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Dr. Thomas Papathomas: “Every Effort Is Worth The Reward Of Impacting Student Education”

New Greek TV's featured Greek of the Week is Dr. Thomas Papathomas.

Dr. Papathomas, who hails from Kastoria, immigrated to the United States to pursue his education and career. The scholar who holds three U.S. patents, currently serves as the Busch Campus Dean and Biomedical Engineering Professor at Rutgers University. In addition, he is the faculty advisor of the Hellenic Cultural Association (HCA) of Rutgers students and the editor-in-chief of Early Vision and Beyond.

In our interview below, the award-winning Greek academic discusses his expansive career, dedication to Hellenism, proudest moments, the Rutgers Modern Greek Studies Program (MGSP), and more.

Maria Athens: Can you offer an overview of your vast academic career?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: There are three major phases in my career: I worked at Bell Laboratories as a member of technical staff and supervisor in the Electronic Power Systems Laboratory, as an electronics and software engineer (1977-1983).

In 1983 I made a huge change in my career, transforming myself from an engineer to a vision researcher, exploring how the brain processes the signals that arrive to our eyes. I was fortunate to have Dr. Bela Julesz, winner of a MacArthur award, as my mentor. I transferred to his Visual Perception Research Department within Bell Laboratories (1983-1989).

I moved to Rutgers University in 1989, where I have been a Professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, with a joint appointment in the Graduate Programs in Psychology and in Neuroscience/Neurobiology, and as Director of the Laboratory of Vision Research/Center for Cognitive Science (1989-present). Since 2008, I also serve as the Busch Campus Dean; the Busch Campus is the "science campus" of Rutgers University in New Brunswick/Piscataway.

Maria Athens: Can you describe your respective positions as both the Busch Campus Dean and Biomedical Engineering Professor at Rutgers University?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: As Busch Campus Dean, my responsibility is to bring faculty members and undergraduate students together for research, academic, cultural and community-building events beyond the classroom. This is a demanding, time-consuming job that takes much time and effort; however, every effort is worth the reward of having an impact on the education of undergraduate students.

In addition, I work with very self-motivated students who are organized in clubs that have specific goals and aspirations. For example, this year, I was very involved in organizing a high-quality TEDx Rutgers University event.

As Professor of Biomedical Engineering, I have teaching, research and service responsibilities. My teaching load is reduced to make time for my Dean's responsibilities but I still teach a graduate course in brain research and a seminar on illusions, designed to introduce first-year college students to research in visual perception.

In research, as the Director of the Laboratory of Vision Research, I maintain a very active research program, where I work with my postdoctoral associate, as well as graduate and undergraduate students, pursuing questions in visual perception.

In the service area, I participate actively in the activities of the Department, the School of Engineering and the University in general. For example, I have been presenting a show on illusions on Rutgers Day ever since it started being celebrated.

Maria Athens: Can you tell us about Rutgers Modern Greek Studies Program (MGSP)?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: The Rutgers Modern Greek Studies Program (MGSP) has been steadily #1 in the nation for the number of courses offered and the number of students who take these courses. Thanks to recent donations and excellent leadership by its Director, Prof. Stephen Reinert, the MGSP now serves over 100 undergraduates, with roughly 30 of them currently minoring in Modern Greek Studies. The community's generous donations in 2013 and 2014 helped raise over $200K. Mr. Nikos Mouyiaris matched this with $400K (part of his 4-year pledge of $800K), for a total of more than $600K.

Together with the extraordinary efforts of Prof. Panos G. Georgopoulos, Director of the Elytis Chair Fund, we have grown the Elytis Chair Fund from $800K to over $1.5 million in the last 3 years, thanks to the community's generous donations. Ms. Andrianni Vollas-Viscariello, Associate Vice President in the Rutgers University Foundation, is coordinating our fundraising efforts. We still have work to do in order to reach our goal to establish a permanent Elytis Chair.

Maria Athens: What is your role with MGSP?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: I serve as the faculty advisor of the Hellenic Cultural Association (HCA) of Rutgers students, along with Dr. Georgopoulos, and I am also a member of the Board of Directors of the Elytis Chair Fund, which is heavily involved in fundraising efforts and provides support to the MGSP.

The HCA students have been instrumental in supporting the MGSP, which they consider as their own, through fundraising efforts associated with advertising in the commemorative book ("Λευκωμα") of the annual dinner-dance event.

Finally, I work with the Director of the MGSP as an advisor to help him/her organize cultural events of general interest for the entire Rutgers community, as well as for the citizens of New Jersey and the neighboring states.

Maria Athens: What are the main strides of the MGSP?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: Mr. Mouyiaris's generous donations and the community's support enabled us to add 5 new courses and renew 3 other courses to the existing 18 courses. We were also able to offer scholarships for students who studied in Greece this summer, thanks to the generosity of the Golfinopoulos, Spireas and Vahaviolos families. We are currently working to start a joint program with the University of Cyprus.

Maria Athens: When and what is the "Rutgers Hellenic Weekend April 25-26"?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: There are two events that comprise the "Rutgers Hellenic Weekend April 25-26":

(a) Maria Farantouri's Concert on Saturday, April 25, 2015 at 7 pm at the Rutgers Nicholas Music Center, 85 George Street, New Brunswick, NJ. People may RSVP for the concert by visiting http://goo.gl/uNQszy.

(b) HCA students' dinner-dance on Sunday April 26 2015, 6:00pm-10:30 pm at the Pines Manor, 2085 Route 27, Edison, NJ, to celebrate the first 40 years of the HCA by honoring past HCA Presidents and members and Prof. Steve Reinert, the Director of the MGSP. Grigoris Maninakis and the Mikrokosmos Ensemble will provide quality entertainment.

Maria Athens: What influenced you to dedicate yourself to the promotion of Hellenism in America?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: I wish I had more time to "dedicate myself to the promotion of Hellenism in America". Because I have a very heavy workload for research, teaching, service and Dean's duties, I get involved as much as I can.

One of the main reasons I get involved is because, when I came from Greece to the U.S. at age 18, I had signed an agreement as part of getting a scholarship from the Anglo-American-Hellenic Bureau of Education that I would return to Greece after completing my studies. Although I made attempts to return to Greece to continue my professional career, I still feel that I reneged on my promise. So, I do what I do as a way of redeeming myself for not returning to Greece to serve her.

Maria Athens: Can you tell us about your own Greek background? 

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: My personal story in a nutshell: I was born in Kastoria, Macedonia, Greece in 1949. My father's death in 1962 marked my life. After graduating from high school in Kastoria in 1967, I came to the U.S. to study and I obtained my B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Columbia University. I was fortunate to meet Georgia Nikolakopoulou, another scholarship recipient of the Anglo-American-Hellenic Bureau of Education, in 1968 and marry her in 1976. We are blessed with our "kids" Lia and Alexander.

Maria Athens: Why did you settle in New Jersey?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: The main reason we settled in New Jersey is that both Georgia and I were offered excellent positions in Bell Telephone Laboratories after we obtained our doctoral degrees. New Jersey was great to raise our children in, but we love New York and we spend as much time in the City as we can.

Maria Athens: What personal and professional feats are you most proud of?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: On the personal front, I am most proud of my family. I am fortunate and happy next to Georgia and we both count our blessings for our children. They feel proud of their Greek heritage and they speak perfect Greek, thanks to our efforts, our frequent trips to Greece, their close ties with our relatives in Greece, and the Rutgers MGSP, which they both attended.  Another reason I get involved with things Greek is that I see it as a duty to them. Speaking of duties, both Georgia and I have tried to care for our parents, although one can never pay back in full.

On the professional front, I am happy I selected an academic career, because it gives me the freedom to pursue my interests. In this regard, I am proud that my colleagues recognize my contributions by reviewing my proposals and awarding research grants for my research, by recommending my scientific papers for publication, by inviting me as a speaker in international conferences and forums, and by displaying my work in Science Museums and the New York Arts Biennial.

On another front, I am pleased that, as the Chair of the Scholarship Committee of the Kastorians Society of New York, I contribute to the significant role that the Society plays in encouraging excellence in education. I would like to mention the generous contribution of Mr. Nickolas Davatzes, founder of A&E Network and the History Channel, among other accomplishments, who established the Alexandra Kordes Davatzes Scholarship in his mother's memory. We need more people to imitate his example.

Maria Athens: What's next for Dr. Papathomas?

Dr. Thomas Papathomas: I plan to continue working for a few more years, as long as I can be productive in research, teaching and service. I will continue being actively involved with HCA, MGSP, and the Elytis Chair Fund, and I plan to spend much more time when I retire. I am passionate about art and poetry and I hope to pursue both in retirement. There is not enough time for either of them now.

Last modified onSaturday, 18 April 2015 00:12