Fred Emil Lukermann Jr.

Lukermann, Fred Emil, Jr. 87, of Falcon Heights, MN, passed away peacefully at home September 1, 2009. Preceded in death by wife Barbara and son Bruno; survived by daughters Carla Lukermann and Kathryn (Warren) Plaisance, grandsons William and Eric Plaisance and sister Lois Berquist. A Minneapolis native, born December 9, 1921, Fred graduated from Roosevelt High School in 1940 and entered the U of M the following fall. After U.S. Army service, he returned to the University earning his bachelor's, master's and Ph.D. degrees in geography. Fred joined the U of M's geography faculty in the early 1950s and assumed several leadership and administrative roles during his tenure: chair of the Department of Geography; associate dean for social sciences in the College of Liberal Arts (CLA); assistant vice president for academic affairs; and dean of CLA. Fred worked to establish the Departments of African American & African Studies, American Indian Studies, Chicano Studies, the Urban Studies Program, the School of Public Affairs and the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs. A memorial event is being planned for a later date. At the family's request, memorial gifts, in lieu of flowers, should go to the Fred and Barbara Lukermann Geography Fellowship # 6737 at the U of M Foundation, McNamara Alumni Center 200 Oak Street, Suite 500, Mpls, MN 55455-2010.