Physics professor
retires with emeritus rank

Gerald Smith, professor emeritus of physics and former head of the Department of Physics, has retired from the Eberly College of Science after 17 years at Penn State.

Smith has received numerous honors and has held membership in many professional societies. He has served as author or co-author of 290 articles published in scientific journals and has presented 181 invited papers, lectures and seminars. He has supervised theses for 25 graduate students and 15 undergraduates.

As an administrator, Smith helped the Department of Physics acquire major computational facilities, establish an electronics shop and upgrade its machine shop during his tenure from 1983 to 1988. He also increased collaboration between researchers at the University Park campus and other University locations; introduced microprocessors and workstations into the undergraduate curriculum; and secured additional funding to support junior faculty research programs and scholarship programs that help to improve the quality of graduate students entering the department.

His research, which has focused on atomic and nuclear antimatter physics and high-energy physics, has been supported by numerous funding awards from public and private sources. The primary goal of Smith's most recent research is the creation, storage and study of antimatter and its application to propulsion, medicine, defense and other areas.

Before joining Penn State in 1983, Smith was a professor at Michigan State University from 1967 to 1982 and an instructor and assistant professor at the University of California at Berkeley from 1961 to 1967. He also served in various part-time and full-time visiting appointments, including his current appointment as faculty fellow and physicist for NASA.

He earned his doctoral degree in physics at Yale University in 1961, his master's at Yale University in 1958 and his bachelor's, magna cum laude, at Miami University of Ohio in 1957.

Professor with 35 years
earns emeritus title

L. Peter Gold, professor emeritus of chemistry, has retired from the Eberly College of Science after 35 years at Penn State.

As a researcher, Gold focused on high-resolution spectroscopy of small molecules and has had 37 articles accepted for publication in professional journals. In the classroom, he has taught thousands of students in general and physical chemistry courses.

Over the years, he has participated in numerous activities and on several committees, such as the University Committee on Instructional Facilities, and has served as president of the Phi Beta Kappa chapter at Penn State. In addition, he served as acting associate dean for the Commonwealth Educational System and Continuing Education (1990-91) and as an adviser to chemistry majors in the Schreyer Honors College. He's a member of the American Chemical Society and has been a member of the Nittany Valley Symphony since its founding in 1967, having served two years on the group's board of directors. Gold is a member of the State College Area Municipal Band.

Gold received his doctoral degree in chemistry at Harvard University in 1962. He also earned his master's and bachelor's degrees at Harvard University, both in chemistry, in 1959 and 1957, respectively. After three years as a research associate in the Department of Physics at Columbia University, Gold joined Penn State as an assistant professor of chemistry in 1965. He was named associate professor in 1970 and professor in 1993.

Senior academic adviser
never missed a day in 27 years

Huey P. Jones, senior academic adviser in the Division of Undergraduate Studies, has retired from the University after 27 years. In those more than two-and-a-half decades of working for Penn State, Jones never took a sick day while he helped thousands of students discover and attain their educational goals.

As a strong student advocate during his tenure, Jones was responsible for helping students connect with potential disciplines of study and navigate the University system. The senior undergraduate studies adviser is a native of Baton Rouge, La., and received his formal education at Southern University, a historically black college in Baton Rouge, where he earned a master's degree in counselor education. Jones also earned academic credits in counseling and related subjects from West Virginia University and Marshall University.

Jones worked in a variety of positions at the Job Corps Center in Charleston, W.V., before coming to Penn State in 1973, where he joined the Division of Undergraduate Studies. Jones also served in the United States Navy from 1955-1959 on aviation duties.

Among his many achievements and awards over the years, Jones was honored with the 1995 Multicultural Resource Center's Staff Recognition Award for consistently promoting multiculturalism and demonstrating concern for and sensitivity to the needs of students of color.

In his retirement, Jones plans to continue to be active in the State College community. He hopes to pursue a variety of activities with his wife, Ireen, and his family, and ultimately plans to return to his home state of Louisiana to help students be productive members of society.

Space studies pioneer retires

Wesley C. Hymer, professor of biochemistry and winner of Penn State's Faculty Scholar Medal for Life and Medical Sciences, has retired with emeritus status after 35 years on the faculty.

Internationally known for his pioneering space studies, Hymer was principal investigator in 1983 on the first experiment conducted aboard the space shuttle in which live cells were processed by electrophoresis, a separation technique. Over the next 10 years, he led five more cell studies that were conducted in space.

Hymer's space experiments with living cells developed conclusive evidence that the hormone output and activity of pituitary gland cells is adversely affected by the lack of gravity in space. These pituitary-hormone effects are now taken into account by NASA in planning for astronaut health during space flight.

In 1987, Hymer launched the Penn State Center for Cell Research (CCR), a NASA-sponsored center. Two years later, he helped develop the successful proposal that won Penn State participation in NASA's Space Grant College program.

By 1993, when NASA changed its focus and retired its Centers for the Commercial Development of Space program, including the CCR, the CCR had flown commercial experiments aboard four space shuttle missions and three sounding-rocket flights, developed four patented products, and renewed NASA's interest in electrophoresis as a space-processing technique.

The University awarded Hymer the Faculty Scholar Medal in 1990 for his achievements in space research as well as his ground-based studies of the pituitary gland. His studies of the pituitary also were recognized by the National Institutes of Health with a Research Career Development Award.

In retirement, Hymer plans to continue consulting and conducting cell research. He also is a member of the NIH Multidisciplinary Special Emphasis Small Business Innovation Research Study Section.

A native of Wisconsin, he earned bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before joining the Penn State faculty in 1965, he served as both a postdoctoral fellow and a staff fellow at the National Cancer Institute.

Number of longstanding employees end
their decades of service with the University

Laura E. Frye, manager of human resources in the College of Engineering, from July 15, 1978, to May 1.

Kathryn R. Getz, staff assistant V in University Libraries, from Oct. 1, 1976, to April 30.

Janie V. Music, staff assistant VI in the College of Agricultural Sciences, from Sept. 1, 1981, to April 29.

Mary E. Sprankle, residence hall utility worker in Housing and Food Services, from Aug. 31, 1977, to April 18.

Maxine M. Wagner, janitorial worker in the Office of Physical Plant, from March 26, 1979, to April 29.

Charles J. Wilson, department head, simulation and visualization and senior researcher in the Applied Research Laboratory, from March 15, 1985, to April 15.

Emeritus rank

The following individual has earned emeritus rank from the University for his longstanding and productive years of service:

James D. Gallagher, campus executive officer emeritus in the Commonwealth College/associate professor of physical education, from Sept. 1, 1960, to June 30.

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