Russell Drago

Russell S. Drago was born in Montague, Mass., in 1928. After receiving his bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts, he completed his doctorate in chemistry at Ohio State University. He then joined the chemistry faculty at the University of Illinois in 1955. He was appointed to the Department of Chemistry faculty at the University of Florida in 1982 and was soon promoted to graduate research professor of chemistry.

Aside from the scientific impact of his research, Drago was widely recognized for his unusual success in combining superb scientific research with the training of graduate students to become productive chemists in their own right. During his tenures at Illinois and Florida, he directed the doctoral dissertations for more than 120 chemists who now hold positions throughout the world. An internationally known expert in the field of inorganic chemistry, Drago was a leader in the study of catalysis of chemical processes and in the understanding of the theoretical basis for acid-base phenomena.

Professor Russell Drago passed away on December 5, 1997.