The Van Frechette International Friendship Park

Alfred University's monument to international collaboration in art and engineering education and research, the Van Frechette International Friendship Park, was rededicated during a ceremony on campus Thursday' April 3, which marked the park's 25th anniversary.

The Frechette Friendship Park was unveiled in 2000 as part of the centennial celebration of the New York State College of Ceramics. The park, located at the corner of Pine and State streets near Scholes Library and Harder Hall, was the brainchild of L. David Pye '59, PhD '68, retired glass engineering science professor and former dean of the NYSCC. It honors Van Derck Frechette '39, who earned a bachelor's degree in ceramic engineering from Alfred University and later served as a professor of ceramic engineering from 1944 until his retirement in 1987.

Laurie Lounsberry Meehan '91, Alfred University archivist, spoke at the rededication ceremony and described Frechette as "internationally recognized scientist and beloved teacher." She related Pye's comments during the original dedication of the Friendship Park, which described Frechette as an ambassador for international collaboration: "It is fitting to dedicate the park in the name of Van Frechette, who through his more than 50-year association with Alfred University as a student, teacher, researcher, and benefactor, did so much to promote international relationships."

Frechette, from Ottawa, Canada, was himself an international student and faculty member at Alfred. Meehan related how, at the end of World War II, Frechette worked to establish relationships with German institutions. She pointed to comments made by a presenter when Frechette being awarded Distinguished Life Membership in the American Ceramic Society in 1994: "So many of the exchanges that take place today between ceramic scientists and students of Europe trace their roots back to this courageous gesture Van made when it was anything but popular."

Meehan noted that Pye did much to promote international collaboration in the field of engineering. "David lived this brand himself. When the park was being built, he was president of the International Commission on Glass, an organization of 26 countries dedicated to fostering scientific exchange and supporting the causes or international peace, friendship, and understanding."

The Van Frechette International Friendship Park consists of a slab of Italian marble with a bronze plaque that explains the park being dedicated to "the causes of peace, friendship, cultural understanding, and to those students from foreign lands who met the challenge of language, culture and distance to study at Alfred University."

"Those students, along with visiting scientists, artists, and researchers have become part of the fabric and history of Alfred University," Meehan said. "In doing so, they have contributed immeasurably to the quality and international recognition of our teaching, scholarship, and research."

The park also contains two benches and three flagpoles: one for the United States flag, one for the New York State flag, and one for the flag of the United Nations, with the understanding that the latter is taken down and replaced with the home flag of international visitors to the university.

"We're grateful that David Pye recognized the role that Alfred played in the realm of international relationships and impact, and that he had the foresight to suggest we memorialize that with this park," Meehan commented. "Van Frechette was an excellent choice for the name as a way to always remember his foundational work with international friendships."

Meg Bernstein, assistant professor of art history, speaks during the rededication ceremony for the Van Frechette International Friendship Park.

International collaboration abounds today in the NYSCC. Doris Möncke, associate professor of glass science, spoke about a recent trip she took with five other engineering faculty to Brazil for the ThirdSão Carlos School on Glasses and Glass-Ceramics, which featured a group of international professors and students from 12 countries; and Meg Bernstein, assistant professor of art history, talked about students and faculty having the opportunity to participate in artist residency programs at Cité Internationale des Arts, a non-profit international art center in Paris. Alfred University's School of Art and Design established a studio there in 1987 and the university supports two fellowships there each year: one each for a recent BFA and MFA graduates.

"This is a special time for us to be celebrating international friendships. They've been so important to our future," said Beth Ann Dobie, provost and chief operating officer. "We have faculty and students from all over the world. There are students from six continents studying at Alfred University. We want to be welcoming to students everywhere."

"Today, Alfred University and the New York State College of Ceramics celebrates the legacy of Van Frechette and formally renews our commitment to international exchange," Gabrielle Gaustad '04, dean of the Inamori School of Engineering, remarked.