Joseph Svec ’56

Longtime Cornell College theatre professor Joseph Svec ’56 died July 27, 2018, in Whitewater, Wisconsin.

Svec majored in theatre arts, English, and history at Cornell, and received a master’s degree in theatre arts at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He taught at Minot State University in North Dakota and Valparaiso University in Indiana before returning to Cornell as a theatre professor from 1963 to 1987. In addition to directing and designing sets for the college’s productions, he established a summer community theatre and a student-directed children’s theatre program.

During his summer months Svec’s interests in architecture and history were employed in the restoration of historic homes in Mount Vernon. After retirement he restored an opera house in West Branch, Iowa. He married former Cornell music professor Karen Coburn (Houkom) and they resided in Tucson, Arizona, with extended stays in Prague, Czech Republic. They eventually settled in Whitewater, Wisconsin. Joe is survived by his wife, sons Joe Svec III and John Svec ’87, a daughter-in-law, stepchildren Kirsten Houkom-Hafner ’84 and Joel Houkom ’86, two grandchildren, and two step-grandchildren.