A Geologic Century: Pomona Geology’s Legacy and Leadership in the Geosciences
The 1922-23 academic year marks 100 years since founder A.O. Woodford taught classes in the formalized Pomona College Geology Department. As one of the first Geology Departments in Southern California, the Department has had an outsized influence in Geosciences, with faculty and students both serving as pioneers and leaders in Geosciences and other fields.
The Department’s annual Woodford-Eckis Lectureship, endowed by Rollin Eckis (’27) to enshrine a regular gathering of alumni and faculty of the department, perpetuates a regular gathering of the network of the department’s greatest resource, its people. Accordingly, we have expanded this year’s 43rd Woodford-Eckis Lectureship (Feb. 17–19) to include a special Centennial Celebration of the Department. The Centennial celebration is a place for alumni to share their own experiences and exploring the “crucible” of Pomona Geology through its faculty and alumni, including our most recent alumni who are pathfinders for the urgent work of studying our rapidly changing global climate, looking for alternative resources for a green energy transition, and inventing the tools for needs that we’ve yet to know are on the horizon.
Keynote talks by alumni include:
Friday Feb. 17: Tom Doe (PO’71; WSP Global Inc; University of Washington: The Pomona Geology Community Past, Present, and Future.
Saturday Feb. 18: The Outsized Impacts of Pomona Geology in the Geosciences— This is a quartet of talks (ca. 40’ each, with time for breaks and discussion) devoted to understanding the unique mix of people, place, technology, and timing in four different areas of Geoscience.
- Paul Weimer (’78; CU–Boulder) & Dave Mohrig ('83; UT–Austin) The Sedimentary Geosciences and Pomona College— from Southern California and Beyond.
- Rick Hazlett (Prof. Emeritus of Geology) & John-Mark Staude ('87; CEO Riverside Resources, Inc.) Sagehens, Volcanoes, Bedrock and Minerals on a Warming Globe.
- Alix Davatzes (’99, Temple University) & Allan Treiman ('74; Lunar & Planetary Science Institute) Looking up, Looking down: Sagehen contributions to Remote Sensing and Planetary Geology.
- Lorelei Curtin (’13; Bucknell University) & Laura Haynes (’13; Vassar College), Lara Hughes-Allen (PZ’11; U Paris-Saclay), Bradley Markle (’08; CU–Boulder), Young Alumni Climate Connections: Stories of the Past, Present, and Future on Planet Earth.
Talks on the evening of Feb. 18 and morning Feb. 19 will be the cornerstone lectures of this year’s event, delivered by this year’s Woodford-Eckis Lecturer, Dr. Emily H.G. Cooperdock (USC/Brown University). Read about further Details on Dr. Cooperdock's lectures.
Geology alumni from the Claremont Colleges should check their email or reach out to us if you have not received an invitation, as the weekend has several meals and gatherings that are designed to facilitate reflections, discussions, and summits between alumni, faculty, and current students.
For those on campus, public talk locations will be posted on this website closer to the time of the event. For alumni who cannot join us in Claremont, the Geology Department will be streaming the talks throughout the weekend as "Webinars" that you will be able to sign up to watch. Check back here for information on how to sign up for the Webinars.