Norbert H. Gaworek, 87 years old, passed away on August 16, 2024 surrounded by his family.
Professor Gaworek began teaching history at UW-Green Bay’s Fox Valley and Manitowoc campuses in the fall of 1968. He received his PhD from UW-Madison in 1970 and was an assistant professor of analysis-synthesis in the history program. While at UW-Green Bay, he was an associate professor of humanism and cultural exchange and humanistic studies and in 1979 became community coordinator for the Great Decisions Program, which focused on foreign policy issues. He served on the Faculty Senate from 1973 to 1983 and chaired the history department for 15 years.
In 1990, he became an instructor in UW-Green Bay’s first distance learning program, a three-hour course called “Incorporating Global Perspectives into the Curriculum.” At the time, this was the “new” televised teaching method, connecting students and faculty across a widely dispersed geographic area. Gaworek was regularly featured in the media as an expert on Soviet-American relations. He retired in May 1999, at which time he was promoted to associate professor emeritus.
In addition, Professor Emeritus Norb Gaworek produced 24 one-hour programs on international affairs for public television. He… founded the journal Voyageur Historical overview of Brown County and Northeast Wisconsin, which he edited from 1984 to 1989. He was the director of the History Fund, which supported valuable projects in the field of history. Dr. Gaworek wrote for many regional, national and international publications. In cooperation with the University’s Office of International Education, he devoted much time to implementing exchange programs with Ukraine. In June 1993, he led a study trip to Russia and Ukraine, where in the fall of 1993 he was an exchange professor at Kharkiv State University.
In a personal statement from 1994, he said: “Teaching is both an art and a craft. I chose teaching because I believed that I could help provide more meaningful, productive and rewarding lives for several generations of students so that they too could give back to their communities what they have received. In my view, teaching is one of the oldest and noblest of professions.”
Friends may call on August 31, 2024 from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and join the family for a memorial service at 11:00 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church (501 Howe Street, Green Bay, WI 54301). More information can be found here.
