Kollros, Jerry
Dates
- Existence: 1917-2007
Biography
Jerry John Kollros was born December 29, 1917, in Vienna, Austria, to Czechoslovakian parents. His father died during the 1919 influenza epidemic. The next year, Jerry and his mother immigrated to Dolton, Illinois. Kollros received his B. S. and Ph. D. degrees in zoology at the University of Chicago in 1938 and 1942. After graduation, he continued at the University of Chicago, serving concurrently as instructor in zoology and as research assistant in the Toxicity Laboratory. Dr. Kollros joined the faculty of the State University of Iowa Department of Zoology as assistant professor in September 1946. He was promoted to full professor in September 1950 and served as head of that department from February 1955 through August 1977. During his tenure, he served on numerous committees, including the 1963 Presidential Search Committee and several years on the Faculty Senate and Council. Kollros was among the faculty who pressed to establish a Faculty Senate and he served as the first chair. Kollros was expert in the knowledge of nerve cell death and conducted research in Neuroembryology, head injury, and the action of DDT on nerve cells. During his teaching career, Kollros served as adviser to 25 Ph.D. candidates, before retiring in June 1988. The auditorium in the Biology Building East was named for him in fall 2000. In 1944, Jerry Kollros married Catharine Z. Lutherman (1917-2004), who also received her Ph. D. in zoology at the University of Chicago in 1944. The couple had two sons, James and Peter. Jerry Kollros died on June 8, 2007.
Citation:
Author: Denise Anderson, August 2012Found in 1 Collection or Record:
Jerry Kollros Papers
The Jerry Kollros papers are primarily the work of the numerous committees on which he served. Also included are his research and course notes at the University of Chicago and the State University of Iowa. There are small correspondence, grants and departmental series.
Photographs in Boxes 7, 11.