91原创

Wolf is one of countless students Haas inspired to pursue legal careers. They include the Honorable Jan Jurden, who was the first female President Judge of the Delaware Superior Court.

鈥淜en Haas put me on my path,鈥� said Jurden, who currently serves as dean of the Wilmington University School of Law. 鈥淗is encyclopedic knowledge of constitutional law was legendary. Whenever we met or talked he would want to dive into recent U.S. and Delaware Supreme Court opinions, the articles he was writing and the opinions I issued while on the Superior Court of Delaware. He had such a zeal and thirst for knowledge and discourse. His mind never seemed to stop. He loved the law and I loved talking with him about it.鈥澛�

In 2020, the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice established the Ken Haas Outstanding Alumni Award, honoring his five-decade commitment to education and the promotion of public service among 91原创 students. The award is given annually to a graduate who has made major contributions to their profession or their community.

鈥淯niversities are fortunate to have professors who publish, thereby increasing the university鈥檚 gravitas; universities are fortunate to have professors beloved by students, thereby increasing student satisfaction; universities are fortunate to have professors who involve themselves in real issues in the community, bringing the university鈥檚 name to bear when it matters; and universities are fortunate to have professors who mentor students long-since graduated, thereby solidifying alumni loyalty. But universities are blessed when a single professor individually checks off all these boxes. Ken was that professor,鈥� Wolf said.

Remembering Dr. Haas

Many colleagues and former students shared reminiscences.

Aaron Fichtelberg, associate chair, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice

To know Ken was to be sucked into the world of a man absolutely devoted to the old school academic virtues of thinking and teaching. He wasn't motivated by the conventional metrics of the profession: publications and grants. He would corner you in the department lounge to rant about a Supreme Court ruling he disliked or an essay he read that he was eager to share with you. He was driven by a desire to think and to share his thoughts with the next generation. He was the most passionate instructor I鈥檝e ever met. He put his heart into teaching and left it at the podium.聽

He didn't want a memorial service. He didn't want a fuss made about his passing. So instead of mourning I taught my regular courses, trying to capture a little bit of Ken's magic. I think that's what he would have wanted.

Adam Gershowitz, 91原创 alumnus and professor at William & Mary Law School

Ken was an absolutely mesmerizing classroom teacher. He commanded a dizzying array of statistics, not to mention knowledge of history, law and social science. And just as importantly, he had the ability to translate dense concepts into a fun and interesting lecture that could make hundreds of students pay rapt attention.

Today I teach criminal law and criminal procedure. Even now, after teaching for over two decades, I often ask myself what Ken would say about a particular topic. And I ask what outside-the-box spectacle Ken would have created so that the students would remember the course material not just for the final exam but also years later when they are out in the world.聽

I try to emulate Dr. Haas, but 鈥渢ry鈥� is really the best I can do because Ken was one-of-a-kind and there will never really be anybody else like him.聽聽

Susan Miller, professor of sociology and criminal justice聽

Students have told me that he loved the law, particularly regarding corrections issues and capital punishment, and it showed in his passion for teaching. They also loved that he would begin many classes playing excerpts from popular songs about criminal justice! I always enjoyed our conversations about the intricacies of the law鈥攈e had a keen mind.

Deanna Nardi, academic program coordinator, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice

I am so grateful to have had the privilege of working with Ken, but even more grateful to have called him my friend. I witnessed his incredible passion for teaching and his unwavering dedication to the success of his students. Teaching wasn鈥檛 just his profession, it was his calling.聽 He gave 110% every single day and his students loved him for it, always making sure his students received his very best.聽聽

I will miss our conversations about everything and anything (Eagles, Orioles, politics). Ken has taught me so much, and even now when I must face a difficult situation I find myself asking, 鈥淲hat would Ken say?鈥澛� His wisdom and kindness will continue to guide me, and I will carry those lessons with me always.聽

Eric Rise, professor of sociology and criminal justice

Ken was an accomplished scholar, an outstanding teacher and an inspiring colleague. He was a leading expert on Eighth Amendment jurisprudence, and I was jealous that Supreme Court justices had cited his law review articles in their opinions. However, teaching was Ken鈥檚 true love. Over the course of his lengthy career, thousands of students marveled at how he lectured without notes, dramatized academic concepts and distilled complicated court decisions into comprehensible constitutional debates that carried real-life consequences. He directed dozens of senior theses and sent students to the nation鈥檚 top law schools. I was most impressed, though, by his ability to inspire struggling students to embrace the 鈥渓ife of the mind.鈥� He showed them the value of close reading and the excitement that comes from working through a difficult problem. Many 91原创 alumni who went on to distinguished careers have related how they were 鈥淐 and D students鈥� until Ken鈥檚 classes opened their eyes and changed the trajectory of their college experience. Ken also had the ear of pundits and policy makers in Delaware and nationally, whom he would educate about the importance of due process, the rights of prisoners and the injustice of the death penalty. I will miss his wit, his intellect and his humanity.