Robert Devaney, Boston University professor and award-winning mathematician who specialized in Dynamical Systems, died at his home in Charlestown, MA on November 16th. He was 77.
Bob was born on April 9th, 1948 in Lawrence, MA and was raised in nearby Methuen. The eldest of 8 children, he attended Central Catholic High School in Lawrence and the College of the Holy Cross, where his deep love of mathematics began. He went on to receive his PhD in Mathematics from the University of California at Berkeley, studying under Professor Stephen Smale.
Bob was a professor at Boston University for over 30 years, where he held the Feld Family Professorship for Teaching Excellence. He was the President of the Mathematics Association of America from 2013-2015. He was the author of 125 research papers, the author or co-author of 16 books, and delivered over 1,600 invited lectures in 50 states and 35 countries on 6 continents. He always regretted not speaking on Antarctica.
One of his greatest passions was transmitting his love of mathematics to younger students. Bob always felt that by the time students get to college, it may be too late for them to appreciate the wonders of math. His work in this area included creating the BU Math Field Days, an event he ran for 20 years. The Field Day brought more than 1,000 high school students and teachers from all over New England to BU to show them what’s exciting and new in mathematics.
His awards were numerous, including the MAA’s Deborah and Franklin Tepper Haimo Award for Distinguished University Teaching, Boston University’s Metcalf Award for teaching excellence, and a fellowship in the American Math Society, among many others.
Outside of mathematics, Bob loved opera, spending countless hours driving from Boston to the Metropolitan Opera in New York City, singing the whole way. He was also an avid sailor, frequently touring the New England coast in Cygnet with his wife Kathy. He loved Sudoku, doing it on the treadmill, the couch, or on a long walk. He loved travel, as well. There wasn’t a corner of the globe that he didn’t want to explore, and he was as happy to be driving a small highway in Texas as he was to be walking the Camino in Portugal.
He is survived by his wife, Kathleen Ferguson Devaney of Charlestown, MA, sons Robert (and his wife Alicia) of Haddonfield, NJ, and Stephen (and his wife Stephanie) of Portsmouth, RI, grandchildren Francis, John Paul, Gabriel, Maxwell, Bridget, Peter, Joshua, Mary Beatrice, and Veronica. He is also survived by brothers Christopher, William, Timothy, and John, sister Ann, and many nieces and nephews. He is pre-deceased by his daughter Meaghan, sister Rosemary, and brother Thomas.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend Bob’s visiting hours on Monday morning November 24, 2025 from 10 A.M. to 11:30 A.M. in The Carr Funeral Home, 220 Bunker Hill St. Charlestown, followed by his Funeral Mass at 12 Noon in St. Mary’s Church, 55 Warren St. Charlestown. His burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers contributions can be made to:
The Robert L. Devaney Scholarship Fund at
Central Catholic High School
Lawrence, MA
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