First Words: Freedom of Inquiry
As a student, David Levy ’94 was inspired by class discourse about life’s infinite questions. As a philosophy professor, he now inspires those same discussions. By Kris Dreessen David Levy ’94 enrolled at Geneseo with a much different career plan than his current position as associate professor and chair of philosophy. “I grew up watching all those 1980s-era, Perry Mason-type movies and reading Agatha Christie novels,” he says. “I...
A Fight to Be (Finally) Heard
The environmental justice movement was launched by residents who suffered consequences of pollution and other issues — and refused to be ignored. By Kris Dreessen In the late 19th century, John Muir’s writings and advocacy focusing on the Sierra Nevada mountains sparked discussions about protecting wild spaces, ultimately leading to the creation of Yosemite National Park and other preserves. That passion forprotecting wildlife...
History-Making Women
On Geneseo’s 150th anniversary, we celebrate women leaders. By Kris Dreessen Julia Delehanty graduated from the Geneseo Normal School in 1921. When she returned in 1956, it was as the college’s first physician. She was noted for being a skilled doctor and accessible to students. Only 5 percent of U.S. doctors were women during that time, says Amanda Roth, assistant professor of philosophy and women’s studies and coordinator of...
VIDEO: Namesakes of Geneseo’s Buildings
Do you know who Geneseo’s buildings are named after? Take a tour of some of the history with us:
The Human Dimensions of Conservation
Amanda Lewis-Nang’ea’s research brings historical perspective to the issues of land management and resource stewardship in Kenya. By Robyn Rime Amboseli National Park in Kenya is one of the best places in the world to get close to free-ranging elephants. The park, formalized as a national game reserve in 1948 and as a park in 1974, seeks to protect a unique ecosystem through conservation, wildlife viewing and tourism. Supporting...
Rising Temps at the Bottom of the World
Research in Antarctica by climate scientist Dana Veron ’95 has implications for people around the globe. By Robyn Rime One of the hottest spots for studying climate change right now is also one of the coldest. The vast ice sheet of Antarctica — the largest single mass of ice on the planet — is melting at a rate most scientists find alarming. That matters, in part because it signals a warming climate, but also because it...
Geneseo Is a Peace Corps Powerhouse
The College is ranked No. 8 nationally for the number of alumni who volunteer in communities across the world. By Kris Dreessen In Kuli Kunda, The Gambia, families tend to their gardens with hand tools, and donkeys pull the plows. Everyone in the village knows each other. Peace Corps volunteer Declan Dwyer-McNulty ’17 served as an agriculture volunteer there, assisting with gardening techniques, tree-planting workshops and other...
The Heart and Soul of New Machines
Nate Yohannes ’07 works to build ethics into pioneering technology. By Kris Dreessen Nate Yohannes ’07 is in the room and at the table where tomorrow’s technology is happening — ensuring that it will empower everyone, and not become an instrument the powerful use to exploit others or leave them behind. How he got there is a classic American immigrant tale that Alexander Hamilton might relish. Yohannes’s father was an Eritrean...
Seeing the Invisible
Geneseo faculty and students placed detectors at Letchworth State Park to show a subatomic particle interacts with us, every second. By Kris Dreessen Cosmic rays from outer space collide with atoms in the upper atmosphere, creating subatomic particles called muons that fall to earth. Muons pass through everything on their journey, including us. If you hold your arm out right now, two or three will pass through your outstretched hand...
Discoveries in the Deep
Marine biologist Mackenzie Gerringer studies the depths of the world’s oceans from the rolling hills of Geneseo. By Robyn Rime Down in the ocean’s trenches — far beyond the reach of sunlight — the deep sea is unimaginably dark, a world of frigid temperatures and immense pressures. Marine organisms manage to flourish in these harsh environments, and assistant professor of biology Mackenzie Gerringer studies how. “I fell in love...
