Susan Welch, former faculty member and chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, passed away March 28.
After earning her PhD in 1970, she was Carl A. Happold Professor of Political Science at Nebraska.
"She was a wonderful colleague who collaborated with other faculty members in their research, helping them gain tenure," John Gruhl, professor and undergraduate chair in the department, said.
Welch eventually became chair of the department and served for eight years.
"By her remarkable scholarly productivity and astute leadership, she turned the Department of Political Science here at UNL from a sleepy, insular place into an internationally-known research unit," John Hibbing, Foundation Regent University Professor in the department, said.
"She was an effective department chair," Gruhl said, "with an inclusive approach that made faculty members who might have felt marginalized feel a part of the department."
Welch served on several college and university committees, including the Chancellor's Commission on the Status of Women and the executive committees of the College of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate College.
In 1991, she began her tenure as dean of the Penn State College of the Liberal Arts—one of only a few women nationwide at the time. The college flourished during her 28-year tenure.
Over a career of nearly five decades, Welch established herself as one of the foremost political science scholars of her generation. Her research specialized in women and politics, urban politics, and political science and the Holocaust. She wrote more than 170 peer-reviewed articles and authored or co-authored eight books—including her award-winning "Understanding American Government." Her published works have been cited more than 11,000 times, and her co-written article "The Impact of Gender on Activities and Priorities of State Legislators" is the most cited work on women in politics and considered a breakthrough in the study of women's potential political behaviors.
"She was extraordinarily productive," Gruhl said, "a virtual 'articles factory' who could produce high-quality research articles, one after another, for political science journals."
She also was active in several national service organizations, having held several positions in the American Political Science Association and serving as president of the Midwest Political Science Association.
"Susan Welch made everybody around her better," Hibbing said. "Some people can only get results by being nasty and demanding; Susan got results by being fair, loyal, kind, constructive, smart, thoroughly decent, and most of all by setting an impeccable example. She was the kind of person you simply did not want to disappoint. I wish we could have kept her at UNL longer. She was my friend and role model.”
- Read more about her impact in the Centre Daily Times: "Longtime Penn State dean, pioneer Susan Welch dies at 78. Here's how she changed the university"
