The department of geological sciences at Cal State Long Beach is in the process of selecting a faculty chair for its new hydrogeology program after the recent completion of a $1 million endowment.
Hydrogeology is a science dealing with the occurrence and distribution of groundwater in soil and the Earth’s crust.
The endowment came from a $600,000 estate gift from Bert and Ethel Conrey, regular contributions since 2002 from the Carl W. Johnson Foundation, as well as contributions from faculty, staff and alumni of the department.
Bert was the first geology faculty member at CSULB when he joined in 1955. The $600,000 gift from the Conreys was meant to specifically establish an endowed faculty chair for the department.
According to the geological sciences department chairman Stan Finney, the faculty, staff and alumni of the department contributed to the endowment because they wanted to show their commitment to the cause.
The final $30,000 from Carl W. Johnson Foundation was presented last month and completed the funding costs the Bert L. and Ethel J. Conrey Endowed Chair in Hydrogeology.
The funding from the endowment allows the department to hire a more qualified full professor candidate for the position instead of an entry-level professor.
A well-established professor with adequate qualifications is needed because, according to Finney, the hydrogeology chair will be charged with creating the curriculum, facilities and instrumentation of the program, along with the task of finding grants and contracts to support it. Essentially, the chair will develop the master’s program in hydrogeology.
The recruitment for the faculty chair commenced less than a month ago when the endowment was completed. During the spring 2008 semester, interviews will most likely be held so the new chair can begin for the fall 2008 semester. Even this early in the game, Finney said, good candidates are being recruited.
“There’s a lot of qualified people out there,” Finney said, adding that getting the person the university wants will be difficult.
According to Finney, the actual hiring of the faculty chair is a matter for the provost and dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. However, the faculty members of the geological sciences department will run the selection committee.
Currently, the master’s program in geological sciences has between 15 and 20 students. Finney said he hopes the master’s in hydrogeology will enroll between 10 and 15 students and graduate five or six students per year when running at full capacity.
Finney said that most programs in hydrogeology in the region cannot support the large program the department hopes to create at CSULB.
“We want a graduate program of prominence in Southern California,” Finney said.
Finney also said he would like to see the program as a source for employers to easily turn to for recruiting the best master’s students in hydrogeology.
Finney said there is definite student demand for more hydrogeology courses and said more hydrogeologists are needed to deal with the issues of quantity and quality of ground and surface water.
One current problem hydrogeologists are facing, according to Carla Weaver, a lecturer of geological sciences, is limited surface water in Southern California, coupled with the over pumping of groundwater, that can cause serious problems. This is why monitoring the quantity of groundwater is just as important as monitoring its quality, Weaver said.
“Just like we are concerned about air and surface water pollution, the society in general needs to learn about groundwater pollution,” Weaver said.
