Physics PhD Centenary Celebration

Join the CU Physics Department as we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the very first Ph.D. awarded in 1926! We will celebrate with science and history lectures, as well as lab tours!

Event Details

September 25 - 27, 2026

History

In 2026, as the University celebrates its 150th Anniversary, physics is also celebrating a landmark milestone within our own program: The 100th anniversary of the very first Physics Ph.D. In 1926, Vladimir Lubovich earned the distinguished honor of being the first doctoral graduate in our department. Lubovich, who served as an instructor for the department at the time, and was then promoted to Assistant Professor. Lubovich would continue with Physics—teaching generations of students, and researching in the field of optics and computing the value of Fresnel integrals—until his retirement as an Associate Professor in 1956.

Since this auspicious milestone, the Department of Physics has graduated thousands of brilliant scientists who have revolutionized global technologies, led landmark research, evolving our understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of the universe.