Martin Glassner

Martin Glassner, 78, (1932-2010) was born in Plainfield, New Jersey. He served in the U.S. Armed Forces, and took degrees at Syracuse University (1953); California State University, Fullerton (1964); and, subsequently, a doctorate at the Claremont Graduate School. He was American Vice Consul in Kingston, Jamaica, 1960-1962, and Antofogasta, Chile, 1962-1963. Glassner joined the Geography Department at Southern Connecticut State University in 1968, retiring in 1995 after teaching a variety of courses, sitting on committees, and, for some of the time, chairing the Department. While in situ he was recipient of the Faculty Scholar Award, and was installed as a Connecticut State University Professor. His specialty was political geography with special reference to the significance of landlocked states. He worked for the United Nations in both Asia and Africa, focusing on landlocked states, transit to the sea, boundaries, development and international law. Glassner’s interest in Latin America resulted in membership on the Board of the Conference of Latin Americanist Geographers. Among his publications are Access to the Sea for Developing Land-Locked States (1971), Bibliography on Land-Locked States (1980), Systematic Political Geography (1980) and Neptune’s Domain: A Political Geography of the Sea (1990).

Martin Ira Glassner (Necrology). 2010. AAG Newsletter 45(10): 22.

See All Memorials

Charles V. Ebert

Charles H.V. “Vince” Ebert (1924-2011) took his degrees at the University of North Carolina: B.A. 1951; M.A. 1953; Ph.D. 1957. He joined the Department of Geology at the University of Buffalo in 1954. Nine years later, in 1963, he was invited to help found a Geography Department. He accomplished this and was installed as its first chair. From 1963 to 1970 he built the department and then was brought to the post of Undergraduate Dean, 1970-1977.

Ebert taught Physical Geography, Soils (in a sequence of three courses), Climatology, Oceanography, and Disasters. Earlier he had offered regional courses relating to Europe, the USSR, Central and South America. He traveled widely, and accumulated a large slide collection which he used to illustrate classroom lectures. His classes were considered thought-provoking, interesting, and otherwise excellent. Ebert continued to teach classes in retirement until forced to stop due to ill health. Meanwhile, he had been awarded a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professorship and the Distinguished Teaching Award from the National Council for Geographic Education. Of his courses, “Disasters: A Study of Hazards,” was his favorite. For this course, he wrote the book Disasters: Violence of Nature and Threats by Man.

Ebert spent his early years in Germany (born there of American parents), learned five languages, and came to be highly regarded for his good judgment both on and off the campus. This led to receiving the University’s “Mr. Faculty Award” in 1965 and 1968. Apart from holding a considerable number of university service posts on campus he also received a number of grants (several from the SUNY Research Foundation) with which to undertake research in the field, from which a number of interesting articles were culled.

Charles V. Ebert (Necrology). 2011. AAG Newsletter 46(4): 29.

See All Memorials

Daniel J. Hogan

Daniel J. Hogan, for 35 years as a Professor at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP), in Campinas, Brazil, near Sao Paolo, has died. A major contributor to the field of population and environment, Hogan trained many top Brazilian demographers and was part of the first (and only) Committee on Population and Environment at IUSSP in 1990-94, which helped pave the way for the development of both PERN and the new field of Population and Environment. He organized and hosted the first international conference on the topic in Campinas in 1992, which included the first significant presentation of findings from the initial 1990 survey of migrant colonists in Ecuador, along with other early case studies on population and environment in the Philippines, India, Nepal, Thailand, Cameroon, Brazil, Mexico, Honduras, Costa Rica, Argentina and Peru.

Hogan was a member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences, former president of Brazilian Population Association (ABEP), and served as Professor and Founding Researcher of the Unicamp Population Studies Center (NEPO) and the Environmental Studies Center (NEPAM). Hogan was also an active member of the International Union for the Scientific Study of Population (IUSSP), the Population Geography commission of the International Geographical Union (IGU), and Population & Environment’s editorial board.

Daniel J. Hogan (Necrology). 2010. AAG Newsletter 45(9): 22.

See All Memorials

Jennifer L. DeHart

Jennifer DeHart died recently following a long struggle with cancer. DeHart had a lifelong passion for protecting the environment and promoting sustainable living. After her graduation from Emory and Henry College in 1988 with a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies, she continued at Appalachian State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned a master’s degree and a doctorate, respectively. She held faculty and research positions focusing on a major project funded by NASA to better measure, predict, and understand greenhouse gas emissions at the local to regional level. DeHart embraced the Meadville area in 2001 when she started serving as an assistant professor of environmental science at Allegheny College, teaching courses on a variety of topics including climate change, environmental research methods, and sustainable energy. As a college professor, she enthusiastically taught about the importance of environmental sustainability. Combining her devotion to teaching and the community, DeHart collaborated with Allegheny College students to conduct a greenhouse gas emissions inventory for the city of Meadville. Dedicated to advancing the local foods movement, she spearheaded the revitalization of the farmers’ market at the Meadville Market House. She worked tirelessly to develop a strong network of area farmers and community members, ensuring the market would continue to thrive for many years to come.

Jennifer L. DeHart (Necrology). 2010. AAG Newsletter 45(7): 15.

See All Memorials

James Wheeler

James O. Wheeler, the Merle Prunty, Jr., Professor Emeritus, Department of Geography, University of Georgia, died at his home in Athens, Georgia, on Thursday, December 9, 2010. Born in Muncie, Indiana, on March 7, 1938, he was the son of educators Emerson Franklin Wheeler and Ruby Rachel McCreery Wheeler. He attended Indiana public schools and received his undergraduate degree from Ball State Teachers College (now Ball State University). After teaching English and geography in junior high and high school, he began graduate work at Indiana University, where he was awarded the M.A. in 1963 and the Ph.D. in 1966.

Wheeler’s early teaching career at the college level included positions at Indiana University (Gary), Ohio State University, Western Michigan University, and Michigan State University. In 1971, he joined the faculty of the University of Georgia’s Department of Geography, where he served as department head from 1975 to 1983. He advised graduate students and taught until his retirement in 1999, and his active professional life of writing and research continued until his death.

Wheeler served as head of two divisions of the Association of American Geographers, first as chair of the East Lakes Division and later as president of the Southeastern Division. He published numerous research articles and authored two widely used textbooks, Economic Geography and Urban Geography. He was a founding editor of the journal Urban Geography, which he co-edited from 1980 to 2003. In addition, from 1992 to 2003 he served as editor of the Southeastern Geographer.

Wheeler was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi and received the Creative Research Medal from the University of Georgia, Honors from the Association of American Geographers, and the Southeastern Division of the AAG’s (SEDAAG) Research Award, Outstanding Service Award, and Lifetime Achievement Award.

James O. Wheeler (Necrology). 2011. AAG Newsletter 46(2): 45.

See All Memorials

Howard Critchfield

Howard John Critchfield (“Critch”), Professor Emeritus of Geography at Western Washington University, died peacefully at home November 17, age 90. He was born September 24, 1920 in Vernon, Colorado, to Mabel and Owen Critchfield, both schoolteachers. Critchfield graduated high school in Bonners Ferry, Idaho. After completing a two-year teacher’s training course at the Lewiston State Normal School (now Lewis- Clark State College), he taught for a time in a one-room schoolhouse where the pupils called him “Howie.” Critchfield served in the Army Air Corps/Air Force during World War II. He received specialized Arctic and Weather Observation training and was eventually posted to the 16th Weather Squadron in Nome, Alaska. After an Honorable Discharge early in 1946, the GI Bill led to academic successes. Critchfield received a BA in Geography and an MA in Geography and Climatology from the University of Washington. A Carnegie Grant, a Fulbright Award, and grants from the New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs enabled him to undertake research in New Zealand from 1948-1950. The University of Washington awarded Critchfield his Doctorate in 1952. His dissertation was The Agricultural Geography of Southland, New Zealand. Critchfield joined the faculty of Western Washington University in 1951. He retired in 1988. During his tenure he served as Chair of the Geography Department, was the official State Climatologist of Washington, through appointment by the Governor, and he pursued his research with travel, sabbaticals, and visiting lectureships and exchanges which took him to New Zealand again and again, as well as to Australia, South Asia, Europe, Japan, India and Nepal, South Africa, Micronesia, and Oman. He authored the acclaimed textbook General Climatology. Long before Wikipedia, Critchfield was well known for his contributions to Encyclopedia Americana and The World Book Encyclopedia. His lifelong enthusiasm for exploring the world and for the exactitude of the natural sciences made him a resourceful guide to students, colleagues, and friends.

Howard Critchfield (Necrology). 2011. AAG Newsletter 46(1): 46.

See All Memorials

Andrew Isserman

Andrew Isserman, a passionate scholar and devoted teacher whose work focused on urban and regional analysis, died recently following a heart attack suffered during a faculty basketball game at the University of Illinois, Urbana. Born in New York and raised on various army bases in Europe, Isserman studied economics at Amherst and earned his Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania. He taught at the University of Iowa, West Virginia University, and the University of Illinois, focusing on urban planning and agricultural economics. He was well known for introducing new methods of forecasting economic and demographic change. In addition, his research on federal policy (he worked at various times with the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, and Transportation) contributed to significant changes in several federal programs. At the University of Illinois, Isserman was Professor of Regional Economics, Planning and Public Policy with primary appointments in the departments of Agricultural and Consumer Economics and Urban and Regional Planning. He held affiliate appointments in the Institute of Government and Public Affairs and the Department of Geography. Isserman was the founding editor of the International Regional Science Review. He is listed as one of the 50 faculty members with the greatest number of citations in urban and regional planning. Isserman received numerous awards or fellowships from the American Planning Association, the American Statistical Association, the National Council for Geographic Education, and the Regional Science Association International. His activities in regional science were extensive. He served as President of the Southern Regional Science Association in 1991-1992. In 1999, he received the David Boyce Award for Service to Regional Science of the North American Regional Science Council, and in 2005 he was President of the North American Regional Science Council.

Andrew Isserman (Necrology). 2011. AAG Newsletter 46(2): 45.

See All Memorials

Rex Honey

Rex Dean Honey, Professor of Geography at The University of Iowa, died suddenly at his home on October 23, 2010. He was 65. Honey was born in San Diego and received his B.A. with honors from the University of California, Riverside (1967) and his PhD from the University of Minnesota (1972). He joined The University of Iowa as an Assistant Professor in 1974 and at different times served as Director of Global Studies, Associate Director of the Center for Human Rights, and Director of African Studies. His professional specialties were in political geography, specifically in the political organization of space and global aspects of human rights. Honey was Chair of the West Lakes Division of the AAG in1982-1983 and again in 2005-2007; Co-Chair of the Ethics, Values and Human Rights Specialty Group of the AAG (2001- 2003); and Secretary of the Commission on Geography and Public Policy of the IGU (2000-2004). Honey’s early papers reflected his studies of the spatial organization of public services in England, the U.S., New Zealand and Jordan. Later work focused on Nigeria and the developmental effects of home town associations there. His more recent writing addressed global development themes and issues of human rights. He supervised the PhD dissertations of nine students and was adviser to thirty-six M.A. students at The University of Iowa. Throughout his professional career, Honey pursued his interest in geography education, taking teachers from Geographic Alliance programs to Nigeria, India and Bangladesh. He traveled extensively, giving many lectures in geography departments throughout the world. Prevented by his untimely death was his plan next semester to visit India and teach a course on human rights.

Rex Honey (Necrology). 2011. AAG Newsletter 46(1): 46.

See All Memorials

Judy Getis

Judy Getis, a well-known author and advocate for geography education, has died. She was born Judith Miller Marckwardt in Ann Arbor, June 29, 1938. She attended University High School in Ann Arbor, Radcliffe College, and the University of Michigan. Getis became interested in cartographic history at Michigan, and pursued graduate education in geography at the University of Washington and at Michigan State University, where she received a Master’s degree. In Seattle, she met her future husband, the geographer Arthur Getis. After two years in East Lansing, Michigan, where she pursued her studies in geography, Judy and Art moved to New Jersey where Art taught at Rutgers and Judy worked at the Educational Testing Service in Princeton.

In New Jersey, Judy was co-investigator of the very first unit of the ground-breaking National Science Foundation educational program called the High School Geography Project, which gained national acclaim for innovation and comprehensiveness. She teamed with her husband to write a college textbook, An Introduction to Geography, now in its 13th edition, which became the leading college-level textbook for introductory geography in the United States. Judy Getis wrote, co-authored, or edited a number of books, including Human Geography: Culture and Environment; Environments, People and Inequalities; The United States and Canada; and You Can Make a Difference. In addition, she co-authored several papers on urban geography Getis taught cartography briefly at Rutgers, and in UCLA’s summer program.

Judy Getis (Necrology). 2010. AAG Newsletter 45(9): 22.

See All Memorials

Oscar Horst

Oscar Heinz Horst, Professor Emeritus at Western Michigan University (WMU), died at the age of 86.

Horst was born on March 4, 1924 in Newark, Ohio. After serving in World War II with the U.S. Army, he earned a B.S. in Geography in 1949, an M.A. in 1951 and a Ph.D. in 1956, all from The Ohio State University. In the same year, he joined Western Michigan’s Geography Department as Assistant Professor. He was promoted to Professor in 1964, chaired the department from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1977 to 1978, and retired in 1987 following 31 years of service at WMU.

Horst specialized in Latin American and Physical Geography. He published over 40 professional articles, books, and book chapters over the course of his career and gave over 40 presentations at professional meetings. He led numerous educational trips to Mexico, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic, and served as a visiting professor at universities in Florida, Kansas, and Michigan, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Mexico, Ecuador, Guatemala, and Japan. He was actively affiliated with the Pan American Institute of Geography and History, and the Organization for Tropical Studies.

An avid and talented photographer, Horst documented landscapes and people throughout the course of his many travels. The Center for Mesoamerican Research is the benefactor of his notable collection of materials on Guatemala.

Horst received numerous awards throughout his professional career including Western Michigan University’s Alumni Teaching Excellence Award, WMU’s Distinguished Faculty Scholar Award, and the Annual Achievement Award for Contributions in Teaching, Research, and Service from the Latin Americanist Geographers.

Oscar H. Horst (Necrology). 2011. AAG Newsletter 46(6): 17.

See All Memorials