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4/10/06

NORWOOD RESIDENT ESTABLISHES ANNUAL LECTURE AT ST. LAWRENCE

CANTON - A gift to St. Lawrence University from Richard D. Church, of Norwood, has been established and will support an annual lecture on neuroscience. The first Richard D. Church Lecture will take place in the fall of 2006.

A retired engineer, Church is the son of the late Dwight Church, well-known Canton photographer, canoeist and aviator.

The Richard D. Church Lectureship Fund in Neuroscience has been established in honor of Church's scientific collaborations with the late G. Atwood Manley, who graduated from the University in 1916 and was the long-time editor of the St. Lawrence Plaindealer; the late Class of 1952 graduate Edward E. Bliss, Richard Church's brother-in-law and national canoeing champion partner; the late Class of 1914 graduate Clarence C. Church, Richard Church's uncle; and the late Emeritus Professor of Physics Alfred Romer.

The lecture will seek to bring reports of emerging research in neuroscience to campus each year to further the understanding of students, faculty and the general community. Plans call for the lectures to alternate between the cellular and behavioral approaches to the field.

Richard D. Church is a 1963 graduate of Clarkson University. He was the president and chief executive officer of ASL Systems Corporations, a firm he founded, from 1968 until his retirement in 1994. ASL specialized in the design and development of electronics used in fire service, ambulance and emergency vehicles. Church is the author of many scientific articles. In addition, he has a wide variety of interests in which he is or has been actively involved, including amateur theatricals, canoe racing, reforestation and participation in community-based firefighting organizations.

"In a fast-paced world, I feel it is critical to take time to document and explore our ideas," Church said. "When someone thinks 'What was the good idea I did not write down yesterday?,' that, to me, is a loss of creative potential. My hope, in establishing this lectureship at St. Lawrence, is that by learning about current thinking in the field of neuroscience, students and faculty will be inspired to further expand and explore their interests."

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More information: Science at St. Lawrence