Angelo Vincent Abbott

Gainesville, Florida - Dr. Angelo V. Abbott, 91, Florida, died peacefully on Saturday, March 9, at Haven Hospice in Gainesville, Florida. Dr. Abbott, a Navy veteran of the Korean War and lifelong educator, was born on June 20, 1932, in Streator, Illinois. He was the son of Joseph and Maria Abbott who preceded him in death, the youngest of their 11 children. Dr. Abbott attended St. Mary’s Grade School in Streator and graduated from Streator High School with the class of 1950. Although small in stature, he was a star athlete, lettering in football and basketball. After high school, he joined the U.S. Navy and served four years during the Korean War. He served on three ships during this time: the USS Vulcan AR-5, the USS Vulcan AGS-17, and the USS Caloosahatchee AO-98. Later, while serving aboard the USS Pursuit, he was one of four crew members involved in studying ocean depths and currents in the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean to provide safe passage for submarines and other wartime ships of the Navy. During his duty he visited numerous ports of call, including Naples, Italy; Palermo, Sicily; Portugal, Gibraltar, Greenland, Nova Scotia, Iceland, Cuba, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, San Salvador, and Bermuda. After he returned home from the war, he married Dolores J. Fenoglia of Toluca, Illinois. They were wed at St. Ann’s Church in Toluca on April 7, 1956, during a spring snowstorm and drove to Niagara Falls for their honeymoon. Dr. Abbott earned an Associate of Arts degree in Accounting at LaSalle-Peru-Oglesby Junior College in 1958, at that point the first member of his family to receive a college degree. Two years later, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Education at Illinois State University in Normal, Illinois. He also earned a Master of Science degree in Business Education at Illinois State in 1964. He later earned his Ph.D. degree at Nova University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in 1980. In addition, he attended several other institutions such as the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, Illinois; Bradley University at Peoria, Illinois; and the University of Minnesota at Rochester, Minnesota. He held a lifetime post-graduate teacher’s certificate at the junior college instructional level. Upon receiving his B.S. degree, he taught high school business courses at Clinton High School in Clinton, Illinois. He completed his M.S. degree during this time and then moved to Mt. Zion High School in Mt. Zion, Illinois, where he served as Director of Distributive Education and developed the first distributive education program in one of the smallest high schools in the state. Next, he moved to Wabash Valley College in Mt. Carmel, Illinois, where he served as Director of Mid-Management and developed the first mid-management program I the junior college system in Illinois. At the same time, he also developed the first baseball program the college and served as the coach. With his career flourishing, Dr. Abbott moved to Illinois Central College (ICC) in East Peoria, Illinois, where he was one of 13 charter faculty members to organize the college prior to admitting students in the fall of 1967. At ICC, he served as Director of the Marketing Program and developed the first marketing program of its kind in the state. He was the architect of the cooperative education “umbrella” concept that included on-the-job training accompanied by classroom education for students in all disciplines. During this time, he also served as Adjunct Faculty Advisor in the College of Education at Bradley University as supervisor of students receiving their Master’s degrees. Dr. Abbott and his family moved in 1970 to Minnesota where he became Assistant to the President at Hibbing Community College. He was responsible for vocational-technical education, adult and continuing education, community services, business, industry, and governmental agencies, and Director of Public Relations. As he had done before, he also organized the college’s first baseball program. Three years later, he moved to Florida to accept the role of Director of Cooperative Education and Career Placement Services at Santa Fe Community College in Gainesville, Florida. At Santa Fe, he developed several co-op education programs that were recognized as “models” at both the state and national level. He also served as the On-Site Program Coordinator to the Southeastern Training Center for Cooperative Education at the University of South Florida in Tampa. Concurrently, he also served as Adjunct Faculty Advisor in the College of Education at the University of Florida for students receiving their Master’s and Doctorate degrees. He was promoted to Director of Purchasing and Auxiliary Services at Santa Fe, responsible for purchasing of all college materials, equipment, and services as well as the operation of the bookstore and food services. Dr. Abbott completed his Ph.D. in 1980 and moved to Edison Community College in Fort Myers, Florida, where he became Dean of Applied Sciences. In this role, he was responsible for curriculum development, budgeting and staffing, faculty evaluation, and purchasing. He was responsible for computerizing the first class schedule for the college and reactivated 23 Career Advisory Committees in vocational-technical education programs. His next move took him west to the University of New Mexico where he served as Chief Academic Officer of the Valencia campus and as President in his absence. He was responsible for all aspects of credit instruction, including transfer and vocational-technical education programs, budget, curriculum, recruitment, hiring, faculty evaluation, the Learning Resource Center, and Adult and Continuing Education. Dr. Abbott returned to his home state of Illinois two years later to become Dean of the college and Chief Academic Affairs Officer and Student Affairs Officer at Olney Central College in Olney, Illinois. He provided leadership for the instructional program including transfer and vocational-technical education, adult and continuing education, community services, and evaluation of all faculty and staff. As the Chief Student Affairs Officer, he supervised admissions, registration, records, recruitment, placement, and financial aid. Under his leadership, computer registration was added for the first time. Before retiring after 45 years in the field of education, he was employed as Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculties at Georgia Military College in Milledgeville, Georgia. In this position, he led the college’s instructional programs and services on the main campus as well as five military bases, two extension centers, and seven correctional institutions. He also prepared the college for the annual national accreditation evaluation. Due to his position as Vice President, he received the rank of full Colonel in the U.S. Army, an achievement he was very proud of considering his experience in the Navy. During his long, pioneering career in education, Dr. Abbott received numerous awards and distinctions, including: Outstanding Educators of America; recipient of the Illinois Military Scholarship; the author of two “model” books on cooperative education and purchasing; the publication of both his Master’s and Doctorate studies; listed in Who’s Who in the South and Southwest; named President of the Florida Cooperative Education Association; Director of the Board for the Gainesville Navy League; contributing author to “Meeting the Changing Needs – Curricula for the Community College;” and beyond the campus, he played pivotal roles as Vice President of Little League Baseball programs in Illinois, Minnesota, and Florida. Dr. Abbott was preceded in death by his wife, Dolores, by one day. He is survived by his son, John (Alison) of Petaluma, California, a granddaughter, Haidee (Matt) Brannan, two great grandchildren, Riley and Colton of Gainesville, Florida, and numerous nieces and nephews. A full military remembrance service including U.S. Navy cadets was held on Wednesday, March 27, at Forest Meadows Cemetery in Gainesville, Florida. Cremation and other arrangements were managed under the care and direction of Forest Meadows Funeral Home. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Haven Hospice in Gainesville, Florida.

Angelo Vincent Abbott

June 20, 1932 - March 9, 2024