Faculty mourns scholar

IU history professor Bill Cohen worked at home Sunday, preparing a brand new lecture.\nHe always tried to keep his lectures up to date and didn't like to use old notes, said George Juergens, a retired American History professor and a friend of Cohen's. \nThe lecture he intended for his class Monday remains on his desk.\nCohen, the director of graduate studies in the department of history, died Monday morning after falling at his home around 4 p.m. Sunday. He was 61.\nJuergens said Cohen didn't teach for recognition, tenure or salary increases.\n"That's what he loved to do; he wanted to do it as well as he possibly could," Juergens said. "He just wanted to be up to date."\nCohen was a professor of history, specializing in French history. Previously, he had served as the chair of the history department.\n"The faculty and the dean of COAS are shocked," said John Bodnar, the chair of the department of history. "He was an active scholar and teacher."\nMichael Berkvam, a professor in the Department of French and Italian, went to the hospital Sunday night to be with his friend.\n"He was my best friend for 30 years," Berkvam said. "We had a very, very special friendship."\nBerkvam said Cohen gave very freely of his time, and didn't expect anything in return. He mentored many students and enjoyed teaching inductory courses and graduate courses. \n"He could teach courses on every level and inspire students," he said. \nJuergens said about five or six people regarded Cohen as their best friend.\n"He had a great capacity for reaching out to people and having very special relationships with them," Juergens said. \nPhyllis Martin, a professor of African and world history and a friend of Cohen's, recalled sharing coffee and having long conversations with Cohen about their area of graduate study -- French-speaking Africa. She first became friends with Cohen in 1967, with they were working in Paris. They met again in 1972, as faculty members at IU.\nMartin remembered Cohen's giving, sociable and humorous nature Monday after she learned of his death. "He was a wonderful, warm, funny individual," Martin said. "He had a lovely sense of humor."\nCohen lived with his wife and 10-year-old daughter in Bloomington. He also has two daughters from a previous marriage, Martin said. \nBerkvam said funeral plans were being made Monday night.\nCohen wrote books about French history, including "French Encounter with Africans," published in 1981 and "Urban Government and the Rise of the French City," published in 1998. He also co-authored a major textbook on Western Civilization, Bodnar said. \nAt the time of his death, he was working on a book entitled "The Algerian War and French Memory -- 1962-2002."\nCohen also received the Fulbright Award from the National Endowment of the Humanities. He received his Ph.D. from Stanford University in 1968.\nBodnar said the history department will talk about how to honor Cohen in some way.\n"We absolutely will do something (to honor him)," Bodnar said.\nGraduate student David Woken is an associate instructor for Cohen's H101 course this semester.\n"He was always around," Woken said. "He was great to work for; he was always very helpful."\nWoken said Cohen often hosted department events at his home and participated in extra curricular activities with history graduate students.\n"His loss hit all of the grad students really hard; everyone respected him and liked him as a person. No one could really get anything done today," Woken said.\n"He will truly will be missed"