Volume 62, Number 23    February 20, 2015         

Aaron D. Anderson
Aaron Anderson spent 25 years in higher education as a learner, educator and contributor. He dedicated the past several years as an administrator and instructor at San Francisco State University’s College of Business.

As the Director of Strategic Organizational Initiatives, Aaron successfully led many unique initiatives from staff development, to writing a strategic plan for the college technology group, to organizing our Make the Mission Statement Come Alive student video contest. He dedicated an enormous amount of time and energy coordinating every aspect of the College’s AACSB reaccreditation report writing and also data gathering in Digital Measures. He was able to jump "brain-first" into every new task, responsibility and undertaking with a positive confidence that was contagious. He was ever so collegial, a motivator, a team player, a creative thinker, and trailblazer.

Aaron also served as the Executive MBA program director and Graduate Business Programs acting director, and taught a managing organizational change course for the Executive MBA program at the college. His intellectual curiosity made him an excellent instructor as well as a mentor to the graduate students in his classes. He was able to inspire and foster creativity in his students and colleagues. For him, teaching was a lifelong passion and an art. Aaron was an expert in the area of organizational behavior and change, and the author of Engaging Resistance: How Ordinary People Successfully Champion Change, Stanford Business Books.

His willingness to always be at the forefront of technology gained him honors and recognitions. He submitted one of the winning entries to the Management Innovation eXchange Digital Freedom Challenge. The purpose was to present ideas that expanded freedom in the workplace. And he was one of five instructors on the SF State main campus to be recognized for using the local moodle based platform and other cloud-based tools to build out hybrid or online courses. He was an avid writer and strived to write meaningful content for publications, journals, blogs and even Twitter and Facebook.

Outside of work life, Aaron was passionate about many topics including civil rights and social action, education, and the environment. He most recently contributed his time as a Board member for Educate Our State, was an Advisory Board Member for Prolific Giving and the PTA President for McKinley Elementary School. Among his other talents, he was an avid runner, biker, windsurfer, and photographer. He was a truly dedicated father and husband, friend and colleague who treated everyone with respect.

We have lost an amazing soul, a great colleague, a loyal friend. His love for his profession and for life was simply infectious. His compassion, creativity, energy and vibrant presence will be missed tremendously.

Aaron posted the following when Steve Jobs passed away: "This man made one big dent in the universe. Beyond rest in peace, I would like to just say thank you, Steve."

We send the same message back to Aaron. Thank you for making an impact on everyone’s lives. Heartfelt thoughts go out to Aaron’s wife and two sons, and his entire family, on behalf of his SF State family of colleagues, students and friends.

Visit the College of Business' memorial page to view tributes submitted by the University community.

Edith Katznelson Arrick
Edith Katznelson Arrick passed away at her home in San Francisco on Jan. 21. She was 89. She was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and received her B.A. from the University of British Columbia, a master's degree in genetics from UC Berkeley and a doctorate in education from the University of San Francisco. While at Berkeley, she helped found the Delta Phi Epsilon Sorority.

Arrick began her career at SF State in 1962 and retired in 1991. Due to her wide-ranging interests and capabilities, she served students and the University in a variety of capacities, including assistant professor of biology, assistant to the dean of undergraduate studies, coordinator of the re-entry program, director of the Academic Advising Center and academic counselor in the Advising Center.

Her many contributions included an instrumental role in creating or enhancing various programs, including creation of the women's studies major, her work with the liberal studies program, helping prepare future elementary school teachers and assisting students in designing their own special majors. Though very kind, she had high expectations of students and encouraged them to be the best they could be.

Arrick supported many causes and volunteered for organizations that included Hadassah, Jewish Community Relations Council and Jewish Family and Children's Services. She was passionate about the state of Israel and often travelled there to visit family and friends. Enthralled by science and nature, she shared her passion as a docent at the California Academy of Sciences.

Former Dean and Professor Emeritus of Geosciences Erwin Seibel remarked, "I knew Edith both when I was dean and as a faculty member. She was a remarkable woman, one really committed to students way before it became a popular thing to do."

She is survived by her son Robert and his wife Janet; son David and his wife Andi; son Bradley and his wife Danielle; brother and sister-in-law Gordon and Doris Katznelson; and her grandchildren.

Funeral services were held Jan. 25 at the Sinai Memorial Chapel in San Francisco.

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Last modified Feb. 19, 2014 by University Communications.