In memoriam: Frank Henderson Wood

Department of Educational Psychology Professor Emeritus Frank Henderson Wood recently passed away. He was 94 years old. Wood dedicated his career to improving outcomes for children with emotional and behavioral disabilities. His contributions to the field of special education are prolific; and yet, his career began humbly in the public school classroom. Wood was drawn to teaching students with special needs; however, he felt his effectiveness as an instructor was limited due to the number of students in the general education classroom. He left general education to become the first public school teacher for students classified as emotionally disturbed. When special education became a discipline, he joined the PhD program at the U and graduated in 1965. He was the first U of M PhD student to graduate with a specialization in emotional and behavioral disabilities. Following graduation, Professor Wood became a faculty member of the Department of Educational Psychology’s special education program, serving from 1965 to 1994. Read the full obituary.