On Friday, September 26, 2014, faculty, staff, students, and alumni of the mathematics and computer science department at DeSales University, gathered to dedicate a classroom in memory of Dr. Julius Bede.
“In a special way, we gather in this hallway, within our department, because we celebrate a man who spent many hours here,” said Bro. Daniel Wisniewski, OSFS, (right) chair of the mathematics and computer science department, in his welcome.
Bede had been a faculty member at DeSales since 1988, and he was founding director of the MSIS graduate program and was a former chair of the department of mathematics and computer science. He retired in August 2012. Previously he had worked for AT&T Bell Laboratories and as an independent consultant. Bede earned graduate degrees from Lehigh University (M.S., 1960) and Columbia University (Sc.D., 1972). He was an avid outdoorsman and had served as chief executive officer of the Appalachian Mountain Club of New York.
Dr. Patricia Riola, assistant professor of computer science and current director of the MSIS program, who was also a student of Bede, said “As students, Dr. Bede held us to a high standard, always encouraging us to aim higher.”
“But he was also compassionate,” she continued. “We all have anecdotes about how much he cared for his students—and who could forget the cookie breaks during those long night classes.”
Wisniewski then blessed a newly remodeled and upgraded computer laboratory that bears a photo of Bede at the entrance and a plaque inside with his name. A scholarship endowment to benefit mathematics and computer science students that was initially funded by a bequest from Bede was also announced.
More than 60 people in attendance then raised their glasses for a toast to Bede who was a wine connoisseur.
Mike Hudock, former instructor and current adjunct faculty member in the department and student of Bede, spoke via Skype: “Dr. Bede did not teach from a text; he taught from knowledge and expected students to think and apply. The world will be a much poorer place without him.”