51����

Issue: Spring 2017 | Posted: June 1, 2017

James Scates

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Distinguished Achievement in Research/Sciences

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While the first man stepped onto the moon, 51���� alumnus James Scates watched, knowing he had a role in that giant leap for mankind.

Scates’ road to a career in research science began with an offer to attend 51���� on a music scholarship. After two semesters, he shifted course to pursue a double major in mathematics and English.

“I enjoyed the comradeship of a large percentage of the student body,” Scates says of his time at Union. “If you were not friends with them, you at least knew who they were.”

Drawn to the research sciences after President John F. Kennedy talked about putting a man on the moon, Scates says his years at Union and in his early career were spent “trying to catch up with technology, as it was increasing rapidly.”

“Later, I was trying to use existing technology to produce newer technology,” Scates says. “And we used the technology to the fullest” in the completion of the space race.

Scates says knowing that he had a small part in bringing about that accomplishment is what he considers to be the most satisfying moment of his career.

In addition to being on the team to put men on the moon and the U.S. Space Station, Scates also served in the navy on an aircraft carrier for four years and worked for Dover Elevator Corporation as a draftsman. Finally, he worked for 31 years at The Boeing Company as an engineering aide, systems analyst and supervisor until his retirement.

Now, since his retirement in 1995, he says, “I am currently working on house cleaning, a job for which I can’t get paid.”