We share the very sad news that Lyn Ragsdale, the Radoslav A. Tsanoff Professor of Public Affairs, Professor of Political Science and former dean of the School of Social Sciences, passed away unexpectedly in Houston on Dec. 13.
Lyn was the eldest child of Elywin Ragsdale and Carolyn Mantei Ragsdale, born in Milwaukee. She was the first in her family to go to college and earned a Bachelor of Science in political science with high honors from Arizona State University in 1974, a Master of Arts in 1978 and a doctorate in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1982.
In 1983, Ragsdale joined the political science faculty at the University of Arizona. From 1988 to 1991, she served as director of the University of Arizona Survey Research Center. She was the head of the political science department at the University of Illinois at Chicago from 2001 to 2006.
In 2006, Lyn was appointed Dean of Social Sciences at Rice University, the first woman to hold this position. She led the school for a decade with great commitment and distinction, including envisioning the dedicated building that was eventually constructed as Kraft Hall. Her participation in university leadership was deeply valued. In 2017, after stepping down as dean, she returned to her true passions of teaching, researching and writing.
Ragsdale was a frequent presenter at scholarly conferences and authored numerous books, book chapters and articles. At the time of her death, she was actively working on her latest book, “Shattered: Donald Trump and the American Presidency.” Ragsdale also was a member of the editorial boards of numerous academic journals and the recipient of many awards.
Ragsdale is survived by her husband, Jerry Rusk, who is a member of Rice’s faculty; her son Matthew Ragsdale Rusk; her sister Tracy Ragsdale (Alan Carpenter); and numerous cousins, cherished friends and colleagues. We extend our deepest sympathy to Jerry and Lyn’s extended family.
Due to the pandemic, a celebration of life is not planned to be held until Jan. 8, 2022. If conditions allow people to safely gather, a celebration will be held sooner. For those interested in attending the celebration, please email Tracy Ragsdale, trmediationlaw@gmail.com, to be informed of the specific date, time and place when it becomes known.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the St. Louis Ballet at 218 THF Blvd., Chesterfield, MO, 63005, or at https://www.stlouisballet.org.
David Leebron
President
Reginald DesRoches
Provost