Dr. Alice Mary Weeks, Our Founder and a Pioneering Woman Geologist
Dr. Weeks was a mineralogist homeschooled in her early years. She began her doctorate in 1934 where restrictions against women forced her to listen to lecture from hallways. These pressures, financial instability, and eventually World War II (where she taught map making to officers), delayed completion of her doctorate until 1949, after which she initially worked for the U.S. Geological Survey.
Among many discoveries, she identified the mineral Urophane in 1953 with Dr. Mary E. Thompson; the mineral weeksite is named in her honor.
As one of the first woman geologists, she was listed in the "American Men of Science" in 1955, well before it was changed to "American Men and Women of Science".
Dr. Weeks and her husband, Albert, left a generous donation to establish an endowed chair in the department.