Members of the Randolph-Macon community gathered in the McGraw-Page Library’s Werner Pavilion on Friday, Oct. 31 to celebrate the installation of Dr. James T. McLeskey as the inaugural Maria Wornom Rippe Professor in Engineering.

President Michael E. Hill welcomed attendees, including faculty, staff, alumni, and friends and family of Dr. McLeskey, and reflected on the impact of endowed professorships.

“An endowed professorship is the highest honor that Randolph-Macon can bestow upon a member of its faculty while also helping to safeguard the legacy, permanence, and vitality of RMC itself,” Hill said.

“The rich, intellectual, and engaging learning environments created by these professorships—and well exemplified by our recipient today—help awaken in our students a love and passion for learning,”

Dr. James T. McLeskey

McLeskey earned his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Virginia, an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and a B.S. in Physics from the College of William & Mary. He joined the Randolph-Macon faculty in the fall of 2015 as a Professor of Engineering and was awarded tenure in 2018.

McLeskey’s prolific scholarship extends to a broad range of mechanical, industrial, and environmental engineering projects. His recent work has focused on solar, wind, and geothermal energy, desalinization, and power generation. In the last ten years, he has mentored more than 25 Randolph-Macon SURF students and Engineering capstone students to produce their own original scholarship, as well as regularly publishing with undergraduate co-authors.

Since arriving at Randolph-Macon College a decade ago, McLeskey has taught 18 different courses in Physics, Engineering Physics, Engineering, and the College’s Honors Program. He is the director of the College’s Engineering program, which he successfully shepherded to ABET accreditation in 2024. In 2022, McLeskey was awarded the United Methodist Church Exemplary Teaching Award for his consistent student-centered approach to his classroom teaching.

“Jim is, by all accounts, an exceptional teacher who works one-on-one with his students, meeting them at their level and expecting them to give their best while recognizing how to bring that out,” remarked Provost Alisa J. Rosenthal, in addition to commending his scholarship and service to the College.

“But what truly sets Jim apart are what students affectionately call ‘McLeskey-isms’—memorable sayings and stories that transform complex, sometimes dry engineering concepts into lessons that stick,” Rosenthal said. “One student was so moved by these teaching moments that she spent an entire year writing them down and presented Jim with a box full of McLeskey-isms at graduation.”

In his remarks, McLeskey thanked the many people who made the RMC Engineering program a possibility: benefactors like Maria Wornom Rippe and Dr. Ray Martin, faculty colleagues like Dr. Deonna Woolard, College administration and offices across campus, and the students who chose to pursue their degree at RMC.

He also reflected on the journey to find his passion for teaching, and what it means to be an engineer. “Engineers are expected to know science and then go beyond that and use the science to create new machines. It is not merely tinkering,” McLeskey said. “In many ways, engineering is an outstanding fit for the liberal arts because engineers must understand the needs of society in order to design the devices to improve that society.”

As an example, McLeskey pointed to the invention of the airplane and the Wright brothers’ engineering ingenuity. He then concluded by quoting former U.S. President Herbert Hoover—himself a mining engineer—on the calling of the profession, saying “To the engineer falls the job of clothing the bare bones of science with life, comfort, and hope.”

Maria Wornom Rippe Professorship in Engineering

The Maria Wornom Rippe Professorship in Engineering was established in 2025. Maria Wornom Rippe shares a deep and enduring bond with Randolph-Macon College, rooted in a family legacy that spans generations. Her father, Marchant Wornom, graduated as part of RMC’s Class of 1933, and she is the niece of distinguished alumni Herman E. Wornom (Class of 1923), John P. Wornom (Class of 1927), and Paul H. Wornom (Class of 1937).

A steadfast advocate for the liberal arts, Wornom Rippe created the professorship to support the teaching of the exceptional faculty in the engineering program and preserve Randolph-Macon’s core identity while ensuring its continued relevance in the evolving landscape of higher education.