Renowned historian and beloved professor Gerald Gill passed away on July 26 at the age of 58. Although Tufts' public relations office could not confirm a cause of death, the Boston Globe reported it was arterial sclerosis.
Gill, a graduate of Lafayette College and Howard University who had been teaching at Tufts since 1980, was an expert in the areas of African American opposition to wars in the 20th century and race relations in Boston. At the time of his death, he was an associate professor of history and the deputy chair of the history department.
His students and colleagues remember the two-time Massachusetts Professor of the Year as an integral part of the Tufts community, and his unexpected passing has left them somber and disoriented.
"I don't even remember when I heard it. ... Everything is such a blur," History Department Chair Virginia Drachman said. "We've all been walking around not quite knowing what to do with ourselves."
"Gerald Gill was one of just a handful of colleagues whom I have known nearly since I began at Tufts and with whom I feel I have shared my entire career here," History Professor Steven Marrone said in an e-mail. "I have depended on him and counted on his advice and support in times of need. I will miss him very much."
Some of Gill's most enduring legacies at the university will be the strong connections he formed with his students.
Dean of Academic Affairs for Arts and Sciences Andrew McClellan said an experience he had with Gill exemplifies those ties. As they were standing together during a Commencement ceremony one year, McClellan recalls excited history students approaching Gill one-by-one to give him a big hug.
"It was as if he had made a personal connection [with] everybody in that graduating class," McClellan said. "[That's] true going back years, decades."
As such, there has been an outpouring of grief from students, through an online forum set up by Tufts and through Facebook.com, where recent grad Nakeiha Primus (LA '05) created a group that had 226 members as of late Thursday afternoon.
"I had the opportunity to glean wisdom, receive feedback [and] encouragement on my desire to enter the field of education, and just witness his greatness," Primus, who knew Gill primarily as an advisor and supporter of the Balfour Scholars (a group of African-American students chosen for their outstanding academic performance), said in an e-mail.
"I'm certain if the group wasn't formed by me, any number of students would have jumped at the opportunity to do so," she said.
Gill had been scheduled to be on leave this fall, and McClellan said that the University plans to find a professor to teach his courses during the spring semester.
"Emotionally, that will be a hard thing to do," he said. "It almost seems inappropriate to rush to replace someone who is irreplaceable."
A memorial service for Gill, who is survived by two sisters, a grandson and a daughter, was held Thursday morning at Goddard Chapel and there will be at least one more when students return to campus in September.
In the meantime, Drachman said she expects it to take a while for the reality of the situation to hit those who cared about him. "I think it's going to sink in gradually," she said, as people look for him and "he's not there to turn to."
Contributions can be made in his memory through the Africana Center to the Gerald R. Gill Scholarship Fund.
See the orientation issue of the Tufts Daily on Aug. 29 for further coverage.
