Thomas C. Jegla H’97 P’89, a professor emeritus of biology known for involving students in hands-on research and for the “farm-laboratory” he and his wife maintained near campus, died Oct. 14 in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, at the age of 91. He spent more than three decades at the College, joining Kenyon in 1966 and retiring in 1997.
Born July 5, 1935, Jegla grew up on a family farm in Michigan. He studied zoology at Michigan State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1958, and then received a master’s degree and doctorate in the field from the University of Illinois. He served as an assistant professor of biology at the University of Minnesota at Morris and Yale University before coming to Gambier in 1966.
Jegla’s scholarly work touched on numerous subjects, including studies of bats, cave organisms and especially crayfish. A crustacean endocrinologist, he was particularly interested in the regulation of molting in a variety of species and frequently worked at the Duke University Marine Lab in North Carolina. His work received support from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.
In the classroom — where he taught comparative animal physiology, experimental animal physiology, and invertebrate biology, among other courses — he was known as demanding and detail-oriented, but always with the best interests of his students in mind, according to his colleagues.
“He was a quintessential Kenyon faculty member,” said Brad Hartlaub, a professor of mathematics and statistics who joined the College in 1990. “He valued teaching — he was a good teacher — but he also valued research, and he continued his research right through to the end. So he was a good role model for many of us.”
At a time when it was less common for students to be at the center of the scientific enterprise, Jegla pushed for them to learn by doing in the lab and guided a large number of students through research as part of Kenyon’s Summer Science Program.
Jegla was “an early and forceful proponent of the role of student research in the teaching of biology,” Harry Itagaki H’21, professor emeritus of biology, noted in the citation for his colleague’s honorary degree in 1997. “(He) showed that it was possible to be a productive, internationally recognized scientist and an influential teacher while working at a liberal arts college.”
He was a strong supporter of his junior colleagues as well, Hartlaub said.
“Tom was a great mentor to me when there was no formal mentoring program,” he said. “Whenever there was an event that we were both at, he’d go out of his way to come over and talk about how things were going.”
Jegla was a champion of women faculty through recruitment and mentorship, according to Professor of Biology Joan Slonczewski P’05. He recruited both Slonczewski, who joined the College in 1984, and the first woman at Kenyon to earn tenure in biology, Kathryn Edwards H’17, who started in 1978. Throughout his career, he also helped deepen the curriculum with his forward thinking and his vision for research integrated with classroom education.
“He always bridged tradition with the future, and a lot of what the biology department is today would not exist without Tom,” Slonczewski said.
Jegla and his late wife, Dorothy Jegla H’97 P’89, who also was a professor of biology at Kenyon, lived about 4 miles east of campus on over 35 acres of land that he called a “farm-laboratory.” Together, they grew a variety of fruits and vegetables, including corn, plums, tomatoes and, at one point, more than 20 varieties of chili peppers as part of an in-depth investigation into their spiciness.
“A former student … told me more than once that you’ve never really eaten a plum until you’ve eaten a Jegla plum, and that’s correct. The plums were just delectable,” Itakagi said.
In 2007, the couple donated a conservation easement to the Philander Chase Conservancy, Kenyon’s land trust, guaranteeing that the farm would remain intact and protected from development in perpetuity. They wanted the property to serve as a natural wild bird sanctuary and an overwintering haven for native species of birds, according to conservancy director Amy Henricksen.
Jegla and his wife were honored in 2018 with the Dorothy and Thomas Jegla Endowed Professorship in the Natural Sciences, established by Diane Elam ’80 and Nancy Donohue to support a junior faculty member in a tenure track position in the natural sciences.
“Tom lived a full life, and he inspired so many others,” Elam said. “He and Dorothy devoted their lives to scientific inquiry and pedagogy, always taking the time to encourage questions, curiosity and joy in finding unexpected answers. They were role models for me and for so many, many other students and faculty members.”
Away from the classroom, Jegla was an avid birder who traveled the country and the world to watch birds in places as farflung as the Galapagos Islands, Australia and the Arctic. He also was a devoted fan of the Detroit Red Wings hockey team.
He is survived by his sons, John (Wendy) Jegla ’89 and Timothy (Tori) Jegla; grandchildren, Max and Ian Jegla; and sister, Barb Thelen. His spouse, Dorothy, professor emerita of biology who taught at Kenyon from 1971 to 1997, died in 2011. No immediate memorial service is planned.