Arun and Darshana Varshneya endow University Conference on Glass

Arun and Darshana Varshneya endow University Conference on Glass

The Varshneya Endowed Glass Fund, under the stewardship of Alfred University, will support the University Conference on Glass, a biennial conference which is hosted on a rotational basis by four institutions: Alfred University, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Pennsylvania State University. Funding will support the conference at all four host institutions. The conference series, established at Alfred University in 1970, will now be titled the Varshneya-University Conference on Glass.

“My global reputation originated from two sources: professorship at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University and ownership of Saxon Glass Technologies, Inc.,” Professor Varshneya said. “The latter itself came about from my faculty position. At a breakfast meeting with retired faculty, I had remarked to President Zupan that I had the greatest time at Alfred. In Frank Sinatra’s words, ‘Regrets I had a few, but too few to remember.’ It was, therefore, natural for me to think about giving back.”

Alfred University hosted the 21st annual University Conference on Glass in 2024. Undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and industry professionals took part in the conference, learning about the latest developments in glass science, technology, and education. Sessions included introductory lectures by glass experts on important glass subjects and presentations by undergraduate and graduate students of their latest research.

In addition to supporting the Varshneya-University Conference on Glass, the Varshneyas’ gift will also fund the Varshneya Lecture on Glass, an annual lecture series held at Alfred University. Varshneya said he expects the lecture series to bring renowned members of the glass science community to campus, similarly to the Samuel L. Scholes Memorial Lectures series, held annually at Alfred University in April. Established in 1982, the Scholes Lecture series honours the late Samuel R. Scholes, who in 1932 established the first glass science program in the United States at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University.

“The subject matter (of the Varshneya Lecture on Glass) should include all glass science, technology, and education topics, building upon the fundamentals described in my textbook,” he said, referring to Fundamentals of Inorganic Glasses, which he wrote at the request of his students. Now used as a textbook to teach glass science and technology to students worldwide.

Dr Arun Varshneya is professor of glass science and engineering, emeritus, whose teaching and research career at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University spanned from 1982 to 2010. During his tenure, he taught nearly every course in glass science and engineering at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He is a Distinguished Life Member of the American Ceramic Society, an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Glass Technology (and Immediate Past-President) and a President’s Award recipient for lifetime achievement by the International Commission on Glass.