Carl Jorgensen

“

He fearlessly argued that community service should count as part of a professor’s intellectual and scholarly contribution.

Dr. Carl Jorgensen died on November 3, 2026, at age 85. He was our colleague and friend, a beloved father, grandfather, and uncle, and a professor of Sociology at UC Davis from 1971 to 2005. He is now resting in perfect peace, power, knowledge, and love.

Carl was born in 1941 in Washington, D.C., and grew up in a loving Black community. There he thrived at McKinley Technology High School and developed lifelong passions for learning, math, music, and softball. With his uncle’s encouragement, he went on to graduate from Harvard in 1962. He then served in the Peace Corps in Nepal (1962–1964) before earning his doctorate from the University of Michigan in 1971.

That same year, Carl moved to California to join the UC Davis Department of Sociology. Over more than three decades, he taught and published on Afro-American thought and interpersonal dynamics, the contributions of Booker T. Washington and Frederick Douglass, early African American women in sociology, identity formation among people of mixed heritage, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Alongside his work in Sociology, he chaired the Afro-American Studies Curriculum Committee for more than 30 years.

Carl’s commitment extended well beyond the classroom. He fearlessly argued that community service should count as part of a professor’s intellectual and scholarly contribution. He did so most notably during the tenure case of Professor George Kagiwada, when he stood alongside Dr. Lindy Kumagai and Dr. Isao Fujimoto. Carl and Dr. Kumagai also spent countless hours in meetings working to establish the campus Affirmative Action program. Carl’s daughter, Cara, and Dr. Kumagai’s granddaughter Shannon often played together nearby.

“

Carl cared just as deeply for students. He supported and mentored student activists, including Andrea Gaytan, Cecilia Escamilla Greenwald, and Dr. Lorraine M. Wilkins.

Those years also brought Carl a close friendship with Dr. Jack Forbes, one of the founders of Native American Studies at UC Davis. Their bond endured: in Jack’s later years, Carl drove him to his doctor’s appointments until Jack’s passing.

Carl cared just as deeply for students. He supported and mentored student activists, including Andrea Gaytan, Cecilia Escamilla Greenwald, Dr. Lorraine M. Wilkins, and many others. Many of his conversations with colleagues and students took place at Delta of Venus, where Lee Walthall greeted and served him for years.

Throughout his adult life, Carl championed voting rights and took an active part in three campaigns: those of Robert F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, and Melissa Moreno. His friendship with Melissa grew even closer when his granddaughter, Demitris, was born on the same day and in the same hospital as Melissa’s daughter, Ixchel. Carl was the first friend to congratulate her. Determined that both girls, and all children, would learn about our multicultural society, Carl and Melissa joined the Davis Ethnic Studies Coalition with Norbi Kumagai (DHS Class of 75) and others calling for an Ethnic Studies course requirement and coordinator at Davis High School.

Music ran through Carl’s advocacy and his everyday life. He especially loved the work of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, along with jazz, gospel, and much more. The last concert he attended featured the local band Katalysst Atlas.

“

Music ran through Carl’s advocacy and his everyday life. He especially loved the work of Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, along with jazz, gospel, and much more.

Yet even deeper than his love of music was his devotion to democracy. On the last day of his life, with all his heart and mind, Carl cast his vote, and then he said goodbye.

Carl is survived by his daughter, Cara Jorgensen, and his granddaughter Demitris. We give thanks to his family, his grandmothers, and his ancestors for all the fire and light he shared with so many. Deeply embedded in the community, Carl will be greatly missed.

A memorial will be held next month at the Unitarian Church in Davis. Details will be announced by Cara Jorgensen.