Robert W. Gifford, a longtime Baltimore County public schools educator and administrator, died of heart failure Wednesday at University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson.
He was 96.
"Bob had long and faithful service to the Baltimore County school system, and he was very loyal," said Robert Y. Dubel, who headed Baltimore County public schools for 16 years before retiring in 1992. "He was on the quiet side and very efficient. He never spoke about himself and did his job effectively and efficiently."
Donald T. Rascoe, former public relations officer at the Baltimore County Board of Education, worked closely with Dr. Gifford for eight years.
"Bob was a very serious-minded guy who knew what he had to do to get the job done. He was a very efficient and no-nonsense person," said Mr. Rascoe.
The son of Walter Gifford, who had been dean at Madison College in Harrisonburg, Va. — now James Madison University — and Litta P. Gifford, a homemaker, Robert Walter Gifford was born and raised in Harrisonburg.
After graduating from Harrisonburg High School in 1937, he earned a bachelor's degree in general science from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Va., in 1940.
He subsequently obtained a master's degree in science education in 1947 and a doctorate in the same discipline from Columbia University in New York City in 1954.
His early teaching career at schools in Virginia was interrupted during World War II when he joined the U.S. merchant marine in 1943 and served aboard cargo ships as a purser and pharmacist's mate. The ships supplied troops fighting in the Mediterranean and the Pacific.
"He was classified 4-F because of poor eyesight, but he was determined to serve, so he said that he "rang doorbells until somebody would take me,'" said a son, John Gifford of Glenville, Pa.
During a leave from the merchant marine, he taught briefly in Delaware. There, he met and fell in love with Rita Moran, also a teacher. They married in 1953.
From 1947 to 1953, Dr. Gifford taught at Teachers College of Columbia University, Iowa State Teachers College and at State Teachers College of Maryland — now Towson University.
He joined Baltimore County public schools in 1953 as a ninth-grade science teacher at North Point Junior High School.
"He didn't stay in the classroom very long because he was appointed math science supervisor," Dr. Dubel said.
Dr. Gifford was an early proponent of using television and other multimedia resources in the classroom. In 1975, he was appointed head of the new Division of Instructional Television.
"He was a real smart guy, and the use of television and film strips in classrooms was very innovative at the time," Mr. Rascoe said.
He was later named executive assistant to the county schools superintendent and was assigned to Greenwood, the school board's headquarters in Towson.
Dr. Gifford came to the central office during the tenure of Superintendent Joshua R. Wheeler, who served from 1970 to 1976, said Dr. Dubel.
"Then I inherited him," he said. "He was a very accurate and meticulous person. He was very dependable."
Dr. Gifford retired in 1981 but remained active, volunteering with various organizations.
For more than 35 years, he served the Boy Scouts of America in a variety of capacities. He served at the local and council levels and was on the staff of three National Boy Scout Jamborees. He also led a contingent of Scouts to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico.
He was awarded the St. George Emblem for outstanding contribution to the spiritual development of Catholic youths in Scouting.
Dr. Gifford was a member of Phi Delta Kappa, an honorary education professional fraternity. He was president and treasurer of the Johns Hopkins University chapter.
He and his wife worked together in support of the American Field Service, which sponsors high school student exchange programs.
Dr. Gifford was a longtime communicant of Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ Roman Catholic Church in Lutherville and served on its parish council. He had been a chairman of the education committee and was president of the Helping Hand Foundation, a group that assists seniors who have insufficient funds for everyday needs.
He was twice awarded the Service Key Volunteer Award at the Mission Helpers of the Sacred Heart, where he had been an officer in the Friends of the Mission Helpers.
Throughout his life, he maintained a lively interest in politics. He served as an election judge for many years and served as an educator with the Board of Elections as an instructor. He also had served as a legislative aide to Del. Thomas Chamberlain, a Baltimore County Republican, for several sessions.
Because he had a rare blood type, Dr. Gifford was a regular Red Cross blood donor. "He had so many pins, including an eight-gallon pin for donating so much blood," his son said.
In 1982, Dr. Gifford began preparing federal and Maryland income tax returns for senior citizens in need, and for eight years was the Baltimore County coordinator for the program, co-sponsored by AARP and the Baltimore County Department of Aging.
He continued working with the program until 2013.
"His major hobby, in addition to his volunteer work, was researching his family genealogy and traveling," his son said. "He had visited more than 30 countries."
Dr. Gifford was inducted into the Maryland Senior Citizens Hall of Fame in 1991.
A memorial Mass will be offered at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Mercy Ridge Retirement Community, 2525 Pot Spring Road, Timonium.
In addition to his wife and son, Dr. Gifford is survived by another son, Paul Gifford of Bonita Springs, Fla.; a daughter, Barbara Gifford of Boulder, Colo.; and two granddaughters.