Emeritus math professor Roland di Franco passed away May 18. He gave more than 28 years of distinguished service until his retirement in 2001 and continued to be an active part of the Pacific community in retirement.

Pacific remembers Emeritus Mathematics Professor Roland di Franco

Emeritus Professor of Mathematics Roland di Franco passed away Saturday, May 18. He was 82.

Professor di Franco taught mathematics in the College of the Pacific from 1972 until his retirement in 2001. A highly respected scholar and consultant in his field, he also was a committed teacher and adviser to his students and friend and mentor to his faculty colleagues.

During more than 28 years of distinguished service, he held various university leadership roles, including chair of the Department of Mathematics, member of the College of the Pacific Council and the Community Involvement Program Advisory Board, and member and chair of the Academic Council. He also was part of the search process for two university presidents. Professor di Franco played a central role in crafting new shared governance documents and led the revision of the faculty handbook, the first major revision in nearly two decades. He was a leader in faculty oversight of undergraduate admission, including policy development and staffing and was an important voice in the advancement of academic computing, support for faculty research and university accreditation. At his retirement, he received the Order of Pacific, the university's highest award.

In retirement, he continued to be active in the Pacific community. He was a member of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and an active member of the Emeriti Society. He represented the Emeriti faculty on the Academic Council and coordinated their collection of used textbooks at the end of each academic year in support of the Bridge to Asia project.

A New York City native, he earned his bachelor's degree in mathematics from Fordham University, his master's in mathematics from Rutgers University and his doctorate from Indiana University, Bloomington. Prior to coming to Pacific, he taught six years at Swarthmore.

Professor di Franco is survived by his wife, Toni, brother Paul, daughter and husband Tamar and Bill, daughter and husband Gianna and Glenn and four grandchildren. Family, friends, colleagues and former students honored his memory at a celebration of life in the Alex and Jeri Vereschagin Alumni House on Tuesday, May 28.