Greek Major Isaac Alty Wins Jefferson Prize
At the College's Charter Day ceremonies on February 5, Isaac Alty, a senior majoring in Chemistry and Ancient Greek, will receive the Thomas Jefferson Prize in Natural Philosophy, an award that recognizes excellence in science and mathematics. Also receiving the award will be Andrew Halleran, son of Provost and Professor of Classical Studies Michael Halleran. To read the full story click here, but savor below some of Isaac's own words on the value of a broadly-based, Jeffersonian liberal-arts education that includes Ancient Greek:
"It has occurred to me a couple of times. Jefferson was very much a Renaissance man. He did a little bit of everything and he did it pretty well, too... I enjoy the idea of not focusing my education in one specific place, being able to learn about a broad variety of things that tie back to each other, and not necessarily in ways that you would expect, but which are beautiful nonetheless. Not to mention that there is really no better place ot have a Jeffersonian undergraduate experience than at Jefferson's own alma mater."As for Isaac's Greek talents, Prof. Lily Panoussi notes: "Isaac is affable, earnest, and positive. He approaches everything with an enthusiasm and openness that I find particularly refreshing and contagious... Difficulty just doesn’t seem to faze Isaac: Very few students have taken four semesters of advanced Greek — arguably the toughest courses at William & Mary — while also achieving excellence in a field as demanding as chemistry!”
