1961

"You're a classmate of Mike Gazzaniga?" The neuropsychiatrist's voice was filled with awe. This particular neuropsychiatrist is heavily involved in brain research and diagnosis, and it seems that Mike's work paved the way for much of what does.

We're writing this month about Dartmouth's Gifts to die World, and that response to Mike Gazzaniga's work may show us just how widespread our accomplishments have been. Some of us have had our 15 minutes of fame, and it's gone now; others continue to return to the national or at least the localstage. Where to turn first? Obviously, in the past few months, John Zabriskie has reached the national stage as chairman and chief executive officer of the Upjohn Co. We've written about Rollerblades and how Bob Naegele turned an obscure invention into a national phenomenon. And about Bill Horton and his 1993 Healthy Americans Fitness League award for his accomplishments in fitness.

Just about everyone knows about how Steve Bosworth got Ferdinand Marcos out of the Philippines while he was U.S. ambassador there, an accomplishment that changed a nation's history. And Steve continues to attract attention as president of the United States-Japan Foundation.

Dick Beattie has garnered much attention for his public service as general counsel for the Department of Health, Education and Welfare in the Carter administration, as the man who put together the U.S. Department of Education, and for his service to the public schools of New York City. But what about his key role in the takeover of RJR Nabisco, a major contribution to corporate America which garnered repeated mentions in the book Barbarians at the Gate?

Some of our deceased classmates have had their place as well. Remember the honorary degree citation for the late Judge Frank Mahady from St. Michael's College? "Known throughout the state as a 'judge who cares,' he has a reputation for being a fair and courteous jurist. A constitutional expert, his rulings and opinions have been widely recognized both throughout the state and nationally."

Remember when Mike Kirst was hailed as a "leading education innovator" in the New York Times November 3, 1991 education supplement? When Matt Friednan, as a psychiatrist in charge of the National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, swung into action as Iraq began freeing hostages, offering a counseling program for them? When Irving Weissman and his company won a patent for purified bone-marrow stem cells, a development that merited headlines in the scientific world and in the major newspapers?

Actually, more of us have been in the national spotlight than there is room to mention in a brief column. And many more have been very visible in their towns and home regions.

We've got numerous jurists, corporate CEO's, college professors and deans, lawyers and doctors, accountants and artists, ambassadors, and other public servants, some of whom have attracted attention, but others of whom are Dartmouth's gifts to the world through their quiet contributions at the office, at home, in their churches, and in their communities.

Bowman Gray School of Medicine, Medical Center Boulevard, Winston-Salem, NC 27157

You're a classmate of Mike Gazzaniga? The neuropsychiatrist's voice was filled with awe. Mike's work paved the way for much of what he does. BOB CONN '61