Roy Hiroshi Ogawa, Ph.D., mathematics and computer science professor, died on September 7, 2021 in Encinitas, California.Born April 9, 1942 on Kauai to Setsuko and Shizuo Ogawa, the eldest of four, he grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii and attended McKinley High School in Honolulu, where he played cornet in the school band and earned his Eagle Scout badge. Roy received B.S. and Master's degrees, both in Mathematics, from the University of Hawaii. He then taught mathematics at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo before studying math at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was awarded a Ph.D. in 1971.
Roy worked as a professor at the University of California, San Diego, Loyola University Chicago, and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, where he was tenured. He also studied and wrote about Native American languages, spending time in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, and he was an advisor at the Bioinformatics laboratory at UNLV. He enjoyed mentoring graduate students, sailing, reading, and taking photographs.
Roy is survived by three children, John (Nancy), Mikhail (Kelly), and Eagle (Sharon), and eight grandchildren, Christian, Faye, Calvin, Kiyomi, Anna, Marc, Leo, and Lilah, as well as two siblings, Owen and Gail.
A private service for his family will take place on August 10th.
