In Memoriam

CAROLYN BURRELL BUCK
PhD, Education, 2003

Born on October 12, 1948, in Benham, Kentucky, Carolyn Buck was the eldest of five children. She would earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Bennett College, a master’s degree in counseling from North Carolina A&T State University, and a doctorate in higher education administration through CGU’s joint program with San Diego State University. Buck passed away in October after a two-year battle with uterine cancer. She was 73.

A visionary who forged a bridge between her practice as a leader in higher education and her research, she studied the equity gap in the educational pipeline for students of color. One of her studies looked at retention rates for high-risk students enrolled in a summer bridge program, and she translated the findings into effective strategies for supporting those students.

A member of the Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE) and the America Educational Research Association, Buck presented her research at several of those organizations’ national conferences and served on the ASHE Council on Ethnic Participation Awards Committee. In addition to mentoring many colleagues who would become presidents and vice presidents of higher education institutions, Buck served as a facilitator for ten years with Sisters Going to Work It Out, a conference to uplift 9th-grade girls at risk in the San Marcos area. After retirement, she continued to support students and professional leaders through consulting and coaching.

Buck is survived by her two children, Patricia Coan and Adé Buck, her son-in-law Bartholomew Coan, her grandson Alexzander Buck, her sisters Gwendolyn Bryant, Annetta Burrell, and Valerie Burrell, her nieces April Burrell and Joi Bryant, and her great-nieces Aniyah Bryant and Leilani Bryant. Her parents Rumiller Burrell and Ola Mae Burrell, and her brother Reuben Burrell pre-deceased her. A more complete obituary on Buck can be found on dignitymemorial.com.

 

FRASER POWLISON
PhD, Psychology, 1972

An associate professor emeritus of Teacher Education at Cal State Fullerton, Fraser Powlison died in February of natural causes. He was 89.

Powlison joined Cal State Fullerton’s faculty in 1967 and received emeritus status in 1986. Born in Los Angeles, he was a licensed psychologist and marriage and family counselor with a private psychotherapy practice in Fullerton. Powlison received his doctorate in psychology at CGU in 1972 and a bachelor’s degree in English literature, philosophy and religion, and Latin American studies from Pomona College.

A veteran of the Korean War, he is survived by his wife, Kay; children Heather Berg, Kay Carrillo, and Edward Powlison; six grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. Powlison was buried with full military honors in a private ceremony at Riverside National Cemetery in March. A more complete obituary on Powlison can be found at Cal State Fullerton’s website.

 

DIONNA KAUFMAN
MS, Electronic Commerce, 2001 | MBA, 2002

A member of the Center for Information Systems & Technology (CISAT) community, Dionna Kaufman passed away last spring.

At CGU, she earned an MS in Electronic Commerce in 2001 (a degree once offered through IST) and an MBA in 2002. In addition, she was a current CISAT doctoral student.

Kaufman served as a managing broker with HKG Real Estate Services for nearly 14 years. She is survived by her husband and her four children Ilon (16), Oren (14), Aris (10) and Amir (8). CISAT’s faculty remember her as a brilliant student with a passion for learning.

A GoFundMe account was established by her family earlier this year as a place where friends and family could offer support as well as tributes to her legacy.

 

CAROLYN L. MOORE
MA, Education, 1970

A teacher and counselor for many years, Carolyn L. Moore passed away in October at her Santa Monica home. She was 77.

Born in the Los Angeles area, she was raised in Alhambra and received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Redlands, and a master’s from CGU’s School of Educational Studies. She went on to become a teacher and then a high school guidance counselor in the Covina Valley School District in Covina, Calif. With Roy, her husband of 45 years, Moore relocated to Jacksonville, Illinois, and served as a guidance counselor at Northwestern High School in Palmyra, Illinois, until her retirement in 2008.

In October, a graveside service was held at Diamond Grove Cemetery in Jacksonville and a celebration of life service in November in Corona Del Mar, Calif.

She was preceded in death by her husband Roy, parents Blanche and Richmond, and brother Norm. She is survived by her son Thomas (wife Erika), sisters Ellie Swan (husband Jack), Jenni Johns (husband Dave), and Kris Patton, and several nieces and nephews. A more complete obituary on Moore can be found on Legacy.com.

 

DENNIS WILLIAM PARKS
MFA, Ceramics, 1965

A renowned ceramicist, Claremont college educator, and founder of a popular pottery workshop, Dennis William Parks passed away in March. He was 84.
Born in Berea, Kentucky, Parks attended Washington Lee High School in Arlington (Warren Beatty was a classmate), and then went on to attend several higher education institutions—including Rutgers University and Albert Schweitzer College in Switzerland—before receiving a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

After marrying his wife Julia, who received a degree in nursing from Duke University, Parks rented a small studio and gallery space. He hung a shingle on the front door—it read “Poet, Potter, Peacemaker” (these were the early days of the Vietnam War)—and committed himself to the craft of pottery in earnest.

In 1963 Parks was accepted into the ceramics program at Claremont Graduate University (then known as Claremont Graduate School), directed by renowned ceramic artist Paul Soldner. During his time at CGS, Parks worked with famed sculptor John Mason.

Parks taught at several schools, including Knox College in Illinois and Pitzer College (where he was hired to establish, direct, and teach ceramics and sculpture). However, a visit to a ghost town called Tuscarora in northeastern Nevada resulted in his involvement in creating what came to be known as the Tuscarora Pottery School. Today the academy continues to serve as, according to the school’s website, “an environment of kinship, community, and creativity through the education and immersion of working with clay.”

By the late 1990s, Parks’s son Ben took over the directorship of the pottery school, with Parks serving as professor emeritus. According to his family, he spent his later years telling tales, writing the occasional poem, coming up with ideas for more artworks and enjoying his country life in Tuscarora.

Parks is preceded in death by his wife Julie, his brother Richard, and his parents. He is survived by his sons Benjamin and Gregory, his daughter-in-law Kylee, his grandchildren Aurora, Reese, and Indie, nieces, and many friends. A complete obituary on Parks can be found at Legacy.com.

 

MARGARET CRAWFORD GATES
MFA, 1954

A precocious painter and ceramicist who enrolled at Pomona College at 16, Margaret Crawford Gates passed away in May. She was 89.

Growing up in an artistic atmosphere cultivated by her mother, an art administrator in the Alhambra Unified School District, Gates received three scholarships to study art as an undergraduate at Pomona College. In 1954, she graduated with an MFA from CGU (then known as Claremont Graduate School). She studied with some of the region’s most renowned artists, including Millard Sheets, Milford Zornes, Phil Dike, Rupert Deese, and Rick Petterson.

In addition to raising an extended family in Claremont, Gates taught art at Claremont Collegiate School, a nearby small private high school. During the 14 years Gates lived in Claremont, she focused primarily on her talent as a ceramicist, often making pots and glazes from locally sourced materials, including clay that she dug from the foothills near her home.

Gates was also a talented painter in oils and acrylics and was a watercolor artist who managed her art business for over 40 years and whose work is represented in private and corporate collections worldwide, including the Kailia Tower in the Hilton Hotel in Waikiki.

In 1977, Gates and husband Charlie sold their Claremont home and moved aboard a 39-foot Taiwanese-built sailboat in Channel Islands Harbor. They named their ship “Malua” (“Slowly” in Fijian) and lived in the California harbor for 26 years. (Gates also opened a studio gallery there). They also became partners in a 300-acre property in the Fiji Islands, which became a frequent destination for the couple over the years. Later, Gates and her husband moved to a mobile home park not far from their boat in Oxnard’s Hollywood Beach.

Gates is survived by three daughters––Alison Kelly Gates Gabel of Oxnard, Susan Kirsty Gates Alcaraz of Claremont, and Jennifer Elena Gates of Oxnard––her stepson Christopher Peck of St. Bonnet-Elvert, France; grandsons Scott Swanberg of Las Vegas and Brian Swanberg of Federal Way, WA; and two grandchildren–– Kate Swanberg and Justin Stickland. A more complete obituary on Gates can be found on Legacy.com.