David Satran, director of the AAP, remembers Dr. Hall’s commitment to the program and to AAP students’ success.

“I have fond memories of Nancy at our faculty meetings, which she made a point to attend even after she retired,” Satran said. “Nancy was always prepared to share some happening from the Georgetown campus that she wanted me to know about, especially concerning a student achievement. 

“She was always attentive to matters large and small, and expected the same from others,” he continued. “Each year, when the dean would visit, she’d wait patiently for her opportunity—and then be sure to let him know what was on her mind!”

Jon Manon, adjunct instructor in math at the AAP, remembers how Dr. Hall welcomed him to the Georgetown campus as she prepared to retire in 2019.

“Nancy welcomed me without hesitation when I came to teach our Elementary Teacher Education program's math courses in Georgetown,” Manon said. “She was gracious in turning over the reins of those courses and generous with her time in sharing ideas and materials—and, of course, her favorite ‘pumpkin Pi’ cartoon!

“When I first inherited the third course in our ETE math sequence, Nancy's students were clearly saddened that she would no longer be their math instructor,” Manon continued. “Their fondness for and devotion to her clearly ran deep. Nancy Hall was an icon in the Georgetown program and will surely be missed by students and colleagues one and all.”

After teaching for more than 50 years in southern Delaware, Dr. Hall was an institution at the Georgetown campus — teaching, in some cases, three generations of students from the same family. She was always delighted to discover that a new student was the son or daughter of a student she had taught decades before.

AAP alumna Erika Komp took several math courses with Dr. Hall while pursuing her Elementary Teacher Education associate degree in Georgetown. Komp, who graduated from the Newark campus in 2014, is currently pursuing her doctoral degree in special education at Slippery Rock University and says Dr. Hall positively influenced her own approach to teaching. 

“Dr. Hall was so cherished,” Komp said. “I honestly hated math until she was my professor and showed me how I can love math and pass on loving math to my students, as well. 

“She never went anywhere without her coffee and was always gracious and kind in her teaching practices. I remember there were only eight of us in class, and she made sure to teach each and every one of us based on our learning styles. She would always laugh at her own mistakes, and never minded when we corrected her.” 

Dr. Hall was an accomplished pianist and bassist and performed with the Dover Symphony Orchestra for three seasons. She regularly attended music festivals, particularly festivals for her beloved bluegrass and mountain music, and performed in AAP music events with other faculty musicians at the Georgetown campus. 

Nancy S. Hall

Nancy Hall was born on March 28, 1942, in Dover, Delaware, to John Daniel Schafer II and Louise Stayton Schafer. She grew up in Wilmington and enrolled at UD as an undergraduate in 1960, going on to earn both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in math at UD. She married Jay Hall in 1964 in Wilmington, soon after moving to Cape St. Clair, Maryland. She joined the faculty of the newly formed University Parallel Program, now the Associate in Arts Program, in 1968, commuting from Cape St. Clair. She and her husband were also part owners of a small hobby shop and general store in Cape St. Clair and worked there until Jay’s death in 1991. 

Dr. Hall returned to graduate school at the University of Maryland, College Park, to pursue a graduate degree in history of science, selecting as her dissertation topic the statistician Ronald Fisher. 

In addition to making research trips to archives in England and Australia, Dr. Hall also enjoyed travel for its own sake. This spirit of adventure nearly led to tragedy during a cruise to the Galapagos Islands in 2000 when she and 12 other passengers were swept into the sea after their boat struck a reef. They were rescued after 13 hours in a small lifeboat.

Dr. Hall completed her Ph.D. in history of science in 2002. In later years, she shifted her academic focus to Fisher’s contemporary Gertrude Cox, publishing several articles about Cox’s contributions to the field of statistics and presenting about her life and work at conferences across the U.S., Canada, and France. 

She is survived by her brother, John D. Schafer III of Key West, Florida.; her three children, Rebecca, Eric, and Ken Hall; four grandchildren, Ben, Abby, Kayla and Jeremy Hall; and her friend and partner Pat Lewis of Harrington, Delaware. The Hall family plans to hold a memorial service for her at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations in Dr. Hall’s name may be made to Junior Appalachian Musicians at https://jamkids.org/donate.