Dr. Jutta Luise Strecker-Nsouli

Dr. Jutta Strecker-Nsouli passed away peacefully on November 29, 2023, in Washington, D.C., surrounded by her husband, Dr. Saleh Nsouli, and family members.

Dr. Strecker-Nsouli was born in Masserberg, Germany, during World War II, and grew up in Wuppertal-Elberfeld. She studied at Helmholtz-Gymnasium in Wuppertal and kept in contact over the years with her Gymnasium schoolmates, attending the yearly reunions and even hosting one in Paris.

At Freiburg University, she earned her Diplome (Master) in Mathematics with distinction. Given her interest in Boolean Algebra, she came to the United States in September 1970 to do her graduate work in Mathematics at Vanderbilt University under the famous Mathematician Bjarni Jonsson, Vanderbilt University’s first distinguished professor of mathematics and renowned as an authority on Algebra, whose contributions are recognized by a number of mathematical objects that are named for him, including Jonsson and Jonsson-Tarski algebras, Jonsson cardinals, Jonsson terms, the Jonsson lemma and the Jonsson-Tarski duality.

Dr. Strecker-Nsouli earned her Ph.D. in Mathematics in 1974 at Vanderbilt University, completing her dissertation in Boolean Algebra. Her dissertation and subsequent research work on “The Strong Cancellation Property for the Free Product of Bounded Distributive Lattices” were acclaimed by Distinguished Professor Jonsson and widely recognized as pioneering and pathbreaking contributions to the field of Boolean Algebra.

Dr. Strecker-Nsouli taught at Vanderbilt University, where she met Dr. Saleh Nsouli, who was then completing his Ph.D. in Economics, and who also taught at Vanderbilt University. In 1978, she married Dr. Nsouli, who had moved to Washington D.C. to take a position at the International Monetary Fund.

Dr. Strecker-Nsouli was an accomplished pianist, who enjoyed playing the piano privately. She was also an avid traveler who traveled across the United States and all over the world. Her trips, with her husband, took her to countries in Europe, the Far East, the Middle East, and Africa. During 2005-2010, she lived in France, to accompany her husband who had been appointed Director of the International Monetary Fund’s European Offices headquartered in Paris.

She had a great interest in languages. Although she already was fluent in English, German, and French, she studied and learnt Arabic, mastering the complex grammar.

Dr. Strecker-Nsouli loved her German Shepherd Dogs (GSDs), for their beauty, intelligence, working ability, affection, and loyalty. She trained all her dogs in the German Schutzhund sport, which is extremely demanding and time-consuming and involves training in tracking, obedience, and protection work, earning the highest titles and often placing in first place.

In 2002, she successfully handled her GSD Dasko von Arlett in the working portion of the Universal Sieger Show, and Petra Schiller handled Dasko in the conformation portion of the Show. The success of Dasko, placing first in both the working and conformation portions, earned him the title of Universal Sieger (Champion) of the Working Dog Association of the United States. To achieve that title, Dasko had earned a long string of titles and first place standings over the years. These included BH, SchH1, SchH2, SchH3, IPO3, FH, AD, V1, KKL1a (www.daskovonarlett.com).

She continued successfully with her training efforts through the years, including in recent years with the training of her surviving GSD, Wanni of the Black Forest, the granddaughter of Dasko. Through the years, Wanni earned a series of successive Schutzhund titles. In December 2019, Wanni, handled by Dr. Strecker-Nsouli, earned the highest title of IGP3. Wanni also had in her career the unique score of 100% in tracking!

Dr. Strecker-Nsouli leaves behind her loving husband and her two loving GSDs, Wanni of the Black Forest, IGP3, and Orrex von Arlett, BH, and many family members and friends, all of whom miss her dearly.