Story by Bud Grimes
Dr. Ted Mosch lived a full life as a teacher, scholar and world traveler. But the UT Martin political science professor, who died July 3, 2018, will likely be remembered most as a mentor and friend to countless university students. A generous gift from his estate to UT Martin will ensure that he continues to help students into the future (see scholarship story on page 28).
Dale Allen (’81) is a Nashville attorney and former UT Martin SGA president who counts Mosch as both a friend and a mentor and credits Mosch for encouraging him to pursue a career in law. “He demanded that I attend law school, and I enjoyed working with him when he was the legislative intern adviser,” Allen wrote in an email. “I have kept the letters that he would send to me while traveling abroad – very detailed and just amazing how much he enjoyed traveling the world and meeting people.”
Mosch was born Sept. 13, 1937, in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Magna Cum Laude with a political science degree from Ripon College in Wisconsin. He earned master’s degrees in education and social work from the University of Wisconsin and both a master of arts and his doctorate in political science from the University of Oklahoma.
Mosch served in the U.S. Army on active duty with the rank of first lieutenant before serving as a teaching assistant at both the University of Wisconsin and the University of Oklahoma. He began his tenure at UT Martin in 1970, was granted educational leave to attend the National War College in Washington, D.C., from 1981-82, and served on the United States Army Intelligence Center and faculty at Fort Huachuca, Arizona, from 1983-88, where he earned the rank of colonel.
Mosch returned to UT Martin in 1988 and served as a professor and adviser in the Department of History and Political Science until his retirement in 2002. He traveled extensively for both professional and personal growth during that time and served as the UT Martin/Hirosaki University Exchange Professor to Japan in 2000.
Mosch earned multiple awards for teaching and scholarship, including the Outstanding Teaching Award, UT National Alumni Association (1974, 1990); Excellence in Advising Award, UT Martin (1990, 1995); Outstanding Advisor Award, UT Martin (2000); Distinguished Professorship, UT National Alumni Association (1996 – annually until retirement); Student Government Association Outstanding Teaching Award, UT Martin (1998, 1999); and UT College of Law Honor for 31 years of pre-law advising (2001). The military also honored him numerous times for his service.
His retirement brought many former students back to campus to congratulate and thank him for his contributions to UT Martin and their lives. The Ted Mosch Scholarship Fund was established in his honor, and he pledged to endow the fund to help with the cost of tuition for international students.
Mosch is known for his successful military and educational careers, but his former students remember him most because he truly cared about them. Kyle Williams (’98, UT College of Law ‘01) possibly captured Mosch’s legacy best when he purchased a Paul Meek Library brick in honor of his professor. The inscription simply reads, “Dr. Ted Mosch. Advisor, Mentor, Friend.”
