Dr. Torraco retires after 26 years at UNL

13 Jul 2020    

After 26 years at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Dr. Richard Torraco is retiring. 

While working in the Department of Educational Administration, Dr. Torraco was an Associate Professor, a researcher, and an instructor. 

But he was also more than that. He was an advisor and a confidant to countless graduate students and a respected member of the EDAD team.  

“Dr. Torraco’s years in Educational Administration were characterized by his deep ties to practice. His connections to a variety of community-based organizations, business and industry, and the community college environment brought students countless opportunities for research and hands-on learning. His thoughtful, organized approach with students, faculty, and staff will surely be missed,” said Dr. Nick Pace, Department Chair. 

Dr. Torraco was a faculty member in the educational leadership and community college leadership programs, and his research and teaching area focused on the workforce and human resource development and in community college leadership.

“I primarily focus on economic inequality and its implications and consequences,” Dr. Torraco said in his faculty interview. “Economic inequality is a serious problem in itself, but it also contributes to educational inequity.”

In addition to workforce and human resource development, Dr. Torraco also contributed to the educational leadership and higher education (ELHE) doctoral program and the community college leadership program. 

But Dr. Torraco’s favorite part about his time at UNL and EDAD was working with the graduate students. 

“Students have always been the most important part of what I do here,” he said. “They push us, push me, to be the best I can be as an instructor and as a researcher.”

“And we, everyone here, in higher education and certainly in UNL and in our department, are blessed with wonderful students - who are in our programs and in our courses because they want to be. They’ve chosen to be here. So, what’s not to like about the students we have?”

After he leaves UNL, Dr. Torraco plans to develop and instruct contextualized ESL job skills courses for Lincoln Literacy and other human service agencies.