Dr. Kopp held a B.A. from Goshen College in Indiana, an M.A. from the University of Minnesota, and a Ph.D. from The Pennsylvania State University, all in German. Before coming to the University, he taught at Augsburg College in Minneapolis, served as executive director of the International Voluntary Service Organization in Switzerland, taught at Goshen College in Goshen, Indiana, and worked with the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office in the Royal Government in Swaziland.

Upon completion of his doctorate in 1960, Kopp was named director of Penn State's Language Laboratories and assistant professor of German; he was named professor in 1975. Before accepting the position of deputy vice president for International Programs, Kopp was assistant and associate dean in the College of the Liberal Arts, director of the Foreign Studies Program, and associate provost for International Programs.

Kopp was heavily involved in the plan for internationalizing the University put forth in 1994 by the International Council, and worked tirelessly with international institutions around the world, fostering linkages for joint research and for both faculty and student exchanges. International Programs made great strides under his leadership, building on the core functions of study abroad programs and services to international students. Today, the office sends more than 2,000 students abroad each year, and welcomes more than 3,500 international students to campus.

In 1995, Kopp received the Penn State Administrative Excellence Award and the title of Honorary Companion from Victoria University in Manchester, England. He also served as an officer for national organizations, such as the American Association for Teachers of German, the Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences and the Council on International Educational Exchange. He held membership in the Modern Language Association, and the Association of International Education Administrators.

Upon his retirement from the University in 1996, Penn State’s International Achievement Awards were renamed in his honor. The W. LaMarr Kopp International Achievement Awards annually recognize a faculty member, staff member, graduate student, and undergraduate student for significant contributions to the advancement of the international mission of the University. Kopp believed the awards served three purposes: as a stimulus for others to become involved in international studies; as a way to honor the work of people striving to bring the global community closer; and as a way to show the University’s commitment to internationalization. Of the renaming, he said, “It’s the greatest honor I can imagine.”

The renaming of the award not only honored Kopp’s work in bringing Penn State into the world community but also his lifelong efforts to bring the global village closer and make it more accessible. “This is an interdependent world, in which we have to know our neighbors and to understand that they have their own priorities, just as we do. It is incumbent on us in our role as educators to develop a generation of new leaders who are globally informed,” Kopp said.

The Pennsylvania Council for International Education (PaCIE) honored him with the Lifetime Achievement Award upon his retirement. This award, also renamed for Dr. Kopp, is presented to outgoing international educators who have demonstrated longstanding excellence, commitment, and leadership in the field of international education. The PaCIE website lauds his contributions, noting that he left a “legacy…defined by dedication, activism, and far-sightedness.”

Dr. Kopp was a member of the State College Literary Club, served on the Board of Eastern Mennonite College (now University) for 16 years, and served on the Boards of United Campus Ministry, International Hospitality Council (now Global Connections), International Friendship House, and Interfaith Coalition Against Community Violence. He also held numerous positions in University Mennonite Church, where he was a charter member.

He is survived by his wife of 46 years, Nel Boon Kopp, who he met during his Mennonite Voluntary Service in Europe; and by two daughters, Dr. Kristine Kopp Charles of State College, and Ingrid Kopp Magill of Akron; and one son, Erik LaMarr Kopp of Bedminster, New Jersey. He is also survived by four grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the University Mennonite Church Building Fund, 318 South Atherton Street, State College, PA 16801 or Mennonite Central Committee, 21 South 12th Street, P.O. Box 500, Akron, PA 17501.

For more information, contact Janet A. Haner, public affairs coordinator for Penn State International Programs, at 814-865-0771 or jah3@psu.edu.