UR leader Paul Burgett dies 

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Paul Burgett, a towering, larger-than-life man and the beloved vice president of the University of Rochester, died August 25 after a brief illness.

Burgett was a graduate of the University's Eastman School of Music and spent much of his career in key administrative positions at the university. Devoted to young people, he served as dean of students both at the Eastman School and the UR River Campus and had co-chaired the university's Commission on Race and Diversity. 

He had also served on the boards of numerous organizations in the broader community, including the Strong Museum, the Rochester Zoning Board, the Urban League, Hochstein, Hillside, the YMCA, the United Way, Genesee Country Village, and the George Eastman Museum. An expert on, and champion of, the music of black Americans, he chaired the Gateways Music Festival's board of directors. And he had been actively involved in the Rochester Fringe Festival since its founding.

He is survived by his life partner, Nazareth College Professor Emerita Kay Valentine. Private services will be held at a future date.