P.S. Nichols, SDSU Activist, Is Dead at 55

Human rights activist Prescott S. (Nick) Nichols, 55, a professor of English and comparative literature at San Diego State University, died Wednesday night, apparently of a heart attack, while driving home. Passers-by found him about 6:15 p.m. where he had pulled his car over to the side of the road.

Nichols, an advocate for part-time faculty members at SDSU, was involved in efforts to unionize college professors in the California State University system.

He taught for 22 years at SDSU, where he once urged fellow teachers to strike in protest over former Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr.’s veto of a 2.5% cost-of-living increase for state workers. As recently as December, Nichols organized silent vigils to oppose U.S. support for the contras in Central America. The 40-minute silent ceremonies are still held each Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. on campus.

A stout, barrel-chested man, Nichols had a reputation as a questioner, a gadfly, one campus official said. “He was the conscience of his department and of the university,” English Department chairwoman Elsie Adams said.

Longtime friend Sheila Moramarco said, “He was the most vocal proponent for human rights in this county. He was recognized throughout California as a leader of liberal political causes, . . . but he always saw the people before the cause.”

He was born in Palm Springs and served as an officer in the Coast Guard from 1953 to 1956. He attended Stanford University, where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in literature. Nichols took his Ph.D in comparative literature from Redlands University.

Nichols helped found and was the first chairman of the comparative literature department at SDSU.

A past president of the San Diego Chapter of the United Professors of California, he also served as a member of the executive board of the California Faculty Assn. and was its statewide secretary.

He is survived by his wife, Lee, and three children, Sara, Scott and Evan. He also is survived by his father, Culver, of Palm Springs, and two brothers.

A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Tuesday at Casa Real at San Diego State.