Paul Kannowski

Paul B. Kannowski, 88, of Grand Forks, ND died Thursday, September 3, 2015 in his home. Paul Brunno Kannowski was born on 11 August 1927 in Grand Forks, ND, the son of Max Bruno and Frances Burdick Kannowski. His father was the Superintendent of Parks, a position his mother also occupied after his father's death in 1933. He graduated from Grand Forks Central High School in 1944 and attended the University of North Dakota for one year. In July of 1945 he enlisted in the US Navy; after boot camp in San Diego, CA, he served in the fleet of occupation aboard the USS Baltimore, a heavy cruiser, at the Kure Naval Base in Japan. After his discharge from the Navy, he returned to the University of North Dakota, receiving the B.S. degree in 1949 and M.S. degree in 1952. He then continued his education at the University of Michigan, receiving the P. D. degree in Zoology in 1957. He began his academic career in 1956 at Bowling Green State University in Ohio. In 1957 he returned to the University of North Dakota as an assistant professor in biology. He served there for 33years, retiring in 1990 as Professor Emeritus of Biology. During his tenure at the University he served fifteen years as the Director of the Institute for Ecological Studies and 13 years as the Chairman of the Biology Department. While at the University he carried out research on behavior and ecology, especially on ants and other soil -inhabiting insects. He was the recipient of grants from the National Science Foundation. He published two books and many scientific articles and reports. He founded The Prairie Naturalist, a quarterly scientific journal, and served as editor for 27 years. He was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and of the Explorers Club. After retiring in 1990, Paul and Phyllis became winter Texans. Following the flood of 1997, they moved to Corpus Christi, Texas. There he volunteered for the AARP Tax-Aide Program, ultimately serving as the District Coordinator of the program. On 6 April 1953 he married Phyllis Mosher in Cooperstown, ND. He is survived by his wife and their two children, Katherine Ann (William) Sommers of Apple Valley, Minnesota, and Mark Allan Kannowski of Greencastle, Indiana, and by six grandchildren, Ryan, Noah (Mona), and Brandon Sommers, and Benjamin, Maggie(Dustin) Rogers and Katie Steele-Kannowski, and two great grandchildren, Lincoln Brandt Rogers and Nicole Mona Sommers. He was preceded in death by his brother, David Max Kannowski, in 2000.