Professor Emeritus Larry Meredith, one of University of the Pacific’s most beloved professors whose captivating lectures, signature humor and unwavering mentorship had a life-changing impact on thousands of students, died May 29 in Stockton. He was 96.

Meredith spent more than three decades at Pacific as a religious studies and humanities professor and chaplain before retiring in 1999.

“Professor Meredith is one of the most important and influential figures in the 174-year history of our great university,” said Pacific President Christopher Callahan. “There is no faculty member who reached more students, inspired more students and changed the trajectory of more students’ lives than Professor Meredith. His legacy will live on here at Pacific and through the countless lives he touched.”

Meredith joined Pacific in 1966 to help establish Callison College, one of the university’s former cluster colleges focused on global awareness, and to serve as dean of the chapel, a role in which he reshaped the idea of how a college chapel could serve its students.

He reflected on his novel approach in a 2007 interview with the Emeriti Society: “I felt that the chapel ought to be the center of the campus,” he said. “That all of the curricular ideas ought to be reflected in what we did there, the contact with the culture, the quest for meaning and the celebration of life: all of these things should happen in the chapel.”

To help students navigate the political tumult of the 1960s, Meredith sought to expose them to wide-ranging viewpoints, sometimes courting controversy by bringing counterculture speakers to Morris Chapel. When Timothy Leary, a psychologist who strongly advocated for the use of psychedelic drugs, came to speak, the crowd of more than 500 students was so large it spilled out of the chapel.

In his book “Pacific on the Rise: The Story of California’s First University,” former Provost Philip N. Gilbertson credited the “courageous” approach of Meredith and others with helping Pacific avoid the riots and violence that embroiled other colleges at the time. “Four years of Meredith’s ‘pressure valve’ weekly chapel programs had exposed students to every side of any burning issue,” Gilbertson wrote.

Meredith also brought in luminaries such as famed author and poet Maya Angelou, who served as Pacific’s commencement speaker in 1993. Angelou’s mother Vivian Baxter, a Stockton community leader, was a recurring guest speaker in his classes.

A guest appearance by “Peanuts” creator Charles Schulz turned into hours of discussion. “It was just a marvelous morning,” Meredith later recalled. “Schulz was there with the students for a couple of hours drawing pictures and talking about his own view on theology … That’s what we ended up doing with all our guests. Nobody came and just went.”

“Larry was not only a fantastic and exciting professor, but he was also a heartfelt man who loved Pacific, teaching and his students. He was an ‘out of the box’ thinker and teacher,” said Mary-Elizabeth Eberhardt ’76, chair of the University of the Pacific Board of Regents and a past student of Meredith’s. “With Larry you were never sure what you were going to get, but you can bet it was always exciting, interesting and you never left one of his classes without learning or experiencing something new. To have such wonderful memories of a professor you had in school over 50 years ago is truly a testament to a man who left a lasting impression.”

Meredith strongly believed that teaching should not be isolated to one place. Meredith sometimes traveled abroad with students in Callison College, spending time with them in India on several occasions. He also served as a professor in residence in Japan, bringing his wife and boys along with him.

He later earned Fulbright teaching fellowships and taught in Graz, Austria in 1984 and Yogyakarta, Indonesia in 1992.

Through all his tremendous contributions to Pacific, it was the close connections he forged with students that have most resonated over the years. A 2008 article in The Record highlighted Meredith’s impact on his pupils, which lasted long after their time at Pacific.

In 2020, more than 50 of his former students came together to create an endowed scholarship in his name, The Lawrence Meredith Endowed Professorship in the Humanities.

At the time, Meredith expressed his deep appreciation for the recognition. “I’m really quite honored,” he said. “My goodness this is wonderful that people are reacting this way to my teaching career.”

“The enormity of his impact is difficult to put into words, but the professorship helps to express the deep gratitude we will always carry,” wrote Pete Carroll ’73, ’78, head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, and his wife, Glena ’77. Carroll developed a lifelong friendship with Meredith after taking one of his classes, and the professor officiated at the couple’s wedding.

“Larry’s wisdom shaped us at an important, formative time in our lives and has stayed with us ever since,” the Carrolls wrote. “He had a truly special energy, and it meant so much that we got to sustain a connection with him for over 50 years. We love him deeply, and we will miss him dearly.”

Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Mary Lomax-Ghirarduzzi ’89 was also affected by Meredith as a student.

“The Religious Studies Department was a vibrant part of the (College of the Pacific) curriculum and Professor Meredith was at the center of it all. He was a very cool professor,” Lomax-Ghirarduzzi said. “His lectures were fun, and he integrated current events—he knew about what was going in African American culture and history too, which made me feel important. Religion, culture, current events, history—he could teach it all.”

Meredith remained deeply connected with Pacific after retiring, continuing to mentor faculty and meet with students. In 2015, he returned to give a “last lecture” during Homecoming in front of a packed audience.

“Larry was a Renaissance man of many talents who inspired his students, colleagues, administrators and community members throughout his time at Pacific,” reminisced alumna Cindy (Bava) Spiro ’76, ’84. “His vast knowledge of all religions, his passion for sport, his creativity in teaching, his love for music and his enthusiasm to learn everything about being fully human was infectious and inspiring. Anyone who took his ‘Religion of the Body’ class will never forget the unique and sometimes bizarre topics we had. He opened the door to existential thought and joy in living every day to the fullest.”

Alan Cook ’77, a loyal Pacific alumnus who was the long-time director of Family Ministries at Central United Methodist Church across Pacific Avenue, shared his remembrances of Meredith on Facebook: “I can see him in a male quartet singing at Band Frolic while the judges were tallying the scores, I can hear him preach under a tent at Central United Methodist Church, I can hear from students who were challenged by him in the classroom, seeing him play basketball at lunch time. I can see him in the line to greet me after I preached waiting for Dr. Meredith’s comments. I feel blessed to have known him.”

Meredith was recruited to Pacific in 1966 by President Robert Burns from a faculty position at Albion College. An accomplished scholar, Meredith earned his BA in English from Southwestern University, a BD in Historical Theology from Southern Methodist University and a PhD in History and Philosophy of Religion from Harvard University.

A long list of honors includes the Distinguished Teacher Award from the National Association of Schools and Colleges of the United Methodist Church, national finalist for the E. Harris Award for Distinguished Teaching, Fulbright-Hays Fellowship, Faculty Mentor Award and Teacher of the Universe by Semester at Sea.

He is the author of the critically acclaimed “Life Before Death: A Spiritual Journey of Mind and Body.”

The family plans to hold a memorial service over the summer with details forthcoming.

Gifts in his memory can be made to the Lawrence Meredith Endowed Scholarship in the Humanities.