Dr. Ellen Weaver passed away on May 14, 2011, at the age of 86, after a short, difficult battle with cancer. Ellen has been described as a modern-day Renaissance woman. She was a world-class scientist, artist, musician, environmentalist, skier, skater, dedicated scholar and tireless advocate for women in science. She earned her BA in Chemistry at Western Reserve University in 1945 and worked as an analytical chemist for the Manhattan Project along with her physicist husband Harry, whom she married in 1946.
The two of them moved West to attend Stanford University, where she earned an MS in Chemistry and Harry his Ph.D. in Physics. She later received her Ph.D. in Genetics at UC Berkeley in 1959. Her work at Berkeley with single-cell mutant algae sparked a life-long interest in plant physiology. As an independent researcher in the 1970s, she presented her findings at international conferences on biophysics while working at NASA Ames Research Center. She also collaborated with Jacques Cousteau on a project to map the photosynthetic productivity of fishing areas off the coast of South America. She later joined the faculty at San Jose State University (SJSU) where she taught plant physiology.
She served as Director of the SJSU Foundation and later, Interim Executive Vice President. Over the course of her career, Ellen worked in many professional and academic organizations including serving as President of the AWIS National Governing Board from 1992-1993. In her retirement years, she continued to focus on environmental issues and served as Chairman of the Board of the Sempervirens Fund and on the science advisory committee of the Save the Redwoods League. She and her husband Harry spent most of their married life in Portola Valley, CA. They had three children and many grandchildren.
Cited Source: The San Jose State University Emeritus and Retired Faculty Association Newsletter, Winter 2012