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A Special Feature of Cal State LA’s Perspectives: A Journal of Historical Inquiry, Volume 52
Dr. Chen at a Chinese New Year Celebration at Professor Ping Yao’s home, February 2015.
Dr. John Calvin Chen, a dedicated scholar, mentor, and philanthropist, passed away on September 14, 2024 at 80 years old. He received his M.A. in history at Cal State LA in 2011. Dr. Chen maintained deep connections to the History Department until his death, and made a generous gift to the department in his will.
Chen was born in Augusta, Georgia, to Chinese immigrant parents, Lora (Lee) Liu, a chemist, and Calvin Henry Chen, a medical doctor. He initially studied history, earning a BA from Pacific Union College in 1971. In 1974, he received a medical degree from Loma Linda University and went on to specialize in child and adolescent psychiatry. He practiced psychiatry at the University of Southern California, the Alameda County Health Services Agency, and the Augustus F. Hawkins Mental Health Center at the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, where he became the center’s chief psychiatrist. He also taught as an adjunct assistant professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine.
Throughout his life, Chen devoted time to his many intellectual interests, earning a PhD in Philosophy from Claremont Graduate University in 1984. In 1987, he earned a law degree from UCLA School of Law and was admitted to the State Bar of California. In 2011, he earned an MA in History at Cal State LA. Chen’s lifelong love of history inspired him to study migration and cultural identity and to learn more about his own family’s history.
John Chen at an Alhambra restaurant with Dalvin Tsay (MA graduate and now PhD student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Jason Chiu (MA graduate and now AAAS professor), and Professor Ping Yao. July 19, 2019.
At Dalvin Tsay’s MA graduation, Jun 15, 2014.
A beloved teacher, mentor, and friend
“He was a brilliant man. He was such a gentleman and very considerate; he tried his best to help the weaker students. He was a kind and courteous human being, he had very old-fashioned values. He was always very curious and intellectually aware.”
— Professor Choi Chatterjee
At Cal State LA, Dr. Chen played an active role in the history department as a student, mentor, and member of Perspectives. His research on his family’s history in modern China, “Sinicizing Christianity in China: The Conversion of Chen Qingde,” was published in Perspectives Volume 34. In Volume 35, he contributed a review of Timothy Tackett’s When the King Took Flight (2003). He served as historian for both volumes, and as copy editor for Volume 36. In 2009, Chen received the History Department’s Mike Kimmel Award for outstanding returning students. With the guidance of Dr. Yao, his master’s thesis explored modern China and its diaspora. Chen was also an active member of the campus chapters of Phi Alpha Theta and Phi Kappa Phi.
John, as he insisted to be called, was known for his patience, kindness, and dedication to helping others, particularly international and immigrant students. A regular at departmental events, he developed close and enduring relationships with professors in the History Department, who remember him fondly for his modesty, intellectual curiosity, and good humor.
John Chen (second from right) on a Cal State LA history student trip to the Getty Center. August 28, 2016.
Dr. Chen’s family history became the subject of The Ties That Bind: A Transnational Family from China to the US, an exhibition at the Cal State LA library in 2015.
John Chen remained a benefactor of the Cal State LA History Department long after his graduation, dedicating himself to preserving and sharing history. In 2015, he generously donated artifacts from his family archive, including five of Li Bundchen’s letters, family photos, and heirlooms, to the History Department and the Asian and Asian American Studies Program. This donation enabled undergraduate students to curate Ties that Bind: A Transnational Family from China to the U.S., an exhibit that opened at the John F. Kennedy Library on May 28, 2015. The exhibit attracted audiences from on campus and beyond, with notable attendees such as Congresswoman Judy Chu. The same year, he contributed an oral history to the university’s Chinese American Oral History Project. Furthermore, he extended his history research in the community through his work with the Chinese Historical Society of Southern California.
“If someone needed a little extra help or patience, then he’d be right there. That’s the sort of person that John was.”
— Professor Birte Pfleger
Dr. Chen’s dedication to Cal State LA extended far beyond his many intellectual contributions. He established a faculty research fund to support scholarly work and, upon his passing, named the Cal State LA History Department as one of the principal beneficiaries of his will. His selfless gift ensures that the department will continue to serve future generations of students and faculty. While we mourn Dr. Chen’s passing, his legacy of scholarship, mentorship, and generosity will live on, inspiring and supporting scholars for years to come.
Dr. Chen is survived by his nephew, Jesse Chen, and his community of colleagues, students, and friends. The History Department and the students of Perspectives share our heartfelt gratitude for Dr. Chen’s generosity and support.
“He loved tutoring kids, especially immigrant kids. After he graduated, he tutored for free—teaching piano, English, math, a variety of subjects, not just history. But he always said history was his biggest love.”
— Professor Ping Yao
At the opening of The Ties that Bind. The exhibit was created by the department of Asian and Asian American Studies and History based on Dr. Chen’s family history. May 28, 2015.
Dr. Chen’s legacy lives on through the students he uplifted, the minds he inspired, and the compassion he shared so generously with the world.
All photos courtesy of Dr. Ping Yao.
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