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).
Teresa (Schneider) and Samuel Vohsen
Even though as students, Teresa (Schneider) and Samuel Vohsen spent many hours in McNutt Hall as ceramic engineering and geology…
Andrea (Clements) and Zachary Weber
Andrea (Clements) Weber, a member of Zeta Tau Alpha sorority, met her husband, Zachary, when one of her sorority sisters…
George Mueller: ensuring the ‘moonshot’
“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things,” President John F. Kennedy said…
Tom Benton’s ‘Missouri,’ from mural to movie
It was “over a few root beer floats” one night that James Bogan and Frank Fillo decided to make a…
Martin Jischke on increasing diversity
Martin C. Jischke, who served as chancellor at UMR between 1986 and 1991, describes the importance...
First woman department chair
In 1990, Dr. Elizabeth Cummins was named chair of Missouri S&T’s English department. She joined S&T as an instructor in…