Margaret MacVicar
Encyclopedia
Margaret L.A. MacVicar (1944–1991) was an American
physicist
and educator
. In addition to serving as MIT
's Dean of Undergraduate Education (1985–1990), MacVicar is credited with founding the now widely emulated Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) in 1969. MacVicar received her undergraduate and graduate degrees at MIT and joined the faculty, giving her the rare distinction of being a "MIT lifer."
to George and Elizabeth MacVicar. Her family relocated to Flint, Michigan
in 1946 where she lived until she graduated from high school in 1961. Because she had been taking classes at a local junior college as a high school student, a local retired General Motors
senior executive offered to help defray the costs of attending MIT.
At MIT, she was among the first women to live at the McCormick Hall women's dormitory which opened in 1964. She received a bachelor of science
degree in physics in 1964 (though she considered herself affiliated with the class of 1965, with which she entered MIT) and a doctor of science (Sc.D) degree in metallurgy and materials science in 1967. Between 1967 and 1969, she worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the Royal Society Mond section of Cavendish Laboratory
at the University of Cambridge
. She joined the Department of Physics at MIT in 1969 where her research investigated high-temperature metal and ceramic superconductors, single crystal and thin-film materials research, and detecting corrosion
kinetics
using superconducting magnetometry.
As Dean for Undergraduate Education, she worked to recruit more women, minorities, and students of varied interests, implemented changes in the humanities and social science requirements, and publicly criticized a Department of Defense
policy barring homosexuals from ROTC programs.
Professor MacVicar's was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Clarkson University
in 1985. She was Orator at the 1984 Literary Exercises of Phi Beta Kappa at Harvard University
; Cecil and Ida Green Distinguished Lecturer at the University of Texas in 1979; and Vollmer W. Fries Lecturer at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
in 1976. She was a member of the Corporations of the Charles S. Draper Laboratory and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
, a trustee of Radcliffe College
and of the Boston Museum of Science, and a director of Exxon Corporation, the Harvard/MIT Cooperative Society
and H. W. Brady Company. She was a fellow of the American Physical Society
.
In 1986, MacVicar was awarded the Valeria A. Knapp Award by The College Club of Boston
in memory of the teacher and director of The Winsor School
, a girls' college prep school, from 1951-1963.
She died on September 30, 1991 at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
, a year after being diagnosed with cancer.
. The program allows undergraduates to gain hands-on research experience with faculty members around the university and provides the laboratories with the funds to employ the students. More than 3,000 undergraduates (75% of the undergraduate population) participate annually. The program has since been cited as a model educational program by the Department of Education
, National Science Foundation
, and several private foundations.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
physicist
Physicist
A physicist is a scientist who studies or practices physics. Physicists study a wide range of physical phenomena in many branches of physics spanning all length scales: from sub-atomic particles of which all ordinary matter is made to the behavior of the material Universe as a whole...
and educator
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
. In addition to serving as MIT
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...
's Dean of Undergraduate Education (1985–1990), MacVicar is credited with founding the now widely emulated Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) in 1969. MacVicar received her undergraduate and graduate degrees at MIT and joined the faculty, giving her the rare distinction of being a "MIT lifer."
Background
MacVicar was born on November 20, 1943 in Hamilton, OntarioHamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
to George and Elizabeth MacVicar. Her family relocated to Flint, Michigan
Flint, Michigan
Flint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
in 1946 where she lived until she graduated from high school in 1961. Because she had been taking classes at a local junior college as a high school student, a local retired General Motors
General Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
senior executive offered to help defray the costs of attending MIT.
At MIT, she was among the first women to live at the McCormick Hall women's dormitory which opened in 1964. She received a bachelor of science
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...
degree in physics in 1964 (though she considered herself affiliated with the class of 1965, with which she entered MIT) and a doctor of science (Sc.D) degree in metallurgy and materials science in 1967. Between 1967 and 1969, she worked as a post-doctoral fellow in the Royal Society Mond section of Cavendish Laboratory
Cavendish Laboratory
The Cavendish Laboratory is the Department of Physics at the University of Cambridge, and is part of the university's School of Physical Sciences. It was opened in 1874 as a teaching laboratory....
at the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
. She joined the Department of Physics at MIT in 1969 where her research investigated high-temperature metal and ceramic superconductors, single crystal and thin-film materials research, and detecting corrosion
Corrosion
Corrosion is the disintegration of an engineered material into its constituent atoms due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the most common use of the word, this means electrochemical oxidation of metals in reaction with an oxidant such as oxygen...
kinetics
Chemical kinetics
Chemical kinetics, also known as reaction kinetics, is the study of rates of chemical processes. Chemical kinetics includes investigations of how different experimental conditions can influence the speed of a chemical reaction and yield information about the reaction's mechanism and transition...
using superconducting magnetometry.
As Dean for Undergraduate Education, she worked to recruit more women, minorities, and students of varied interests, implemented changes in the humanities and social science requirements, and publicly criticized a Department of Defense
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
policy barring homosexuals from ROTC programs.
Professor MacVicar's was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Clarkson University
Clarkson University
-The Clarkson School:The Clarkson School, a special division of Clarkson University, was founded in 1978 as a unique educational opportunity. The School offers students an early entrance opportunity into college, replacing the typical senior year of high school with a year of college...
in 1985. She was Orator at the 1984 Literary Exercises of Phi Beta Kappa at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
; Cecil and Ida Green Distinguished Lecturer at the University of Texas in 1979; and Vollmer W. Fries Lecturer at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
in 1976. She was a member of the Corporations of the Charles S. Draper Laboratory and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research...
, a trustee of Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College
Radcliffe College was a women's liberal arts college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was the coordinate college for Harvard University. It was also one of the Seven Sisters colleges. Radcliffe College conferred joint Harvard-Radcliffe diplomas beginning in 1963 and a formal merger agreement with...
and of the Boston Museum of Science, and a director of Exxon Corporation, the Harvard/MIT Cooperative Society
Harvard/MIT Cooperative Society
The Harvard/MIT Cooperative Society is a Cambridge, Massachusetts-based cooperative serving the Harvard University and MIT campuses.It was founded as the Harvard Cooperative in 1882 to supply books, school supplies, and coal...
and H. W. Brady Company. She was a fellow of 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...
.
In 1986, MacVicar was awarded the Valeria A. Knapp Award by The College Club of Boston
The College Club of Boston
The College Club of Boston is a private membership organization founded in 1890 as the first women's college club in the United States. Located in the historic Back Bay of Boston, Massachusetts at 44 Commonwealth Avenue, the College Club was established by nineteen college educated women whose...
in memory of the teacher and director of The Winsor School
The Winsor School
The Winsor School is a girls' college prep school for day students in grades 5-12 founded in 1886. The school is located in Boston, Massachusetts and has approximately 432 students representing 57 communities in Massachusetts. The endowment as of July 1, 2007 was $50,516,000 which is $110,640 per...
, a girls' college prep school, from 1951-1963.
She died on September 30, 1991 at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana–Farber Cancer Institute is part of a Comprehensive Cancer Center designated by the National Cancer Institute. It is a major affiliate of Harvard Medical School and is located in the Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts.-Overview:...
, a year after being diagnosed with cancer.
UROP
MacVicar established the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program in 1969 based upon a suggestion from Edwin H. LandEdwin H. Land
Edwin Herbert Land was an American scientist and inventor, best known as the co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation. Among other things, he invented inexpensive filters for polarizing light, a practical system of in-camera instant photography, and his retinex theory of color vision...
. The program allows undergraduates to gain hands-on research experience with faculty members around the university and provides the laboratories with the funds to employ the students. More than 3,000 undergraduates (75% of the undergraduate population) participate annually. The program has since been cited as a model educational program by the Department of Education
United States Department of Education
The United States Department of Education, also referred to as ED or the ED for Education Department, is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government...
, National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
, and several private foundations.