Robert C. Fay, emeritus professor of chemistry and chemical biology in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S), died Feb. 6 in Fairfax, Virginia. He was 88.
An inorganic chemist, Fay conducted nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) research on the stereochemistry and molecular rearrangements of metal chelate compounds, and X-ray crystallographic studies of their structures.
“Bob Fay was an excellent inorganic chemist, superb at analyzing the variety of ways by which the atoms surrounding a central metal atom in an inorganic molecule move around, rearranging themselves into a different geometry. Bob’s work was beautifully reasoned and always reliable,” said Roald Hoffmann, the Frank H. T. Rhodes Professor, Emeritus, in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology (A&S), and winner of the 1981 Nobel Prize in chemistry.
Although initially ambivalent about the project, Fay co-wrote two successful general chemistry textbooks with John McMurry, professor emeritus of chemistry, which went through eight editions: “Chemistry” and “General Chemistry: Atoms First.”
The co-authors introduced what they called “conceptual problems,” which as Fay explained it “were non-numerical problems where you couldn’t just plug numbers into a formula and get an answer. You saw pictures and you had to think about things visually.” Although the problems were time-consuming to create, Fay called them a “good improvement” in textbook pedagogy.
“The most satisfying is to see students actually learning from your book,” he told Hoffmann in an oral history interview recorded in 2012.
“Bob Fay had an exceptional record of dedication to pedagogy, both in the classroom and laboratory. Soft spoken and scholarly, he was a superb teacher with an extraordinary ability to inspire his students, motivating them to develop critical thinking skills and instilling in them the pursuit of excellence in their scientific endeavors,” said Bruce Ganem, the Franz and Elisabeth Roessler Professor and Stephen H. Weiss Presidential Fellow in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology (A&S).
That dedication to teaching was recognized in 1980 when Fay received the College of Arts and Sciences’ Clark Distinguished Teaching Award.
“On a personal level,” Hoffmann said, “Bob was kind and patient, and always tolerant of difference. Peace and understanding radiated from him. We will miss him.”
Fay joined the Cornell faculty in 1962 and spent more than 50 years in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology. He told Hoffmann in their interview how much he valued the collegiality of the department and the generosity of colleagues who shared their equipment, enabling him to achieve far more than just his funding would have allowed otherwise.
He taught as a visiting professor at Harvard University and at the University of Bologna, Italy. He was a National Science Foundation Science Faculty Fellow at the University of East Anglia and the University of Sussex in the U.K., and a NATO Senior Fellow at Oxford University.
Fay was born on March 14, 1936, in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and was educated in the public schools. Fay received an AB degree from Oberlin College, and a master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Illinois in inorganic chemistry. During his graduate studies, he worked four summers as an inorganic chemist at the National Bureau of Standards in Washington, D.C.
Before getting his doctorate, Fay spent a year at Wheaton Graduate School studying biblical literature. He said the experience helped him decide between a professional Christian ministry and chemistry, though his lifelong religious involvement never flagged. He believed, he said, “that there’s a very close interaction between science and religion.”
He played a founding role in the establishment of Chesterton House, a center for Christian studies at Cornell, and for more than 40 years was faculty adviser for the Cornell chapter of the Intervarsity Christian Fellowship.
“He thought far beyond the frame of a chemist and saw the deeper challenges and opportunities for someone of his faith convictions to speak wisely to the big questions that truly launch all inquiry, including scientific inquiry,” said Vivek Matthew, executive director of Chesterton House. “Beyond that, the warmth and devoted care that he and his wife Carol provided to our organization were pivotal to getting us to where we are today.”
He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Carol Baker Fay, and his sister, Ruthanne Blissett. He was predeceased by his brother, William Fay.
