John J. Patrick ’57

John J. Patrick ’57 of Bloomington, Indiana, passed away on April 3, 2024, at his home. John graduated from Roosevelt High School in East Chicago, Indiana. He played football, belonged to the Newman Club and Human Rights Society, and earned his M.B.A. from Tuck School. He returned to East Chicago, working as a social studies teacher at Roosevelt High School and the University of Chicago Laboratory School. He earned his Ed.D. from Indiana University and joined the faculty in 1969, beginning a long career there until retirement in 2004. A specialist in the history of the founding period of the United States and the tenets of democracy, John participated in democratic advancement projects throughout Western Europe, Latin America, and East Asia, working in more than 40 different countries. He was a foremost scholar of citizenship education in the new democracies that emerged from the collapse of the Soviet Union. John authored and coauthored dozens of texts, most notably American Governance (five volumes), The Supreme Court of the United States, Understanding Democracy, The Oxford Guide to the U.S. Government, and The Bill of Rights: A History in Documents. He received accolades from the Indiana State Bar Association, Indiana University, and the governor of Indiana. John is remembered for his incredible storytelling, skills on the accordion, and unforgettable laugh and as an avid bibliophile. He is survived by Patricia, his wife of 60 years, daughters Rebecca and Barbara, and grandchildren.