Calvin Announces Brummel Chair

October 2, 2006 == MEDIA ADVISORY

Too often, chemicals get a bad rap according to Calvin professor Ron
Blankespoor.

"There is a misconception," he says, "that all chemicals are bad for us. What
about the chemicals we refer to as water, sugar and aspirin? Are these bad for
us? Just because a chemical is made in a natural setting like a plant doesn't
make it good for humans. Neither does a chemical made in the laboratory
automatically make it bad for us."

What's good and what's bad in the world of chemicals will be part of the focus
for a talk Blankespoor will deliver at Calvin on October 17 when he is
installed as the first-ever holder of the Roger and Connie Brummel Endowed
Chair in Organic Chemistry at the college.

The chair was funded by Holland's Roger and Connie Brummel, both Calvin
graduates and both connected to the college's board of trustees (Connie is a
former board member and Roger serves currently). Roger Brummel earned his
degree in chemistry, mathematics and education at Calvin, prior to earning a
pair of master's degrees and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry at Wayne State
University.

After several years in the classroom as a high school teacher, followed by
graduate school, he spent the majority of his career with Parke-Davis at
Holland, Michigan in a variety of positions, including vice president of
chemical development, a title he also held at Pfizer.

As the first holder of the chair, Blankespoor, who has been at Calvin since
1977, will have a reduced teaching load that will give him more time to pursue
his research interests. He also is able to hire student researchers during the
school year to assist him in his work.

Blankespoor says the endowed chair is a big positive for the college and the
chemistry department.

"I think this chair will end up being a very nice recruitment tool for us as a
department," he says. With the reduced teaching load we should be able to
attract new faculty who want to spend more time on their research during the
academic year."

For the full story, including a link to a profile of Blankespoor from 1996,
see:
http://www.calvin.edu/news/releases/2006-07/brummel-chair.htm

Contact Blankespoor at 616-526-6174 or blan@calvin.edu

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Received on Mon Oct 2 09:46:23 2006