Richard K. Vitek, a 1958 chemistry graduate, began his career as a research chemist producing uranium from ore, before moving on to work as a scientist, director and startup CEO. His accomplishments include working with the U.S. Coast Guard to develop UV imaging instruments that analyze oil spills to identify the tankers responsible and develop a method of testing arsenic levels in wine that led the Environmental Protection Agency to impose stricter limits on pesticide use in U.S. vineyards.
Share This Story
Spark a Memory?
Share your story! Fill out the form below to share your fondest memory or anecdote of S&T. If you'd prefer not typing, you can also share by phone at 833-646-3715 (833-Miner150).
Samantha (Smith) and Andrew Keeven
Although Samantha (Smith) and Andrew Keeven met thanks to mutual friends during St. Pat’s in 2014, they didn’t get to…
He even has a spaceship named after him
In 1967, Farouk El-Baz, was appointed by NASA as secretary of lunar landing site selection and chairman of astronaut training…
NIH’s first woman scientist
Dr. Ida Bengtson was the first woman the National Institutes of Health (NIH) hired as a scientist in 1916. For…
Endurance was her middle name
The first woman to earn a degree from S&T, Eva Endurance Hirdler Greene, class of 1911, received the general science…
Brandi (Andersen) and Patrick VerSteeg
Brandi (Andersen) and Patrick VerSteeg met during Opening Week in 2006. “My roommate and I knew Patrick’s roommate from Jackling…
Kaitlyn Loucks and Jacob Bellomy
Kaitlyn Loucks and Jacob Bellomy met each other at a fraternity party while she was home from co-op one weekend…