A woman who died Friday, March 22 at the Western Washington University Wade King Student Recreation Center has been identified as retired WWU biology department chair Joann Otto.
University police and paramedics were called to the recreational center’s pool after Otto, 74, began experiencing distress at the side of the pool and was pulled out. Otto was unresponsive and lifeguards and staff administered CPR before paramedics arrived. Paramedics were unable to revive her.
Friends and former colleagues described Otto as a transformational leader when she took the reins as the Department of Biology chair in 2004 after a career at Purdue University in Indiana, according to a news release from Western on Wednesday, March 27.
At the time, the department was going through financial challenges and was attempting to update its teaching strategies, said Merrill Peterson, a biology professor.
“… we were a mess,” Peterson said in the release. “Her leadership transformed us into a model department on campus and lifted us to national prominence in college biology education.”
Otto also mentored new faculty and was deeply interested in inclusive teaching, Lynn Pillitteri, the Biology Department Chair, said. She and Otto became good friends after Otto retired in 2016.
“I’m happy that her love of science and student success will live on through the impact she has made from her consistent leadership in so many diverse organizations,” she said. “She was an inspiration and will be missed by many.”
Otto also served as a board of directors member for the San Juan Preservation Trust and was involved in the effort to raise funds for the preservation of Vendovi Island, according to the trust. She believed in the value of providing public access to lands to allow people to understand how ecosystems functioned and to enjoy outdoor activities.
Otto’s family has asked that donations in her memory be made to the Troutdale Historical Society, San Juan Preservation Trust, or Western’s Joann Otto Microscope Endowment.
Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.
