Remembering Dr. Katz

I was saddened to hear about the death of Dr. Irving Katz on Jan. 24, 2008. Dr. Katz meant a lot to me. I had the pleasure of taking five of his history courses, including American Jewish History. He more than held my interest. Each of his lectures was more like story time rather than a college lecture. He was fun, funny and very intelligent. He made students pay attention not just by making the topic interesting but also by putting them on the spot at any time. He was famous for his patented pointing to his watch and following students to their seats if they would ever dare show up late to his class. And, even though we may not have realized it at the time, he was making us better history students, better writers and better people.\nHe truly cared about students. A lot of members of the faculty may say they care about their students, but Dr. Katz showed it in ways that few others do. Every Thursday he would come to Wright Quad and eat dinner with me. We would talk about politics, history, religion or other current events. He would stay as long as I still had things on my mind. He always listened, engaged me and make me think about things from a totally new perspective. He even made it a point to remember where each of his dining partners grew up. He would always say, “This is Jeremy Crouch from Dunkirk.” \nDr. Katz understood the real reason that we seek a higher education. When you’re 18 to 22, it’s all about finding a good job. As we get older, we begin to understand that the real purpose of attending the university is to better ourselves by extending our horizons and gaining as much knowledge as possible. Dr. Katz not only gave us this knowledge if we were willing to listen, he was committed to it. I, for one, along with many others I am sure, am a better person for all of his efforts. He will be truly missed. Thank you, Dr. Katz.