Skip to main content

Primary Navigation

  • About
    • President's Page
    • Board of Trustees
    • Administration
    • Strategic Plans
    • History & Facts
    • Accreditation
    • Accolades
    • The Clarkson Brand
    • Maps & Directions
  • Academics
    • Undergraduate
    • Graduate
    • Continuing & Professional Education
    • School of Arts & Sciences
    • Lewis School of Health Sciences
    • Reh School of Business
    • Coulter School of Engineering
    • Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries
    • Institute for a Sustainable Environment
    • Institute for STEM Education
    • Academic Affairs
    • Student Achievement Services
    • Academic Calendar
  • Admissions
    • First-Year Admissions, Undergraduate
    • Transfer Admissions, Undergraduate
    • International Admissions, Undergraduate
    • Early College Program: The Clarkson School
    • Graduate School Admissions
    • Financial Aid
    • Apply Now
  • Life
    • Office of Student Life
    • Student Clubs & Activities
    • Living on Campus
    • Campus Dining
    • Clarkson Ignite
    • Career & International Experiences
    • Explore the Region
    • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
    • Student Health & Counseling
    • ROTC
  • Research
  • Athletics
  • News

Information for

  • Visit
  • Apply
  • Request Info
  • Give
  • Alumni
  • Parents
  • Intranet

CU • News & Events

Joshua Thomas Receives Promotion at Clarkson University

Release Date
Friday July 16, 2021
Joshua Thomas
Joshua Thomas

Clarkson University President Tony Collins has announced that Joshua Thomas has been promoted from assistant professor to associate professor of Physics in the School of Arts & Sciences and the Institute for STEM Education. Thomas is also the Director of the Reynolds Observatory.

Professor Thomas joined the faculty at Clarkson in the fall of 2012, where he teaches introductory physics and astrophysics. He concentrates his research on Stellar spectroscopy: binary stars, Be, and Wolf-Rayet stars, astrophysical disks and jets, laboratory astrophysics​, numerical simulation, and image analysis​. 

Thomas has written academic articles and made numerous presentations and scholarly talks on his field over the years. 

As an undergraduate, he participated in experimental atomic physics research, and numerical simulation of microlensing events, as well as simulating images of the star Eta Car using a Monte Carlo technique.  In graduate school Thomas worked in the field of laboratory astrophysics, measuring laser-induced fluorescence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons for comparison to observed photoluminescence in the Red Rectangle nebula.  As a graduate student, he focused on the analysis of spectra on the star at the center of the Red Rectangle determining the origin of several interesting features in the observed spectra.  

He received his bachelor of science and master of science degrees and his Ph.D., all in physics, from the University of Toledo. He had a concentration in astrophysics for his bachelor’s degree and graduated magna cum laude with departmental honors.

As a private, national research university, Clarkson is a leader in technological education and sustainable economic development through teaching, scholarship, research and innovation. We ignite personal connections across academic fields and industries to create the entrepreneurial mindset, knowledge and intellectual curiosity needed to innovate world-relevant solutions and cultivate the leaders of tomorrow. With its main campus located in Potsdam, N.Y., and additional graduate program and research facilities in the New York Capital Region, Beacon, N.Y., and New York City, Clarkson educates 4,600+ students across 95 rigorous programs of study in engineering, business, the arts, education, sciences and health professions. Our alumni earn salaries that are among the top 2.5% in the nation and realize accelerated career growth. One in five already leads as a CEO, senior executive or owner of a company. To learn more about Clarkson University, go to www.clarkson.edu.


Photograph for media use is available at:
/sites/default/files/media/image/2021-07/joshua-thomas.jpg

Photograph Size:
Width: 1292px
Height: 1622px

News directors and editors: For more information, contact Melissa Lindell, Director of Media Relations, at 315-268-6716 or mlindell@clarkson.edu.

Schools at Clarkson

  • Graduate School
  • School of Arts & Sciences
  • David D. Reh School of Business
  • Wallace H. Coulter School of Engineering
  • Earl R. and Barbara D. Lewis School of Health Sciences
  • Institute for a Sustainable Environment
  • Early College Program: The Clarkson School
  • Institute for STEM Education
  • Beacon Institute for Rivers and Estuaries

Highlights of Excellence

  • Career Center
  • Honors Program
  • ROTC
  • SPEED
  • Student Success Center
  • Writing Center

Research & Innovation

  • Clarkson Center for Complex Systems Science (C3S2)
  • The Center for Advanced Materials Processing (CAMP)
  • Center for Air and Aquatic Resources Engineering & Science (CAARES)
  • Center for Identification Technology Research (CITeR)
  • The Center for Rehabilitation Engineering, Science & Technology (CREST)
  • NYS Center of Excellence in Healthy Water Solutions
  • The Shipley Center for Innovation
  • Clarkson Ignite
  • University Libraries

Clarkson University

8 Clarkson Ave., Potsdam, New York 13699 315-268-6400
80 Nott Terrace, Schenectady, NY 12308 518-631-9831
199 Dennings Ave., Beacon, New York 12508 845-838-1600
Take a Virtual Tour

Organizational Chart
© 2022 by Clarkson University | Contact the Webmaster

  • Human Resources • Giving • Bookstore
  • CARES Act Reports & Consumer Information Disclosures (HEOA)
  • Act on Legal & Moral Concerns