Elinor Sandborn Pape

Elinor Sandborn Pape, age 86, passed away Friday morning, October 21, 2022. Elinor is preceded in death by her parents Lloyd Thompson Sandborn and Edna Mae Sandborn, and sister, Susanne Sandborn Goddard. She is survived by her husband, William (Bill) McNabb; her son James (Jim) Pape with daughter-in-law Diana Pape; son Frank Pape with daughter-in-law Stephanie Pape; her grandchildren; Ava, Audrey, Amelia and Charles; and step-daughter Karen Rosamond and her husband, William (Billy) Rosamond. Elinor was born in Wausau Wisconsin in 1936 and then spent her childhood years in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and then Crossett, Arkansas. She moved from Crossett after graduating high school in 1953 (1year early), to Dallas, Texas to pursue a degree in English at Southern Methodist University (SMU). Her interests quickly evolved turning her academic ambitions toward Industrial Engineering, a field unexplored by females at time. She graduated with honors in 1960 with her degree in Industrial Engineering becoming the first female admitted into the SMU Engineering Honor Society. After then taking a 7-year academic break coinciding with the birth of her sons, Elinor completed her Masters and Ph.D. in Statistics at SMU. After completing her Ph.D. in 1971, at the age of 35, she joined the faculty of the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) where she was an award-winning teacher, Senior Professor and later named Professor Emeritus. Her passion for her students was as unparalleled as were the challenges she enjoyed presenting. One of her great joys was the year her students made and sold T-shirts emblazoned with, “I survived Dr. Pape.” She retired from teaching in 1998 after which she enjoyed numerous interesting consulting assignments. Elinor was a noted expert in her field and authored and contributed to textbooks in the field of applied statistics. She was a Fellow of the Institute of Industrial Engineers and the former Chairman (plus other subordinate roles) of the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) and prior president of the Society Of Women Engineers. In 1959 Elinor married Charles Andrew Pape, their first son James (Jim) Pape was born in 1960 and their second son Frank Pape was born in 1963. They lived in Irving, Texas until the time of their divorce in 1980. In 1987 Elinor met William (Bill) McNabb and Bill became the great love of her life. They were married in 1988 where they lived in the DFW area. Bill and Elinor moved to Rockport, Texas in 1999 and enjoyed many great years on the Texas coast. They famously enjoyed numerous cross-country road trip adventures which typically included stops to see their children and their grandchildren on the west coast making it all of the way to Alaska by car. After a stint in Bastrop, Texas they settled in New Braunfels, Texas. Elinor had a famous wit that was punctuated by an honesty and directness that earned her legions of friends and fans. Her trailblazing academic and professional career gave her the opportunity to positively influence hundreds if not thousands of lives. Her death came peacefully at the end of a long/challenging battle with dementia. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the “Elinor Pape Endowed Scholarship” at UTA IMSE Department https://www.uta.edu/academics/schools-colleges/engineering/academics/departments/industrial/support