Jan O'Dowd - November 6, 2020

Colleagues,

It is with deep sadness that I inform you of the death of Jan O’Dowd, the wife of Oakland University President Emeritus Donald O’Dowd for 67 years. She passed away peacefully on Friday, November 6, in the company of her husband and her children.

Both Jan and Donald were psychology majors and Fulbright Scholarship recipients. They came to the university in 1960, when Donald began serving as a founding faculty member of the psychology department. He became president in 1970 and served in that capacity until 1979.

Many of Jan's fondest memories of experiences in higher education revolved around OU. She contributed greatly to the growth and development of Oakland by assisting in recruiting faculty and fostering a community including faculty and their families, staff and students.

She was also instrumental in establishing the Meadow Brook Theatre company, and her and Donald’s passion for the arts lead to the creation of the Jan and Don O’Dowd Performing Arts Scholarship Endowment. In 2015, Jan and Don were named Honorary Alumni Award winners.

Jan is survived by her husband; her 4 children, Dan, Diane, Jim and John; 5 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren. A celebration of life has not been planned at this time for Mrs. O'Dowd.

On behalf of the entire university community, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the O’Dowd family and friends during this very difficult time.

Sincerely,

Ora Hirsch Pescovitz, M.D.
President