From a young age, Colin Gleason was always curious about how the world worked. But it wasn’t until junior year of high school, in a classroom in upstate New York, that things truly started to come into focus.

“I took my first physics class and something just clicked,” he said. “The teacher – shout out to Mr. Bashant – was fantastic. I loved that physics could explain and predict the world around me.”

That spark led him to Union in 2007, where he originally planned to major in engineering. But it wasn’t long before he found himself drawn to physics. Summer research experiences with Union’s particle accelerator, and encouragement from Michael Vineyard, now an emeritus professor of physics and astronomy, convinced him to pursue graduate school.

Having lived his entire life in upstate New York, Gleason was ready for a change. His grad school search was guided by two simple criteria: the program had to offer compelling research opportunities – and it had to be somewhere warm and sunny.

That led him to the University of South Carolina, where he earned his Ph.D. in physics and met his wife, Ellen, a speech pathology student. After finishing his degree in 2017, he joined the GlueX collaboration through a postdoc program with Indiana University. Though based in Virginia, where the GlueX experiment takes place at Jefferson Lab in Newport News, he was working at the cutting edge of particle physics.

“GlueX is a collaboration of about 150 physicists from around the world. Our goal is to study the spectrum and properties of hadrons – particles made of quarks and gluons – that are produced in collisions between high-energy photon beams and a stationary proton target,” he said.

Even as his research career thrived, Gleason felt pulled in another direction: back to a liberal arts environment, where he could mentor students and collaborate closely with them on research.

That opportunity came in 2020, when he was offered a visiting professor position at Union – right in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two years later, he transitioned into a tenure-track position.

Gleason, Ellen and their two children, Henry and Charlotte, live in Niskayuna with their cat, Maebel, and dog, Woodrow.

FIRST APP YOU LOOK AT IN THE MORNING: It's either the Weather app, Reddit, or NYT Games for Wordle depending on the day. If it's my day to walk or run the dog, then the Weather app is the first thing I check. If I'm not taking the dog out, then it's either Reddit or Wordle depending on how awake I am.

THE LAST GREAT BOOK YOU READ: This one is really tough for me, as I love most books that I read. The two recent ones that stand out are “James” by Percival Everett, and “The Road to Jonestown: Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple” by Jeff Guinn.

BEST ADVICE YOU EVER RECEIVED: If you're ever in an argument, or about to be in an argument with your significant other, take a moment to pause and ask each other, "When was the last time we ate something?" I heard this one at a wedding, and after implementing it, it's amazing how silly arguments arise simply because you're hangry. Taking the time, even if it's a couple minutes, to pause and further think about the situation also leads to clarity.

WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING RIGHT NOW: There are so many good TV shows. We just finished "White Lotus," and are currently watching "Severance," "The Studio" and "Abbott Elementary." My wife and I have been watching Abbott since season one, and it does such a good job of showcasing the lives, struggles and happiness of the group of people in the show. It's also hilarious, and provides the lightheartedness we all need in this world.

ONE SKILL YOU WISH YOU HAD: Play the guitar and sing well. I am always listening to music, and would love to be able to play and sing for my friends and family. Unfortunately, I've been told by many friends that I have one of the worst singing voices they've ever heard.

THREE DINNER PARTY GUESTS (living or deceased): There's so many ways one could take this, but I'm going to say Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir and Phil Lesh. The music and culture of the Grateful Dead has had a big impact on me, and has been with me through some of the lowest and most joyous points of my life. I'd probably just sit back, not say a word, and listen to these three share stories the whole meal. Maybe, if I'm lucky, an impromptu jam session would break out at the end.

FIRST CONCERT: The first “real” concert I saw was Dave Matthews Band at SPAC in 2003. I had just finished my freshman year in high school, and a friend and I were able to convince his dad to take us since Dickey Betts was the opening act, and he was a big Allman Brothers Band fan. Little did I know that this would be my first of about 40 DMB shows over the years. While I'm not nearly as big of a fan as I once was, it's still a fun time going to shows with friends from high school that I only get to see a couple of times a year.

LITTLE KNOWN FACT ABOUT YOU: Not sure if this is a good or bad fact, but I used to rank in the top 1 percent of League of Legends players in North America when I was in graduate school. I used to play a lot with friends, as it was a way to stay in touch after people moved away. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to play a lot of video games since having kids. Maybe I should dust off my old desktop...

FAVORITE UNION MEMORY/EXPERIENCE: Greeting and congratulating students during graduation after they receive their diploma. I love seeing the growth of students during their years here at Union, and graduation is such a special moment that represents the end of their collegiate journey.

ONE THING YOU CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT: During the early stages of the pandemic, my wife and I lived a few doors down from some close friends. As a group, we decided to start cooking these elaborate meals with and for each other as a way to stay sane and somewhat social. Still to this day, my wife and I try to cook one “fancy” meal for each other on the weekend. It's become a highly therapeutic, enjoyable and grounding routine. It also allows us to take a step back and enjoy each other's company since most of our time is spent in the chaos of two young kids.