Alice Gast
Encyclopedia
Alice Petry Gast is the 13th President of Lehigh University
in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
. She is Lehigh's first female president.
Born in Houston, Texas
, Gast graduated as valedictorian
from the University of Southern California
in 1980 with a B.Sc.
in chemical engineering
. She completed her postgraduate
work at Princeton University
, receiving a M.A.
(1981) and Ph.D.
(1984) in chemical engineering
, and was a Hertz Fellow. She spent a postdoctoral year completing a NATO fellowship at the École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles in Paris. From 1985 to 2001 she taught at Stanford University
, and then moved to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
where she served as the Vice President for Research and Associate Provost
until her appointment to Lehigh in 2006.
Gast is married to Bradley J. Askins, a computer scientist. They have two children, Rebecca and David.
Gast is not the first Lehigh President recruited from MIT. In 1895 they invited Thomas Messinger Drown
to take the Presidency, for whom Drown Hall is named.
(AAAS), is a member of the Academic Research Council for the Singapore Ministry of Education and the National Research Council Committee for Science, Technology, and the Law. She is a member of the AAAS, the American Chemical Society
, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers
and the American Physical Society
.
, the Colburn Award of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award and a Guggenheim Fellowship
. She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering
in 2001 and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 2002. She was named an AAAS Fellow in early 2007.
In October, 2008, Gast was named one of the top 100 "Modern Era" engineers in the country, under the category of "Leadership" by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.
Gast and Gansler co-authored an op ed in the July 11, 2008 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education, citing a concern that the unintended effects of restrictive federal government policies on scientific research include impeding the nation's ability to be economically competitive and defend itself against potential threats.
They wrote: "It's time for researchers and intelligence officials to work together and devise policies that strike the appropriate balance between science and security. Toward that end, our committee recommends that the federal government establish a standing entity, preferably a high-level Science and Security Commission chaired by the national-security adviser and the director of the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy."
"Transformative change requires long-term investment in the nation's intellectual infrastructure," she wrote. 'Shovel-ready' makes sense for getting people to work on deferred infrastructure needs, but how does it relate to the scientific research and education programs needed to address the many challenges looming before us?"
Long-term research and education provide innovative, creative discoveries that spur transformative change, Gast noted. "The United States needs to start making the down payment on this exploration, knowing that the needed breakthroughs cannot be generated within the next two years. As science funding agencies begin awarding their one-time money, they must be mindful of the sustainability of their programs. The recent signing of the fiscal year 2009 omnibus bill with its 4.7% increase for agencies funding science and technology R&D is a welcome sign. Maintaining that momentum in the coming years will be essential."
The Climate Commitment will create institutional policies and procedures to manage the development and implementation of a university-wide plan that affirms Lehigh's commitment to protect and improve the environment through its teaching, research, faculty, student and staff service, and administrative operations.
In signing the Climate Commitment, Gast said that safeguarding the environment is an issue the Lehigh community aggressively embraces.
The panel found that it is not possible to reach a definitive conclusion about the origins of the anthrax in letters based on the science alone.
“We find the scientific evidence to be consistent with their conclusions but not as definitive as stated,” Gast said during a news conference in Washington, D.C. She emphasized that this case rested on the complex interface between science and the law enforcement investigation.
The panel convened in 2008 after the FBI asked the National Research Council to form a group to conduct an independent review of the scientific approaches, methodologies and analytical techniques used in its investigation and to determine whether the FBI reached appropriate scientific conclusions.
The FBI’s investigation connected the letter materials to a flask in the lab of a researcher at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID). The panel reviewed 9,600 pages of material before determining that it could not rule out that there were other sources of the anthrax spores.
Panelists whose expertise included microbiology, medicine, physical chemistry, biochemistry and forensic science were not asked to judge the law enforcement investigation.
Lehigh University
Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines...
in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania
Bethlehem is a city in Lehigh and Northampton Counties in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 74,982, making it the seventh largest city in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Allentown, Erie,...
. She is Lehigh's first female president.
Born in Houston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, Gast graduated as valedictorian
Valedictorian
Valedictorian is an academic title conferred upon the student who delivers the closing or farewell statement at a graduation ceremony. Usually, the valedictorian is the highest ranked student among those graduating from an educational institution...
from the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
in 1980 with a B.Sc.
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
in chemical engineering
Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science , and life sciences with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms...
. She completed her postgraduate
Postgraduate education
Postgraduate education involves learning and studying for degrees or other qualifications for which a first or Bachelor's degree generally is required, and is normally considered to be part of higher education...
work at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, receiving a M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
(1981) and Ph.D.
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
(1984) in chemical engineering
Chemical engineering
Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science , and life sciences with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms...
, and was a Hertz Fellow. She spent a postdoctoral year completing a NATO fellowship at the École Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles in Paris. From 1985 to 2001 she taught at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
, and then moved to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
where she served as the Vice President for Research and Associate Provost
Provost (education)
A provost is the senior academic administrator at many institutions of higher education in the United States, Canada and Australia, the equivalent of a pro-vice-chancellor at some institutions in the United Kingdom and Ireland....
until her appointment to Lehigh in 2006.
Gast is married to Bradley J. Askins, a computer scientist. They have two children, Rebecca and David.
Gast is not the first Lehigh President recruited from MIT. In 1895 they invited Thomas Messinger Drown
Thomas Messinger Drown
Thomas Messinger Drown was the fourth University President of Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.-Background:...
to take the Presidency, for whom Drown Hall is named.
Research career
The focus of Gast's distinguished research career was the study of surface and interfacial phenomena, in particular the behavior of complex fluids. Her areas of research include colloidal aggregation and ordering, protein lipid interactions, and enzyme reactions at surfaces. She is the co-author of Physical Chemistry of Surfaces, a classic textbook on colloid and surface phenomena, and has presented named lectures at several of the nation's leading research institutions.Professional Associations
Gast serves on a number of national advisory committees and boards, including the Board of the American Association for the Advancement of ScienceAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science is an international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific responsibility, and supporting scientific education and science outreach for the...
(AAAS), is a member of the Academic Research Council for the Singapore Ministry of Education and the National Research Council Committee for Science, Technology, and the Law. She is a member of the AAAS, the American Chemical Society
American Chemical Society
The American Chemical Society is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 161,000 members at all degree-levels and in all fields of chemistry, chemical...
, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers
American Institute of Chemical Engineers
The American Institute of Chemical Engineers is a professional organization for chemical engineers.AIChE was established in 1908 with the purpose of establishing chemical engineers as a profession independent from chemists and mechanical engineers.As of 2010, AIChE had over 40,000 members,...
and the American Physical Society
American Physical Society
The American Physical Society is the world's second largest organization of physicists, behind the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft. The Society publishes more than a dozen scientific journals, including the world renowned Physical Review and Physical Review Letters, and organizes more than 20...
.
Awards and achievements
In recognition of her achievements, Gast has received numerous awards and honors including the NAS Award for Initiatives in ResearchNAS Award for Initiatives in Research
The NAS Award for Initiatives in Research is awarded annually by the National Academy of Sciences "to recognize innovative young scientists and to encourage research likely to lead toward new capabilities for human benefit. The award is to be given to a citizen of the United States, preferably no...
, the Colburn Award of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers, the Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award and a Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are American grants that have been awarded annually since 1925 by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts." Each year, the foundation makes...
. She was elected to the National Academy of Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
in 2001 and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
in 2002. She was named an AAAS Fellow in early 2007.
In October, 2008, Gast was named one of the top 100 "Modern Era" engineers in the country, under the category of "Leadership" by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers.
Science and Security in a Post 9/11 World
In 2006, Gast co-chaired (with Jacques S. Gansler, Vice President for Research, University of Maryland) a non-partisan committee that produced an extensive report on "Science and Security in a Post 911 World: A Report Based on Regional Discussions Between the Science and Security Communities Committee on a New Government" (University Partnership for Science and Security) that was published by the National Academy of Sciences.Gast and Gansler co-authored an op ed in the July 11, 2008 issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education, citing a concern that the unintended effects of restrictive federal government policies on scientific research include impeding the nation's ability to be economically competitive and defend itself against potential threats.
They wrote: "It's time for researchers and intelligence officials to work together and devise policies that strike the appropriate balance between science and security. Toward that end, our committee recommends that the federal government establish a standing entity, preferably a high-level Science and Security Commission chaired by the national-security adviser and the director of the White House's Office of Science and Technology Policy."
Shovel-Ready Science?
In March 2009, Gast authored an op ed that appeared in Science magazine, in which she sounded a note of caution in the way that the short-term funding for scientific research contained in the U.S. economic stimulus package will be spent."Transformative change requires long-term investment in the nation's intellectual infrastructure," she wrote. 'Shovel-ready' makes sense for getting people to work on deferred infrastructure needs, but how does it relate to the scientific research and education programs needed to address the many challenges looming before us?"
Long-term research and education provide innovative, creative discoveries that spur transformative change, Gast noted. "The United States needs to start making the down payment on this exploration, knowing that the needed breakthroughs cannot be generated within the next two years. As science funding agencies begin awarding their one-time money, they must be mindful of the sustainability of their programs. The recent signing of the fiscal year 2009 omnibus bill with its 4.7% increase for agencies funding science and technology R&D is a welcome sign. Maintaining that momentum in the coming years will be essential."
Implementing Green Policies at Lehigh
In mid-April, 2009, Gast moved forward on a commitment to the environment by pledging to make environmental sustainability and climate change an institutional priority at the university. Gast signed the Lehigh University Climate Commitment at an Earth Day celebration.The Climate Commitment will create institutional policies and procedures to manage the development and implementation of a university-wide plan that affirms Lehigh's commitment to protect and improve the environment through its teaching, research, faculty, student and staff service, and administrative operations.
In signing the Climate Commitment, Gast said that safeguarding the environment is an issue the Lehigh community aggressively embraces.
Leading the National Academy of Science Review of the 2001 Anthrax Case
In February 2011, a 16-member panel of scientists led by Gast released a report after reviewing the scientific evidence related to the FBI investigation of the anthrax letters mailed in the aftermath of 9-11. Anthrax spores contained in the letters were mailed across the country and were responsible for killing five people and sickening 17 others.The panel found that it is not possible to reach a definitive conclusion about the origins of the anthrax in letters based on the science alone.
“We find the scientific evidence to be consistent with their conclusions but not as definitive as stated,” Gast said during a news conference in Washington, D.C. She emphasized that this case rested on the complex interface between science and the law enforcement investigation.
The panel convened in 2008 after the FBI asked the National Research Council to form a group to conduct an independent review of the scientific approaches, methodologies and analytical techniques used in its investigation and to determine whether the FBI reached appropriate scientific conclusions.
The FBI’s investigation connected the letter materials to a flask in the lab of a researcher at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID). The panel reviewed 9,600 pages of material before determining that it could not rule out that there were other sources of the anthrax spores.
Panelists whose expertise included microbiology, medicine, physical chemistry, biochemistry and forensic science were not asked to judge the law enforcement investigation.