KINGSTON, R.I. – Dec. 15, 2023 – The University of Rhode Island inducted 13 former employees into the Lifetime Service Society recognizing their decades of service to the University in ceremonies Dec. 1 at the Higgins Welcome Center.

URI has held an annual ceremony to honor and recognize longtime staff members for their dedication to the URI community since 2013. Eligible staff members and retirees must be or have been employed at the University for at least 40 years before they can be considered as a recipient. 

Nine of 13 inductees attended the ceremony. Each recipient received certificates of appreciation from the University, U.S. Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. Rep. Seth Magaziner and Gov. Dan McKee. A commemorative brick engraved with each inductee’s name and years of service will be placed at the entrance to the Robert L. Carothers Library and Learning Commons.

“What a fantastic group of honorees we are recognizing today and what a special tradition we have here at URI,” said President Marc Parlange. “This was one of my first events I attended as president and certainly one of my favorites because we are celebrating one of the greatest things about URI—our people. Today, we are celebrating those members of our community who, much like the bricks we are unveiling in their name, serve as keystones in the URI foundation, helping to build this vibrant, welcoming, diverse and extraordinary university.”

During the ceremony, each honoree was introduced by a University colleague. Those honored at the ceremony were:

Patricia Burbank, of North Kingstown, professor of nursing, who dedicated 40 years of service to the University.

Barbara Wolfe, URI provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, offered a tribute to Burbank, who started at URI as an undergraduate and received her nursing degree from URI in 1974.

Burbank joined the URI College of Nursing faculty in 1982, rising to associate professor of nursing and coordinator of the Gerontological Clinical Nurse Specialist Program. She later served as director of graduate studies and as associate dean for academic affairs. Along the way, Burbank led research in improving the care for older adults, and developing a focus on the needs of the LGBTQ community. She also published on the impact of diet and exercise in older adults, collaborating with an interdisciplinary team of faculty through the Rhode Island Geriatric Education Center. In 2012, she was named a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing for her national and international contributions to nursing.

“As our country and our world become older, Pat’s contributions will continue to improve the lives of countless people,” Wolfe said.

Peter Cornillon, of Saunderstown, professor of oceanography, 47 years.

In his tribute to Cornillon, Randolph Watts, research professor of oceanography, said Cornillon’s research was pivotal in his time at the Graduate School of Oceanography, calling his work on satellite data products, particularly sea surface temperature, world class. Cornillon also co-led the development of OpeNDAP, which provides the “gold standard” for open sharing of data, used globally in earth sciences, Watts said.

In the late 1980s, Cornillon helped organize the “SURFO” program, an intensive summer research fellowship for graduate students in math and physics. Several of his former students went on to find careers at NASA after graduation, Watts said.

Deborah Gardiner, of West Kingston, Honors Program coordinator, 41 years.

Professor Emerita Lynne Derbyshire, former director of the University Honors Program, called Gardiner the “embodiment of the program.” Gardiner managed nearly all aspects of the renovation of Lippitt Hall and, for many years, was the unifying face of the program as it underwent changes, Derbyshire said.

“For many years, she single-handedly coordinated the Honors Colloquium,” said Derbyshire, “including speaker logistics, event planning, contracts, budget and grant management, scheduling, and even beautifully hand lettered place cards.”

Michael Honhart, of Wakefield, professor of history, 51 years.

At the ceremony, Honhart was the inductee with the longest career, hired by the University while still finishing his dissertation at Duke University. In her tribute, Joelle Rollo-Koster, a professor of history, said Honhart’s classes in the history of Europe since 1914 and modern German history were some of the most popular in the department.

A fixture in the Faculty Senate, Honhart, who served as department chair and director of graduate and undergraduate studies, received the Sheila Black Grubman Faculty Outstanding Service Award for his work remaking the general education program. Honhart was also involved in the URI-American Association of University Professors and the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, but Rollo-Koster said his highest achievement was being a veritable fixture in the department and as a reliable presence for students and faculty.

“He was our memory,” she said, “the department’s and the institution’s.”

Cindy Moreau, of Jamestown, coordinator of Coastal Resources Center, 43 years.

In introducing Moreau, Elin Torell, director of the Coastal Institute, said Moreau was the “heart and soul” of the Coastal Resources Center’s international team for more than 35 years. Moreau was instrumental in running the center’s overseas projects, coordinating with URI, funding agencies and local partners to facilitate the expansion of URI-backed projects in nations such as Sri Lanka, Ecuador, Mexico, Thailand, Tanzania, Indonesia, the Philippines, Ghana, Senegal and more.

“As the international business manager, Cindy was well known and loved by our overseas staff,” said Torell. “She provided invaluable mentoring to our local partners. Her capacity building support helped local partners, such as the TRY Oysters Association in Gambia, develop the capacity and systems needed to receive and manage donor funding on their own.”

William Ohley, of Wakefield, professor of electrical, computer and biomedical engineering, 42 years.

In his time at the University, Ohley’s career was marked by important research, awards and the nurturing of students to find their own successful careers, said Yan Sun, department chair of electrical, computer and biomedical engineering.

Along with his roles as URI-AAUP president and department chair, Ohley served at Roger Williams and Rhode Island hospitals specializing in biomedical instrumentation. He also worked with the U.S. Department of Labor on power distribution safety. An artist who received awards from the state, Ohley also served as tri-chair of the University’s American Indian/Native American Advisory Council, which championed the University’s Narragansett Undergraduate Scholarship.

Gene Pollart, of Wakefield, professor of music, 46 years.

Pollart served as professor of music and director of bands for all 46 years at URI, said Mark Conley, chair of the music department. Pollart was the lead percussionist and timpanist for the Fresno Philharmonic Orchestra before moving to Rhode Island and becoming the timpanist for the Artists International Opera Company of Rhode Island. His ensembles have performed at numerous regional music education conferences as well as college and university conferences.

Robert Schwegler, of Warwick, professor of writing and rhetoric, 44 years.

In his comments, Jeremiah Dyehouse, professor of writing and rhetoric, thanked Schwegler for provoking professors to “make good trouble.”

“Bob Schwegler, you have been the heart of our little department,” Dyehouse said. “Your curiosity about written communication has led us intellectually. Your care for language learners has inspired our ethical thinking. Most of all, you have taught us to care for one another as people and colleagues.”

Joyce Winn, of Exeter, marine research assistant at GSO, 47 years.

Cynthia Murray, who worked alongside Winn for 39 years, wrote a tribute to Winn, which was read by Malia L. Schwartz, assistant director for research at the GSO. “I am so proud of what we were able to accomplish at the National Sea Grant library,” Murray wrote. “We were trendsetters in the early days of the internet and gained national recognition as being one of the first federal libraries to digitize its collection and make it available to the public.”

Murray praised Winn’s ability to navigate the increasingly complex technological issues, and was always amazed by Winn’s ability to locate an obscure document when no one else could. “No one knew the collection better than you,” Murray wrote.

Those inductees unable to attend the ceremony were: Richard Brown, professor of chemical engineering, 41 years of service; Thomas Guglielmetti, URI campus police corporal, 42 years; Joseph Mulcahey, coordinator of fire and safety operations at Fire and Life Safety, 40 years; Judith Swift, director of the Coastal Institute, 51 years.