncan
    HENRY W. LEAP SCHOLARSHIP
       Rodney T. Hodges
    PHYSICS ALUMNI SCHOLARSHIP
       Rodney T. Hodges
    RAYMOND A. SERWAY SCHOLARSHIP
       Kaitlyn D. Porter
Physics and Astronomy SYMPOSIUM AWARDS
1st Place – Zachary P. Schuhmacher
2nd Place – Ian C. Davenport
3rd Place – Jason M. Ferguson
SOCIETY OF PHYSICS INDUCTEES
     Maxwell M. Cannon
     Ian C. Davenport
     Nicholas J. Duncan
     Justin D. Leas
     Joseph J. LoPreto
     Aaron C. Midkiff
     Zachary J. Marinelli



We congratulate all and every single one of you, Class of 2017!  Keep us posted with all of your next steps.  We are always happy to hear from you.