It is with a heavy heart that we share the news that Dr. Shlomo Sawilowsky passed away on Monday, January 11, 2021. A faculty member in the Wayne State University College of Education since 1987, he was a Distinguished Faculty Fellow and Professor of Educational Evaluation and Research.

Sawilowsky earned a bachelor’s in religious studies with a major in Talmudical Studies and a minor in religious education from the Rabbinical College of America in Morristown, New Jersey. He pursued graduate studies at the University of South Florida, where he earned a master’s in guidance and counseling education and his Doctor of Philosophy in curriculum and instruction with specialization in educational statistics, measurement, research, and evaluation.

During Sawilowsky’s tenure, he provided outstanding leadership, scholarship and community service. He rose through the ranks as a faculty member and held positions as program coordinator for educational evaluation and research and assistant dean of the Division of Administrative and Organizational Studies. The author of numerous books, chapters, and journal articles, Sawilowsky was founding editor of two journals — the Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods and Yalkut Pirchei Shoshanim (formerly Pirchei Shoshanim Rabbinical Journal) — as well as a member of several editorial boards. He received many awards, including the WSU President’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, Career Development Award, Faculty Mentor Award, and Outstanding Graduate Mentor Award.

A positive force in the college and university, Sawilowsky provided outstanding guidance and support to students, colleagues, and the campus community. He was greatly appreciated and respected, and his passing is a great loss to the division, college, and university.

Sawilowsky’s funeral is tomorrow, Tuesday, January 12, 2021, at 10:50 a.m.