J. MATTHEW SIMON

SIMON
J. MATTHEW
Age 73, former president of Point Park University, passed away from complications related to multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer, on Wednesday, May 20, 2015. A first generation college student, Simon was one of the youngest college presidents in the United States when he took office at the age of 44 in 1986. He was born in 1941 to Joseph Simon and Mildred White Simon in Reading, Pennsylvania. During summers he worked alongside his father at a metal machine shop to help fund his tuition at Albright College where he studied chemistry. During this time he also played saxophone with his jazz band, the Crescendos, becoming a member of the musicians union, and playing at clubs throughout eastern Pennsylvania to help fund his education while developing a lifelong love of jazz. In 1963, he began doctoral work in the chemistry department at the University of Pittsburgh where he studied analytical chemistry with his dissertation adviser, Johannes Coetzee. In 1969, he received his Ph.D. in chemistry for his dissertation Polarography and Medium Effects in Sulfolane. During this time, he met his eventual wife, Janet DiPasquale, (who would herself be the Executive Director of the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children). He was also involved with the progressive politics of the era, volunteering his time to both the anti-war and civil rights movements. In 1969, he became an assistant professor of chemistry at what was then Point Park College, teaching his first class the afternoon of the day he defended his dissertation. Before becoming president of that institution, he served as both the director of Point Park's international campus in Lugano, Switzerland as well as the Chair of the Department of Natural Science and Engineering Technology, taking on this role at the age of 32 making him the youngest chair in the college's history. In this role, he mentored many students who went on to receive their own graduate degrees in the sciences. During his tenure as president from 1986-1995, he oversaw the development of several new programs, an increase in the endowment, and the construction of a state-of-the-art library in Downtown Pittsburgh. At the time Simon became the fourth president of the college, Point Park was experiencing severe financial trouble, which he was able to reverse ensuring the school's continued existence. Central to his vision of administration was that education should be available to all communities, and that even as Point Park became increasingly prestigious at the national scale that it also needed to reflect the diverse needs of a diverse city. Upon retirement from the presidency, Simon returned to the classroom, teaching undergraduate science at Point Park as well as in the graduate program in the School of Education at the University of Pittsburgh. Both during and after his presidency, he served on several local boards, continuing his role as an educator. These included serving on the Board of Trustees of Albright College, the Community College of Allegheny County, the Negro Education Emergency Drive, and Beginning with Books among others. A passionate advocate for his adopted hometown of Pittsburgh, Simon was the longest serving member of the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority board, which has provided financial oversight to local government. Central to his life's work as an educator and scientist was an abiding belief in both the ability of education to transform the lives of people, but also the basic importance of knowledge for knowledge's sake. Though a distinguished educator, he always viewed himself as a student and a teacher, and had a passion for the classroom. This manifested itself in a variety of ways, from presenting about ecology at area elementary schools in an earthworm costume on Earth Day to acting as a DJ at WPPJ Point Park with his "President Presents Jazz" radio show. The recipient of several awards and an honorary degree, he was most pleased by the Distinguished Alumni Award from the chemistry department of the University of Pittsburgh, always first and foremost seeing himself as a scientist. Friends and family remember him as a man of intelligence, kindness, and humor who did the right thing without question and without expectation of reward. He is survived by his wife, Janet, of 47 years who acted as caregiver and constant companion during four years of illness; and two sons, Jacob Matthew, who is a lawyer in Pittsburgh and Edward Nathan, a doctoral candidate in English who lives in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Friends will be received at JOHN A. FREYVOGEL SONS, INC. (freyvogelfuneralhome.com) on Tuesday, May 26, 2015, from 2-4 and 6-8 p.m. Funeral Services are private. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to Point Park University, 201 Wood St., Pittsburgh, PA 15222 or the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children, 201 North Bellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213.
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