Olof Lundberg Jr., who spent nearly 50 years as part of the management faculty in the College of Business Administration at the University of New Orleans, died Dec. 28, 2022. He was 80.

Lundberg arrived at UNO in 1971 and retired in 2020 as emeritus senior associate dean and emeritus professor of management.

“He played an integral role in the growth and success of the College of Business Administration,” said Pamela Kennett-Hensel, dean of the College of Business Administration. “He mentored numerous faculty and students. Not surprisingly, many of us considered Olie to be more than a colleague; he was family.”

Lundberg was born in Albany, New York and raised in Slingerlands, New York. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Rochester in 1964 and his master’s from the University of Miami in 1967.

He moved to New Orleans in 1971 and joined UNO’s faculty after completing his doctorate in management from Pennsylvania State University. While at the university, he served stints as department chair of management and marketing and was the senior associate dean of the College of Business Administration from 2014 until his retirement.

Lundberg was awarded the Annette Weinberg Bernstein Endowed Chair in University Management in 2012. Other awards include being named the AACSB Federal Faculty Fellow in Washington D.C. from 1974-1975 in affiliation with the Brookings Institute, which involved developing a 10-year plan for the NASA Administration. Prior to his academic career, Lundberg was an auditor for Continental Insurance Company in New York City.  

Lundberg met his wife, Anna Maria Paone, at UNO. They married in 1973 and made New Orleans their home. According to his family, raising his three sons was the passion that guided his life. He coached his sons’ soccer teams; he attended every school event and athletic competition for his sons and grandchildren.

Aside from his family, Lundberg was passionate about the New York Yankees, Penn State football, the New York Times crossword puzzles, chess, the Kingston Trio, Rod McKuen poetry, Irish folk songs and any game that he played with his grandchildren.

He is survived by his wife of 50 years, his sons Derek (Kara Knowles) and Alec (Kallen Forster), and his sister Louise Deisseroth (Dr. Albert Deisseroth) of Washington D. C.; four grandchildren, Carter and Mia Lundberg and M. Gunner and Gray Forster. He was preceded in death by his son Marc.

Family and friends are invited to attend a celebration of life at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21 at the Homer L. Hitt Alumni and Visitors Center, Geoghegan Ballroom, 2000 Lakeshore Drive, New Orleans, La. In lieu of flowers, a donation can be made to the Marc C. Lundberg Scholarship Fund at the University of New Orleans.