Charles Clifton “Cliff” Chancey was a man of poise and humor, wit and kindness, curiosity and tenacity. However, when he served as professor and head of the physics department at the University of Northern Iowa, he was also a man who made sure he bought at least two diet Pepsi’s a day, told jokes to his Physics classes and, most importantly, put students first.
“Dr. Chancey as a department head was one of the most welcoming and willing persons to help you when you had a question or dilemma, or even just wanted to chat, said Jeffrey Wallace, UNI alum. “His time was never worth more than speaking with a student, no matter how busy his schedule was.
Now, the hiss of an opening Pepsi bottle and the laughter from a joke has been silenced in his office. Chancey passed away Oct. 19 when returning from a trip to China for stem cell treatment and other treatments for Lou Gehrig’s disease. He served the UNI community for almost 12 years.
“I always really wanted to make sure that I was going to make him proud, because it seemed like he always expected me to be my best and do my best,” said Darian Everding, sophomore physics and religion double major. “I’m still left with this feeling of wanting to do my best to make him proud.”
Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1955, Chancey obtained his Bachelor of Science in Physics at Miami University in 1977. He continued to grow his knowledge of physics by obtaining his master’s and doctoral degrees in physics and theoretical physics at John Hopkin’s University in 1985. He received his post-doctoral degree in theoretical physics at Oxford University in 1988.
Chancey worked as a professor in the Physics departments of both Amherst College and Purdue University, but moved to Iowa in 2001 to become a Panther and lead the physics department.
At UNI, Chancey started the nanoscience minor, coordinated the professional science masters programs and joined the presidential search committee that hired President William Ruud.
“Most of all, he consistently created a nurturing and inclusive environment that made every student feel welcome and important,” said Tim Kidd, associate professor of physics.
When Everding was a high school senior at Waterloo West High in Aug. 2011, she said she felt Chanceys ability to make students feel welcomed and important firsthand. When attendingthe “educational talent search,” a program held at the UNI-CUE that aims to inspire and support low-income students in higher education, Wilfred “Mickye” Johnson of Classic Upward Bound asked Everding what she wanted to pursue when she was older. She said she thought physics was interesting.
Next thing she knew, Johnson was calling Chancey, asking him to speak with her about the program.
“Chancey got on the phone, talked with me, said ‘who are you?’ and invited me to campus for a tour. So a week later he took me to a personal tour and showed me the labs and it was very welcoming,” Everding said.
Since then, Everding has committed herself to physics and has enjoyed getting to know Chancey over the last few years. For her, his jokes and sense of humor during class were always enjoyable.
“Every time he told something, he looked at you over his glasses and wiggled his eyebrows a little bit,” Everding said. “He would have this look on his face and he was expecting you to laugh. It was awesome.”
While losing her mentor has been difficult, Everding said she’s thankful he’s at peace now.
“I cannot imagine an affliction much worse than to take your communication ability from a man with such an incredible mind, Everding said. So to be inflicted for three months instead of three years, there’s a sense of relief with that.”
Services for Clifton are 10:30 a.m. Saturday at First United Methodist Church, with burial in Fairview Cemetery in Cedar Falls. Visitation is Friday from 4-8 p.m. at Richardson Funeral Service and also for one hour prior to services Saturday at the church.
