For those of you that attended CSULB Geography/GIS, you might remember Dr. Frank Gossette. Frank passed away September 8th.
Frank was my mentor and taught me everything I know about GIS. I remember when he arrived at CSULB in 1985, he had many great ideas about using GIS, which this new technology was fascinating to me at the time. I ended up using GIS for my Master’s Thesis. Frank was one of my thesis committee advisors. My best memories of Frank are at the ESRI conferences in San Diego when we met at Kansas City BBQ. It was great to catch up with him and talk with other CSULB graduates and students. I will miss him greatly.
Below is an email that went out from CSULB Geography leadership:
It is with great sadness we share the news of the passing of Dr. Frank Gossette on September 8, 2026. Dr. Gossette was a Professor of Geography at CSULB from 1985 to 2009. He earned his B.A. in Sociology and M.A. in Asian Studies from the University of Oregon in 1971 and 1973, respectively, and his Ph.D. in Geography from UCLA in 1980. His dissertation, titled Social Ecology in a Contemporary Chinese City: Taichung, Taiwan, applied some of the most cutting-edge approaches in the field of geography at the time.
Before joining the Department of Geography at CSULB, Frank taught at Northwestern University and the University of Delaware. A cultural geographer with interests in Asian studies, economics, and viticulture, he was fluent in Mandarin and a pioneer in the geospatial sciences. Frank was instrumental in developing and contributing to the department’s courses and research in geospatial technologies. Through numerous contracts and grants with local private and public agencies, he created applied internships for scores of undergraduate and graduate students. Frank and the students he mentored helped establish GIS programs in communities throughout Southern California and many geospatial practitioners in the region started their careers under his guidance, cultivating excellence. Frank also developed a unique student exchange program with the University of Salzburg, Austria bringing students from CSULB to Salzburg and Salzburg students to our campus, providing our students with an otherwise inaccessible international experience. He shared his love and deep knowledge of wine by hosting tastings for our student association. His graduate seminars, often culminating at Avenue 3 Pizza, were legendary. For more than two decades, former and current students have gathered every July at the Esri Conference at the Kansas City BBQ, a tradition that has become a tribute to Frank and his geospatial legacy.
The Frank Gossette scholarship was developed in Frank’s honor to support graduate student research. He wrote the following words to share at our 2026 Department banquet last May “…Giving – Is a wonderful act. Both the receiving part and the give benefit. We have been fortunate to have picked a field which is growing and opportunities for giving and giving back abound! We award some of our best with prizes for creative work and celebrate good ideas. I am proud to have my name attached to one such award and congratulate the current and former winners! I hope this is just the beginning of sharing good ideas…”
We raise a glass to you, Frank, to ideas, wine and travel.
In lieu of flowers, his wife Sarah London requests donations be made to the Frank Gossette Scholarship to continue supporting geography graduate student research.
https://giveto.csulb.edu/campaigns/frank-gossette-endowed-scholarship
Please share any memories. We will collect these to share with Sarah and to continue to honor Frank and his legacy.
SoCalGIS.org 