Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE - Anyone starting out teaching chemistry in a college classroom in 1967 would have found an eight foot slide rule hung above the blackboard in every classroom. If the teacher was lucky, he or she might have worked in a school that could afford an $800 calculator to do addition, subtraction, multiplication, division and square root computations. Teachers who were really lucky might have been privileged to work in a department which, a couple of decades later, could afford to invest in a computer, though the big debate would have been whether to buy 10 or 20 megabytes of memory.

Charles Sundin, professor of chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, has lived through an exciting time of evolution and sometimes revolution, of technology in education, but says the characteristics of good teachers and learners has remained constant through the years. After almost 40 years of teaching, Sundin is retiring, but leaving his mark behind through the valuable contributions he has made in the lives of thousands of students.

"Charles has inspired countless students and fellow faculty during his career. I am often asked by the alumni I meet if 'Dr. Sundin is still there,' and more often than not, the former students will follow this with comments relating just how much of a positive impact Charles made upon their academic career," said Charles Cornett, chair of the UWP Department of Chemistry and Engineering Physics.

In fact, his time at UWP ends on a high note for Sundin - he received the 2006 Phi Kappa Phi Excellence in Teaching award, which is voted on by students whose votes are tallied through the years, with each recipient being determined by whoever receives the highest cumulative total as of that year. The students' comments in choosing Sundin highlight his philosophy that a good teacher enables students to learn on their own, ask questions and grow intellectually.

"...he teaches students a lot of information but also makes sure students learn where to look to answer their own questions. Typically, if you ask him a question, he will ask you one in return. At first, this may annoy the student, but soon the student is finding information and answering his own questions. This works very well as an effective teaching tool and challenges the students. Dr. Sundin knows his material very well and is an excellent professor," wrote one student in explaining her choice for the award.

Sundin began teaching chemistry at UWP in 1967, became an associate professor in 1969 and a full professor in 1979. He served as chair of the Department of Chemistry for seven years and as chair of the newly formed Department of Chemistry and Engineering Physics for two years. He has served in numerous advisory roles to student organizations and belongs to a number of professional societies, including a 46-year membership in the American Chemical Society. He has presented at dozens of workshops and symposia through the years, and has been particularly active in the area of microscale organic chemistry.

"Charles was instrumental in developing and implementing a microscale organic chemistry laboratory at UWP and advocating its adoption by other UW chemistry programs through presentations made at other campuses," explained Jesse Reinstein, UWP professor of chemistry, and Sundin's colleague for many years. Reinstein described Sundin as a "credit to the teaching profession."

Sundin first became interested in the idea of microscale organic chemistry in 1984 because of the advantages of using smaller amounts of chemicals. The microscale approach, Sundin explained, is safer, more environmentally friendly, less costly, and less odorous. Sundin obtained grant funding in 1985 to try the approach out on a pilot class of students. It was successful, so Sundin requested, and received, additional grant money to teach the approach to other faculty in the University of Wisconsin System. Since then, he has organized faculty workshops in Chicago, Los Angeles, West Lafayette, IN and Morgantown, VA.

Another interest he has pursued over the years is using the potential of computer technology to help students visualize the form and function of molecules. Sundin was quick to realize the potential the Internet could have for teaching.

"In 1994, someone from the Information Technology area called me in to show me a book exhibit on the Web. The exhibit was in Washington D.C., of very old books, including some of those lavishly illuminated manuscripts produced in the Middlle Ages or Renaissance - not just books, but works of art. It took 10 minutes to download. That's when I got the idea to try to use this new tool to help my students visualize what's happening in the areas of chemistry we can't see," he said.

"One of Charles' most important endeavors was ensuring that the chemistry program embraced technology integration in the classroom as the importance of visual learning grew through the 90s and into the 21st century. Students often comment that Dr. Sundin's use of computers and animation were especially helpful in mastering the challenging subject of organic chemistry. It goes without saying that Charles will be sorely missed for his contributions both in and out of theclassroom," said Cornett.

In fact, upon retirement, Sundin plans to produce a microscale organic chemistry DVD. He will also perform work on the Web for some non-profit groups, digitize many years worth of family photos, read for pleasure and spend more time with his family.

"I won't miss the many Sunday afternoons of grading lab reports, but I will miss the students and my colleagues. They have been very supportive of me through the years and never discouraged me from trying out my ideas. It's been a great department to work in. And, of course, the best part of my job has been teaching the students," he said.

But all the retirement plans will have to stay on hold for a while as Sundin prepares to depart to Hawaii for a month - his retirement gift to himself, he explained. But it won't be all beach lounging because he and his wife, Roxanne, a science teacher at Platteville Middle School, plan to do some volcano watching while there.

"I've always wanted to see an active volcano. I'm determined to see some lava," he said. Seems the teacher will be a perpetual student.

The Sundins have two children, Sharon, a UWP graduate who works as a graphic designer at the Manitowoc Herald Times Herald Reporter, and Douglas, a student majoring in photography/photojournalism at Winona State University in Minnesota. Charles and Roxanne live in Platteville.

Contact: Charles Cornett, chair, Department of Chemistry and Engineering Physics, (608) 342-1658, cornettc@uwplatt.edu

Prepared by: Evelyn Martens, UWP Public Relations, martense@uwplatt.edu, (608) 342-1194