Roger Opstbaum, Ph.D., and Susan Klarreich, Ph.D.
PARAMUS, N.J. – Susan Klarreich, Ph.D., and Roger Opstbaum, Ph.D., have become the 44th and 45th Bergen Community College faculty members to earn the rank of “professor emeritus” – an honor awarded to retired faculty members who made significant contributions to the institution. The newest inductees were enshrined during a May 6 luncheon.
Klarreich, of Teaneck, joined Bergen in 1975, teaching courses in chemistry and computer science. She became a key member in governance, devoting 30 years to the nominations and elections committee of the faculty senate. Aside from teaching, Klarreich championed causes related to her Jewish faith, serving as the College’s Hillel chapter adviser and working on Holocaust Remembrance Day committees.
Opstbaum, of West Chester, Pennsylvania, taught astronomy, climatology, geology and meteorology at Bergen for 30 years. Among his accomplishments, Opstbaum helped deliver a grant from the Emil Buehler Perpetual Trust that resulted in the establishment of a public observatory at the main campus that features three 16-inch telescopes. He also remains a respected voice and researcher on global warming and climate change.
A six-member committee of current faculty, led by Kate McGivern, selects inductees based on recommendations from academic divisions.
Based in Paramus, Bergen Community College (www.bergen.edu), a public two-year coeducational college, enrolls 15,000 students at locations in Paramus, the Philip Ciarco Jr. Learning Center in Hackensack and Bergen Community College at the Meadowlands in Lyndhurst. The College offers associate degree, certificate and continuing education programs in a variety of fields. More students graduate from Bergen than any other community college in the state.
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