Oral Histories

As a boy scout growing up in Denver, Colorado, Patrick Taylor became interested in minerals, which sparked his decision to attend the Colorado School of Mines, where he studied extractive metallurgy. Taylor was the first college graduate on his father’s side, and through the encouragement of his parents and AIME professionals, he pursued his Ph.D. and a career as a professor. Taylor transitioned between jobs in metallurgy and materials science and went on to rebuild the extractive and mineral processing program at the Colorado School of Mines. A lifetime member of TMS, Taylor has attended meetings since 1975 and organized the first international TMS Symposium on recycling and secondary recovery of metals. Taylor is passionate about getting his students involved in professional activities to share their work and grow their professional development. The most rewarding part of Taylor’s career is teaching his students, “I love teaching, and, so, I feel rewarded by still being able to teach classes and try to turn young men and women into good engineers.”