Dr. Oscar N. Garcia, 88, Professor Emeritus and founding dean of UNT’s College of Engineering, died Oct. 22 in Walpole, Massachusetts.

Born in Havana, Cuba, he was valedictorian of his high school class and was enrolled at the University of Havana when it closed in 1954 due to political unrest. So he went to work at an international telephone communications station and was responsible for radio, microwave and over-the-horizon equipment maintenance and operation. Leaving Cuba in 1959, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from North Carolina State University.

He worked at IBM before helping to establish the College of Engineering at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. Deciding to pursue an academic career, he earned a Ph.D. at the University of Maryland and returned to Old Dominion. He also held positions at the University of South Florida — where he founded the computer science and engineering department — the George Washington University and Wright State University. 

Garcia was named the dean of UNT’s new College of Engineering in 2003, and he organized the existing departments of engineering technology, computer science and materials science under one roof.

As dean, he worked with university and state leadership to open the college at Research Park, now Discovery Park, and established the Center for Advanced Research and Technology with initial funding of $3.1 million from the Army Research Laboratory. Now called the Materials Research Facility, it is one of the nation’s most advanced university research facilities for materials analysis.

He also re-established the construction engineering technology program, created the Department of Electrical Engineering with a $1.5 million award from the National Science Foundation, and established the mechanical and energy engineering degree — the first of its kind in the nation.  

He was known not only for his innovative thinking, but also for putting students first, and through the years he was a mentor to countless students and faculty members. He told the North Texan in 2003 that “getting students to realize what they are capable of” was important to him, as well as the “chance to develop a first-rate engineering school” as his legacy.

Garcia stepped down as dean in 2008 to pursue his research interests in computer architecture, human-computer interaction and quantum computing. He developed and taught interdisciplinary courses and projects involving information theory, coding, cryptography and quantum computing prior to retiring from UNT in 2019.

He earned Fellowship in both the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, was a recipient of the IEEE Third Millenium Medal and served as president of the IEEE Computer Society, which honored him with its Richard E. Merwin Distinguished Service Award in recognition of outstanding contributions to the computer profession.

Memorial gifts may be directed to the Oscar N. Garcia Merit Scholarship at UNT (select “Other” for the fund and type “Oscar Garcia Scholarship” in the comments).

Dr. Robert William 'Bill' McCarter Jr., Professor Emeritus of visual arts, died Sept. 20.

Born in Gastonia, North Carolina, he pursued his passion for art at the University of Georgia, where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Master of Fine Arts. He went on to earn a doctorate in art education at Penn State University.

Bill began his teaching career at Southeast Missouri State College, which is when he met his future wife, Mickey Story. After marrying in 1966, the couple moved to Denton in 1968, where Bill joined the art faculty at UNT and Mickey also later served on the faculty.

Bill co-wrote the widely used art appreciation textbook Living with Art, published in 1985, and was co-director of the North Texas Institute for Educators on the Visual Arts, a program funded by the Getty Center for Education and the Marcus and Annenberg Foundations. He was honored with the Texas Art Education Association's Higher Education Art Educator of the Year award in 1994 and was named a UNT Regents Professor. He retired from UNT in 2005, and he and Mickey received the Honorary Alumni Award in 2009 for outstanding devotion, support and service to the university.

In addition to his love of art, Bill had a unique passion for restoring the soundboards of antique harpsichords. He was known for his kindness, wit and dedication.

In accordance with his wishes, no memorial service will be held. Memorial contributions may be made to the McCarter Scholarship in Art Education and Visual Arts Studies at UNT. Donations can be mailed to the University of North Texas College of Visual Arts and Design, in care of Felicia Lewis, 1155 Union Circle, #305100, Denton, TX 76203. Please include "McCarter Scholarship" on your check.

Dr. Teddy Lewis Coe, 82, Professor Emeritus of accounting, died Oct. 5.

He earned bachelor's and master’s degrees in accounting at Baylor University and a Ph.D. in accounting from Texas A&M University. He was on the faculty at Texas A&M University and New York University before joining North Texas in 1980.

At UNT, he served two terms as chair of the accounting department and won the prestigious President’s Award along with a grant to develop the five-year master’s in accounting program. He also was the first recipient of the Horace Brock Endowed Professorship. After his time as department chair, he went on to lead the Institute of Petroleum Accounting at UNT for 15 years before retiring in 2007.

He and his wife, the late Dr. Barbara Coe, a Professor Emerita of business administration who taught marketing at UNT, were members of the Chilton Society, establishing the Ted and Barbara Coe Endowed Opera Scholarship at UNT. Also established in their honor is the Dr. Teddy Coe and Dr. Barbara Coe Endowed Scholarship in Marketing.

Ted had a never-ending love for dogs, including dozens of adopted rescue dogs over the years, and a heart for helping people in their time of need. He also loved traveling the world and enjoyed opera at every opportunity.

A graveside service is scheduled at 10:30 a.m. Monday, Oct. 21, at Rose Lawn Memorial Park in Denton. Contributions in his memory may be made to the Ted and Barbara Coe Endowed Opera Scholarship fund.

Dr. Michael Frank Sayler, 70, former educational psychology faculty member and senior associate dean in the College of Education, died Oct. 5.

He was born in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and was married to his wife, Stephanie, for 47 years. He earned his bachelor’s degree in education from St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, and taught elementary and middle school-aged children until 1985, when he began work on his master’s and doctoral degrees in educational psychology at Purdue University, specializing in gifted education.

He joined the UNT faculty in 1990, where he taught in the special education doctoral program and later served as associate dean for academic affairs and research in the college. He was a pioneer in online learning and gifted education and was a member of the editorial boards for several journals as well as serving as editor for the Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented for several years. He also built one of the world’s largest online gifted certifications, enrolling more than 250 students from around the world each semester. In 2015, he joined Eastern Michigan University as dean of the College of Education until his retirement in 2021.

He was greatly devoted to his family and church and to serving others. He also enjoyed working with the soil, growing a big garden in every place he lived.

Services were held Oct. 11 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, with burial at Old St. Patrick Church Cemetery.

James B. Clouser, 89, of Tucson, Arizona, a professor of dance and renowned dancer and choreographer who taught at UNT in the 1990s, died July 31.

While studying composition, theory and French horn performance at the Eastman School of Music, he pivoted and joined the American Ballet Theatre. In 1959 he became the principal dancer with Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet and went on to serve as ballet master, resident choreographer and acting director of the Houston Ballet, founder of Space/Dance/Theater and artistic director of the Dayton Ballet in Ohio.

James choreographed for numerous dance companies in the United States, Canada and Europe. Some of his noted works included Carmina Burana, Ear to Stone (presented at the Avignon Festival in France) and the Shakespeare-inspired rock ballet Caliban.

His pedagogical studies led him to the Royal Ballet Schools in London and Copenhagen and the Bolshoi and Kirov Schools in Russia. He was appointed to the faculties of the Juilliard School, Connecticut College and the American Dance Festival and chaired the programs in fine arts at Loretto Heights College in Denver and the ballet and modern dance department at Texas Christian University.

He joined the UNT dance faculty in 1993 and taught a broad range of classes, including all levels of ballet technique. His studies in kinesiology and training in both ballet and modern dance gave him a unique approach to teaching that worked for all types of dancers, and his students learned about philosophy, history, science and all the arts along the way. Works he choreographed were performed by UNT students at the American College Dance Festival at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as well as in Europe.

After teaching at UNT for seven years, he retired — and then spent 18 years on the dance faculty at the University of Arizona. He received the James R. Anthony Sustained Excellence in Teaching Award from UA’s College of Fine Arts, and in 2015, the CORPS de Ballet International organization presented him with its Lifetime Achievement Award. At age 84, before retiring a second time, he directed and choreographed a performance of Leonard Bernstein’s Mass at the Tucson Desert Song Festival.

Dr. James Ward Lee, 93, Professor Emeritus of English who worked at UNT from 1958 to 1999, died July 8 in Denton. During his time at UNT he was chair of the Department of English, a founder of the Center for Texas Studies, and an author and editor at the UNT Press.

He served in the U.S. Navy on the destroyers USS Renshaw and USS Radford during the Korean War and later, aboard the Radford, observed above-ground hydrogen bomb tests in the South Pacific.

Jim then used the G.I. Bill to pay for his education, earning a bachelor’s from Middle Tennessee State University and a master’s from Auburn before doing further graduate work at the University of Arkansas. He joined North Texas as an instructor in English, and after a short leave to complete his Ph.D. at Auburn, he returned to move up the ranks to full professor and chair of the department.

In 1986, he became the director for the new Center for Texas Studies, working with coordinating director and resident professor of Texas studies A.C. Greene. The center was the first of its kind in the state, serving as a clearinghouse for Texas literature, art, geography, history and politics, as well as sponsoring conferences and undertaking projects on Texas life and culture. Jim received the President’s Award, then the highest honor bestowed by the university, in 1988.

He was the editor of 1941: Texas Goes to War, published by the UNT Press in 1991 as part of the center’s commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Pearl Harbor and Texas’ entry into World War II. He also was the author of Texas My Texas, The Girls of the Golden West and A Texas Jubilee, among other books. A well-known folklorist, he would fictionalize colorful characters from his childhood in rural Alabama and reset them in his adopted state.

He was past president of the Texas Folklore Society and a member of the Texas Institute of Letters and the Texas Literary Hall of Fame. He received the A.C. Greene Award, given annually to a distinguished Texas author for lifetime achievement, during the West Texas Book Festival.

After retiring from UNT, he moved to Fort Worth, working as an editor for the TCU Press and continuing to write. He had just moved back to Denton this year. At his request, no services are planned. He will be interred at the Bold Springs Presbyterian Cemetery in Leeds, Alabama, alongside his parents.

Dr. Robert King Bane (’60, ’65 M.Ed.), 85, Professor Emeritus of education, died June 28. He taught at UNT for 36 years.

Born in Denton and raised in Garland, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at North Texas and a doctorate in elementary education from the University of Florida. He joined the education faculty at North Texas in 1970 and became known for his outstanding support of doctoral students, especially when they were writing their dissertations, and his supervision of student teachers.

He was one of the first professors to introduce computers to the College of Education, and he developed and ran the computer lab for many years. His family says a favorite time of year for him was always Homecoming week, when he would attend the parade with his children and grandchildren. He also enjoyed attending football games and Theta Chi alumni functions during the year.

With a passion for computer technology, he formed a company called Schoolhouse Software and developed a gradebook program designed for schools and teachers. He also was a movie buff and owned photography studios that specialized in portrait and wedding photography.

A celebration of his life is scheduled for July 3 at Mulkey-Bowles-Montgomery Funeral Home, 705 N. Locust St., Denton. Visitation will begin at 10 a.m. and the service will begin at 11 a.m.

Luther Paden Neeley, 88, Denton, Professor Emeritus of accounting and founding director of the Professional Development Institute, died May 31.

A native of Arkansas, he earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting at Arkansas State University and was a Distinguished Military Graduate of its ROTC program. He served in the National Guard and on active duty during the Berlin crisis. He then went on to earn an M.B.A. at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville and became the first person to earn a Ph.D. in accounting there.

He joined the business faculty at UNT in 1960 and became a pillar of what is now the G. Brint Ryan College of Business. During his more than 40 years with the university, he was recognized for excellence as an educator and wrote numerous accounting textbooks and other materials. He was named a Faculty All-Star Teacher in 1967 and an Outstanding Professor in the business college in 1975.

From 1973 to 1999, he served as the founding director of PDI, a not-for-profit education corporation specializing in continuing education and certification for business professionals. He also served as a vice president for the American Institute of CPAs.

He was a member of the Chilton Society and received UNT’s Honorary Alumnus Award in 2002 for his outstanding devotion, service and support to the university. Former students established The Paden Neeley Professorship for Teaching Excellence in Accounting at UNT in 2006 as a testament to his lasting impact.

A longtime deacon, he was active in churches in Denton for decades, and was known as “Doc” to his grandchildren and many friends.

A funeral service is set for 2 p.m. June 4 at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, 300 W. Oak St. in Denton. A graveside service will take place at 11 a.m. June 6 at Wiles Cemetery in Ash Flat, Arkansas.

Rollin “Rollie” A. Sininger, 93, Canton, began at North Texas in 1971 as vice president of students and retired as a Department of Psychology faculty member. He served in the U.S. Air Force, teaching pilots to fly fighter planes during the Korean War, and also played third base on the Air Force’s softball team the year it claimed the world championship title. While in the military, he moved to San Antonio where he met his wife, Barbara. Rollie earned a doctor of education from the University of Texas, where he was assistant dean of students prior to joining North Texas. In his free time, he enjoyed improving his home and land and was involved in the lives of his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Leslie Rae Roberts, 62, of McKinney, principal lecturer in the Department of Public Administration, died April 30.

After earning a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oklahoma and a juris doctorate from the University of Tulsa, she worked in Liechtenstein as an attorney for Hilti Group and then returned stateside to work for Mary Kay Inc. as an attorney and lobbyist. She practiced law for more than 20 years and had more than eight years’ experience working as a mediator in business, probate, employment, education and family disputes.

She joined UNT in 2006 as an adjunct to support and build the alternative dispute resolution program and then joined the faculty full time in 2011, continuing to use her law degree to teach dispute resolution courses while developing and teaching public administration courses in UNT's Coursera B.A.A.S. program. 

Named the UNT Foundation Outstanding Lecturer for 2021-22, she was known for meeting students where they were to help them succeed and excelled in advising graduating students on their next steps. 

A memorial service is scheduled at 10 a.m. May 10 at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Chapel, 2525 Central Expressway North, Allen.