Eleanor Samworth
Professor of Chemistry Emerita Eleanor Samworth, who worked for gender equality among Skidmore faculty and in the field of chemistry and helped establish the College's physics major, diedwho died on Saturday, Aug. 6, 2022. She was 86.
Eleanor served Skidmore from 1964 until her retirement in 1994. Early in her career, she was a member of a committee that brought salary discrepancies between male and female faculty members to the forefront. Later, she was a recipient of a grant from the Dreyfus Foundation to increase the number of women pursuing graduate studies in chemistry.
As chair of the Department of Chemistry and Physics for nearly a decade, Eleanor successfully championed the establishment of a physics major at Skidmore. She also contributed to many College committees, including as co-founder of the Academic Computing Committee, which extended the use of computers across the curriculum, and as a member of the Health Professions Advisory Committee.
“When I arrived at Skidmore in 1975, there were few senior women faculty. Eleanor was a mentor to me and to many students in the sciences and preparing for careers in medicine,” said Professor of Government Emerita Mary Ellen Fischer.
Eric Weller, dean of the faculty emeritus, called Eleanor a forceful advocate for the needs of her department and an early proponent of interdisciplinary learning at Skidmore.
“She really believed in the value of colleagues interacting across disciplines. She would be thrilled with the interdisciplinary learning that underlies the Center for Integrated Sciences and is also a hallmark of Skidmore today,” he said.
Born in Wilmington, Delaware, on May 10, 1936, Eleanor attended Wilson College in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. She completed her master’s and doctoral degrees in chemistry at Johns Hopkins University.
“Eleanor was extremely bright, had a deep love for her students, and was an incredibly good colleague who helped form the Chemistry Department into what it would become today,” said Professor of Chemistry Emeritus Paul Walter, who preceded Eleanor as department chair. “She also had a deep understanding of the purpose of a liberal arts education and the impact it could have on a student’s life.”