Memorial service for Dean Raymond F. von Dran to be held Friday in Hendricks Chapel

Memorial service for Dean Raymond F. von Dran to be held Friday in Hendricks ChapelSeptember 05, 2007Margaret Costello Spillettmcostell@syr.edu

The Syracuse community is invited to attend the memorial service for Raymond F. von Dran, dean emeritus of Syracuse University’s School of Information Studies, this Friday, Sept. 7, at 4:30 p.m. in Hendricks Chapel.

Von Dran was the dean at the School of Information Studies (iSchool) from 1995-2007. He passed away July 23 in New York City.

Vice Chancellor and Provost Eric F. Spina, Interim Dean Elizabeth D. Liddy of the iSchool, Dean David M. Rubin of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and Dean Emeritus Michael B. Eisenberg of the University of Washington Information School are among the speakers who will share remembrances at the service.

Following the ceremony, all are invited to greet von Dran’s wife, director emerita of the school’s M.S. in library and information science program Gisela von Dran, and his daughter, Beth, during a reception in the first-floor lobby of Hinds Hall.

Raymond F. von Dran created a lasting legacy at the iSchool. During his tenure as dean, the number of students and faculty in the iSchool nearly tripled and the amount of sponsored research increased five-fold. The school’s success under von Dran’s leadership was recognized by U.S. News & World Report, which ranked its program in information systems first, the Ph.D. program in information science and technology and the digital libraries program second, and the library and information science program third in the nation.