University of California, Riverside
WE REMEMBER
Remembrances of alumni, faculty, and staff
50s
John Rau ’59
March 2023
Arnold Tena ’58
March 2023
60s
James Bruffy ’63
March 2023
Richard Bradley ’68, M.A. ’74, Ph.D. ’78
May 2023
Harry Cramer ’60
February 2023
Teri Freedman ’69
April 2023
Harvey Fry ’66
January 2023
David Kirk, M.A. ’69
January 2023
Kathryn Porter ’68
December 2022
Frank Sheffield ’62
January 2023
Maxine Valdez ’66
April 2023
70s
Terry Benzor ’79
April 2023
Taffy Geith ’69, M.A. ’79
February 2023
Phillip Gianos, Ph.D. ’71
March 2023
Karen Luke ’74
May 2023
Deborah Magnus ’71, M.A. ’75
May 2023
Kenneth McCormick ’76
April 2023
Anna Strong ’79
January 2023
80s
Jennifer Bullard ’82
March 2023
Gary Miyahara ’84
February 2023
90s
Robert Jones, M.A. ’90, Ph.D. ’00
June 2023
Kara Gilman ’98
February 2023
10s
Astere Ellen ’18
April 2023
Christopher Olsen, M.Ed ’19
May 2023
Ernest “Ernie” García
(1929-2023)
García, an educator and community advocate, was UC Riverside’s first Hispanic graduate in a life full of many firsts. Raised in Colton, García enrolled at UCR in 1954 to complete his undergraduate education after returning from serving in the Korean War. As a student he helped select UCR’s first iteration of a mascot, a pedigreed Scottish Terrier named Lady MacTavish of Walpole, and was among the pioneer class of students who sketched their names on fresh concrete in the main courtyard. He graduated in 1955 with a bachelor’s degree in social sciences.
García worked as a teacher and administrator in the Inland Empire, going on to become a principal with the Rialto Unified School District, which now has an elementary school named after him. He received a doctorate in education from UCLA in 1966 and became a professor at the University of Redlands and later at Cal State University, San Bernardino, or CSUSB. In 1979, he became the dean of CSUSB’s School of Education, where he served for 11 years until his retirement in 1990.
García died April 5. He is survived by his wife, three sons, and five grandchildren.
Jerry Carlson
(1936-2023)
Carlson, a professor emeritus of education, taught at UC Riverside for four decades until retiring to his native Seattle in the early 2000’s. He received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Washington and a doctorate in psychology from UC Berkeley. He then joined UCR, publishing hundreds of papers over a 40-year span.
Carlson served as an administrator for UCR’s Education Abroad, a program that fit his views about the value of experiencing different cultures. He also served as president of the International Association for Cognitive Education and was a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science.
He died April 10. Carlson is survived by his wife, three children, and six grandchildren.
Mir Mulla
(1925-2023)
Mulla, a distinguished professor emeritus of entomology, pioneered insect control methods around the world. Born in Zangawat, Afghanistan, Mulla attended Cornell University on a scholarship and received a bachelor’s degree in entomology and parasitology. He went on to study at UC Berkeley where he earned a doctorate in entomology. In 1956, Mulla joined UCR when the campus established a medical entomology department and taught at the university for 50 years.
Over the course of his career, he authored more than 500 scientific papers and developed techniques for eye gnat and mosquito control. He worked with the World Health Organization and traveled to many developing countries to help control vector-borne diseases including malaria. He received honors including being named a fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Entomological Society of America. He established a scholarship at the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences and the Mir S. Mulla Endowed Professorship in the entomology department.
Mulla died January 29 at his home. He is survived by four children and eight grandchildren.
Richard Arnott
(1949-2023)
Arnott, a distinguished professor of economics, was an urban economic theorist who published prominently in urban, public, and transportation economics. Raised in England and Canada, Arnott received a bachelor’s degree in urban studies from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He earned master’s degrees at the University of Toronto and Yale University, where he also received a doctorate in economics. In his dissertation, Arnott pioneered the analysis of the interaction between public finance and the spatial allocation of households.
Arnott joined UCR in 2007. He published prominently on topics including the optimal city, traffic congestion, the housing market, moral hazard, public finance, urban transportation, and land use. A mentor to students and junior colleagues, Arnott supervised or advised more than 70 doctorate dissertations at UCR and other institutions.
He died April 21 at his Riverside home. He is survived by a brother and sister.
Robert Neville Jones, Jr.
(1963-2023)
Jones, a lecturer in UC Riverside’s University Writing Program, taught over 4,500 undergraduates over the course of his 35-year career. He earned a bachelor’s degree at Brigham Young University before completing master’s and doctorate degrees in English at UCR.
He began as a teacher’s assistant before becoming a lecturer in 1995, teaching small, intensive writing courses that help students fulfill their writing requirement and become better writers for other university courses. He taught at all levels, from English as a second language courses to advanced composition. In their evaluations through the decades, Jones’ students frequently described their progress as writers and gratitude for his dedication, insistence upon higher achievement, and care for their progress. Jones also taught writing at the University of Redlands for 21 years.
He died June 17 at his Redlands home. He is survived by his wife and two daughters.
William Thomson
(1930-2023)
Thomson, a professor emeritus in UC Riverside’s Department of Botany and Plant Sciences, was a plant researcher who taught at the university for 36 years. Thomson earned a bachelor’s degree in biology from Sacramento State University before serving in the military during the Korean War. He taught high school biology upon his return from service before pursuing a doctorate in biology at UC Davis.
Thomson was one of the early faculty members at UCR, joining the campus in 1960 and teaching until his retirement in 1996. He undertook pioneering research using the electron microscope to study the structure and function of plant cells. His work garnered him a Fulbright award with several extended sabbaticals at York University, England and Adelaide University, Australia. In retirement, he served as editor for the Annals of Botany through Oxford University.
He died May 19 and is survived by three children and six grandchildren.