[FUN_Mail] Passing of Bob Glassman

[Calin-Jageman, Robert]

From: Noah Sandstrom [mailto:Noah.J.Sandstrom at williams.edu]
Sent: Monday, April 29, 2013 8:10 AM
To: FUN_Mail at lists.funfaculty.org
Subject: Passing of Bob Glassman

Dear FUN Colleagues,

It is with a heavy heart that I share the sad news of the passing of Robert Glassman on Saturday. Bob was one of the earliest members of FUN and was a valued and member, mentor and friend to many in the FUN community. Below is the message from Lake Forest College President Stephen Schutt.

Noah Sandstrom
President, FUN

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To the Lake Forest College Community:

I write with great sadness to inform you that Professor of Psychology Robert B. Glassman died early this morning at Highland Park Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery Wednesday night after suffering an aortic dissection.  Known to all as "Bob," he was a deeply dedicated teacher, a remarkably productive scholar and a beloved community member who graced our campus for more than forty years.  He will be sorely missed.

A native of Brooklyn, New York, Professor Glassman was a proud graduate of Brooklyn Technical High School.  He received his AB in Psychology from New York's Columbia College, and his PhD in Physiological Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania.  In 1967 he accepted a two-year post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Rochester's Center for Brain Research, and in 1969 he joined the faculty of Lake Forest College as an Assistant Professor.  In 1974 he was granted tenure and promoted to Associate Professor, and in 1983 he was promoted to Full Professor.

Bob Glassman was a man of wide-ranging interests and broad expertise, whose research areas included neuroscience, working memory capacity, theories of learning, theories of brain organization, religion and science, and still others.  He produced dozens of articles, reviews and experimental studies published in leading journals, and regularly participated in academic conferences over the past four decades, recently including his research presentation at a 2011 neuroscience conference in China.  Reflecting his professional stature, he received competitive research grants from the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Mental Health, the State of Illinois and other prestigious granting agencies, as well.

Active in scholarly associations, he was a member of the Society for Neuroscience, the Midwestern Psychological Association, and the Center for Advanced Studies in Religion and Science, among others.

In his classroom and laboratory Professor Glassman taught a broad range of courses including Introduction to Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Neuroscience, Learning and Memory, Persuasion and Truth in Sales Communications, Robots and Brains:  Fantasies and Facts, and Science and Religion:  Searching for Humanity.  In 2009-10 he played a leading role in developing our popular neuroscience major.

With characteristic humility Professor Glassman commented in one of his earliest years on campus that "I take teaching seriously. . . [and] try to make clear exactly what I do not know as well as what I do know; we [my students and I] thus learn together."  Praised by many students over the years, he was a teacher whose thoughtfulness and care left a lasting, positive impression, as demonstrated in these recent student comments:  "Professor Glassman was extremely funny, nice, helpful, and easy to be around.  It was a joy to be in his class."  "He provokes open discussion . . . and embraces new ideas and perspectives. . . . I was excited to come to class on a daily basis . . ."

Always interested in his students' pursuits outside the classroom, as well, he was frequently and enthusiastically in attendance at campus sporting events, drama and music performances, and other student activities.

Chair of the Psychology Department for multiple terms, Professor Glassman also served on or chaired the College's Animal Care Committee, Sigma Xi Club, Health Professions Advisory Committee, Academic Resources and Review Committee, and First Year Studies Committee, among others.

In a recent appointment letter I took the opportunity to say this to Bob:  "Your dedication to and enthusiasm for your teaching, your students' intellectual development, your many scholarly interests, and the well-being of the College shine through in everything you do."  His absence from our campus will be keenly felt in the months and years ahead.

Bob is survived by his wife Harriet and their three grown children:  Mark in Washington, D.C.:  Jill in Santa Cruz, California; and Dan in Los Angeles, California.  Information on funeral or memorial arrangements will be shared as it becomes available.

Stephen D. Schutt
President
Lake Forest College