November 28, 2023
It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of Dr. Robert Perkoski, teaching assistant professor in the School of Computing and Information (SCI).
Many SCI students knew “Perks” in his role as the former Director of the Undergraduate Information Sciences program, a role in which he served for more than two decades. He also engaged countless students in the classroom, having taught Introduction to Information Systems and Society, Human Centered Systems, Data Analysis, Analysis of Information Systems, Database Management Concepts and Applications.
He mentored many students outside of the classroom as well, supervising those who took Independent Study courses in Information Science, and advising many students in concert with our professional academic advisors. He was heavily involved in new student orientations and graduations, often being the first person a new undergraduate student would meet and usually the last person to congratulate them on completing their degree.
Dr. Perkoski served on hundreds of committees during his career at Pitt and was a resource for new faculty and part-time instructors within the Department of Informatics and Networked Systems (DINS). He took part in redesigning the Bachelor of Science in Information Science to make it a four-year curriculum in 2019, in addition to contributing to the development of the Bachelor of Science in Computational Social Science and the Minor in Information Science.
Dr. Perkoski’s career at Pitt began quite some time before the creation of SCI. He started his 39-year career at Pitt in 1984 as a placement counselor. He was the Director of Placement and Career Services for nine years before joining DINS in SCI, then the Department of Information Science and Telecommunications in the School of Information Sciences, in September 1999.
A "Celebration of Bob's Life” will be held on Friday, December 8, at 1 p.m. in the Information Sciences Building, 135 North Bellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 on the third floor.
In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made online giveto.pitt.edu/perkoskimemorial, or contact Terri Taylor, Director of Development, at territaylor@pitt.edu.