Robert A. Wilson, accomplished educator

Robert A. Wilson (“Bob”) died suddenly July 28, 2020, in Rehoboth Beach. Bob was born April 1, 1937, in Danville, Pa., to W. Reynold Wilson and Mildred I. Paul Wilson. He and his sister Louise grew up in Shamokin, Pa.  

Bob attended Franklin and Marshall College and received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. in sociology, and in 1969 his Ph.D. in sociology and demography from Temple University.  In 2000, Dr. Wilson received a master of science degree in epidemiology from Erasmus University in the Netherlands.

While pursuing his graduate degrees, Bob was appointed the first chief of research and statistics for what was then the Delaware State Welfare Department.  In 1965, he joined the Community Services Council of Delaware, focusing on planning and evaluation of neighborhood service centers. 

Bob began his career at the University of Delaware in 1968 at the inception of the Division of Urban Affairs, later known as the College of Urban Affairs and Public Policy, and finally today the Biden School of Public Policy & Administration. He also held a joint appointment with the Department of Sociology. Among many courses, Bob taught public management statistics, introducing a lab that helped students apply statistics to real data. He established and directed the Health Services Policy Research Group, which was the recipient of numerous federally funded grants pertaining to drug and alcohol abuse, gambling and social indicators. His research had an impact on state and federal policy, and was a training ground for many students pursuing research careers in government and social science consulting firms. 

He co-authored several books, including an urban sociology textbook and more popularly, “The Delawareans,” a profile of the social and economic characteristics of the people of Delaware.  He co-founded a startup providing software to improve the capture and processing of focus group data. He received a one-year appointment to the Center for Addiction Studies at the Harvard Medical School. Bob’s last assignment at the university was with the Center for Applied Demography and Survey Research.  On his retirement in 2009, Dr. Wilson was named professor emeritus. Bob loved his friends and colleagues at the university and so appreciated the continued contact afforded through the Biden School network. He was a loyal Blue Hens football fan for 50 years.

In his youth, Bob, aka Whip, organized several jazz and dixieland bands, and even received a drum scholarship to Valley Forge Military Academy.  He was a ham radio enthusiast from age 12 to his recent membership in the Lewes Amateur Radio Society.  

Most of Bob and Lynn’s married life was spent in Wilmington. They enjoyed a summer home in Rehoboth from the early ‘70s to which they retired, making a final move to a new home on Rehoboth Bay. Rehoboth was a great place to spend Bob’s last years, where he could keep close to old friends and make interesting new ones. He was in the process of writing his memoirs, recalling his love for his Shamokin childhood while recognizing the need to pursue new opportunities. 

Bob is survived by his wife of 55 years, Lynn (nee Dockety); his son Andrew and wife Dioumy; and granddaughters Aicha and Jenna of Columbia, Md. Andy brought such joy to Bob that he thought he was the luckiest father in the world. Thanks to Bob’s precious granddaughters, he came late, but happily, to girls’ soccer, ballet, the flute and musical theater.  An added pleasure contributed by Dioumy was his introduction to the rich culture of Senegal, West Africa. Bob’s life was further enlivened by his Dockety in-laws. He also leaves behind his sister Louise Wilson of Willow Valley, Lancaster, Pa. Louise, 13 years older than Bob, was a supportive big sister especially when their father died when Bob was 10 years old.

Contributions in Bob’s honor may be directed to the University of Delaware’s Biden School, Gift Processing, 83 East Main St., 3rd Floor, Newark, DE 19716.  Please make checks payable to “University of Delaware” and include on the memo line “Biden School-in memory of Dr. Robert A. Wilson.”

Arrangements were handled by Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium, Lewes.