In Memoriam: Kevin Bedell
Kevin Bedell, the John H. Rourke Professor of Physics emeritus who led the ascension of the Physics Department to national prominence during his 10 years as chair, died on April 17 after a brief illness.聽 He was 77.
(Information regarding services and arrangements will be noted here as it becomes available.)
Kevin Bedell (Peter Julian)
Dr. Bedell came to Boston College from Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico with an international reputation and noted expertise in materials and high-temperature superconductivity.聽 Under his leadership, Physics gained status as one of the nation鈥檚 best small departments, attracting leading scholars and top-notch students to Chestnut Hill.
He was named the first recipient of the Rourke Professorship in 1999 when the University received a $3 million bequest from the estates of siblings John and Mary Rourke, longtime owners of Rourke鈥檚 Pharmacy in Brighton. He held the professorship until his retirement in 2025.
Dr. Bedell, who grew up in a self-described poor and dysfunctional family in Queens, NY, and was the only one of his 12 siblings to attend college, told Boston College Chronicle in an interview in 1999 that the Rourke professorship was the fulfillment of a lifelong belief in the transformative power of education.
鈥淚 am particularly honored to be named to an endowed chair born out of the hard work of an Irish American family in a melting-pot city neighborhood,鈥� said Dr. Bedell. 鈥淚 look forward to honoring the Rourkes鈥� memory through the work of this department.鈥�
In 2006 Dr. Bedell was named 红桃视频鈥檚 first vice provost for research, a position he held until 2010.
During his career, he was named a Fellow of the American Physical Society and served as editor for聽Advances in Physics from 1995 to 2015. In addition to nearly 100 published papers and multiple conference lectures, he co-authored two books: High Temperature Superconductivity and Strongly Correlated Electronic Materials.
鈥淜evin put scientific research on the 鈥榬adar鈥� at Boston College and led the effort to secure additional resources for research infrastructure,鈥� said Vice Provost for Research Thomas Chiles. 鈥淗e helped shape the Physics Department during a critical time in its maturation and led it to a become a nationally and internationally recognized research department.鈥�
Added current Rourke Professor and Physics Department Chair Kenneth Burch, 鈥淜evin joined our department to transform it into its modern form, with a focus on聽materials. 聽His vision and leadership set the foundation for making the Boston College Physics Department an internationally recognized department for research and scholarship.鈥澛�
Dr. Bedell earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree in physics from Dowling College in Oakdale, NY, and a master鈥檚 degree in applied mathematics and a doctorate in physics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. 聽He taught physics at Dowling College and Stony Brook while a graduate student and then worked as an adjunct professor at the University of Florida and Florida State University before joining the National Laboratory at Los Alamos.
鈥淜evin was a wonderful colleague and person, whom I've had the pleasure of knowing since 1982,鈥� said Evelyn J. and Robert A. Ferris Professor of Physics Michael Naughton.
鈥淗e loved teaching quantum physics and the theory of superconductivity and had a wonderful sense of humor and joie de vivre. Kevin was also a great convenor of minds, including a time or two at an Irish public house.聽He will be greatly missed.鈥�