Sherman T. Folland

Sherman Thomas Folland 1945-2021 Sherman “Sherm” Thomas Folland, 76, passed away on Sunday, October 24, 2021, at his home in Romeo, Michigan, after a long struggle with pancreatic cancer. Sherman was born January 9, 1945, in Crookston, Minnesota, the son of Norval and Gladys (Hauger) Folland. Norval and Gladys were the children of Norwegian immigrants. He grew up in Karlstadwith his two older brothers, Nathan and Glenn and graduated from Karlstad High School in 1963. Sherman got a bachelor’s degree in political science and economics from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota in 1968. He was drafted into the Army that same year and spent most of the next two years stationed in Frankfurt, Germany, working as a court reporter. During his time in the Army, Sherm learned German and traveled in Europe, including a visit to relatives in Norway. Sherman went to graduate school at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. His grad school years included multiple canoe trips with friends to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Ely. He received his PhD in Economics in 1975. His specialty was the economics of health and healthcare. Sherman met Donna Louise Fleming in 1977, Pierre, South Dakota, at a celebration for South Dakota ratifying the Equal Rights Amendment. They married in 1980 in Vermillion, where Sherman taught and researched at the University of South Dakota. In 1981, Sherm got a position at Pennsylvania State University (Capital Campus, Harrisburg). Sherm taught and conducted research at Penn State for four years and at Lebanon State College (Annville) for one year. Daughter Johanna Louise was born in Lancaster in 1983. The family moved to Michigan in 1986 when Sherm accepted a position at Oakland University in Rochester. Daughter Ingrid Ann was born in Rochester in 1989. The family of four moved to Romeo in 1991. Sherm filled his days with music including songs he wrote and played on the piano. He loved long conversations with friends at home, in the neighborhood and at the pubs in downtown Romeo. Sherm’s life was devoted to his study of social capital and economics of health care. He spent nearly three productive decades at Oakland University. With co-authors Allen Goodman and Miron Stano, he published eight editions of the textbook The Economics of Health and Health Care. He co-founded The Oakland Journal in 2000, which ran for nearly 20 years and gave a voice to many people on campus. Sherm published over 50 peer-reviewed articles. In 2013, Sherm and co-editor Lorenzo Rocco published The Economics of Social Capital and Health, A Conceptual and Empirical Roadmap. Sherm was passionate about working globally. He was a Fullbright Scholar in Freiburg, German in 1994-95, focusing on the health care systems in countries emerging from the Eastern Bloc. He travelled to Norway as a researcher at the University of Bergen from 2007-2010. He felt a strong connection with Norway and loved sharing the trips with his family. Sherman retired from Oakland University as a Professor Emeritus in 2015. In 2018, he publisheda second volume of social capital research, The Elgar Companion to Social Capital and Health, with co-editor Eric Nauenberg.He then published a series of blogs to promote the work of individual contributors to the Companion. Sherman is survived by his wife, Donna Louise Folland; his daughters, Johanna Louise Folland and Ingrid Ann Folland (Jamie Tidman); and his brothers, Nathan Folland (Angel Kwolek-Folland) and Glenn Folland (Christine Folland). Sherm cared deeply about the welfare of others. He believed in the power of the individual to make change, was always ready for a vigorous debate, and lived an adventurous life.We miss him and keep him in our hearts. Services are private. A memorial celebration that brings together family, friends and colleagues of Sherman is planned for Spring 2022. Ashes will be interred at Bruce-Armada Cemetery. Sherman contributed to many charities; his family suggests contributions to Doctors without Borders or the American Civil Liberties Union for donations in his memory.