In Memoriam: Lowell Scheiner

The entire NYU Tandon community is saddened by the death of Professor Lowell Scheiner, on July 2, 2018, following surgery.

A loved and respected colleague to everyone in the Department of Technology, Culture, and Society, he earned his undergraduate degree from City College and his master’s degree in journalism from Columbia. After joining the Humanities Department at what was then Brooklyn Poly as an assistant professor of technical writing, he remained at the school for almost 35 years, until his recent retirement. 

A written account cannot do justice to Lowell’s enthusiasm and conscientiousness as a teacher. He took seriously the need for students to meet the standards of good writing and to write competently and correctly, both in preparation for their classes and for the professional world following graduation. Lowell gave generously of his time to students in numerous ways and often offered advice and guidance on writing résumés and cover letters; many of his students obtained technical writing positions with important companies.

When queried by colleagues, Lowell could always be counted upon to know the answers to the usual grammar questions, as well as to the more esoteric and arcane. For many years he was a member of the Student Affairs Committee, a faculty committee charged with adjudicating academic and behavioral appeals of students. His detailed minutes of hearings played a part in resolving appeals fairly and justly. Lowell’s keen eye for accuracy and detail was also helpful to a faculty committee revising documents during the preparations for Poly’s merger with NYU. 

In recent years Lowell reactivated the Polytechnic Reporter, the school’s newspaper. An avid theatergoer himself, he provided opportunities and encouragement for students to write movie, theater, and restaurant reviews, as well as to interview faculty and university administrators and to report on the merger, among other significant events.

He is owed deep thanks for his dedication to his students and for his contributions to his department and to the School of Engineering as a whole.