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| LOUIS T. BENEZET AWARD RECIPIENT
1992 |
Gerald W. Esch '58
One of the goals of a Colorado College education is to create lifelong
learners. Gerald Esch has gone that proposition one better. He has devoted
his life not only to learning for himself, but to teaching others and
inspiring them with that same love of knowledge and passion fro learning.
Others have recognized his abilities as an effective and inspirational
teacher, as a prolific and insightful writer/researcher in his field of
biology, and for his contributions to the academic world. Gerald Esch
was recently named to the rare and prestigious rank of Wake Forest Professor,
described by that North Carolina university as "a super rank above
the professorial designation."
Jerry's first teaching job was at the Colorado College, where as a recent
graduate he was a summer instructor in zoology. His first two published
articles were in conjunction with the young Colorado College professor,
Richard G. Beidleman. With a taste of teaching, the CC way, Jerry went
on to graduate school and then Wake Forest University.
After working his was through the ranks in the Wake Forest biology department,
after spending summers teaching parasitology at Michigan State University's
W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, and after spending time researching the
ecology of the Savannah River, Jerry was made chair of the Wake Forest
Biology Department.
The next stop for Gerald Esch was Dean of the Wake Forest Graduate School,
a position he held from 1984 to 1990, when he decided to return to the
classroom. As dean, Jerry developed innovative programs including a master's
in epidemiology, and perhaps with the own Colorado College background
surfacing, another in liberal studies. He also instituted Ph.D. programs
in neuroscience and physics. During his term, the graduate program grew
by nearly 25%.
With students always his main concern, Jerry found funding to enhance
the support of minority students and created an emergency loan fund for
graduate students. The campus budget for scholarships tripled and the
number of assistantships nearly doubled.
Throughout, Gerald Esch has been and continues to be in the field and
in the laboratory himself. He studies parasites and their ecological impact;
he shares his findings in professional articles and books; and he presents
his work at symposia and seminars around the world. He also maintains
an active role in the major professional organizations in his field. Jerry
was recently elected vice president of the American Society of Parasitologists
and was named editor-designate of the Journal of Parasitology.
To evaluate the importance of Gerald Esch's life work, we need only
look at the successes of his students. as an institution that prizes inspired
teaching, we at The Colorado College salute Gerald W. Esch.
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