Establishing an Endowed Faculty Fellow in Memory of Dr. Anton Pintar
Professor Anton J. Pintar was a Copper Country native and graduated from Michigan College of Mining and Technology (now Michigan Technological University) in 1962 with a BS in Chemical Engineering.
He earned a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago in 1968. Dr. Pintar joined Michigan Tech as a Professor in 1966 and retired in 2002 as Michigan Tech Professor Emeritus of Chemical Engineering. Dr. Pintar passed away on March 7, 2020, at the age of 79.
Anton had an amazing impact on the community and a generation of chemical engineers during his 36 years (1966–2002) as a professor of chemical engineering.
Dr. Pintar was a modest person who readily connected with everyone. He genuinely cared for the students and impacted them both personally and professionally. He has left behind a legacy to cherish.
This proposal seeks your consideration in making a commitment to honor Dr. Pintar by establishing the Anton Pintar Faculty Fellow position to demonstrate the importance attached to the main mission of the University: the education of students. One chemical engineering faculty member would be named as the Anton Pintar Faculty Fellow. The named faculty would embody similar attributes in terms of empathy, with a commitment to the education and professional growth of young chemical engineers. An endowment in the amount of $500 K would provide the faculty fellow with $20 K annually for discretionary spending for pursuing scholarship in teaching, injecting technology into the classroom, honing online teaching tools, attending the AIChE and ASEE annual meetings, and implementing other creative ideas to promote learning.
Dr. Pintar received numerous honors and awards throughout his career.
A partial list includes Michigan Tech Distinguished Teacher Award (1981), AIChE Outstanding Chapter (1983), AIChE Outstanding Counselor Award (1985), ASEE Teaching Award (1997), and ASEE Math Division Distinguished Educator and Service Award (2012). Anton was inducted into the MTU Distinguished Academy of Chemical Engineers in 2010. Anton consulted with a number of organizations: Dow Corning Corporation, Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Company, Catalytic, Inc., NASA Lewis Research Center, 3M Company in St. Paul, and the IIT Research Institute in Chicago.
Anton was also active in the community.
He served as Houghton County Commissioner, a trustee for the Copper Range Historical Society, a member of the South Range Fourth of July Committee, and a member of the Painesdale Centennial Committee. He was involved with the Sarah Sargent Paine Historical Research Center and was a member of the Range Lions Club, serving as past president and holding the position of Board of Directors, Lions Club International Foundation Chairman.
The Anton Pintar Faculty Fellow would be selected by the Executive Committee of the Department of Chemical Engineering, in consultation with the ChE External Advisory Board (EAB) and the Dean of the College of Engineering. The Faculty Fellow would provide an annual report to the ChE EAB and the Executive Committee on activities supported using these funds. A faculty fellow would be appointed for a 3-year period with a provision for renewal.