May 2001 University Reporter

On May 12, 2001 a memorial service was held for Joann P. Stewart, professor of economics. Professor Stewart joined the UMass Boston faculty in 1982, at the time of the merger with Boston State College, where she had been chair of the Economics Department. She held several important roles within the Faculty Staff Union, acting as a member of its Grievance Committee and its Collective Bargaining Team, and serving as its president. She was the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in economics from Boston University, the first woman with the rank of professor in the UMass Boston Economics Department, and the first person to retire from the UMass Boston Economics Department.

On June 6, 2001, retired UMass Boston professor Francis Russell Hart died of cancer. An esteemed member of the English Department faculty, he taught literature at UMass Boston from 1972 until 1989, when he retired. During his tenure, he founded the Center for the Improvement of Teaching. Hart was co-author of several books, including Not All is Changed, a history of Hingham, Massachusetts. A 1950 graduate of Harvard College, he earned his master’s and doctorate at Harvard University.

Harold Horton, associate director of the William Trotter Institute for the Study of Black Culture, passed away suddenly at Massachusetts General Hospital on August 4. Horton began working at UMass Boston in 1984, holding numerous positions including academic coordinator of the Athletic Department, interim director of the Office of Affirmative Action, and director of the Program to Encourage Minority Students to Enter the Teaching Profession. He taught courses in urban education and educational administration in the Graduate College of Education and the Africana Studies Department. Horton was known for his strong commitment to multiculturalism and urban education, and was instrumental in developing the Trotter Review. For the past several years, he spearheaded the Trotter Institute’s involvement in the Black Agenda Project and was recently elected to serve as president of UMass Boston’s Black Faculty and Staff Association. Horton earned his B.A. in education from Capital University, an M.A. degree in religious education from McCormack Theological Seminary, an M.A. degree in educational administration from Roosevelt University, and his Ph.D. in educational administration from Ohio State University.

In Memoriam...