During Rider University’s Reunion Weekend 2006, a new tradition will be created. Six Rider alumni who were outstanding students in the sciences will be inducted into Rider’s Science Stairway of Fame on Saturday, June 24.

The induction ceremony will take place from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. in the Bristol Myers Squibb Science Teaching and Learning Center. A highlight of the event will be the unveiling of six plaques, with citations, followed by a reception. “In addition to being exemplary students who have achieved professional success, the honorees have each demonstrated loyal and generous support of Rider’s science programs,” said Dr. Richard Alexander, assistant dean for science and chairperson of the geological/marine sciences department at Rider.

The first inductees are:

• Dr. Paul Falkenstein (biochemistry, ’89; MBA ’93), vice president for product and portfolio processes at Becton Dickinson;
• Dr. Joy Hughes (mathematics, ’71), vice president for information technology and chief information officer in the School of Information Technology and Engineering at George Mason University;
• James Ierubino (Geosciences, ’82), technical manager of RasGAS, a joint venture between ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum in Doha Qatar;
• Robert Nabinger, JD (biology and chemistry, ’77), who served as a research chemist for Sandoz Inc., and subsequently has held a distinguished career as a patent attorney for Fish and Richardson, PC;
• Gary Nath, JD (biology and chemistry ’66), founder of Nath and Associates, a practice that involves all aspects of intellectual property law; and
• Donald Reilly (psychology, ’73), who is president of Johanson Manufacturing Corporation, a privately held producer of miniature precision electronic products, fiber optic cables and components for the telecommunications and military electronics market.

The installation of the Science Stairway of Fame will take place during the late summer. Featuring laser-etched silver pictures of award-winning science graduates on walnut plaques, it will be located in the glass-enclosed, three-flight stairwell that is a key part of the new research wing to the Science and Technology Center.