Robin Mittenthal, an active and valued member of the CALS community for six years until this past spring, died this weekend due to an accident on his farm. He was 43 years old.

Mittenthal was the manager of the university’s global health certificate program from spring 2011 through spring 2017. His department home was the Department of Nutritional Sciences.

“Robin was a very thoughtful, passionate family man,” says Sherry Tanumihardjo, professor of nutritional sciences and director of the global health certificate. “His family was the most important thing to him. Some of this passion rubbed off in his mentoring of hundreds of students.”

This past April, Mittenthal took on a new campus role as the coordinator of the Upper Midwestern Regional Center of Excellence for Vector-Borne Disease at UW-Madison, housed in the School of Veterinary Medicine. In that role, he was responsible for coordinating partners in five states and tracking the center’s progress in addressing vector-borne disease challenges.

The sad news of Mittenthal’s death was first reported in a Badger Herald article. A touching tribute, highlighting his impact on students, is now available on the Global Health Institute website. A short obituary is also available on the Cress Funeral Home website.

A funeral service will be held on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 11:00 am at Cress Funeral Home at 6021 University Avenue. A visitation for family and close friends will take place ahead of the service from 10 – 11 am.

A GoFundMe account has been created in Mittenthal’s honor. Funds collected will help support the education of his two children, Costa and Lia. Mittenthal is also survived by his wife, Danielle, and other family members.

Grief counseling sessions: 

A grief session for faculty and staff who knew Robin will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 5. The session will be led by UW-Madison Employee Assistance Office staff from 12:30-2:30 pm in the conference room in CALS Academic Affairs (116 Ag Hall). The first hour will be a group session. During the second hour, Employee Assistance staff will be available for one-on-one consultations.

Faculty who cannot attend the Dec. 5 session and would like help processing this loss should call the Employee Assistance Office at (608) 263-2987.

A grief session for students will also be held on Tuesday, Dec. 5. That session runs from 4:00 – 5:00 pm in room 38 of Agricultural Hall. A grief counselor from University Health Services will be in attendance.

Students also have other options for assistance and support:

• The Dean of Students Office, located in room 70 of Bascom Hall. Students can drop in from 8:30am – 4:00pm, Monday through Friday, to talk to someone; call (608) 263-5700; email dean@studentlife.wisc.edu; or chat at www.students.wisc.edu/doso/live-chat.
• Students can schedule an Access Consultation via phone, MyUHS, or in person to speak with a counselor to get connected to support services at University Health Services’ Mental Health Services (333 East Campus Mall, 7th floor).
• For immediate mental health assistance after hours or on weekends, call the UHS Crisis Line at: 608-265-5600 (option 9).