Richard Wilde

Richard Wilde was born on Nov. 16, 1920 in Milwaukee, Wis. He attended Milwaukee State Teachers College in 1942 when, with World War II and the draft looming, he enlisted in the Signal Corps. He served with the Army Air Corps in the Pacific Theater until he was discharged in 1946. He then enrolled in a graduate program at the University of Wisconsin with the support of the GI Bill.

Dick was one of the first Fulbright Scholars which enabled him to do research in London. He received a PhD in History from the University of Wisconsin in 1951 and accepted a position at Cal State University, Long Beach. For the next 39 years he served the college as professor, department chair, and dean.

Dick was active in college politics, and had a significant effect on the university’s development. Among other things, he was instrumental in the establishment of the faculty senate, and as Dean of Letters and Science he introduced pass-fail courses, experimental courses, the Black Studies department, and other ethnic studies programs. More recently, after returning to teaching, he developed and taught in the World History program. He was also proud of his role in nurturing The History Teacher, now a thriving journal published by the History Department, and he devoted many, many hours to evaluating submissions and copy-editing articles.