Paul Neiman

College of Agriculture & Life Sciences

South Sawyer Tidewater Glacier in Tracy Fjord, Alaska, located south of Juneau.

Tell us about what you're doing with your life
My spouse Judy [(Stebbins), also class of '84)] and I love the vast outdoors playground of the western United States and Canada, from the snow-covered peaks to the sublime alpine meadows to the otherworldly redrock canyons and mesas to the fast-flowing rivers to the rugged coastlines. Our recreational activities include hiking, backpacking, rappelling, mountain biking, skiing, rafting, and kayaking. Growing up, we both dreamed of moving to Colorado as adults. Mission accomplished. We earned our CALS bachelor of science degrees in microbiology and atmospheric sciences, respectively. We then headed south to Pennsylvania for additional educational pursuits before moving to Colorado in 1986. Judy has thrived as a medical laboratory scientist, mostly at full-service hospitals. I enjoyed a fulfilling career as a research meteorologist with NOAA, designing field campaigns, collecting and analyzing data from those campaigns, writing and publishing research results in peer-reviewed journals, and presenting the material at conferences. My research has contributed to advancing our understanding of flash flood and snowpack characteristics in mountain basins, as well as bolstering operational aspects of water storage management, electrical power allocations, and transportation across the West. As a recent retiree, I continue to enjoy my lifelong love of the atmosphere but without the academic and programmatic pressures.

Enjoying redrock bliss beneath the yawning span of Centennial Arch, near Grand Junction, Colorado.

What was your favorite class at Cornell, or the one you found most useful?
There were a lot of “favorite” and “useful” classes, but especially the upper-level atmospheric sciences classes. I had a blast learning the details of this field of science I first fell in love with as a 6-year-old kid building an igloo during a major snowstorm. Oddly, I also found the highly structured and symmetrical world of organic chemistry really interesting.

What is your favorite memory of your time at Cornell?
My favorite memories included meeting Judy at the Freshman Summer Start Program and then the two of us getting married at Anabel Taylor Hall between our junior and senior years.

Graduation day: May 27, 1984. As a budding meteorologist of the time, I remember how our bright-and-sunny graduation day was sandwiched between two rainy days. We all scored

Which Cornell classmates do you keep in touch with?
In addition to my better half, I keep in touch with a handful of friends/colleagues mostly from the atmospheric sciences department, including John Toohey-Morales (’84), Wayne Hartung (’84), Alan Shapiro (’83), and Tom Hamill (’85).

How has your time at Cornell influenced you since you graduated?
My time at Cornell provided me with critical reasoning skills that has proved beneficial in all aspects of life, both on a personal level and professionally.  

What extracurricular activity or hobby from your time at Cornell was most meaningful?
Two things immediately come to mind: (1) Hiking in the local gorges and state parks to find quiet solitude; and (2) hanging out in the atmospheric sciences department on the 11^th floor of Bradfield Hall watching the weather unfold over the Cornell campus, looking at the latest regional and national weather observations and models coming in via difax, and working on homework assignments with fellow atmospheric science majors/friends.

What random or surprising encounters with Cornell or Cornellians have you experienced since you left? Alternatively, who do you keep in touch with?
The one notable surprise encounter I had with a fellow Cornell classmate occurred during the 2005 Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society in San Diego, CA. I was going up an escalator in the convention center and John Toohey-Morales was going down the adjacent escalator. Our eyes crossed paths, at which time we both opened our mouths in amazement and then smiled. We then promptly met (I cannot remember if John came up or I went down) and reconnected after 21 years. Pretty cool!

Wintry canyon scenery in Colorado National Monument, across the street from our Grand Junction home. We recently had the pleasure of a visit from my long-time friend, meteorology colleague, and ’84 classmate John Toohey-Morales and his wife Carmen.

If you could change anything about your Cornell experience, what would it be?
I would not have been quite so competitive with my grades.

What does being a Cornell alumnus mean to you?
In my career: Academic credibility. More generally: Pride.

What advice would you give to a student starting at Cornell?
(1) Never be afraid to ask questions of the professors and teaching assistants. (2) Never be afraid to challenge professors and teaching assistants. They are not infallible. (3) Find a place of your choosing, whether mental or physical, to get grounded after a stressful time.

What are you most looking forward to at Reunion 2024?
If we go to the reunion, I shall look forward to being on campus again with Judy, seeing classmates, and hiking in the gorges and state parks.