[Click here to download a high resolution photo of Oakley Ray.]
.jpg){kind=link}
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Oakley Ray, who taught at Vanderbilt University for more than 30 years and wrote both an enduring textbook and self-help books for the general public, died Feb. 7. He was 76.
Ray, professor of psychology, emeritus, died at Centennial Medical Center of leukemia.
“He was a distinguished member of the psychology department, especially as a teacher,” said Tim McNamara, associate provost for faculty and professor of psychology. “In recent years he gave the department a great deal of visibility in his role as executive secretary of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.”
Over the years, Ray‘s psychology courses ranked among the most popular in the College of Arts and Science and Vanderbilt University School of Medicine. He was quoted by or interviewed by reporters from the BBC, The New York Times, Boston Globe, The (Nashville) Tennessean, National Public Radio and many other media outlets. He provided commentary on everything from substance abuse – a subject on which he was a national expert – to lighter fare such as the mood of the city of Nashville after the Tennessee Titans lost Super Bowl XXXIV.
“Dad was always a teacher first and foremost,” said son Steve Ray.
Oakley Stern Ray was born Feb. 6, 1931 in Altoona, Pa. He earned his bachelor‘s degree in psychology from Cornell University, then a master‘s and doctorate from the University of Pittsburgh. He served in the Army from 1952 to 1954.
After teaching at the University of Pittsburgh and Chatham College, Ray was hired by Vanderbilt in 1970 as a faculty member of both its university and medical school. He won Vanderbilt‘s Ingalls Award for Excellence in Classroom Teaching in 1972, and in 1979 was awarded the Chancellor‘s Cup for making the greatest contribution outside the classroom to student-faculty relationships. He was granted emeritus status in 2002.
Concurrent with his Vanderbilt career, Ray served at the Nashville Veterans Administration Medical Center for 14 years as the chief of the Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Unit. He also served from 1979 to 2005 as secretary of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, which supports the development of the next generation of scientists, researchers and clinicians, working in the area of brain-behavior-drug interactions.
Ray published the first edition of Drugs, Society, and Human Behavior in 1972. The 12th edition, now co-written by Charles Ksir and Carl Hart, was published in 2006. More than 400 colleges have used the textbook and it has sold more than a half-million copies. He also wrote books for general audiences including The Good Life: How to Get It … How to Keep It, Grandma‘s Rules for Good Health and Long Life and Grandma‘s Rules for Understanding and Changing Behavior.
The funeral will be handled by Marshall Donnelly-Combs Funeral Home. Visitation is set for 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 10, with a memorial service at 4 p.m. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 404 BNA Drive, Suite 102, Nashville, TN, 37217.
Survivors include wife Kathy Ray, sons Steve Ray of Nashville, Christian Ray of Hendersonville and Tom Ray of Santa Monica, Calif.; daughter Deb Scanlon of Indian Wells, Calif.; and grandchildren.
Media contact: Jim Patterson, (615) 322-NEWS
jim.patterson@vanderbilt.edu