Bruce E. Trumbo Memorial

Photo of Bruce E. Trumbo at Graduation Ceremony

BRUCE E. TRUMBO

PROFESSOR OF STATISTICS AND BIOSTATISTICS

Bruce E. Trumbo, longtime professor of Statistics and Biostatistics passed away in July 2022.  He was a beloved son, brother, and uncle; a dedicated teacher, administrator, researcher, and author; a respected colleague and mentor to faculty and students; a cherished friend.

Bruce was one of the earliest faculty hires in the Department.  He worked tirelessly to develop the curriculum and recruit an accomplished faculty body.  In doing so, he was well aware that the department was located between two educational giants—UC Berkeley and Stanford, both of which had free-standing Statistics programs.  Bruce developed long-lasting ties to faculty at these institutions through attending their joint seminars and hiring UCB’s PhD students to teach as Lecturers.

Rather than competing against these institutions, he understood that he had to find a different way for the Department to survive in a little-known field struggling to establish itself as separate from the field of mathematics.  He did this by recognizing these other institutions were focused on PhD students, while Hayward’s Master’s-level graduates would serve the needs of private industry while also being prepared to enter a PhD program if they chose to continue their education.  Although the Master’s program grew slowly in the early years, it grew steadily into a well-established and successful program, whose graduates were sought by employers.  Throughout his long career, Bruce taught himself to remain current as the field evolved, and he was a guiding force behind curriculum changes updating the B.S. and M.S. programs, keeping them relevant in an ever-changing world and ensuring the graduates were in demand.

Bruce loved to travel; early in his career, he spent his Sabbatical Leave in Germany.  As Department Chair, he brought faculty from England and Scotland to teach at Hayward.  He was an avid reader and a supporter of the San Francisco Symphony.  He spent many weekends browsing through San Francisco art galleries with friends and colleagues searching for new prints to add to his print collection.  He also enjoyed spending time with friends in many of San Francisco’s wonderful restaurants.