Retired Journalism Chair Robert Mercer Remembered
Cypress College is remembering Robert Mercer, a long-time Journalism Department Chair who died on Tuesday morning (January 21, 2020). Mr. Mercer retired from Cypress College in 2015, almost 20 years after being hired.
Mr. Mercer brought the Cypress College Journalism Program into the digital age. He was a pioneer in convergence journalism, presenting nationally on the topic in 2003. He received at least two Fullbright grants for educational programs in Ukraine and Pakistan, and was a participant in the college’s Study Abroad Program.
In a Facebook post, Mr. Mercer’s wife, Rose Mary Sloan Mercer, referred to her husband as “wonderful, crazy, curious, life-loving” and noted his 25-year battle with liver disease that included a 1998 transplant.
“Forty-six years seems like a long time to be married,” she wrote. “But I realized this week just how short it really is. He loved learning, always reading and watching documentaries and always encouraging others to learn.”
Mr. Mercer served as the advisor to the student newspaper, the Cypress Chronicle, and the online CyChron.com publication. In addition, he taught journalism courses and was an active member of the Academic Senate and the United Faculty. He earned tenure in 2000.
Services for Mr. Mercer will be held this Sunday Martinsburg, MO. Mrs. Mercer noted that contributions can be made in her husband’s memory to the Alpha1 Foundation, at https://www.alpha1.org/.
