Howard F. Didsbury

March 17, 2012

Kappa 1967 – 1968

Howard F. Didsbury Jr., Kappa Pledge Class, Advisor from 1967 – 1992

Kean University and the Brothers of Sigma Beta Tau mourn the loss of Dr. Howard F. Didsbury, Jr., professor emeritus of history at Kean, and a longtime resident of Washington, D.C., who died after a long illness on March 17, 2013.

After serving in the Navy during World War II, Howard received his B.A. from Yale in 1947, his M.A. from Harvard in 1951 and his Ph.D from The American University in 1959. While working on his doctoral degree, he served as the assistant educational officer and executive assistant to the Cultural Attach́e of Pakistan from 1953 to 1956.

In 1956, Howard joined the teaching staff at the Longfellow School for Boys in Bethesda, Md.  He became assistant headmaster at the Maret School in Washington, D.C. in 1960.  The following year, he arrived at Kean, where he became especially interested in the impact of scientific and technological innovations on society and culture.  He was founder and director of The Program for the Study of the Future.  Howard spoke nationally and internationally as a lecturer on the future.  A witty, engaging conversationalist and raconteur, he offered futurist courses and seminars for educators, members of the public and the private sector.

In 1967 Howard was asked to become the faculty Advisor to Sigma Beta Tau.  He would hold this position until his retirement in 1992.  In 1968, the brothers of Sigma Beta Tau deemed Howard to be worthy of being a Brother, and he received his pledge with the Kappa class, and promptly said, “Yes.” Anyone, who ever had Howard as a teacher sat enthralled throughout each and every class. Each day, one never knew just what dramatic entrance he would use to enter the classroom.  And one could always count on being “enlightened” by the most entertaining teacher/professor that they had ever had. Students from other disciplines would often stop by and sit in on Howard’s classes for the sheer joy of watching and listening to a “great teacher”. A hallmark of Howard’s effectiveness as a teacher was that, after two decades of retirement, he still remained in contact with countless former students.

In the early 1990’s, he wrote and produced 26 half hour programs entitled “Visions, Nightmares and Forecasts” for the Cable Television Network of New Jersey. The show dealt with humanity’s attempt to understand and influence the future from ancient times to the computer age.  For over a quarter of a century, Howard was a member of the World Future Society and served as its director of the Special Studies Division and general editor of 10 volumes for their annual conferences.  The last volume, titled “21st Century Opportunities and Challenges: Age of Destruction or Age of Transformation?”, was published in 2003.  Howard F. Didsbury Jr., retired with distinction in 1992.

Howard was predeceased by his partner of 50 years, James J. Crider, in 2001.

Obituary from the Washington Post.