Smith, W.A.S. (Sam)
SMITH, Walter Alvah Samuel August 4, 1929 February 8, 2012 Dr. Walter Alvah Samuel (Sam) Smith passed away February 8, 2012. Sam was born August 4, 1929 in Thomas, Oklahoma to Walter Beecher and Lillian Rose Smith. Sam grew up in Redwood City, California where he first met his future wife, Carol Lee Smith (nee Blankenship) when he was 13 years old.
Sam received his baccalaureate degree from the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Redlands. He received his Master of Arts degree and his Doctorate from the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Pennsylvania. Sam's academic career took him far and wide. Sam taught at the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Nevada, Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of California Riverside, Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Redlands, and the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Alberta.
He was the President of the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Lethbridge and of Athabasca Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬. Sam was the Dean of Arts of Simon Fraser Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ and the Provost of Campus at the United States International Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ in Maui. He also held the post of Associate Vice-President at the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Calgary. After retiring from academia Sam joined Salasan Consulting. Excerpted from Victoria Times-Colonist on February 12, 2012
Service at U of L
He joined the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ July 1, 1967 as a 37-year-old psychologist who previously held academic and administrative positions at the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Alberta, and the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Redlands in California.
Smith completed a five-year term as U of L President on June 30, 1972 and was one of the many individuals whose work and enthusiasm shaped the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬â€™s early years – working through an often contentious site selection process, the creation of the west-side campus plan, the construction of Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ Hall and the move across the river from the Lethbridge College site -- and numerous other issues and successes. Read more about that process.
During the U of L’s 35th anniversary, Smith returned to campus to, as he put it, ‘check things out,’ visit with then-president Bill Cade, and see the new facilities.
He was interviewed for the campus newspaper The Legend. .
Smith was the U of L’s cheerleader-in-chief, and persistent in the goal to bring the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ to life in the community – even if it was initially set up in construction trailers on a windy parking lot.
His imprint on the campus and its community is indelible, even as the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ enters its 45th year; from the premise and structure of the Statement of Philosophy to the arrangement of faculties and administrative departments, Smith and his administrative and faculty team of the day set the stage for what the U of L has evolved to become today.
Scholarships
Donations in Sam's honour can be made to the Ãâ·Ñ¸£Àû×ÊÔ´ÔÚÏß¿´Æ¬ of Lethbridge Student Fund.