E-Insight

January 2004

College Mourns Death of Dr. Alan Tucker

"I especially value my teaching experience at Colorado State…It is so exciting to watch individuals learn and grow, and to help them reach their goals. To be able to share with my students what I was given by my parents - an opportunity to create a rich and rewarding life for oneself - is a great honor and joy. "

Dr. Alan Tucker
(1947-2004)

Friends and colleagues of Dr. Alan Tucker reacted with shock and sorrow as they learned of the death of the well-loved and respected teacher, scientist, and university leader. Dr. Tucker died tragically on Tuesday, January 6, while vacationing with his wife Melissa and friends in Mexico. At the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, where Dr. Tucker once served as head of the Department of Physiology, the news was taken especially hard by all those whose lives had been touched by Dr. Tucker.

"This is a very hard time for the College and the University," said Dr. Lance Perryman, Dean of the College. "Our grief is profound as is our care and concern for Dr. Tucker's wife, children and grandchildren. While our loss is great, theirs is simply unimaginable. We will be here to support them through this tremendously difficult time and to do all that we can in the future to provide care and comfort as this family mourns the loss of a son, a father, a brother and a husband."

Born in England to an Italian mother and English father, Dr. Tucker left that country at the age of 12 when his family immigrated to the United States. Here, he made the most of the educational opportunities available to him. He was the first in his family to graduate from high school, and then went on the receive undergraduate and doctorate degrees from the University of California at Santa Barbara. He came to Colorado in the mid-1970s for a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center in Denver. He then joined the faculty at Wright State University School of Medicine in Dayton, Ohio, before returning to Colorado.

Dr. Tucker served at Colorado State for nearly 25 years after joining the University in 1979 as an Associate Professor of Physiology. His teaching and research focused on cardiopulmonary physiology and high-altitude medicine and he routinely taught in the University's undergraduate, graduate and Professional Veterinary Medical programs. Outside of the University, Dr. Tucker was involved with various community service organizations including the American Heart Association.

During his tenure at Colorado State, Dr. Tucker served as Assistant Dean then Associate Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (1989-2000), as head of the Department of Physiology from 1995-2001, and on several faculty council leadership committees. He was appointed Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs in July 2002 after serving in that position in an interim capacity since May 2001.

Dr. Tucker is survived by his father, Philip, and his father's wife, Judy; his wife Melissa; son and daughter-in law, Scott and Shannon; daughter and son-in-law, Kristin and Tony; granddaughters Aislinn and Lilly; nieces Tina Knauss and her husband Ryan, Kim Andrade and her husband Oscar, Megan Rohl, Kirsten Silvers, and Trista Silvers; and nephew Cooper Rohl. He also is survived by his father-in-law, Robert Bryan; and sisters-in-law Meredith Rohl and husband, Larry Boccaccio, and Sheridan Silvers and her husband, Tom. He is preceded in death by his mother, Giacomina, and his sister, Marina Gudgeon.

A memorial service is scheduled for Dr. Tucker on Tuesday, January 13, 4 p.m., at the Lory Student Center Main Ballroom. In lieu of flowers, friends may remember Dr. Tucker with a donation to the Dr. Alan Tucker Memorial Scholarship Fund in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. Contributions may be sent to the Colorado State University Foundation, P.O. Box 1870, Fort Collins CO 80522 or by calling (866) 278-4483.

In addition, memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Association at (866) 425-0454, the Colorado College - Pando Endowed Scholarship at http://www.pandoscholarshipfund.org, or the Austin Harvard School for ADD and bipolar disorder at http://www.austinharvardschool.org.