December 21, 2024

John Winn, professor emeritus of chemistry, died on Dec. 21 at the Jack Byrne Center for Palliative and Hospice Care in Lebanon. He was 77 years old.

"A passionate educator and brilliant chemist, John was also a dedicated administrator whose energy and enthusiasm inspired colleagues across campus," says Elizabeth F. Smith, dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. "The Department of Chemistry, which John led as chair for seven years, benefited especially from his thoughtful leadership. The strength of the sciences at Dartmouth and successes of generations of chemistry students are in part a testament to John's lasting contributions."

Winn grew up in Roanoke, Virginia, and earned his undergraduate degree in physics and chemistry from MIT in 1969. He completed his doctoral degree at the University of California at Berkeley, where he was a National Science Foundation graduate fellow. He then pursued post-doctoral research at Harvard University with Dudley Herschbach (who went on to receive the Nobel Prize in 1986 as well as an honorary doctorate from Dartmouth).

After serving as an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry at Berkeley for seven years, Winn joined the Dartmouth faculty as an associate professor of chemistry in 1982. His research focused on physical chemistry, with an emphasis on quantum molecular solids and spectroscopy and the dynamics of small molecules. He authored dozens of scholarly articles in prestigious chemistry journals and also wrote a popular Harper-Collins textbook, Physical Chemistry.

Winn's research garnered major funding from both the nonprofit and corporate sectors, with grants from the National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, IBM, Pew Foundation, and American Chemical Society, among many other organizations.

Winn was invited to deliver lectures about his research at prestigious institutions around the world and major international conferences, including the Stanford Symposium on Chemical Kinetics, All-China University Fundamental Courses Forum on Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, and national meetings of the American Chemical Society and American Physical Society. He served for many years on the MIT Corporation Visiting Committee for Chemistry and the international organizing committee for the Conference on the Chemistry and Physics of Matrix Isolated Species.

In February of 1993, Winn was awarded an honorary master of arts degree from Dartmouth.

As a teacher, Winn was deeply respected by his students and colleagues alike for his passion for learning and his ability to inspire others. He supervised dozens of graduate and undergraduate theses and taught courses in general chemistry, physical chemistry, chemical kinetics, and molecular spectroscopy. He also created several new courses at Dartmouth, including General Chemistry for Engineers, Fundamental Chemical Concepts and Techniques, and Graduate Instruction in Teaching Chemistry.

Among his many teaching innovations, Winn introduced quick "mini-quizzes" administered at the start of lab sessions to reinforce material covered in the previous week's lectures. He also introduced a "teaching fellow" program to provide additional student office hours with a graduate instructor dedicated to the lectures, supplementing the usual graduate teaching assistant connected to the labs.

Additionally, Winn developed numerous instructional software projects to complement his teaching, including an interactive Macintosh application for displaying and manipulating the important wavefunctions of the hydrogen atom, and a website with interactive mathematics for introductory quantum mechanics and atomic and molecular spectroscopy.

In their course evaluations, students praised Winn's enthusiasm and down-to-earth presence. "He was very engaging and was passionate about the material he was teaching," one student said, while another admired Winn's "mix of jokes and lecture material."

Winn was widely admired by his Dartmouth colleagues for the warmth and kindness he brought to many administrative positions. Among his many roles, he served as chair of the Committee on Priorities, Council on Computing, and Graduate Student Advisory Committee. He also served as chair of the Department of Chemistry from 1994 to 1998 and 2004 to 2007.

It was during Winn's term as department chair when the Dartmouth community suffered the loss of chemistry Professor Karen Wetterhahn, who died at the age of 48 due to accidental exposure to a toxic mercury compound. "John played a key leadership role during that tragic and difficult period," said Professor of Chemistry Dean Wilcox.

Looking back at the tragedy 10 years later, Winn reflected on preserving Wetterhahn's legacy. "I think that Karen's memory is still quite strong among those of us who knew her, and we pass that on to those who weren't here when she was," he said. "I think of her often."

Many colleagues were awed by Winn's far-ranging interests, which included cats, music, film, and world travel. "He was an outstanding chair and colleague, and he had a brilliant mind for seemingly everything," recalled Professor of Chemistry Emeritus Gordon Gribble. "I remember him telling me about the Aussie who estimated that the number of water molecules in a single drop was approximately equal to the number of grains of sand on all the beaches on Earth!"

Winn is survived by his son, John Christopher Winn, daughter-in-law Janis (Christiansen) Winn and her son Colin VanCourt, all of Utica, N.Y.; his beloved Stephanie Boone of Lebanon, N.H., her son Matt Joanis and his wife Carolyn Dale, and their daughters Hunter and Skylar; her son Luke Joanis and his partner Anna Fleischman, and their daughter Rosalyn.

A springtime memorial service will be planned to honor Winn's life. Donations in his memory may be given to Alley Cat Allies or a local chapter of the Humane Society.

The Dartmouth flag will be lowered in Winn's honor on Friday, Feb. 7 and Saturday, Feb. 8—the birthday of Dmitri Mendeleev, creator of the periodic table of elements.