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David Wrench ’54

January 8, 2021, in Portland, of heart disease.

David wrote his thesis, “The Barron-Welsh Art Scale: Its Application to a Group,” with Prof. Leslie Squier [psychology 1953–88] advising. He earned a master’s degree from the University of Oregon and a PhD from the University of North Carolina. He was a professor emeritus at Portland State University, the author of a popular textbook, Psychology: A Social Approach; and an early member of the urban studies department at PSU. Using the nom de plume Charles Swithin, he wrote about his experiences at Reed in Memoirs of a Semi-distinguished Professor. The description on Amazon.com reads: “A book about living in extraordinary times. With Candide-like simplicity the author confronts a world in which his college is investigated by the Senate Internal Security Subcommittee, he is told that graduate teaching assistants are not allowed to give failing grades to star basketball players, one of his students wears a gas mask to class, and two others become engaged there. Includes an inside look at Eugene McCarthy’s successful Oregon primary, and vignettes of such people as Wayne Morse, Linus Pauling, and Robert Packwood.”

David is survived by his wife, Barbara (Chris) Christensen Wrench ’57, and two children.

Appeared in Reed magazine: September 2021

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