Franklin E. Fisher

Message from the President

Aug. 16, 2024

Dear LMU Community:

I am saddened to share that Franklin E. Fisher, emeritus professor of mechanical engineering, passed away on Aug. 5, 2024. He was 91 years old.

Professor Fisher joined LMU in 1969 and was a full professor when he retired and became an emeritus in August 2004. He served for many years as chair of Mechanical Engineering. Even in retirement, he remained a familiar presence, frequently participating in university events and inspiring former students, colleagues, and alumni.

Professor Fisher taught various mechanical engineering courses, including “Machine Design,” and was a regular advisor on senior capstone projects. He was well known for his extensive knowledge of mechanical engineering design and analysis. One alum credited Professor Fisher’s graduate-level design course with helping the class develop the lightest thrust-to-weight rocket engine in the world.

He is co-author of “Probability Applications in Mechanical Design” with his wife, Joy, who holds an M.A. in engineering materials. Additionally, his book “Engineering Design: A Synthesis of Stress Analysis and Materials Engineering, Part 1” was a widely used reference in industry and in academia.

Before joining LMU, Professor Fisher was a research mechanical engineer at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C., a mechanical engineer with Ralph M. Parsons in Pasadena, California, and, concurrent with his tenure at the university, a senior staff engineer at Hughes Aircraft Company in El Segundo, California.

Professor Fisher earned his Ph.D. and M.S. at the University of Maryland and his B.S. at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Indiana.

Services to celebrate Professor Fisher’s life are pending. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations in Professor Fisher’s honor be made to the LMU Mechanical Engineering Department.

Please keep Franklin, Joy, their son Alfred ’91, daughter Amalea ’95, his friends, and his many students in your thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,

Timothy Law Snyder, Ph.D.
President