Two Titans with storied 40-year campus careers as educators were honored April 19 at Cal State Fullerton’s University Awards program.
Laurance Timm, professor of music and interim director of the College of the Arts’ School of Music, is known both as an educator and Hollywood musician, having collaborated in a wealth of film and TV show music scores — from “The Godfather” to “Little House on the Prairie.” An oboist whose film music classes are quite popular, Timm was attracted to Cal State Fullerton for its strong music department (now a school) and also because he was close to the Hollywood studios he wanted to work with.
His biggest source of pride when it comes to Cal State Fullerton, he explained, is “being connected to so many faculty members who are specialists in their fields … and working with wonderful students from different majors and cross sections of the university. As any teacher can attest to, we take pride in how our positions have really helped people.”
Timm was a founding member of the Pacific Symphony in 1978 and was principal oboe with the Long Beach Symphony for 18 years. He has performed with numerous Los Angeles-based orchestras, including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the Pasadena Symphony and the Pacific Symphony Orchestra.
He is currently working on the sixth edition of “Film Music: The Soul of Cinema,” the standard film music appreciation text used in higher education.
Timm received his bachelor’s degree from Louisiana State University and two master’s degrees and a doctorate from Yale University.
Anil Puri has long been a fixture to the region’s business leaders for his expertise as an economist. Puri, director of the university’s James and Jeanette Woods Center for Economic Analysis and Forecasting, has presented biannual economic forecasts on Orange County, the Southern California region and the nation for 22 years.
A member of the campus since 1977, he was interim provost and vice president for academic affairs from July 2016 through December 2017, after serving as dean of the MIhaylo College of Business and Economics since April 1999. As dean, he led the six-year $50 million campaign that helped make possible the construction of Mihaylo Hall and resulted in the naming of the college and the addition of several endowments.
At CSUF, his leadership roles also include stints as a member of the Academic Senate, chair and professor of economics, and interim associate vice president for academic programs. He also helped guide the campus strategic plan goals for boosting graduation rates and closing the achievement gap as a member of the university’s Strategic Planning Committee.
Puri, who holds a master’s degree and doctorate in economics from the University of Minnesota, received the Orange County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Estrella Award for Lifetime Achievement on April 21.