Gerald M. Reagan

He was born on January 8, 1932, in Auburn, Nebraska, in Nemaha County, to the late Charles and Dora Reagan. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his wife, Beth, in 2016. After graduating from Bratton Union High School, Reagan served in the United States Navy. Following his military service, he attended and graduated from the University of Nebraska with a B.A. in history (1957), Western Michigan University with an M.A. in history (1959), and Michigan State University with a Ph.D. in philosophy of education (1964). He met and in 1955 married his beloved wife, Beth Reagan (neé Chessmore) while they were both undergraduates at the University of Nebraska. He held faculty positions at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, the University of California, Los Angeles, and Syracuse University before joining The Ohio State University, where he spent most of his career. He was Professor of Philosophy of Education and a charter member of the University's Academy for Teaching. He served as Secretary of the University Senate and Secretary of the University Faculty from 1992 to 2000. In 1982, he was awarded an Ohio State Alumni Distinguished Teaching Award, in 1995 a Council of Graduate Students' Distinguished Service Award, and in 1998 a University Faculty Distinguished Service Award. He was selected to be the 1989 Commencement Speaker at the Fall commencement of The Ohio State University. Well known among his family and friends for his sense of humor, he was fond of reminding us that he was one of the few people left for whom the extra dry martini remained the drug of choice. He never met a dog he didn't love, and the feeling was always mutual - he agreed with both Mark Twain that, "The more people I meet, the more I love my dog," and with Will Rogers, who said, "If there are no dogs in heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." He is survived by his sons, Timothy and Randal, his daughter-in-law Mary, and his four grandchildren, Joshua, Bryan, Kimberly and Amie. At his request, there are no events planned, and the family requests no flowers be sent. Donations can be made in his honor to the Charles M. & Dora O. Reagan Student Support Fund (01078200) at the University of Nebraska Foundation, 1010 Lincoln Mall, Suite 300, Lincoln, NE 68508, an educational fund established by his late sister to support nontraditional students.