Philip Wilkes Bell, founding provost of Merrill College at UC Santa Cruz, died August 1. Bell, who was 82, lived in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania at the time of his death.
Named provost of "College Four" in September 1967, Bell officially assumed leadership of the college the following February. A month into his tenure, the Charles E. Merrill Trust donated $650,000 toward the construction of the college. That fall, Merrill College opened to its first class of students.
Bell was not only considered a very capable administrator, he was a devoted teacher who inspired students at UCSC and on many other campuses, including UC Berkeley, Haverford College, Fisk University, Lincoln University, and Boston University.
He was also an accomplished economist. The co-author of The Theory and Measurement of Business Income (1961), which influenced generations of accounting scholars, Bell was inducted into the Accounting Hall of Fame in 2003. During a very distinguished career, he was the author of 12 books and monographs and more than 30 articles.
Please see a full obituary for Philip Bell.
