ECE Florida is saddened to announce the passing of Professor Emeritus Fred Taylor. Dr. Taylor was with the department for over 35 years and was a much-loved teacher, mentor, and researcher. Elevated to IEEE Fellow in 2005 ‘For outstanding contributions to high-performance digital signal processing,’ Dr. Taylor retired in 2010 but continued to serve the department, teaching Circuits 2 and Digital Logic until 2017.
Dr. Fred Taylor Undergraduate Teaching Award
Each year the ECE Department designates one undergraduate student to receive the Dr. Fred Taylor Undergraduate Teaching Award. This student is paid to work closely with a faculty member to help teach an undergraduate signal processing course. This annual award of $2,000, for the next 5 years, will assist students with a tuition stipend as they pursue coursework and research.
Learn more about the fund at the UF Foundation website.
Obituary
Dr. Fred J. Taylor, age 82, passed away peacefully on February 19, 2023, in his home in Gainesville, Florida, surrounded by his loving family. Dr. Taylor was predeceased by his parents, Merton and Echo Taylor. He is survived by his loving wife, Lori, daughters Robin and Brooke, son Rustin, and grandchildren Schuyler, Bennett, and Graysen. He will also be greatly missed by his sons-in-law, Dan and Matthew. Dr. Taylor was a Professor Emeritus at the University of Florida in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering as well as the Department of Computer & Information Science & Engineering, where he taught for over 35 years. He founded The Athena Group, Inc. and STEM Sims, LLC with his dear friend and business partner, Monica Murphy. Dr. Taylor was an international expert in the field of digital signal processing and was honored as a Life Fellow of IEEE in 2005. He held numerous patents, authored 12 books, and published over 100 refereed journal articles. His many Ph.D. and Master’s students remember his dedication and friendship over the years. As a young man, Fred served 6 years in the US Army. Throughout his life, he enjoyed listening to classical music and audio books. Fred also enjoyed basketball and woodworking in his spare time.
A Celebration of Life Service will be held on Saturday, March 4, 2023, at 3:00 pm at Faith Presbyterian Church, 5916 NW 39th Avenue, Gainesville. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research.