As a Foundation Board member, I met Rich a couple of years ago at a study session he was heading. I was so impressed with what I learned and how it was presented. I had so many questions for Rich during and after the session. He answered everything eloquently from faculty salaries to how the Engineering College deals with patents from students and professors. I worked on other break out sessions with Rich after that and always enjoyed visiting. I was looking forward to spending more time with Rich and learning more, but that, sadly, will not be the case. To say the least, I was very impressed with the gentleman. My heartfelt sympathy goes out to his family.
- Al Johnson, Class of '62

I remember Rich as more than a great engineer. Rich was a great person, perhaps the most remarkable person that I have had the privilege to know. It was impossible to walk away from Rich without feeling better about yourself, better about the world and most likely with a simple solution to an issue once thought to be complicated or difficult. Rich cared deeply, shared deeply and loved deeply. Since his untimely death so many people have commented on how much he will be missed. He was important to everyone that knew him and everyone could easily consider him a special friend for that is how he made people feel.

Yes he was a person of incredible intellect, a visionary, a strong leader and a great engineer. He was also a loving and proud father, a loving husband and an exceptional friend. We all miss him terribly.
- Mel Slater, Friend

Stacks and stacks of transparencies.  Richard Newton would come to class with stacks of transparencies.  I often wondered if he randomly cut the stack and started teaching from there.  These transparencies represented just one stack of Richard’s ideas; his mind contained boundless stacks of ideas.   Like all lectures given throughout his career, he enthralled his audience; you felt like you had been taken through a whirlwind.  Richard  inspired you to pursue ideas.  And you did.    

Standing by our stations.  Richard understood that the best ideas were the ones that were shared broadly.  As we stood by our stations during the industrial liaison program (ILP) days, we learned to communicate our ideas to colleagues in industry.  Our role as Berkeley spokespeople became clear:  Berkeley grooms communicators and engineering leaders.  Richard embodied that engineering leadership and taught us this skill.

Micro blasts of impact.  So many times during my time at Cal and afterwards during my professional career, Richard spent a burst of time with me that made an impact:  A connection made with another student; tough feedback on a project’s direction; a well timed phone call to join a new startup; brief words of insight when passing one another at a conference.  These micro-blasts were incredible.  Richard could focus completely on you and in that instant give just the right smile, feedback, idea, and Impact!  This gift of Richard’s was showered on most people that he touched. 

Richard was proud of me.  I could feel it.  This helped propel me.  I feel proud of him and his legacy, and I am humbled and proud to have known him.
- Deirdre Hanford

I first got to know Richard on a mountaineering trip to the South Island of New Zealand in 1973. His sense of fun, companionship, and endless optimism were a great source of inspiration to me, and he has continued to inspire me for more than three decades. Richard has had a big impact on my life. He encouraged me to change jobs in the early 1980's (a change that transformed my career) and when ever I bumped into him over the years I came away with a boost in my levels of optimism about what I could achieve.

As a TA in the University of Melbourne in the early 1970's I taught undergraduate electronics to Richard. Recently I joked to him that I taught him everything he knows about electronics and integrated circuits. But of course, nothing could be further from the truth!

Farwell Richard. You've been a great friend.
- Rod Tucker

We all know of Newton's Laws, laws that explain the behavior of objects. In Rich Newton we had a force that exerted an extraordinary gravitational effect on people—profound, permanent, and incredibly positive. My own encounters with the "Newton Effect" came when I was running companies as an entrepreneur and investor. Rich was always there to provide ideas, energy, help and support. He got me excited about renewable energy, which led me to invest in a remarkable new technology for rural India and involve UC students and faculty. The life of a man like Rich will be measured through his effect on others— on what we do and will continue to do.
- Mihir Parikh, President & CEO, Aquest Systems

I first met Rich when I was working on my PhD for Don Pederson. Rich started his graduate work with Don a little after I finished my graduate work at Berkeley. I was one of the last of Don Pederson's PhD students to have my thesis typed, and I believe Rich was the first of Don's students to typeset his own thesis on the computer using unix and troff. I led the charge to attempt to recruit Rich to Bell Laboratories as his graduate studies approached a conclusion, but of course Berkeley was not about to let a resource like Rich slip through their hands, and I was fairly happy that I had been beaten out by my alma mater. I continued to interact with Rich as he progressed from assistant professor to associate professor, to industry titan, to full professor, to department chair, and to dean. Rich never ceased to amaze me.

I can best describe Rich by three qualities: his vision, his brilliance, and his energy. Rich had the vision to see what was happening and what was needed in the field of integrated circuit design long before any of his colleagues. He had the brilliance to figure out how to plan a course to make his visions turn into reality. And Rich had the energy to implement his plans. I've never met anyone who was so good at doing things that couldn't be done.

His untimely death leaves all of us shocked, saddened, and wondering what would have been had he lived on. We'll all miss you, Rich. Say hello to Don for us.
- Laurence W. Nagel, BSEE 1969, MSEE 1971, PhD 1975

I attended Richard's memorial and cried a lot. I don't cry over death. I cry over people who are the best among us as human beings.

Richard affected a lot of people in good ways, and his example lives. His gifts of being able to see through to solutions and to keep pursuing them diligently are representative of engineering. I would call Richard a true engineer in how he led his life and managed the department. He was a true source of inspiration and many of us will miss him for the rest of our own lives. I love my alma mater so much and realize what a treasure we had and how lucky we were to break with policy and hire this extremely bright man who was a Berkeley loyalist to the very end. May the Berkeley spirit live on.
Go Oski,
- Steve Wozniak, B.S. 1986, EECS

One afternoon in Spring 1985 Professor Angelakos and I were having lunch, chatting about my PhD thesis that was nearing completion. Professor Newton joined us and Professor Angelakos suggested that I take this opportunity to practice explaining to someone outside my research area what my PhD thesis was all about. I went ahead to say something along the lines "I have devised a numerical methodology for the modeling of the transient behavior of electromagnetic fields resulting from the interaction of an electromagnetic pulse impining on a complex topography. This methodology is particularly useful for computer modeling of broadband electromagnetic scattering and for predicting electromagnetic effects associated with digital signal transmission in integrated circuits."
Professor Newton then said:
"Are you using SPICE to do this?"
I was taken aback.
"SPICE?" I said, "I am solving Maxwell's equations, you know..."
To which he replied:
"I understand. But you said that your work is useful for simulating signal transmission in integrated circuits. If you really want it to be useful for this, you better find a way to make it work using SPICE."

On January 9, 2007, a week after Professor Newton's passing, I found myself giving an invited seminar at Intel Corporation on "Methodologies for SPICE-Compatible Modeling of Electromagnetic Effects in Packaged Electronic Systems."
- Andreas Cangellaris, Professor, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Dean Richard Newton's untimely death is a shock for everyone and a tremendous loss to the entire engineering community worldwide. I met Dean Newton first when I was organizing a visit of the Vice Chancellor BITS Pilani to Berkeley and I was truly impressed on meeting Rich, who apart from his charismatic personality was ever so very warm and friendly. One could not help but notice a picture on the wall in his room of more than 25 years back showing Rich with the villagers in Pilani, India where he had stayed then and of which he would talk with such brightness in his eyes. Later again, it was such a great pleasure to organize his talk to Alumni of BITS Pilani in the Silicon Valley and to listen to Richard speak was a great occasion, as he talked of so many research initiatives at Berkeley even as we could see his vision and enthusiasm to ever help the developing world.

Again, I had the opportunity to confer with him in September last and also give him good news on the wireless project that GloCol was working on collaboratively with UC Berkeley and he was so excited he actually called me back and gave me some of his own suggestions and considerations. I feel so proud and blessed, but little did I know that was the last I would speak with him. We will all miss him dearly. Our prayers and condolences go out to his family, his wife and daughters.
- Dr Harsh Verma, President, CEO and Founder, GloCol Inc

In 1975 I was teaching a class on device physics at UC Berkeley I got deeply impressed by a bright, open minded student. It was Richard Newton. This month I lost in him a friend for life as, ever since those days, Rich and I met on numerous occasions sharing our passion for what technology could mean for creating a better world. Rich was always 10 years ahead on that path to the future. His view on the role of engineering schools to cope with the huge challenges of the 21st century, culminating in the creation of CITRIS, represents a paradigm shift and is a shining example for the academic engineering world. His passion for conveying this message to the young was overwhelming. His passing away is a great loss but we cannot pay a greater tribute to the celebration of Richard's life than by mobilizing all our best talent to stimulate the young generation to choose for the engineering profession to become the architects of tomorrow's sustainable world. Thank you Rich for such a rich life!
- Hugo De Man, Prof. Em. K.U.Leuven, Senior Fellow IMEC, Belgium

It was 4:25 p.m., October 11th, 2006 at room 290 of Hearst Memorial Mining Building. Twenty delegates from ITRI, Taiwan's largest research organization, were approaching the final stage of their "Berkeley Day". They had an exciting meeting with CITRIS that morning, followed by another excellent one with Bioengineering. Now they were eagerly awaiting their host of the last session, dean of the best engineering college on the planet. At 4:27, three minutes ahead of schedule, a tall person appeared at the door. The whole group was immediately attracted by his warm smile and great enthusiasm. We enjoyed a very informative, enlightening, and encouraging gathering. As usual, we joyfully took a group picture with the Dean afterward, only didn't know that was really the last time we could have him!

In December 2003, ITRI (Industrial Technology Research Institute) launched the Elite Researchers program -- "Meet the Best Minds". Each year twenty researchers are selected and sent to the U.S. to meet world's leaders in science and technology first-hand. The purpose is to inspire creativity and expand the global outlook of outstanding ITRI personnel. Berkeley is one of our major stops, and Dean Newton has been on our "must meet" list since 2004. He always took time out of his hectic schedules and shared his superior vision and valuable experience with us.

I was one of those fortunate who had more opportunities to work with the Dean over the past years. It was through such interactions that I personally experienced his wisdom, sincerity, consideration, and humor. The annual ITRI "Meet the Best Minds" event was just one instance. We cherished all those memorable moments at Berkeley-ITRI Research Center Inauguration Ceremony, at Bioengineering Industry Day, or at Homecoming Day.

To us, he is just like a symbol of Berkeley. Those phone calls or emails directly from Rich were most thoughtful and personal; manifesting that he is a man with a big loving heart. During the winter break of January 2005 I accompanied a major Taiwanese TV program team to interview the Dean. I still remember how kindly and patiently he worked with the reporters, while making an impressive presentation of the Berkeley Engineering and the University. Being a parent of a Berkeley Engineering student, I also periodically received letters from the Dean keeping us informed of how the school was doing, its major progress, and his vision. I was always very touched at those exciting and warm messages.

We at ITRI International can still hardly believe, and don't want to believe, that you already left us. We will miss you very much when we visit Berkeley in the future. Your genuine enthusiasm, your inspiring words, your amicable smile, and the great Berkeley spirit you represented, will be deep in our heart, forever!
- Yu-Ping Chen, Director, ITRI International

I first met Richard at the Design Automation conference in 1979 in San Diego, where he presented a paper. I don't remember the topic of the paper, but I do remember how impressed I was with him, his style and knowledge of DA. A few years later I was fortunate to be able to work closely with Richard on some emerging Electronic Design Automation standards, most notably the Electronic Design Interchange Format (EDIF), one of the very first EDA standardization efforts and successes. Richard was the pillar around which the rest of us, all from different parts of the industry, came together. I believe that if it hadn't been for Richard driving the EDA industry toward a common goal, none of these standards would have become a reality.

I can think of no other person that has influenced the growth and direction of the EDA industry as Richard has. I've been very fortunate to have known and worked with him, and now I feel a tremendous loss.
- John Eurich

I've never forgotten a particular injection of levity that Prof. Newton made during CS150 lecture in the Spring of 1990, though I have no recollection of the prelude.

I caught him saying, "... my great, great, great, great, great uncle ... Issac.", which he followed with a quiet, cherubish smile. For me, the connection was swift and awesome.

For all that he did and all that he was, we the world and indeed all who follow, will forever have another pair of shoulders from which to see further, than we would have otherwise.

Rest in peace Richard, and thank you.
- Scott Gever, SETI Institute and Foothill College

I was lucky enough that during my 1997-2001 years at Berkeley, I had the chance to talk candidly about the department and student affairs with Dr. Newton several times. My first, second, and third impressions of him was that he really did love UC Berkeley and the passion the students had/still have.

In particular, I distinctly remember one invited talk he gave. It was a talk for our HKN Mu chapter during our semi-annual banquet dinner. He spoke from the heart about how much he loved the school and how unique Berkeley is. During that talk, he wasn't trying to sell us anything, there was no politics involved as is so often the case during keynote talks. It was simply a free talk. Talk about anything you'd like, I said. The feeling I came away with was that he was telling us honestly about his love for the campus, its students, and the Berkeley culture. Although each time I talked with Richard was memorable, after that particular talk I came away very proud to be an EECS student. I will truly miss someone who I feel *really* understood the students' perspective.
- Nick Zamora, EECS Alumni

I had the good fortune to work directly for Rich during 2004, as his acting assistant dean for facilities. This was a particularly challenging assignment for me, because the opportunity arose on a moment's notice, with his regular assistant dean, Scott Shackleton, being called to military service in the middle east.

This also happened to be a very challenging time for facilities at the College. During that year, one major building(Davis Hall)was undergoing a seismic retrofit, the older portion of Davis Hall was being prepared for demolition, and we were finishing the first set of plans for the construction of the new CITRIS headquarters on the site of Old Davis.

To say I had a steep learning curve to navigate doesn't get close to the reality. Rich recognized this, and was able to mentor and assist me in getting these tasks accomplished, while keeping his expectations high, and demanding the best possible effort from me.

I likened reporting to Rich to working for a visionary CEO of a major corporation. There was no way for me to keep up with him and his energy, so I did the best I could. Even in the midst of this, Rich took the time to help me along not only so I could improve, but also so we could improve facilities services at the College.

I will miss Rich terribly. In my two decades of work here at Cal, the things I learned from him are among the most valuable lessons I've taken to heart, and I will never forget them.
- Eric Ellisen, Engineer, Capital Projects, Cal

My son, expressed an interest in Engineering and CAL has always been a goal we aspire too. At a fund raising event (for an educational foundation) and after an enjoyable conversation concerning current events, I asked Richard if he would make time to see my 14 year old son. (Which of course he did)

I was thinking Richard would answer my son's questions about UC --My son left the meeting asking how his life could make a difference.

I got a little more out of that meeting than I was planning. Thanks Rich...
- Matt Christensen, father of a student

Rich became a close friend through years of work together on the technical advisory board for Microsoft Research. Rich was larger than life, but at the same time an extraordinarily warm and generous human being.

Rich and my wife became US citizens in the same month back in 2003. Shortly after, Rich was headed to Seattle for a meeting of the MSR TAB, and we hatched a plan that he would bring along a few bottles of celebratory champagne and come over to dinner along with Andy van Dam and Raj Reddy, the other members of the TAB. We signed up Andy and Raj, and I sent email to my wife. She responded "Does the date June 24 1978 ring a bell?" Ooops. But we had the best imaginable 25th anniversary dinner with Rich, Andy, Raj, and Rich's champagne.

It's difficult to imagine a world without Rich.
- Ed Lazowska, University of Washington

It was simply an honor to have known Prof. Newton, learned from him, and to be inspired by him. It is very rare that humans of Dean Newton's intellect and moral vastitude walk amongst us, less so for us to know them personally.

At such moments when words fail, I would like to recite an old Sanskrit prayer of strength:

"asatO mA saDgamayA
tamasO mA jyotiRgamayA
mRutyoR mA amRutaM gamaya
Aum ShantiH ShantiH ShantiH"

"From Unreal lead us to Reality,
From Darkness lead us to Light,
From Death lead us to Immortality,
Peace Peace Peace."
- Yashesh Shroff, Ph.D., UC Berkeley EECS '03

I first met Rich back in 1975 or was it 1976? I was still an undergrad at the time and he had just finished his prelim exams. He was so funny. I eventually shared an office with him on the third floor of Cory Hall when I became a grad student. I remember him as always being very helpful and very humorous.

I always admired Richard for his vision for the EECS Department. While other universities were teaming up with industry to obtain more funding, Richard did not see it as just money for the university. When I talked with him a couple of years ago, he convinced me that the purpose of the University was not just to support industry, but to support society as a whole. He convinced me that UC Berkeley was in a position to make great contributions in society by using our engineering knowledge to benefit third world countries. Clearly that was one of his personal missions which I admired greatly. While most of us are worried about where out next dollar is coming from, Richard was concerned about the people he could help in world with his knowledge.

I will miss his energy and passion for helping people. I know his legacy will last forever.
- Edison Fong, UC Berkeley EECS Ext.

I can't even remember when I first met Rich. For decades I vaguely knew him as one of the legendary famous folks in EECS at Berkeley. Then sometime around 2001 Anita Borg started talking with Rich about the possibility of Berkeley hosting the Institute for Women and Technology (IWT). IWT was struggling financially and its future was uncertain given the onset of Anita's brain cancer in 2000. Anita was one of my closest friends, I had been a trustee of IWT since its inception and like most of Anita's friends I was devastated by her illness and feeling paralyzed about what should happen with IWT. Rich entered the scene like a knight in shining armor. He was so optimistic, energetic and pragmatic about what needed to be done. Although IWT ended up moving to HP Labs rather than Berkeley (largely because Anita and all the staff lived close to Palo Alto), Rich joined the board of trustees and had a huge impact. More the half of the current board members were either recruited by Rich personally or by one of his recruitees. Together with Telle Whitney, who took over as President and CEO of IWT about a year before Anita's death, Rich deserves much of the credit for putting IWT, now named the Anita Borg Institue for Women and Technology (with ABI as its new acronym), on a stable financial footing and for its great success over the last two years.

Having gotten to know how wonderful Rich was through the IWT board, when I moved to Princeton as Dean of Engineering in January 2003, I found it natural to look to him as a mentor. Rich suggested that it would help to have him and some other deans of top engineering schools join my Leadership Council, and helped me recruit Richard Murray from CalTech and Jim Plummer from Stanford. Even though Rich never actually made it in person to a Leadership Council meeting (for some reason we managed to conflict with Berkeley's analogous meeting for three years in a row), his presence on the council was a huge help to me. So let me close by saying thank you to someone who has had a transformational impact on so many people and organizations.

Rich, you have been an incredible role model to me. So human and so real, so visionary and courageous, so hardworking and so much fun. Your way of living life and your many ideas that have become reality will not be lost.
- Maria Klawe, President, Harvey Mudd College

My interactions with Rich Newton were perfunctory, as might be expected for the executive assistant to an associate dean and an assistant dean who met with him frequently on the reorganization of ERL into ERSO. I interacted with his own executive assistant, Bill Oman, more extensively. Frequent discussions with Bill on possible meeting times made clear that he was an amazingly active person.

My strongest direct impressions of Newton came from his State of the College speeches he gave each year. What particularly impressed me in his last one was his explanation of one of what he called his "branding strategy" in marketing the UCB engineering graduate. He noted that UCB and UCLA have the highest proportion of Pell Grant recipients in their student bodies. He thought it a strong point to make to potential employers: our graduates are hungry. His argument implies two aspects of his beliefs: a. that talent occurs in all levels of society and b. that the motivation to apply those talents is more likely to be found and, when found, to be more intense among the talented born into the bottom of society than among the talented born into the top of society. This is an important idea in a time when our nation is plagued with "legacy leadership" in government and business.

Even before I met Newton, I was forming the impression that bioengineering would become a revolutionary technology for the next two generations as microelectronic engineering has been for the last two generations. When I learned that we shared this vision (and he doubtless had it earlier and in more detail than I), I immediately had a deep confidence in his leadership. With his death we have all suffered a loss of his energy and vision. One consolation we have is that he assembled a talented team that can pursue the vision. Like Moses, he did not live to see the Promised Land but he showed us the way.
- Leon Tsao, ERSO

In my first meeting with Richard, he suggested the research project topic of using MEMS sensors from BSAC for virtual reality. He felt new user-interface paradigms, like virtual reality, were critical to making computers more useful. Twelve years later, Crossbow Technology, a company which Richard and I co-founded is the leading supplier of commercial MEMS-based inertial measurement systems, as well as a developer of wireless sensors, aka, the Berkeley Motes.

Richard was my adviser as an undergraduate student, graduate student, businessman, and friend. He guided me thru a myriad of struggles from when I could not solve a problem in CS150 to when Crossbow struggled to make payroll in its early days.

Richard's values were extremely strong. I grew up in Texas - in a different and more conservative world, than Berkeley. My love for Berkeley is in large part due to the mind opening experience of working with Richard and understanding that success can be achieved many different ways and working with people of all different cultures and philosophies.

Indeed, Richard's biggest gift to me is the strengthening of my inner person and the opening of my mind to a world which is much bigger and brighter than I had realized on my own.

I look forward to seeing him again and will work tirelessly to continue his vision.
- Mike Horton, President/CEO Crossbow Technology

He had presence. You could feel it. I certainly could on my first day of grad school in EECS. And this was before I heard all of the things that he had accomplished. What a hero! And to think, he walked right here as a Ph.D. student himself around the time I was born. What a privilege to have felt his spirit.
- Anoop Sinha, Ph.D. EECS '03

As Rich's Executive Assistant who had the privilege to work closely with him daily over the years, I considered Rich a friend, a visionary, a beacon of optimism, and a leadership giant.  At our first meeting, I asked him where he saw himself in five years. I was hooked from the moment Rich fired back…"I'm a Cal lifer".  I'm going no where else. I love being Dean and this is IT for me."

Like Rembrandt, Rich perceived elements about the world others of us could not.  This quality, combined with his listening skills and lightening fast reasoning enabled him to formulate solutions to complex issues. His solutions were seldom limited to just one option either.  Rich could present an array of strategies and would often rank order them as he spoke. His recall of the finest detailed statistic was unmatched. And I never knew anyone who could formulate his thoughts into final form as he typed as well as Richard Newton.

Rich never took any moment he had for granted, he utilized every second to the fullest as if aware he was working under a deadline that would take him from us all seemingly far to soon. I marveled at the intensity and speed with which Rich applied to everything he did. For anyone unfamiliar with Rich's schedule, following an eighteen hour flight, Rich could step off the plane, and think nothing of conducting a teleconference call on his way to deliver a key note address at a conference! Scheduling him was a 24/7 undertaking.

At the office, Rich shyed away from sentimentality and extended goodbyes, preferring to move on to tackle the next big thing. His sudden death was in keeping with his character.

In addition to his wife, Petra, their children, Amrita and Neris, and his surviving family, part of Rich's rich legacy is the depth and breadth of talented people Rich retained or brought to the College of Engineering. Like the Wizard in the Wizard of Oz, Rich helped us realize our individual hidden talents we never saw before and through his leadership motivated us into action. Borrowing from the lyrics in the musical, "Wicked", "Because I knew you, we've been changed for good".

Now, it is up to us to complete the painting Rich started.
- William Oman, Executive Assistant to the Dean, College of Engineering

It was truly my privilege to work with Rich Newton for two years here at Berkeley Engineering. I never had an encounter with Rich where I didn't learn something from him--about running an organization or building solid relationships, about being a strong leader or being part of a team, about being fully engaged with life. He was a genuine renaissance man.

Richard was the kind of leader who inspired loyalty, and infused his team with the conviction that our work is critical and noble. He saw ways past the obstacles and challenges, and he helped us to see past them as well. I think I'll draw on those experiences always.
- Dee Dee Mendoza, Berkeley Engineering

We are deeply sorry that Dean Newton passed away. Please convey our sympathies to all his family as well as all UCB faculty. From this part of the world we will pray for the eternal rest of his soul.
- Carlos E. Leon-Sucre. MSE '73

All of us at Crossbow Japan are very sorry to hear of the recent passing of Dean Richard Newton. Although I have personally never had the chance of meeting him, his leadership to Crossbow Technology and many achievements made me refer to him as a person of interdisciplinary perspective with estimable personality. Know that his family is in our thoughts during this difficult time.
- Rinzo Tokue, President - Crossbow Japan, Ltd.
Senior Executive Director - Sumitomo Precision Products, Co. Ltd. Amagasaki, Japan

Those of us who were somehow touched by Dean Newton's life feel a deep loss. Our hearts are with his family, his wife, and two daughters whose loss in unimaginable. Our prayers and condolences go out to them.

Those of us who studied in Berkeley Engineering know what a special place it is, and understand how Dean Newton personified the very essence of Berkeley. He represented the epitome of the Berkeley ethos, sensibility, and vision. Through engineering and science, he had an equal if not more of an impact on the world as our greatest politicians, activists, businesspeople, sportsmen, and artists.

We have lost one of the greatest contributors to international society. Unfortunately, most of the world is unaware of Dean Newtons life, work, and contributions because of lack of awareness in the mainstream media.

But those of who were somehow touched by Dean Newton's life understand what he stood for technology for betterment of mankind. Like him, we should not only believe, but dare to prove that technology can solve the worlds greatest problems, bridge the digital divide, and provide opportunity for all. Belief in technology is a belief in the power of man to improve the quality of life. Dean Newton exemplified Mahatma Gandhis words about being The change we wish to see in the world. He was taken away from us and the world far to soon. The great tragedy is though he contributed so much to the world in 55 years, there is so much more he would surely have done had he lived a full life. It is our loss and the worlds.

We must carry the torch of his vision, acumen, and tenacity. If not us than who and if not now than when? People like Dean Newton are very rare in this world. Let us strive to emulate him in our own unique ways. It is our duty, indeed the least we can do to remember him.
- Kedar Shah, UC Berkeley, EECS '06

We were very sorry to learn the news about Dean Richard Newton. He was our daughter's advisor as she worked on her Master's Thesis. She has expressed the highest admiration for him, his goals, and his accomplishments. He showed a warm and friendly ongoing interest in his students as we visited with him at the Southern California Engineering/Parents dinners. It is very sad news; he will be greatly missed.
- Mike and Barbara Sentovich

Really tragic and immense loss to mankind. May his family and Cal Community gather the fortitude to bear the loss. It was stunningly inspiring to attend one of his keynote speeches recently where he expounded his vision about direction of microelectronics. True visionary is no more.
- Vijay

On behalf of the UCB Alumni of Malaysia, we are deeply saddened to know about our great loss of academic leader Dean Richard.
- Victor Kong

It was very sad to note that Dean. Newton is not with us anymore. His contributions to the EDA world are immense and generations to come will be referring to his work and contributions in one way or other. I was reminded of Dr. Aart DeGeus's speech during the Phil Kaufman award ceremony in 2003 to Prof. Newton - and the interview with his then 10-yr old daughter (quoted below). Please pass on our deep condolences to his family and we will pray for his soul to rest in peace.

How do you know is he good at teaching?

The response came right from her heart: "He taught me a lot!"
Neris, I am going to give a speech to your dad. Do you have a message for him?

"No, because I tell him that I love him every night!"

We are deeply saddened to hear this news. Dr. Newton had a great contribution to UC Berkeley. He will be greatly missed.

My son, Henry Hsue, chose to attend UC Berkeley last Spring before he graduated from La Canada Flintridge High over the other Ivy schools (Cornell and Princeton) and UCLA, since he knew that UC Berkeley was a great public school and strong in the engineering fields. We finally agreed and supported his decision after several family meetings.

He loved UC Berkeley dearly after only a semester and told us there was a lot of things to learn and many activities to participate out there. My wife, Judy and I were very happy and proud of him and appreciated dearly to all the faculty members and staff at UC Berkeley.
- Ellis Hsue, Laboratory Director

Many Stanford engineering faculty have deep roots back to Cal,
including me. We are all saddened by Dean Newton's untimely death. He had a very strong influence on our profession, as a person who was sought out regularly for advice about the future of universities and engineering. He will be remembered as an individual who was thoughtful and compassionate and lively, and most importantly a friend.
- Dick Luthy [Cal grad, BS 1967, MS 1974, PhD 1976]

Richard G. Luthy, Professor and Chair, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Stanford University

Oh My...
Yes, I met Dr Newton back in the early 1980s. He was on his way to greatness. We all have to die someday, but I think it too soon for Richard. Most of us would be lucky to have accomplished a fraction of what he has left us.

Thanks to his family and to his spirit,
- Joe Decuir

I am really saddened by this news.
- Thomas L. Friedman, The New York Times

I came to know Richard over the last 3 years as part of my involvement with the College of Engineering Center for Underrepresented Engineering Students (CUES). He was a passionate believer in providing engineering opportunities for all qualified students, and helping those students make a difference in the world.

He deeply valued personal relationships since he instinctively knew all great endeavors begin with people having a vision and working together to achieve it. I will deeply miss my interactions with with this very caring and creative individual.
- Luis Figueroa, Director, Advanced Systems/Boeing Integrated Defense Systems

Dean Richard Newton gave his mind, body, and soul for the noblest of endeavors. His affect on all of us is profound and I will never forget him. Richard was and is my paradigm of what a Leader should be.

The picture that stands out in my mind and exemplifies Richard was establish at an COE event where Richard Newton was speaking and attending to some Industry Leaders. I walked by with my 11 yr old son and he immediately stopped talking with these industry leaders. He bent down and shook my son's hand "thanking" my son for stopping by and helping out. I still see Richard bent over shaking his hand. Richard was always extending his hand for others. This gesture from Richard had two consequences. #1. My son is forever enamored with UC Engineering. #2. My loyalty and belief in Richard Newton the man was cemented with my heart.

Richard is not here now but he will be with me always.
- Marvin Motley, Manager, Administrative Computing Group, COE

I just remember meeting with Dean Newton last semester, just for half an hour with two of the engineering ASUC senators, Dwight Asuncion and Vince Law and when we had come out of McLaughlin Hall, feeling so inspired by Dean Newton's words, it was being shot with adrenaline- it made your heart beat faster to get out in the world and serve. He had so much advice to share with us young leaders, but he wasn't at all the image of an elderly wise man. Dynamic and passionate, he was this almost youthful fountain of ideas, and we just kind of sat there and drank it all in. I remember turning to Vince, who had scheduled the meeting, and saying, "That was such a great idea [to plan that meeting]! We should totally do it again ... after we figure out how to accomplish all that stuff he mentioned." In the midst of this tragedy, I'm even more thankful for that chance to just sit and listen to his words, tinged with gentle humor and wisdom.
- Michelle Yong, current EJC president

I'm always grateful for the fundamental atmosphere of goodwill at berkeley. The faculty set an example of curiosity, dedication, and integrity. They have incredibly fine minds and an astonishing lack of pretense. No one exemplified these qualities more than Rich.

He was so enthusiastic about berkeley. I actually looked forward to his reports on the college, to seeing what charts he would show, quantitative results on trends and areas that needed attention, presented in an original and encouraging way. His tone was never arrogant, it was of an earnest young man focused on the future, on what could be, and one came away inspired.

He was a superb engineer, combining personal warmth with an ability to immediately see to the core of complex ideas. I'll remember his deep interest in the world outside engineering, in art, history, and other cultures and viewpoints. I always admired his conscience about using technology to improve society and the world around us.

Rich spoke of training leaders, and he truly did, because he was a leader in every sense.
- Ken Goldberg, Professor, Mechanical Engineering

Richard Newton to me will always be remembered as a leader; decisive, bold and innovative. When he became Dean he quickly implemented his vision and dream for the College. Richard knew that changes took time so his master plan looked ahead over twenty years. His focus was always aimed at maintaining Berkeley as the premiere public Engineering College throughout the world. He knew that to maintain this world class reputation you must constantly change and improve your educational and research facilities. With this in mind Richard dedicated thousands of personal hours to fundraising and travel to promote this College that he loved so much. During his tenure Richard was the heart and soul of the College and his legacy will live on through our College Master plan and with the completion of the new CITRIS building. Richard was an incredible leader, a wonderful boss and a good friend; we will all miss him dearly.
- Scott Shackleton, Assistant Dean, College of Engineering

I first met Rich in 2003 when I joined Berkeley as a graduate student in computer science. During my years at Berkeley, Rich was more than just an advisor; he was also a great mentor and friend. He is one of the most unique people I have ever met and no amount of words will ever do him any justice or even begin describe what he meant to me personally, and to the community as a whole.

Rich dedicated his life to solving the problems of society. He was especially concerned about people who are less fortunate. His passion and enthusiasm inspired me to focus my research on applying technology for solving problems and improving the quality of life in poor countries. I will also never forget that despite having one of the most demanding jobs as dean of engineering, he always made students his priority. He would meet with his students more often than most advisors would, to the point that we were the envy of our fellow graduate students. Nothing gave him more pleasure than chatting with us and discussing new innovative ideas that will have great impact on the lives of others in future.

Very few people changed my life the way Rich did. He will be greatly missed, but his impact will continue to be felt for many generations to come.
—Omar Bakr, EECS Ph.D. student

Dean Newton had a longstanding commitment to excellence and inclusion for engineering scholars from all backgrounds. He was engaged and accessible: Making time to phone prospective freshmen and graduate students, eating dinner in the dormitories with incoming freshmen, and injecting his formidable energy wherever and whenever he could. A proud father, he frequently spoke about his daughters when advocating for increasing the representation of women in engineering.
—Michele de Coteau, Ph.D., assistant dean for special programs

Like for many people, Rich Newton was a personal inspiration for me in terms of vision and creativity. It is an honor for me to carry on his work in the CITRIS building and make it everything he wanted it to be.
—Paul Wright, ME professor and CITRIS chief scientist

Among my fondest recollections are visiting Richard in his office to chew over some idea at a deep intuitive level. We would start up right where we left off last time and move the ball further down the court. It was a special treat to be his teaching assistant at courses taught at Digital Equipment Corp. I would get to join him for some meals and evenings and not have to share him!

Thank you Richard, for teaching, entertaining, and inspiring.
- Jim Kleckner

Richard Newton defined what it meant to be a successful academic, entrepreneur and an administrator. In a brief period, he spanned all these roles with amazing success and grace. In the process, he contributed tremendously at each level and to all communities he came into contact with: from Berkeley to the Silicon valley to the entire EDA profession. And then he applied his tremendous talent and energies to benefit societies near and far.

Richard left a vibrant community, a vibrant profession and seeds for significant societal changes to come. We have lost a quintessential leader and a good human being.
- Rajesh Gupta

I want everyone to know that Rich was the best Dean I have
encountered in my 49 years on the faculty...I shall miss him terribly.
- George Leitmann

This is a huge loss as I have known him over 30 years and he is a terrific guy.
- Albert Yu

I met Rich during my doctoral studies at UC Berkeley in the early to mid seventies (1973-1976).  The fifth floor of Cory Hall was nonexistent then. It was a time of great scientific AND personal excitement for all graduate students.  However life is a cycle whereas for technology advancement the sky is the limit.  The spirit of Rich is not bound anymore and will live forever in our hearts.
- Paul Hagouel

As you may know, until the first part of December, Rich was chairing our panel developing entrepreneurial curriculum for the nation's institutions of higher education.  We here at Kauffman feel Rich's loss deeply but surely not as much as his extended family on the Berkeley campus.  What a terrible, devastating void his death opens.  In July, I was fortunate to be a guest at Rich's house for dinner.  His warmth and enthusiasm and the hospitality his family extended to me will never be forgotten. I am sorry that I have to be on my way to Europe on Saturday and will not be able to attend the memorial service.  Please extend the sympathy of the entire Kauffman Foundation to Petra and Rich's friends.
- Carl Schramm