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Forecasting & scholarship
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Matthew Doody and Dr. Lance Bosart |
Where is a Nor�easter or tornado warning the equivalent of a NFL post-game victory bash? That would be the �Map Room� in UAlbany�s department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, where students hang out to hone their skills at weather forecasting, trade knowledge with fellow students and interact with top faculty. �It�s the hub of the department,� says its Chair, Dr. Vincent Idone. Students, like senior Matthew Doody, are challenged by this notoriously tough major and happy with the camaraderie. �All the professors make an effort to get to know the students on a one on one basis.� It�s a key element of the foundation of the program that helps students go on to become some of the most successful professionals in the field.
Matthew Doody is one of those students �on his way.� He has liked extreme weather ever since he can remember. From Caribou, ME, Doody is one of the nearly 30% of students who come from outside New York State because of the reputation of the atmospherics sciences program. At first Doody thought that he wanted to become a forecaster. He immersed himself in everything the rigorous program had to offer, including viable internships at the Atmospheric Sciences Research Center (ASRC) and the National Weather Service, which ultimately helped him to realize that his real passion in the field was research. With ASRC member Dr. David Fitzjarrald, Matthew has assisted in aspects of a research program focusing on how the turbulent lower atmosphere interacts with the Earth�s surfaces.
At the encouragement of his faculty academic advisor, Dr. Lance Bosart, Matt wrote a winning essay and recently garnered the prestigious John R. Hope Scholarship offered by the American Meteorological Society. Only ten scholarships are given nationwide every year. �Matt�s winning the Hope scholarship is a direct result of his overall hard work and academic achievement at UAlbany,� said Bosart. �My job as his academic advisor was to point him in the right direction, make him aware of all the academic opportunities that were open to him, encourage him to take a challenging academic program, and then get out of his way.�
Permanently endowed by The Weather Channel, Inc., the John R. Hope Scholarship in Atmospheric Sciences honors the late John R. Hope and the contributions he made as a tropical weather expert both early in his career and later as an on-air expert at The Weather Channel.
Related Links:
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Atmospheric Sciences Research Center |
