Alumnus is World Geographer, Traveler

GARY FULLER ’64 LIKES TO say that geography is the glue that ties the world (and several academic disciplines) together. He should know – he wrote the book on it!

The Trivia Lover’s Guide to the World: Geography for the Lost and Found is derived from an Oswego legacy of geography. In fact, Oswego itself is featured in the last chapter.

Gary ’64 and Barbara Bruton Fuller ’64 live in Hawaii and love traveling the world sharing Gary’s knowledge of geography.

After graduating from Oswego, Gary went on to earn his doctorate in geography from Penn State. He retired after 34 years as professor of geography and population studies at the University of Hawaii, where he taught more than 10,000 undergraduates and supervised 13 doctoral dissertations and 44 master’s theses. (His first doctoral candidate, Larry Travers, became a faculty member at Oswego).

He was senior class president in 1964, and in 1994, Gary was awarded the Anniversary Class Award of Merit from the Oswego Alumni Association.

Gary’s wife, Barbara Bruton Fuller ’64, retired from the Hawaii Youth Correctional Facility school, after almost 30 years, where she was a teacher and then the teacher-in-charge. They have lived in Hawaii since 1970.

“The education, history and geography courses I took at Oswego were the impetus for my life as an educator and now as an author,” wrote Gary, who names as his influences Oswego geography legends Judy Johnsrud and the late Professor Emeritus Girgis Ghobrial.

In retirement, Gary lectures on cruise ships all over the world, talking about world affairs, tying in geography, history and the cultures of the places the tours visit, as well as the current events occurring there.

“Oswego certainly formed the basis for the lives in education — writing and disseminating information— that we’ve led and now lead,” Gary wrote.

“Our lives were definitely shaped by our four years at Oswego. They have been very fruitful and hopefully, have impacted many of the students we’ve taught, as well as our own four children, in positive ways.”

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