Victor B. Schneider, a computer science pioneer dies at 82

Victor Schneider, PhD started his innovative career by developing programming at a contractor for NASA’s first lunar lander. Later in 1969 he was hired as a professor to establish the first computer science degree program in the nation at Purdue University, together with Professor Samuel D. Conte. He went on to author a number of groundbreaking papers while mentoring students.

At Purdue “he nurtured and guided a number of students to graduation and, in many instances, remarkable careers in both industry and academia,”  according to Frank Friedman, a previous graduate student, himself a 47-year Professor Emeritus, Computer and Information Sciences at Temple University. “He was not only my PhD advisor from 1972-74, but he was also my friend.”

“I'm sorry to hear of the loss of Dr. Schneider; in the decade he was here he was quite prolific and one of the people who put Purdue on the map in computer systems - he was responsible for a number of Ph.D.'s.” stated Christopher W. Clifton, Professor of Computer Science, Interim Department Head Purdue University.

Victor later moved to work at Raytheon on DOD to develop advanced rocket guidance systems before eventually retiring in Florida.

With a Benjamin Franklin Scholarship, Victor did his undergraduate studies at MIT in electrical engineering and French. He then went on to California to earn his master’s degree at Stanford in Palo Alto in electrical engineering; and in Chicago developed his PhD towards computer science at Northwestern University (titled industrial engineering).

Passionate for the language arts, in addition to English and French, he spoke and studied German, Italian and Hebrew. Ahead of his time, he was an environmentalist and a vegetarian and inspired others in his family to follow in this regard.

Victor was born in 1941, in Boston, Massachusetts, to  Jacob (Jack) and Rose Schneider.  He is survived by the mother of his children, Lea Schneider, and her sons Jesse (with his wife Laura and daughter Miriam) and Jerold (with his wife Melissa, son Lawson and daughter Sarah) and Benjamin (with his girlfriend Miriam).

Victor Schneider passed away on Saturday, April 13, 2024, of natural causes in Ocala, Florida.

A graveside ceremony will be held on Sunday, 4/21 at the Sharon Memorial park at 9:45 am in Sharon Massachusetts.

Feel free to leave your memory below. It is requested no flowers be sent. To help reforestation in his memory. See link to purchase a tree.