Aloha Scripps Day!

Celebrating all things Scripps

More than 300 Hawaiian shirt-clad Scripps students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and friends gathered on the Scripps campus June 12 for the second annual Scripps Day to celebrate another great year at Scripps - Hawaiian style.

Participants enjoyed a full day of activities, including free admission to Birch Aquarium at Scripps and a series of open houses on the Scripps campus. For some it was their first time walking on the Scripps Pier or visiting the library of the Old Scripps Building.

Scripps' Vaughan Hall bustled with visitors viewing marine and geological holdings from the Scripps Oceanographic Collections, and the new Robert Paine Scripps Forum for Science, Society, and the Environment (Scripps Seaside Forum) was open for tours. The new facility was also the site of science talks by Scripps faculty members Greg Rouse, Dean Roemmich, and Helen Amanda Fricker, representing biology, oceans and atmosphere, and earth respectively, who highlighted their contributions to current Scripps research.

During a recognition ceremony, UC San Diego Chancellor Marye Anne Fox thanked all at Scripps for their contributions. "I hope you are proud to be a part of this world-renowned Scripps Institution of Oceanography," Fox said. "I am certainly proud of all of your accomplishments and your hard work and research that continually raises the Scripps profile on a local, national, and global level."

Names of Scripps faculty, researchers, staff, students, and alumni who received honors over the past year were displayed on posters throughout the day. They were recognized for their varied achievements in science, sustainability, education, the environment, and diversity. Two-dozen dedicated Scripps staff members were recognized for more than 20 years of service--nine were celebrating more than 30 years of service and got a special "mahalo" from Scripps Director Tony Haymet during the program.

Nearly 40 graduating Scripps Ph.D., master's, and undergraduate students were present with their families and stood out in the crowd with fresh Hawaiian flower leis. "These talented young scientists among us are the bright minds who will inevitably and significantly influence our planet's future," said Haymet. "Scripps is fortunate to count you among our graduates."

Former Scripps student and current Scripps geophysics professor Peter Shearer, who was recently elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences, gave a keynote talk with inspiring words for his new fellow graduates.

"I have made two really smart decisions in my life—to marry my wife Susan and to go to Scripps. I think the beauty here inspires us to do better science, to be worthy of the environment we find ourselves in," said Shearer with a blue Pacific Ocean behind him. "My fellow alumni and friends of Scripps, let me assure you that you have chosen wisely."

—Shannon Casey

July/August 2009