News Release
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May 10, 2006
Boise State University Awards First Ph.D. at Spring
Commencement
Two Ed.D. candidates also to be hooded at May 13 ceremonies
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Geophysics Ph.D. candidate Greg Oldenborger,
right, and geosciences research |
When Greg Oldenborger walks across the stage Saturday at Boise State
University�s Spring Commencement, he�ll make school history.
Oldenborger, who is from Vancouver, B.C., is the first person to earn a
Doctor of Philosophy degree, or Ph.D., from Boise State. He�ll receive his
Ph.D. in geophysics, one of four doctoral programs now offered at the
university.
While Oldenborger is Boise State�s first Ph.D. graduate, he isn�t the first
Bronco to earn a doctoral degree. That honor goes to Alecia Baker, who
received a Doctor of Education degree, or Ed.D., in curriculum and
instruction in 1997. Spring Commencement will also include hooding
ceremonies for two Ed.D. candidates, Barbara Schroeder and Kerry Rice.
�It feels great,� said Oldenborger, about successfully defending his
dissertation and completing the requirements for a Ph.D. �I enjoyed the time
I�ve spent here at Boise State, and I�ve appreciated the opportunity to work
with some outstanding professors in the Department of Geosciences. Now I�m
looking forward to some new challenges.�
Oldenborger has accepted a position as a post-doctoral fellow at the
University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada, where he will continue
his research in the area of electrical and electromagnetic geophysics. He
plans to pursue a career as a university professor.
�Greg is very hard-working and independent, and I think he will find a lot
of success in the future,� said Michael Knoll, a geosciences research
professor who served as chair of Oldenborger�s Ph.D. supervisory committee.
�He is an excellent student � he knows how to identify what is significant
about a problem, and he has the technical skills to solve it and the
communication skills to explain it.�
Oldenborger spent about four and-a-half years enrolled in Boise State�s
research-intensive Ph.D. program in geophysics. During the first two years
of his program, Oldenborger completed his coursework and worked on several
research projects in the university�s Center for Geophysical Investigation
of the Shallow Subsurface (CGISS). He then successfully passed a
comprehensive exam and went to work on his dissertation, titled �Advances in
Electrical Resistivity Tomography: Modeling, Electrode Position Errors,
Time-Lapse Monitoring of an Injection/Withdrawal Experiment, and Solution
Appraisal.� The dissertation involved using electrical geophysics techniques
to monitor and predict how contaminants would flow through the Earth�s
subsurface.
Oldenborger presented talks and papers at national and regional conferences,
had several chapters of his dissertation published in leading peer-reviewed
scholarly journals and has two other journal papers pending. In addition, he
published a paper on the geostatistical analysis of ground penetrating radar
data that resulted from his �breadth project,� part of his comprehensive
exam.
�Greg�s dissertation work is first-rate,� added Mark Everett, a geophysics
professor at Texas A&M who served as the external examiner for Oldenborger�s
dissertation. �He has made several important advances in our understanding
of the electrical resistivity tomography technique for monitoring subsurface
contaminants. Boise State can be very proud of its first Ph.D. graduate.�
Oldenborger�s interest in both the practical aspect of the geophysics as
well as theory makes him unique among his peers, added Partha Routh, a Boise
State geosciences professor and co-chair of Oldenborger�s supervisory
committee.
�It is difficult to find people who have expertise in both hydrology and
geophysics with the focus on solving practical problems and making
theoretical advances,� Routh said. I had great fun working with him on
several problems related to his thesis and we plan to collaborate in future
on problems of common interest.�
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Contact: Greg Oldenborger,
greg@cgiss.boisestate.edu
CJ Northrup, Department of Geosciences, (208) 426-1581,
cjnorth@boisestate.edu
Jack Pelton, Graduate College, (208) 426-4203
Media Contact: Janelle Brown, University Communications (208)
426-1790, jbrown2@boisestate.edu
May is �Return to Learn� month at
Boise State University. �Return to Learn� is a campuswide effort to provide
information for those who may be considering taking classes from the
university and help them learn about the best options for returning to
school and earning a degree. For more information call (208) 562-3127 or
click returntolearn.boisestate.edu.
The Office of Communications and Marketing
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Boise State University
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email communications@boisestate.edu
Last reviewed on Wednesday, January 03, 2007