UW-Green Bay Mourns the Passing of Prof. Emeritus Norbert Gaworek
Norbert H. Gaworek, age 87, passed away on August 16, 2024, surrounded by family.
Professor Gaworek began as a history instructor at the Fox Valley and Manitowoc campuses of UW-Green Bay in the fall of 1968. He earned his doctorate from UW-Madison in 1970 and was assistant professor in Analysis-Synthesis, in the History program. Throughout his time at UW-Green Bay he was associate professor of Humanism and Cultural Exchange, Humanistic Studies and in 1979 be became the community coordinator for the Great Decisions Program focused on foreign policy issues. He served on the Faculty Senate from 1973-1983, and chaired the History department for nearly 20 years.
In 1990, he became an instructor for the First Distance Learning Program offered by UW-Green Bay, namely a three-credit course “Infusing Global Perspectives in the Curriculum”. At the time, this was the “new” television instruction method linking students and instructors across a widely scattered geographic area. Gaworek was regularly featured in the media as an expert on Soviet-American relations. He retired in May of 1999 and was granted Associate Professor Emeritus designation at that time.
Additionally, Professor Emeritus Norb Gaworek produced 24 one-hour programs on international affairs for public television. He…founded the journal Voyageur Historical Review of Brown County and Northeastern Wisconsin, which he edited from 1984-1989. He was director of the History Fund which supported worthy projects related to history. Dr. Gaworek wrote for many regional, national, and international publications. Working with the University’s Office of International Education, he [gave] much time to the implementation of exchange programs with Ukraine. In June 1993 he led a study tour to Russia and Ukraine, where he was an exchange professor in fall 1993 at Kharkov State University.
In a 1994 personal statement he stated, “Teaching is as much an art as it is a craft. I chose the teaching profession because I believed that I could help in making several generations of students lead more meaningful, productive and rewarding lives so that they, too, might return to their communities what they received. Teaching, in my view, is one of the oldest and most noble professions.”
Friends may visit on August 31, 2024 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am, and join the family for a Memorial Service at 11:00 am at the First United Methodist Church (501 Howe Street, Green Bay, WI 54301). Additional information can be found here.
