Janet A. Asper, Associate Professor of Chemistry, was awarded a letter of appreciation from the Naval Surface Warfare Center at Dahlgren. John Lysher and Chris Hodge of the Dahlgren’s NSWC presented the framed letter to Asper at a recent meeting of UMW’s Department of Chemistry.
Janet Asper poses with NSWC’s Chris Hodge, left, and John Lysher.
While serving a visiting professorship at NSWC in 2015, Asper overheard about a challenge the base faced finding housing for students in its summer internship program. She offered what she called a “nutty idea,” connecting them with University housing officials who agreed to provide summer housing for the students. Since then, the University has housed nearly 50 college interns at NSWC.
“You took notice and then took action,” said Lysher. “The solution was to connect the right people at Dahlgren with the right people at UMW. You’ve furthered an already successful collaboration, and the leadership at Dahlgren is most appreciative of what you’ve done.”
The collaboration has sparked partnerships with other regional companies needing temporary housing, said Asper, which has resulted so far in more than $43,000 in housing revenue for the University.
