Any leadership role, whether it is president of a club or a college, is daunting at the start. In the case of Quentin Wheeler, new president of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, this may be especially true.

ESF needs a president who continually extends scientific research and also creates real world dimensions for the application of scientific findings.

The president must foster a learning environment that creates scientific thinkers and leaders. Without the association of science to society, science is disconnected and without objectives.

In this case, Wheeler has a lot to live up to — a beloved last president with an equally quirky name and a job description that includes molding the future environmental leaders of tomorrow.

Leaving the position after a 13-year tenure, current President Cornelius B. Murphy Jr., lovingly called “Big Neil” by students and others alike, has brought ESF gracefully into the 21st century, with infrastructure and academic improvements.

For the first time in a century, ESF can now house its own students in a LEED Platinum certified residence hall. With the addition of the Gateway Center this year, another LEED Platinum building, the college will reach its goal of carbon neutrality in the near future.

Graduate, doctoral and undergraduate students alike continue to research in breakthrough environmental fields, such as with the Willow Biomass project, which works to convert willow into a burnable fuel.

New departments and areas of study have been developed to create new environmental leaders. Last year, the Sustainable Energy Management program was introduced, creating new options for the environmental issues of the 21st century.

All are thanks, in part, to Big Neil.

But with Wheeler’s resume, accolades and prolific writings, the SUNY Board of Trustees and the SUNY Chancellor have chosen an option that may easily fill those shoes in his own way.

Because of this, Wheeler is promising.

But even with all the changes and improvements Big Neil has led, there is still so much more to be done. As environmental issues evolve and change, the college must also develop.

Wheeler must continue with Big Neil’s changes, but also fill in gaps that have been neglected during the years. More emphasis must be put on relating science information to society and the public.

Though advancements have been made specifically in the environmental studies and environmental writing program, more emphasis on writing, communication and leadership must be connected across curriculum.

Wheeler may just be the man to do this. Along with his numerous awards and recommendations, Wheeler has written more than 150 academic articles and six books.

With this, he also writes a weekly column for The Observer in London on newly discovered species.

Wheeler needs to bring his experience and create an emphasis on these areas.

When speaking to ESF Communications, Wheeler showed that he understands the magnitude of this position.

“Environmental challenges of unprecedented kind, scale and complexity will characterize the 21st century, along with society’s response to them,” he told the department. “SUNY-ESF has established itself as a leading center of sustainability and environmental discovery and learning that is uniquely positioned to assure that we and future generations have as many options as possible available to us to successfully adapt to a rapidly changing world.”

Quentin Wheeler holds promise for the future of ESF as college president, but only time will tell of his prospective accomplishments in the position. Or on the quirkiness of his impending college nickname.

Meg Callaghan is a senior environmental studies major at SUNY-ESF. Her column appears weekly. She can be reached at mlcallag@syr.edu.

Published on December 3, 2013 at 1:44 am