Timothy Cook, internationally known political scientist and University professor, died Aug. 5 of cancer in his Baton Rouge home. He was 51 years old. Cook taught political science and mass communication courses. He was known among his colleagues for his thorough preparation and innovative methods. “Tim was a really creative thinker,” said Adrienne Moore, director of the Reilly Center in the Manship School. “He was interested in things that happened well beyond the classroom.” His teachings extended outside class. Professor Kirby Goidel described Cook as a tremendous mentor to students. “Tim was such an important force in the advancement of the Ph.D. program,” he said. Cook was also a prolific author. His writings include “Making Laws and Making News,” a textbook used for mass communication courses. He also authored “Governing with the News” and co-authored “Crosstalk,” which both won the prestigious Doris Graber Prize from the American Political Science Association. Emily Metzgar, a doctoral student at the Manship School, took a course taught by Cook that required students to read one of his books. “He promised that any royalties from the book would go toward some end-of-semester celebration,” she said. “True to his word, at the end of the semester he invited all of us to join him at The Chimes. I’m sure he spent much more on that end-of-semester fete than he earned on royalties from us.” Metzgar will teach a course Cook was slated to in the fall. Cook, a California native, received a degree of arts in government from Pomona College in 1976 and earned his doctorate in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1982. From 1981 to 2001, he taught political science at Williams College. During this time he also worked as congressional fellow and held a chair at Harvard University. In 2001, he was named the Kevin P. Reilly Senior Chair of Political Communication in the Manship School. A memorial service for Cook will be held at the Manship School on Saturday, Sept. 16 at 4 p.m.
—–Contact Daniel McBride at [email protected]