Office of the Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

Message Archive

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

 

This email is being sent to all members of the Baruch College faculty.

For an archive of announcements sent from the Associate Provost beginning June 2011, click here.

 

From: Professor David Jones, Chair, Department of Political Science

The Political Science Department is saddened to announce the passing of our friend and colleague Louis “Tracy” Bolce on November 24, 2017. Tracy, a native of Ohio, was educated at the University of Cincinnati (BA, MA, PhD). His scholarship concentrated on public opinion, political parties, and elections. 

Tracy’s early work focused on urban riots and the emerging African-American middle class. His American Political Science Review article with Abraham Miller and Mark Halligan, testing the applicability of James Davis’ relative deprivation thesis to the riots of the 1960s, generated a lively debate in that prestigious journal.

Tracy was a valued member of the Political Science Department at Baruch College since 1981. During his time at Baruch, he was involved in research projects addressing the determinants contributing to the defeat of the Equal Rights Amendment, African American voting behavior, and the Christian Fundamentalist factor in contemporary American politics. Like his earlier work, these too found outlets in well regarded journals. Their findings were widely disseminated by journalists in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, the Atlantic, and many others.

Tracy was a good colleague and friend, who took his departmental responsibilities very seriously. A dedicated teacher, he was known among his students for his patience and kindness. Around the Department, Tracy enjoyed stopping by colleagues’ offices to chat about academic issues, current politics, and life in general.  We will miss him.

We extend our condolences to Tracy’s wife, Natasha, and to his family in Ohio.

The Department will send out another announcement once plans for a memorial service have been finalized.

 

David Jones

Chair, Department of Political Science