Thomas Maness died at age 63 on July 22, 2018. He was an inspiring leader of the College of Forestry and an advocate for maintaining the integrity of natural resources.

Thomas earned a BA in forest management from West Virginia University; an MA in forest operations from Virginia Tech, and a PhD in forest economics from the University of Washington. He spent a decade in private industry as a research engineer focusing on forest planning. He joined the OSU College of Forestry in 2009 and was named Dean in 2012.

Under his leadership, OSU was ranked the second-best college of forestry in the world by the Center for World University Rankings (2017).

Thomas founded the Canadian National Centre of Excellence in Advanced Wood Processing at the University of British Columbia, led the design and implementation of an award winning undergraduate manufacturing technology program, and founded the British Columbia Forum on Forest Economics and Policy. He developed the Institute for Working Forest Landscapes and the TallWood Design Institute collaboration between OSU and the University of Oregon.

His passion for wilderness took him backpacking and exploring widely. On his “Issues in Forestry” blog he wrote; “Property might belong to individuals, but property changes hand every day.  The Land belongs to all of us.”

Thomas Maness (1955-2018)

Thomas Maness (1955-2018)

“Thomas was a visionary in the truest sense of that word, and he had the energy and positive outlook to make that vision come alive.  He will be missed.” John D. Bailey (Forestry).

Contributions may be made to the Thomas and Nicole Maness Memorial Scholarship Fund.