{"id":3462,"date":"2017-05-10T22:58:08","date_gmt":"2017-05-10T22:58:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sites.coloradocollege.edu\/atb\/?p=3462"},"modified":"2017-05-10T22:58:08","modified_gmt":"2017-05-10T22:58:08","slug":"celebrating-physics-and-professor-barbara-whitten-at-physics-homecoming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.coloradocollege.edu\/atb\/2017\/05\/10\/celebrating-physics-and-professor-barbara-whitten-at-physics-homecoming\/","title":{"rendered":"Celebrating Physics and Professor Barbara Whitten at Physics Homecoming"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Alana Aamodt \u201918<\/strong><\/p>\n

Faculty, students, and alumni of the Physics Department came together last block for a weekend of talks, reconnections, and celebration in honor of a Physics Homecoming and the retirement of longtime professor Barbara Whitten.<\/p>\n

The festivities began with two talks by world-renowned physicist Kip Thorne, who spoke on his personal role in the discovery of gravitational waves in a more intimate physics talk and prior to his broader lecture to campus and community members. One of the most influential living physicists, Thorne also served as the graduate advisor to Patricia Purdue, associate professor of physics and department chair, who introduced each of his talks. The evening concluded with an opening reception and time for alumni, faculty, and students to socialize with one another and with Thorne.<\/p>\n

The following day was full of various alumni speakers and current professors giving talks such as \u201cThe Secret Life of Stellar Interactions\u201d by Natalie Gosnell \u201908, a new tenure-track CC professor, and \u201cHousehold Energy and Health in Developing Countries\u201d by Michael Johnson \u201999. \u00a0The day\u2019s festivities concluded with a dinner in celebration of Whitten\u2019s retirement, where friends, colleagues, and students spoke about her character and career.<\/p>\n

Whitten received her B.A. from Carleton College in 1968 and went on to receive her Ph.D. in Computational Atomic Physics from University of Rochester. She was the first female faculty member in the Physics Department at Colorado College, where she explored her passion for diversifying physics and played a major role in shaping the department to become what it is today. Over the course of the last few decades, she has expanded beyond the realm of physics, exploring environmental science, feminist and gender studies, history, and sociology in conjunction with her love of physics. She\u2019s played a pioneering role in encouraging inclusivity in the physics community, publishing papers covering topics like \u201cWhat Works for Women in Undergraduate Physics? What We Can Learn from Women\u2019s Colleges,\u201d and she is part of a team to receive over $700,000 in grant money to develop a mentoring network for isolated female physicists.<\/p>\n

After many years working as a professor, leaving CC is not easy for Whitten. When asked what she\u2019ll miss the most about working at the college, she replied, the \u201csense I have of a community where we support each other. With all the things I\u2019ve done here, I\u2019ve had a sense that you were all behind me.\u201d Even more so, she goes on to say she\u2019ll miss \u201cteaching and working with students. I love working with undergraduates, when you have something exciting you want to do, helping you figure out how best to do it. Helping you figure out the next step in your lives. And of course, helping you learn physics.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of her favorite part of the event, Whitten says \u201cthe most wonderful and memorable moment was when [the] women physics majors stood up together. [They] were behind me, so I turned around and saw them all standing there together\u2014I still can\u2019t talk about it without getting choked up.\u201d She goes on to explain, \u201cWhen I was an undergraduate many years ago, I was the only woman, not only in my class but in the five years around me,\u201d accentuating the pride she has in her students.<\/p>\n

In honor of Whitten and her contributions to CC, the college created the Barbara Whitten Prize for Women in the Natural Sciences this year; it will be given to \u201ca woman student in the natural sciences who exemplifies Whitten\u2019s model of achieving personal scientific excellence while helping others do the same. Personal scientific excellence is a combination of an excellent academic record in the natural sciences, and\/or exceptional research in a scientific field. The recipient should also demonstrate a significant commitment to the advancement of women or underrepresented groups in the sciences through scholarly, community, pedagogical, or other work.\u201d<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s recipient is Zoe Pierrat \u201917, an environmental physics major and chemistry minor. A crowdfunding campaign<\/a> is also underway to increase the dollar amount of the award.<\/p>\n

Pierrat shares, \u201cBarbara taught my first \u2018real\u2019 physics class, Modern Physics, and she didn\u2019t hold back in terms of making the course difficult, but every step of the way she was encouraging and helpful with anything we needed as students. She has the ability to see people\u2019s potential and always pushes them there.\u201d After receiving the award at the Honors Convocation, Pierrat says, \u201cI can\u2019t even begin to say what it means to receive the Whitten Award, but overall I\u2019m just incredibly grateful to have gotten so much support from fellow students and faculty.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whitten says after she retires, she\u2019s planning plenty of travel, including trips to Iceland, Hawaii, and L\u2019Anse aux Meadows (a Viking settlement in Newfoundland). She also has several in-progress research projects that she intends to complete in the next couple of years, and will spend more time with her children and take some time to relax.<\/p>\n

Whitten also says that she\u2019ll continue to study physics. \u201cEven after 50 years as a physicist, there is so much I don\u2019t know and would like to: Astrophysics, cosmology, and general relativity are at the top of my list.\u201d While Whitten moves on from teaching at CC, her impact on the CC community will remain.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Alana Aamodt \u201918 Faculty, students, and alumni of the Physics Department came together last block for a weekend of talks, reconnections, and celebration in honor of a Physics Homecoming and the retirement of longtime professor Barbara Whitten. The festivities began with two talks by world-renowned physicist Kip Thorne, who spoke on his personal role … <\/p>\n

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