Janusz A. Brzozowski *62

Body

Janusz Brzozowski, distinguished professor emeritus of electrical engineering at the University of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada, died of cancer Oct. 24, 2019, at age 84.

Born in 1935 in Warsaw, Poland, he was the son of a captain in the Polish Army who was killed in the 1939 invasion when Stalin and Hitler divided up Poland. In 1940, Brzozowski and his family were deported to Russia, and in 1942 they escaped to Persia. They were refugees in Teheran and later in Lebanon until 1949, when they immigrated to Canada.

In 1953 he graduated from St. Michael’s College School in Toronto, and he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1957 and a master’s degree in 1959, both in electrical engineering, from the University of Toronto. In 1962 he earned a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Princeton. That year, he joined the electrical engineering department at the University of Ottawa.

In 1967 he became a professor in the department of computer science at the University of Waterloo, where he was twice chair of the department. He retired in 1996. An early pioneer in theoretical computer science, he wrote almost 200 papers and co-authored two books. During his career he held many visiting appointments.

Brzozowski is survived by his wife of 60 years, Grazyna; two children; three grandchildren; and two step-grandchildren.

Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA.

No responses yet

Join the conversation

Plain text

Full name and Princeton affiliation (if applicable) are required for all published comments. For more information, view our commenting policy. Responses are limited to 500 words for online and 250 words for print consideration.

Paw in print

Image
PAW’s December 2025 cover, with a photo of Michael Park ’98.
The Latest Issue

December 2025

Judge Michael Park ’98; shifts in DEI initiatives; a night at the new art museum.