Four Wright State professors request emeritus status

Four retired professors requested emeritus status at the last Board of Trustees meeting held on Friday, Oct. 5.

Emeritus is a title given to retired college professors; it is meant to symbolically commemorate their success as a professor. Emeritus status is automatically given to faculty who served ten years or more as full-time Wright State-affiliated members “upon retirement and upon written request,” according to a Board resolution.

Herbert Dregalla was hired as the Chair of the Department of Music at Wright State in 1998. As chair, he taught courses on conducting and graduate level music education, alongside a slew of administrative duties. He worked away as chair until the end of December in 2010 when he was asked to become the Director of Semester Conversion.

“People thought I was crazy,” Dregalla said. “Semester conversion touched every aspect of the university, and it was a very busy job, but I enjoyed it.” Dregalla jumped around other administrative offices until he retired in June 2018. He was asked to return as Interim Chair of the School of Music after the sudden death of then chair Randall Paul in August 2018.

James Larsen, a former professor in the Department of Finance and Financial Services, came to Wright State in 1987. He taught courses in Business Finance, Financial Analysis, Financial Management, and Real Estate, and wrote four books on Finance and Real Estate.

K.T. Arasu previously served as a professor of the College of Mathematics and Statistics. His career, which started in 1983, involved research in the field of Combinatorics and Discrete Mathematics. It is often cited and was considered groundbreaking in the field of signal processing. He was well known in the department for finding talented students and giving them research opportunities.

David Petreman was hired on as Assistant Professor of Spanish in 1986. He was given full professorship in 2002. His research centered around the Southern Cone of Latin America. “Dave was so energetic, said a former colleague of Petreman. “He could be seen carrying a cup of Starbucks everywhere he went. And, he was a great teacher. He loved teaching.” Petreman also writes poetry and fiction. He was awarded The Presidential ‘Leg of the Stool’ Award for Excellence in Teaching in 1993.

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