Anna Sultanoff Ochoa-Becker

Anna Sultanoff Ochoa-Becker, 79 of Bloomington, Indiana passed away Monday, February 25th, 2013. Born to Russian immigrants in Windsor, Ontario Canada, she is survived by her husband James M. Becker and his children: Susan of Los Angeles, California; James of Boulder, Colorado; Mark of Lisle, Illinois; Sara of Urbana, Illinois; six grandchildren; and two great grandchildren. Anna had a zest for life enriched by a circle of close friends and her inherited extended family, and a wide variety of interests including local politics, interior decorating, cooking, and international travel. Anna graduated from Wayne State University with a bachelor’s degree; University of Michigan with a master’s degree in history; and, University of Washington with a PhD in curriculum studies. She taught social studies in public schools in Michigan, California, and El Salvador. Anna was on the faculties of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Florida State University before joining the School of Education at Indiana University-Bloomington. There she assumed roles as Director of Undergraduate Studies, Director of Teacher Education, and as a project director of numerous state and federal teacher education research grants. Anna was known for her leadership and for confronting censorship, buttressing academic freedom, promoting human rights education, and fostering interdependence in the global world. She was widely published and internationally recognized for her academic achievements. A scholarship at Indiana University has been set up in her name. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Middle Way House, Inc (Bloomington). A celebration of her life will be held Saturday, March 16th 2013 at 2 pm in the Presidents’ Room, University Club (Room 150) Indiana Memorial Union.