Faculty

In Memoriam: Remembering Professor Lucien L. Bass III

Well-known, respected, and beloved for his unwavering commitment, warmth, and dedication to students, Bass left an indelible mark on the UVA and McIntire communities. His legacy continues to inspire alumni and colleagues alike.

Lucien Bass

Retired McIntire Professor of Practice in Commerce Lucien L. Bass III passed away surrounded by family on the morning of Jan. 17, 2025. A beloved teacher, colleague, mentor, and well-respected figure within the Commerce School and across the University, Bass was known for his enthusiastic positivity; compassionate nature; and an unwavering commitment to those he served, worked with, and supported in his many roles at UVA and beyond.

Born in Richmond, VA, on Nov. 2, 1940, to Lucien Lloyd Bass Jr. and Mildred Lee Ragland Bass, he graduated from St. Christopher’s School and attended UVA, earning his Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering Virginia in 1963. Two years later, Bass completed his MBA at the Darden School of Business. As a UVA student, he was a member of the Honor Council, the president of the Engineering School, and the president of the Raven Society, which awarded him the prestigious Raven Award in 1963 for outstanding contributions to the University.

During his years as a student, Bass met his future wife, Mary Brush Bass, when she was a riding instructor at a girls’ summer camp. The couple married in 1962 at R.E. Lee Memorial Episcopal Church in Lexington, VA, and after graduation, they welcomed their daughter, Mary “Molly” Conover Bass.

Having relocated to Winston-Salem, NC, Bass began his career with the Bahnson Company, a designer, manufacturer, and international builder of industrial air quality systems for the worldwide textile industry. He held a variety of managerial, international, and technical consultation positions, and his increasing responsibilities led to international travel to Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. His final position as Director of Engineering saw him managing a team of approximately 75 engineers, designers, and technicians.

In 1978, he joined R.J. Reynolds Industries, where he served as Facilities Manager, before moving to Corporate Energy Planning Manager in 1979, a role he held until 1981. He would continue to hold several positions within the parent company and its subsidiaries until 1999, with international responsibilities in Business Planning and Development; the Avoca Agricultural Research Division, of which he was General Manager; Research and Development; and R.J. Reynolds Tobacco International, from which he retired in 1999 as Senior Director of International Development.

Following that first retirement, the Basses built and established their home, Bryn Rhaglan, in Crozet, VA, to be close to their daughter and the University. Bass began teaching courses as an Adjunct in International Business, International Marketing, and Negotiations at McIntire; International Marketing at Darden; and Ethics in the School of Engineering. By 2002, he joined the McIntire School as a Lecturer, teaching Negotiating for Value and Global Marketing.

Bass also served in an impressive multitude of capacities for a plethora of boards and programs. He served as Trustee for the School of Engineering; as a member and then President of the Virginia Engineering Foundation; as a member of the Executive Committee for the Darden Alumni Council; as a Board Member on the Board of Trustees for the Darden School Foundation; as a Board Member and then Chair of the School of Nursing Advisory Board; and as the University’s Secretary of the General Faculty.

During his time as a faculty member, Bass received a long list of awards, including the Charles C. Abbott Award for outstanding service from the Darden School (1996), the IMP Faculty Award (2005), the Henry St. George Tucker Award from the UVA Honor Committee (2006), the Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award (2008), and the Young Alumni Council Service Award (2012).

A lifelong Episcopalian, Bass started his journey of deep faith as an acolyte at St. Paul’s in Richmond and then continued it as a student at St. Christopher’s School, as a member of St. Paul’s in Winston-Salem, and as a member of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Greenwood, where he also served on the finance committee, as Vestryman, and as a Senior Warden.

Carl Zeithaml, F.S. Cornell Eminent Professor Emeritus of Free Enterprise and John A. Griffin Dean Emeritus, remembers Bass as “very simply, an extraordinary colleague and friend.”

“From our first meeting in Tokyo, to our conversations that brought him to the McIntire faculty, to the many years that we worked together, I was always impressed by Lucien’s enduring commitment to becoming a genuine faculty member (a difficult challenge that he made look easy), to his students, and, of course, to everything UVA and the McIntire School,” he recalls.

Bass’s service to a wide range of parties and people across the University distinguish him, and his dedication and hard work served as a role model for faculty, Zeithaml says.

“No matter the challenges that he faced, he remained positive and optimistic, a wonderful attitude that was contagious,” he adds. “His teaching was superb, and he was a legend among his students and our alumni while he was still teaching, an achievement realized by very few faculty members. As a professor, he was simultaneously creative, demanding, humorous, current, prepared, beloved, collegial, and caring about each and every student.”

Ultimately, Zeithaml counts bringing Bass on as a McIntire faculty member as one of the best decisions made under his leadership (“not that Lucien probably would have taken ‘no’ for an answer!”).

“Lucien and his impact will live on in the hearts and minds of his former students and colleagues,” Zeithaml notes. “I remember him for his wise counsel, his true friendship, his excellence and reliability, and perhaps as one of the last great UVA gentlemen.”

Fellow Professor Richard Netemeyer, Ralph A. Beeton Eminent Professor of Free Enterprise, who served as Senior Associate Dean and later as Marketing Area Coordinator during Bass’s time teaching at McIntire, remembers him as a great colleague and genuine friend.

“He gave all he could give to the students he taught, to McIntire, and to UVA,” Netemeyer says. “He was dedicated to the principles that make McIntire a great place to work and to all that UVA stands for. He loved this university. He treated all colleagues, staff, and students with respect, dignity, and compassion. And, he had a wily sense of humor—he could take a joke and tell a joke—just a pleasure to be around,” Netemeyer shares. “He had the human qualities that we admire and aspire to have ourselves. He was a loving husband and father. He was a really good man.”

Kathy Alderson of McIntire’s Business Office will remember Bass as a kind and thoughtful man who “appreciated anything you did for him,” thinking back to the joy he brought to his students. “He will be missed,” she says. “He was a true ‘Virginia Gentleman.’”

Read Professor Bass’s full obituary at Legacy.com.

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