PROFESSOR SIDNEY H. CHANG

Professor Sidney H. Chang passed away in his Fresno, CA home of 42 years on Monday, October 3, 2016, after a brief illness. He was 82 years old. Sidney was a history professor at California State University, Fresno, for close to 50 years. He was hired by what was then known as Fresno State College in 1966, while completing his PhD at University of Wisconsin-Madison. He taught contemporary American history, and Modern Far East and East Asian Civilizations. Sidney's passion was Chinese politics and Sino-Soviet relations, and he was a specialist on Sun Yat-sen, who helped lead the Chinese Revolution of 1911. Sidney was the author of five books and one e-book. He visited more than 30 countries for academic meetings and conferences, including seven trips to the Soviet Union. After retiring in 2002, Sidney continued teaching part time until the end of 2014. In his retirement, he enjoyed a good meal and frequent walks in Woodward Park. Sidney Hsu-hsin Chang was born on January 1, 1934, in Wuchang, Hubei Province, China, and spent much of his childhood in Hunan Province. Sidney was the oldest of 14 children, including five who did not survive infancy. His mother, Huang Wen-cheng, was a kindergarten teacher, and his father, Chung-ning Chang, was an official in the Chinese Nationalist government. Sidney was attending boarding school at Yali Union Middle School, also known as Yale in China, in Changsha, Hunan, when the Chinese Communist revolution began to gain momentum and the Nationalist government started to fail. As a result, Sidney was separated from his family and fled alone to Hong Kong as a refugee in 1948. Sidney was eventually reunited with his family in Macau and helped lead six of his younger siblings to Taiwan, where the family settled in 1950. Sidney served in the Taiwan, Republic of China, military and graduated from National Taiwan University as a history major in 1956. Sidney later studied journalism at Cheng-chi University and worked as a news reporter for Central Daily News. He then moved to America in August of 1957, via a cargo ship that docked in Portland, OR. He received a Master's degree in journalism from University of Missouri in Columbia in 1959. In 1961, he earned a Master's degree in library science from Florida State University in Tallahassee, FL, where he met his future wife of 52 years, Elaine Grace Pardue, whom he married in 1962. Sidney obtained a PhD in East Asian History in 1967, from University of Wisconsin-Madison and conducted post-doctoral research at Harvard University in 1969 and 1970, under the prominent historian John K. Fairbank. In 1975 and 1976, Sidney was a visiting professor at Cheng-chi University in Taiwan. Sidney represented the Taiwan government as a cultural liaison in West Germany in 1984, and in Russia from 1999 to 2000, while on sabbatical from teaching. In his final email to his grandchildren, Sidney wrote "Good education has been our family tradition. Good education is the foundation of your future success." Sidney was preceded in death by his wife, Elaine Pardue Chang; brother, Hsu-zhong Chang; and sister, Beatrice Cheng. He is survived by his second wife, Professor Victoria Malko; sons, Jerry and Greg; daughters-in-law, Santina Mongold, and Saidah Said; grandchildren, Raqeeb, Grace, Ghouran, Eleanor and Hannan; sisters, Margaret Plucinsky, Louise Liu, and Mei-yu Chang; and brothers, Hsu-kwang Chang, Hsu-ming Chang, and Hsu-cheng Chang. The family would like to thank Barbara Medina for her care and companionship. Visitation will be held at Stephens & Bean Chapel, 202 N. Teilman, Fresno, CA, on Saturday, October 15, 2016, from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., followed by a Memorial from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. A Graveside Service will be held at Fresno Memorial Gardens, 175 S. Cornelia Ave., Fresno, CA, on Sunday, October 16, 2016, at 10:00 a.m. Remembrances may be made to Fresno State Foundation and sent to California State University, Fresno, Joyal Administration Building, 5150 N. Maple Avenue, M/S/ JA67, Fresno, CA 93740, Attn: David Hembree, with a note that the donation is for scholarships.