Steve, This is your Life!!
It is a pleasure to recognize Steve Wiberley who has served on the Board of Trustees
of the Dudley Observatory for over 30 years, both as Delegate representing Rensselaer's
Presidents and as a Trustee in his own right.
Steve received a Bachelor's degree from Williams College in 1941 and a Master's in
1948 and a Doctorate in 1950 from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Analytical
Chemistry. He worked with Congoleum Nairn, Inc. from 1941 to 1944. He was in the U.S. Army
from 1944 to 1946 and worked on the Manhattan Project at Oak Ridge, Tennessee. After a
year with General Electric in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, he an instructor at RPI in 1946,
Following an interval as a Research Associate from 1948 to 1950, he joined the
faculty of the Chemistry Department at RPI, a position he continues to hold as Professor
Emeritus. What is remarkable about Steve is his versatility. He has held nearly every
academic administrative position from Dean of the Graduate School, Vice Provost for
Graduate Programs and Research, and Chair of the Chemistry Department. But this tells only
part of the story! During this period he was acting Provost and, during George Low's
(President of RPI) illness, Steve was de facto President. His accomplishments as a chemist
and administrator were outstanding.
Steve was and is the driving force between the Chapel and Cultural Center in Troy.
Through his efforts the concept was brought to reality, and he spearheaded the fund
raising effort that led to the facility paid for in full. Steve and his late wife, Betty,
were pillars of the community.
As a Trustee of Dudley, Steve has been known for his wise counsel, sense of humor,
and devotion to promoting the affairs of the Observatory. He saw the tumultuous space age
and the Hemenway years, the lack of funding that caused the research programs to be
abandoned, several moves, and changes that resulted in Dudley's programs evolving to their
present style.
Steve did good and bad things at RPI. As examples of the latter, he was a member of
my doctoral committee and was the one responsible for getting me involved with Dudley as
well as my administrative position at RPI. As one example of the former, his vision in the
late 1950's led to the building of the Interdisciplinary Materials Research Center with
funding from NASA. This was the precursor to the massive interdisciplinary research
efforts being undertaken worldwide.
Steve, I look forward to working with you for many more years, both at Rensselaer
and at Dudley Observatory. Thank you for all you have done.
