J. Sutherland Frame

J. Sutherland Frame Lectures

James Sutherland Frame, Pi Mu Epsilon President 1957-1966 and Secretary 1951-1954 died on February 27, 1997. He was 89 years old. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Emily, a daughter, Barbara, three sons, Paul, Roger and Larry, and seven grandchildren.

In 1949 he was instrumental in founding the Pi Mu Epsilon Journal. He promoted the growth of Pi Mu Epsilon, personally installing more than fifty Chapters, and in creating and developing in 1952 the highly successful Pi Mu Epsilon Summer Student Paper Conferences in conjunction with the American Mathematical Society and the Mathematical Association of America. He was widely respected and known as "Dr. Pi Mu Epsilon." At the 1975 summer AMS/MAA meetings he presented the first J. Sutherland Frame Lecture, named in his honor. Professor Frame faithfully attended the student presentations, raising questions and making personal comments to most of the young members on how to improve their papers and on the future directions their research might follow. His primary interest had always been in his students, their professional growth and their eventual success.

"Sud" earned his Bachelor's (1929), Master's (1930), and Doctorate (1933) at Harvard; his main research interest was in the theory of representation of finite groups, a field where he published over forty of his more than one hundred papers. He taught at Harvard University, Brown University, Allegheny College, and Michigan State University and had appointments at the Institute for Advanced Study and as a Consultant for Graduate Mathematics Programs in Thailand. He has served at the local, regional, national, and international level holding positions on the Board of Governors of the MAA and as chair or member of many, many scholarly and civic organizations ranging from the Presidency of the Michigan Academy of Arts and Letters to membership of the East Lansing Board of Education and The National Council of the AAUP. Membership in Phi Beta Kappa, inclusion in Who's Who of America, and the Senior Research Award of Sigma Xi at Michigan State are among many honors.