Fifty years after becoming the youngest male graduate at the University at Albany, Dr. Clinton Ray Carpenter made history again today as the first alumnus to establish an endowment to support UAlbany's College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering ("CNSE"), ranked by Small Times magazine as the nation's number one college for nanotechnology.
The Dr. Clinton Ray Carpenter NanoSciences Scholarship Fund will total $300,000 and target community college graduates, with preference in the awarding of scholarships given to students who majored in engineering science and/or physics at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica, NY, where Dr. Carpenter taught for more than 20 years.
Dr. Carpenter received his bachelor's and master's degrees from the New York State College for Teachers - which eventually became the University at Albany - in 1957 and 1958, respectively, and his Ph.D. from UAlbany in 1973. Retired since 2000, he also supports the Dr. Clinton Ray Carpenter Community College Physics Teachers Scholarship Fund, which provides fellowships to UAlbany graduate students who plan to follow in his footsteps, and a Department of Physics lecture fund.
Dr. Carpenter said, "It is with a great sense of pride and satisfaction that I offer my support to the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, which has had such a wonderful impact at my alma mater, the University at Albany. I am quite impressed with the next-generation educational curriculum and the hands-on research experience offered by the NanoCollege, which is giving our students - our precious future workforce - unprecedented preparation for the high-tech jobs of the 21st century. With the creation of this endowment, I am truly privileged to be able to lend my assistance to those efforts."
Susan Herbst, Provost and Officer in Charge at the University at Albany, said, "I applaud Dr. Carpenter for his support of the University at Albany through this generous donation to establish a scholarship fund at UAlbany's College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering. Ever the educator, Dr. Carpenter is demonstrating his enduring leadership by providing help and support to students who would be fortunate to follow his lead in exploring technology as a vital career path for the future."
Dr. Alain E. Kaloyeros, Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of CNSE, said, "On behalf of the UAlbany NanoCollege, I am truly delighted, honored and grateful that Dr. Carpenter has chosen to support the groundbreaking educational curriculum and top-notch students at CNSE, who represent some of the nation's best and brightest young scientific minds. The establishment of this endowment is both a tribute to Dr. Carpenter's commitment to education, research and technology, and an enduring legacy that will ensure access to leading-edge learning that is critical to the future of our students and the NanoCollege, as well as our region and state."
At the age of 20, Dr. Carpenter was the Class of 1957's youngest male graduate. The son of farmers, he had enrolled at the New York State College for Teachers at 16 - and paid his first year's tuition with money he had earned raising chickens.