PLYMOUTH, N.H.-A beloved, longtime science and education professor of Plymouth State has been honored by the University. Professor Mark Sylvestre’s legacy includes three decades of teaching in Plymouth, and the institution’s planetarium, which bears his name.
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| PSU President Sara Jayne Steen, right, with the Sylvestre family and Mark Sylvestre’s portrait |
A portrait of Sylvestre was placed in Boyd Science Center recently, honoring his dedication and enthusiasm in bringing science education to hundreds of students, both on and off-campus. Dr. Julie Bernier, PSU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, said Sylvestre’s dedication to the institution and science teaching was exemplary.
“Mark touched so many lives- students, faculty and community members,” Bernier said.
“Through the Sylvestre planetarium, Mark’s legacy will likely live on forever here at PSU.”
Former student Conrad Perrault, a Plymouth State graduate who later became a teacher, said Sylvestre inspired him.
“He was a master craftsman and a sculptor; a craftsman of his subject and a sculptor of his students,” said Perrault. “He brought chemistry into my life and a desire to teach and bring it to my students.”
Sylvestre, a Plymouth, N.H. native, attended Plymouth schools and graduated from Plymouth High School in 1940.
He attended Plymouth State Teachers College where he received a bachelor’s degree in 1950 and a master’s degree in 1957. Mark was hired as a science and mathematics teacher at the Richards School in Newport, and served in that capacity from 1950 to 1952 and later became principal of the school where he served from 1952 to 1957.
Mark became a member of the Plymouth State College faculty in 1957 where he was a member of the science department for 31 years. He was selected to attend the Harvard University Academic Year Institute in 1960 where he studied science and math. He later received his Doctor of Education degree from Boston University in 1970. During his career at Plymouth State, he was elected to the Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society and received the Distinguished Teachers Award in 1987, one of the college’s highest honors. After his retirement, the planetarium at Boyd Hall was dedicated in his name in 1995. Mark was instrumental in starting the planetarium at Plymouth State and was actively involved in promoting astronomy in New Hampshire.
For more information about this release, contact Bruce Lyndes, PSU Media Relations Mgr., (603) 535-2775 or Bruce Lyndes
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