E-mail to Members of iNEER Network

Sent: Tuesday, September 13, 2005 2:25 PM

Subject: Professor Janos Barsony, 1940-2005

http://www.ineer.org/ISCMeet/2004-07-02-0393.jpg

Dear Colleague:

It is with great sadness that I report the passing of Prof. Janos Barsony.  After a long illness, he died on September 9, 2005 at 10:10 AM.  Funeral services will be held in Pecs on September 19. A photo I took of him last year appears on the above link. He is survived by his wife, Dr. Judith Lehoczky, and two sons.

Janos was born in Tamasi, Hungary on December 1, 1940. He attended the Faculty of Civil Engineering at the Technical University of Budapest, from which he received the Diploma of Engineering and then the Ph.D. degree.  In 1963, he served at the Concrete and Reinforced Concrete Works, Pecs. In 1969 he became Managing Designer in the Planning Office of Baranya County, and in 1972 he was appointed to the part-time position of Deputy Director, Institute of Quality Control in Building, Pecs. In 1973 he joined the Pollack Mihaly Polytechnic as Deputy Principal and Head of the Civil Engineering Institute. In 1995 he assumed the position of Deputy Principal and Head of Civil Engineering, Pollack Mihaly Faculty of Engineering at Janus Pannonius University. In 1997 he became Vice Rector for Investment and Development while continuing as Head of the Civil Engineering Insittute. In 2000, he was appointed as Vice Rector for Investment and Development and Head of Civil Engineering Institute, and a member of the University Senate at the University of Pecs. In 2002 he became Dean of the Pollack Mihaly Faculty of Engineering and Head of the Civil Engineering Institute at the University of Pecs. Earlier this year, he retired from this position and became Dean Emeritus. He was a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and was Vice President of Hungarian Chamber of Engineers. 

A strong believer in the value of international cooperation, he regularly attended and spoke at iNEER events. His topics often dealt with quality engineering education and the global engineer. He was a member of the International Steering Committee of iNEER, and received the iNEER Award during ICEE-2005 in Glwice, Poland. At this conference held in July 2005, his friends from 42 countries gave him a rousing welcome at the plenary opening ceremony, and later celebrated his 65th birthday by staging the Janos Barsony Workshop at the conference. A recent article of his was entitled: "Towards the Entrepreneurial University," and it may be found at:

http://www.ineer.org/iNEERInfo/2003-01-01_Barsony-Paper.pdf

Among those of us outside of Pecs, few knew that he had been gravely ill for some time. Despite this, he came to Gliwice, Poland to attend ICEE-2005 in order to see his friends. 

I am grateful that he decided to come to Gliwice, for I knew that for some time he had been unable to plan his life more than one week at a time. It was indeed fortunate that those of us who were his friends had the good fortune to organize the Janos Barsony Workshop at ICEE-2005 in honor of his upcoming 65th birthday (which was not to be), despite his protest.   

I am grateful for his many contributions in engineering education, and for the professional legacy he left behind not only in Pecs, but in many places around the world where engineering is taught. 

Most of all, I am grateful for his friendship, quick wit, and keen sense of humor.

I join his family and friends to bid him "FAREWELL".  We will all miss him.

Win Aung

iNEER Secretary-General