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David Clayton Hassinger ’03

A picture of David Hassinger

David Clayton Hassinger ’03, May 24, 2006, in Midvale, Utah. David left life in small-town, rural Alaska to study at Bard College in New York. He transferred to Reed in his sophomore year, earning a BA in history. His academic career was deeply invested in the subject of Turkish and Ottoman history, in which he became interested during his time at Reed. Following completion of a thesis on the Armenian genocide and the early Ottoman reform period, written under the guidance of Professor Ed Segel [history 1973–2011], David enrolled at the University of Arizona. He received an MA in Near Eastern Studies in 2005, with a thesis on late Ottoman women writers and educators. In addition, he spent summers during his master’s program in Istanbul, studying Turkish at Bogazici University. His friend, Daniel Spoth ’03, remarks: “I remember Dave during his years at Reed as a fantastic, unsinkable, larger-than-life character; an epicure, a raconteur, a Renaissance man; the sort of person who would laugh at your jokes even if he didn’t find them funny and would gladly drop everything and trek through the rain and darkness of a Portland winter to your place for no better reason than the promise of a slice of pizza and a postmodern movie. His company was an unadulterated joy.” Survivors include his mother and father and extended family.

Appeared in Reed magazine: November 2006