Susan Duncan, a longtime Bay Area political activist and trustee of the Peralta Community College District, died in Oakland on Jan. 13 after a long illness. She was 75. First elected in 1985, Mrs. Duncan served 19 years as a Peralta trustee, representing Area 6, which covers the hills of North Berkeley and Oakland's Rockridge and Montclair districts. She was a leader in the establishment of Berkeley City College, formerly known as Vista College. Peralta Chancellor and former Oakland Mayor Elihu Harris praised Mrs. Duncan's work on behalf of the 35,000-student system, which includes Berkeley City College, College of Alameda, Laney College and Merritt College.
"Her commitment not only to the Peralta Community College District but to the whole concept of community colleges as a source of lifelong learning was phenomenal," Harris said. "The Berkeley City College -- the new campus -- is a monument to her commitment to spreading access."
Friends and colleagues recalled her as a tireless advocate for expanding educational opportunity.
"You're talking about somebody who was dedicated to the East Bay. She's one of the most tenacious, persistent people I've ever known, she didn't let go when she got ahold of an issue," said Dion Aroner, former assemblywoman from Berkeley.
"If anything needed doing and there was a need to organize people around doing something, she'd organize it," said Betty Ann Bruno, a friend for 40 years.
Mrs. Duncan's lifelong passion for education was evident from the bumper sticker she sported on her car, which read: "If you think education is expensive, try ignorance."
Born in Denver, Mrs. Duncan grew up in the Los Angeles County town of San Marino and moved to the Bay Area to attend UC Berkeley, where she earned a bachelor's degree in psychology in 1953. A year later, she received a general teaching credential from Berkeley.
Mrs. Duncan's long career as a community activist began when she was raising three children and joined her local PTA and the League of Women Voters of Oakland. Over the years, she was active in the Marcus A. Foster Educational Institute, Lincoln Child Center board, National Women's Political Caucus, I Have a Dream - Oakland, Nuclear Free Oakland, Chabot Space and Science Center advisory council and the Women's Political Committee.She participated in several Democratic Party political campaigns and was a co-founder of A Central Place in the mid-1970s, which provided nonprofit groups a site in Oakland from which to base their operations.
"Susan was politically astute, but she was also very wise and very kind. If anyone was having a problem, Susan was always right there," said Jan Kaufman, a former human resource manager for the city of Oakland and a past president of the League of Women Voters of Oakland.
Mrs. Duncan is survived by her husband of more than 50 years, George Robertson Duncan; sons Douglas of Oakland and Garrett of Davis; daughter Barbara Linssen of Portland, Ore.; and four grandchildren.
San Francisco Chronicle, January 21, 2007
