Nina McClelland

1929 - 2020

(News story) One of the most famous scientists produced by the University of Toledo has died.

Nina McClelland, a retired chemist and former University of Toledo dean who had a role in elevating drinking water standards worldwide, died of a sudden illness at Ashanti Hospice on Sunday night. She was 90.

Ms. McClelland had several dozen students, staff, and faculty members attend UT's dedication of the Dr. Nina McClelland Laboratory for Water Chemistry and Environmental Analysis on campus in September, an event in which she displayed some of her wry humor and sharp wit. That same month, U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) honored her with a proclamation in the U.S. House of Representatives for being "a champion of ensuring safe water."

As a longtime chairman, president, and chief executive officer of Ann Arbor-based NSF International, Ms. McClelland ran an independent, accredited organization that helps regulators in the United States and 58 other countries develop science-based public health standards for manufacturers and other industries, such as water-treatment and sewage-treatment plants.

During her 30 years there, she helped guide NSF through many of its growth years. Created in 1944 as the National Sanitation Foundation, its name was changed to NSF International in 1990 as it expanded its services beyond sanitation and into global markets.

John Plenefisch, UT College of Natural Sciences & Mathematics interim dean, described Ms. McClelland as a "highly respected world leader in chemistry" and a "trailblazer for women in science."

"Her lifelong efforts setting high standards for water quality and the environment have truly made the world a better place," Mr. Plenefisch wrote in a memo to UT faculty and staff.

Ms. McClelland split her time growing up between Toledo and Gibsonburg, Ohio, and eventually settled into a home in Sylvania Township.

"She was a key driver that changed NSF International from a small food-handling equipment and water quality independent and testing organization into one of the world's major players in a whole range of environmental and health protection areas," one of her longtime friends, Joe Cotruvo, said last fall.

Mr. Cotruvo is a Toledo native who was the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's first water division chief after the agency began operations on Dec. 2, 1970.

He said last fall she had been "a strong leader expecting the best from anyone who was engaging with her."

"She has always been a formidable leader in whatever role that she had, be it business, professional, or university," he said. "I have known her for more than 40 years, and she is the same tireless person striving for excellence as she has always been."

In an interview with The Blade just before the UT lab was dedicated to her legacy, Ms. McClelland seemed anything but a retired academic willing to slow down.

"I've 'retired' six times. That's the only thing in my career that I've failed at," she said.

Born Aug. 21, 1929, Ms. McClelland got her high school diploma at Gibsonburg High School, growing up in modest surroundings. Her grandparents and an aunt who was a mathematician helped raise her, she said.

At Gibsonburg High, she was chosen by her graduating class as the girl most likely to succeed.

Ms. McClelland started out as a math major but switched to chemistry. She said she originally had thoughts of studying to become a doctor but soon realized she was too sensitive around people experiencing pain and other ailments.

At one point, she was chief chemist of Toledo's wastewater treatment plant - Ohio's first woman licensed to operate one, she said.

She said water quality is "one of the most interesting and most essential sciences out there."

"It's scarce and it's only going to get scarcer," Ms. McClelland said. "When it comes to drinking water, it's just so important, and people take it for granted."

Ms. McClelland spent years at UT, beginning as an adjunct chemistry professor in 2003 and retiring in 2011 as dean of the university's college of arts and sciences. She also worked in the provost's office.

She is a former board chair of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific organization. She has served on several major committees, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology within the U.S. Department of Commerce; the National Drinking Water Advisory Council within the U.S. EPA, and the Committee on Water Treatment Chemicals that's part of the National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council.

Ms. McClelland earned her bachelor and master of science degrees from UT in 1951 and 1963, respectively, then earned her doctoral degree in environmental chemistry from the University of Michigan in 1968. UT awarded her an honorary doctorate in science in 2003.

She was a 2010 inductee into Ohio Women's Hall of Fame.

UT Provost Karen Bjorkman, who knew her about 17 years, said Ms. McClelland "just had that presence about her that you immediately knew she was an interesting, interesting person."

"She was a woman in science at a time when women in science were nonexistent," the provost said. "She loved students. In many ways, that's going to be one of her best legacies. She was a great role model."

Jon Kirchhoff, who holds the title of distinguished university professor and currently chairs UT's chemistry and biochemistry department, said he had known Ms. McClelland about 20 years and that she "was in many ways not only a friend but a mentor to me."

"She truly impacted lives on a global scale through her efforts to improve quality of drinking water. She had a tremendous impact all over the world," he said. "Her legacy and her passion for science is going to be felt here at the lab."

Survivors include a few cousins.

Visitation is from 2 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Ansberg-West Funeral Home, 3000 Sylvania Ave., Toledo.

The on-site funeral service is on Thursday but is a private, invitation-only event. But the funeral home said the service will be live streamed on its website starting at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Go to ansberg-west.com for details.

Her family asks that any contributions on her behalf be made to the new Dr. Nina McClelland Laboratory for Water Chemistry and Environmental Analysis at UT.

This is a news story by Tom Henry. Contact him at thenry@theblade.com.