Georgetown government professor Joseph Lepgold died Monday night in Paris from injuries incurred in a hotel fire over Thanksgiving break. His wife Nikki Dean remains in critical condition in a deep coma, according to Robert L. Gallucci, dean of the School of Foreign Service. The couple’s 10-year-old son, Jordan, died from his injuries last week.
Lepgold was in Paris to speak at a conference at the Geneva Center for Security Policy and the American Center at Sciences Politiques. A fire broke out on the third floor of the hotel where the family staying on the fifth floor. The Lepgolds were hospitalized from smoke inhalation and possible carbon monoxide and cyanide poisoning.
Students, faculty and friends of the Lepgolds gathered in ICC Galleria Monday evening to share news and memories of the family.
“If Joe were here, he would be so happy,” Georgetown government Professor Anthony Arend said to the gathering. “He was used to having big classes.”
Lepgold held a joint appointment in the government department and the School of Foreign Service and had been teaching at Georgetown since 1990. He was in Paris to speak at a conference entitled, “America, Europe and the World in the 21st Century.”
“Joe had great enthusiasm for the trip. It was important for him to talk at Sciences Politiques,” said Gallucci.
Lepgold’s enthusiasm was evident in the classroom as well. “He was truly in his element in the classroom, where his love of international relations was infectious,” said government Professor Andrew Bennett who co-authored articles with Lepgold and discussed international relations with him on a daily basis.
“Almost every day since the fire I have thought for a split second of something that I should tell Joe before remembering that I can’t do so,” Bennett said.
Lepgold is most remembered by fellow professors and his students for his devotion to Georgetown. “Joe refused to take on a double section of International Relations. He insisted on a triple section and had to be talked down from 330 to 220 students. He wanted to be there for students,” said SFS professor and Chair of Faculty James Reardon-Anderson. “I was always telling him no.”
Lepgold insisted on having the ICC Auditorium for his introductory-level International Relations class this past semester, said University Registrar John Q. Pierce. “He kept calling and finally got it … Joe cared about his students,” said Pierce.
“He was closest to meeting my definition of an ideal professor,” said Pradeep Ramamurthy (SFS ‘03), who had Lepgold as a mentor. “Other teachers lecture to you; with him, it was always a conversation. He was willing to hear my ideas … He’d give up his time if you really needed him,” Ramamurthy said.
“What struck me about Joe is that he’s the kind of person that you build an institution around,” said Robert Lieber, former chair of Georgetown’s government department. “Only now do we step back and appreciate how important he has been. He left an indelible mark on all of us,” Lieber said.
Lepgold’s dedication was described by co-workers as carrying into all aspects of his life. “The one word I think of when I think of Joe is ‘passion.’ He was passionate about everything,”Arend said. Lepgold was passionate about ideas, about teaching, about baseball, about classical music, but most of all about his family, Arend said.
The University also has strong ties to Lepgold’s wife and son. Nikki Dean worked in the registrar’s office for nearly 10 years until she left a year and a half ago to work at the Social Security Administration.
Lepgold recently completed a book entitled, Beyond the Ivory Tower: International Relations Theory and the Problem of Policy Relevance.
“Joe was bubbly about the book,” said Gallucci who spoke about his personal relationship with Lepgold, his co-worker and neighbor for 10 years.
“He was wildly enthusiastic about this university … The image of Joe with that enthusiasm is one I hold on to,” Gallucci said.
Professors have struggled to cope with the initial news of the accident, followed by the death of Jordan and Dr. Lepgold.
“The deaths of Joe and Jordan have been a terrible blow to our department and to the whole Georgetown community … We can only comfort ourselves with the thought that the thousands of students that Joe taught here will carry on his legacy and honor his memory,” Bennett said.
Georgetown has informed the Lepgolds’ family, as well as several people who were connected to the Lepgolds. People and organizations contacted include the American embassy in Paris, Sciences Politiques, the Social Security administration, the Lepgolds’ neighbors, Jordan’s Boy Scout Troop and Jordan’s middle school, which will hold a memorial service.
