Masters retires, gets $50,000 grant, studies environment

Retirement and $50,000. Government Professor Roger Masters is getting both of the above this year. He is retiring from the College this June and has just received a $50,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency for his work. But Masters, who has been a government professor at the College since 1967, said he is retiring in name only -- he plans to stick around and teach a few more classes. "I am 65 in June, and at 65, one should retire so that there are some places for younger scholars to get jobs," Masters said. Masters and his colleague, Myron Coplan, a retired chemical engineer and principal of a Massachusetts consulting firm, received the $50,000 grant for research one would not immediately link to government professors. The grant is for a one-year study of the chemicals used in water treatment, their impact on the nervous system's absorption of lead and the behavioral effects of lead toxicity on children. The College will also provide about $80,000 for the research project. "We think we have found things in the fluoride content of water supplies that decreases children's learning ability," Masters explained. Masters' and Coplan's study will use data collected from various government agencies about the level of lead in children's blood as well as pollution, crime and learning disabilities statistics.