Garth, Russell Y.

GARTH, RUSSELL Y., 62, a lifelong educator, died Thursday, May 15, 2008, at his home in Arlington, VA from complications of ALS. Born and raised in Louisville, KY, he received a B.A. from Vanderbilt University, an M.A. in English from Indiana University and did doctoral work in higher education at Stanford University. His career in education was devoted to improvement and reform in postsecondary education. From 1987 through 2008 he was executive vice president of the Council of Independent Colleges. During his tenure, he developed the annual Presidents Institute into the largest gathering of college and university presidents in the nation. Prior to that, he was the deputy director of the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education within the U.S. Department of Education and served on the staff of the California Legislature Subcommittee on Postsecondary Education. He was also the coeditor of the book Learning in Groups, published in 1983. As the father of a son born with fragile X syndrome, he was a vigorous advocate on behalf of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. He recently received awards for this work from the Arc of Northern Virginia and from the Arlington County Department of Human Services. He is survived by Judi, his wife of 38 years; his daughter, Erin of Philadelphia, PA; his son, Ryan, of Arlington; and his brother, Dale Garth, of Dedham, MA. A memorial service is being planned for mid June. Donations may be made to The Arc of Northern Virginia, 98 N. Washington Street, Falls Church, VA, 22046 or The ALS Association, 7507 Standish Place, Rockville, MD, 20855.

Published in The Courier-Journal on 5/21/2008.