Joan S. Carver

Joan Sacknitz Carver passed away peacefully at her home on August 21, 2025, in Atlantic Beach, FL. Services will be held on September 4, 2025, at 1:00pm at St. Paul’s by the Sea Episcopal Church in Jacksonville Beach, FL to honor her life and legacy. In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be sent to The Humane Society and No More Homeless Pets.

Joan Sacknitz Carver was born on January 22, 1931, in Spokane, Washington to Weldon and Mabel Carver. She later attended Barnard College, a small liberal arts college in New York City, where she was a Seven College Conference National Scholar. She earned her bachelor’s degree in government there in 1953. Joan went on to complete her Master of Arts in Political Science at the University of North Carolina in 1957 and later received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Florida in 1965. While at UF, she served as a Graduate Fellow.

Joan’s early career began in New York City, where she worked as Secretary to the Ambassador of the Delegation of Iran to the United Nations from 1953 to 1955. After moving to Florida, she taught at Lake Shore Junior High School in Jacksonville from 1956 to 1957, followed by a position as Office Manager at Bartram School from 1957 to 1958. In 1963, Joan joined Jacksonville University (JU) as an Instructor in Government, where she spent the remainder of her professional career. She was promoted through the ranks from Assistant (1965-1969) to Associate (1969-1975), and then to Full Professor (1975-2001). From 1968 to 1978, she was the Director of the Taft Seminars in Practical Politics at JU. Joan chaired the Division of Social Sciences from 1982-1983 and then chaired the self-study reaccreditation for the University’s 1983 reaccreditation. Shortly after the successful reaccreditation, Joan became Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences at JU and served in that role for 17 years. While serving as Dean, she chaired the college’s Assessment Committee, the Re-Forming Major Committee, and Dean’s Council. During her academic career, she received several awards for her accomplishments including the JU Professor of the Year Award in 1972, the prestigious EVE Award in Education given by the Florida Times Union in 1982 and was the inaugural recipient of the JU Woman of the Year Award in 2000. Joan was revered by both her students and her colleagues for her excellence as an instructor and an administrator. She was known for her thoughtful approach and keen intellect.

Joan’s professional service extended to numerous academic and civic organizations. She was active in the Florida Political Science Association, the American Society for Public Administration, the Women’s Caucus for Political Science, and the Southern Political Science Association, where she held several leadership roles. In the community, she served on the Jacksonville Mayor’s Commission on the Status of Women, chaired a subcommittee of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, and was president of both the Jacksonville Women’s Network and the Board of Trustees of St. John’s Country Day School. She was also a proud member of Phi Beta Kappa. In 2020, Joan was recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the League of Women Voters, Jacksonville, for her 60-year career as professor, researcher, and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Jacksonville University; for her membership in professional associations; and for her extensive and ongoing service to the Jacksonville community.

Joan also contributed to initiatives with national and global impact. She was selected by the Secretary of Defense to serve on the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACOWITS), which is composed of civilian women and men appointed to provide advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment, retention, employment, integration, well-being, and treatment of women in the Armed Forces of the United States. In this role she traveled to US and international military bases to observe, analyze and make recommendations for change.

Joan’s personal life was equally rich. She married Jay Randall Carver on June 25, 1955, and enjoyed 57 years of marriage before Jay’s passing in 2012. Joan and Jay were perfectly paired intellectual introverts. Together Joan and Jay had one son, James Randall (Jim) who died in 1987. Jim was a varsity swimmer at Dartmouth College, where he received a BA in Computer Science in 1983. Jim received his MS in Computer Science from USC in 1985 and began working in software development. Joan enjoyed swimming, reading, walking on the beach, and gardening. She is survived by her sister-in-law Joanna Sacknitz, numerous nieces and nephews, long-time close friend and colleague Elizabeth Winstead, and her beloved cat, Toby.

The family expresses gratitude to the Mayo Clinic, physical therapy staff at Fleet Landing, Community Hospice, and special caregivers Debbie Hyatt, Brooke Schudlich, and Jennifer Hein.