COLLEGE ADMINISTRATOR KILLED; WELL-LIKED DEAN FATALLY INJURED IN CUBAN CAR CRASH.Byline: Lee Condon Daily News Staff Writer The dean of admissions and records at Glendale Community College Glendale Community College can refer to one of two colleges in the United States.
Gary W. Parker, 53, was credited with modernizing the school's enrollment and registration process, allowing students to register and schedule classes by phone rather than waiting in endless lines. ``Gary was very much an innovator in a field that's not known for being innovative,'' said Nancy Knight, vice president of college services and Parker's direct supervisor. ``He was part of the whole dream here at Glendale Community College and was one of the movers and shakers of that dream.'' The college was given few details about the crash, which happened three days before Parker died. Two other people in the car were killed, and another was seriously injured, Knight said. At the time of Parker's death, colleagues were trying to get him airlifted out of Cuba to a hospital at the University of Miami This article is about the university in Coral Gables, Florida. For the university in Oxford, Ohio, see Miami University. The University of Miami (also known as Miami of Florida,[2] UM,[3] or just The U . Parker had a doctorate in Spanish literature Spanish literature, the literature of Spain. Iberian Literature before Spanish Literature flourished on the Iberian Peninsula long before the evolution of the modern Spanish language. and traveled frequently to Latin America Latin America, the Spanish-speaking, Portuguese-speaking, and French-speaking countries (except Canada) of North America, South America, Central America, and the West Indies. . Before making his first trip to Cuba last week, he had vacationed in Costa Rica Costa Rica (kŏs`tə rē`kə), officially Republic of Costa Rica, republic (2005 est. pop. 4,016,000), 19,575 sq mi (50,700 sq km), Central America. . He joined the college in 1987. Among his other duties, Parker prepared the college's dean's list every semester. He oversaw a staff of about 25 people, who were devastated dev·as·tate tr.v. dev·as·tat·ed, dev·as·tat·ing, dev·as·tates 1. To lay waste; destroy. 2. To overwhelm; confound; stun: was devastated by the rude remark. by his sudden death, Knight said. ``There was a real sense of family among Gary's staff. In a real way the leader of that family has left us,'' Knight said. John Davitt, president of Glendale Community College, praised Parker for greatly simplifying the admissions and registration process at the school. ``Today, 95 percent of our students register by phone. Before, they were standing on very long lines to enroll and register for classes,'' Davitt said. ``Gary had a broad perspective. He wasn't just a paper pusher pusher Drug slang 1. A person who sells drugs, especially the 'heavies'–eg, heroin 2. A metal hanger or umbrella rod used to scrape residue in crack stems for admissions. He could see the whole picture.'' Parker, who lived in Claremont, is survived by his mother, two brothers, a sister and numerous nieces and nephews. |
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