Gita Jane Wilder, 76, of Princeton died on July 21, 2013 following an 11 month battle with cancer. She was in hospice care at the Merwick Care and Rehabilitation Center in Plainsboro, New Jersey where her family and friends provided her with constant companionship and care. Gita was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on June 22, 1937, the daughter of Aaron and Miriam Zabarkes. Aaron was a science teacher in the Philadelphia public school system and Miriam was a secretary in the school system as well. Gita received a BA in sociology/anthropology from Bryn Mawr College, where she also did graduate work in child development and education. She received an MA in sociology/demography from Brown University and an MA and PhD from Princeton University in psychology.

From 1959-63 she was a research assistant for a Longitudinal Growth Study at Children's Hospital in Philadelphia. In 1964 she joined the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in Princeton, first in the Test Development Division and then in the Division of Education Policy Research, where she was a senior research scientist and was a director of the Research Survey Center. During her 34 years at ETS she worked on a broad spectrum of educational programs. Examples include: member of the team that carried out the original evaluation of the educational impact of Sesame Street; project director of "A Review of the Literature on Gender Differences in Test Performance"; and developer of process measurements for an evaluation of federally-funded Parent-Child Development Centers. While at ETS, she took a two-year leave of absence (1992-94) to serve as director of summative research for ghostwriter at Children's Television Workshop where she coordinated and directed all research activities related to this new multi-media literacy project for children. From 1999-2005 she was a senior social research scientist at the Law School Admission Council in Newtown, Pa., where she was a member of the executive coordinating committee for the "After the JD" study, a longitudinal study of legal careers. She also provided oversight of the Law School Admission Council Research Grants Program. From 2005-10 she was a senior social science researcher at the National Association for Law Placement in Washington D.C., where she continued her research on the early-career experiences of lawyers.

From 1987 until she became ill in 2012, Gita also held a number of adjunct and visiting professor positions: Adjunct Assist. Prof., Department of Psychology, Bryn Mawr College; Adjunct Assist. Prof. Social Science, Mercer County Community College; Adjunct Instructor in Social Science, Somerset Community College; Visiting Lecturer, Department of Psychology, Princeton University, where she taught a number of courses and, in particular, taught in the Teacher Preparation Program.

Gita deeply enjoyed teaching each semester at Princeton University. Her course, psych 307, educational psychology, a requirement in the Program for Teacher Preparation, was very popular with students, particularly psychology majors and those interested in educational policy. She was a compassionate educator, insisting students meet her high standards, but deeply respectful of their desire to become, or at least consider becoming, educators. She also worked with teachers from local schools in QUEST, a summer elementary science course run by the University's Teacher Prep program.

In her work with Teacher Prep, she brought a wonderful balance of wit and wisdom to the program's work, serving as a portfolio reviewer for elementary teaching candidates, and contributing her extensive educational research experience to decisions relating to evaluation and accreditation. She also helped develop the informational feedback survey given to Teacher Prep alumni and employers. Gita's insights, candor, and (unpretentious) point of view enhanced staff discussions and professional culture.

Gita's comic comments on life delighted her friends and colleagues and her one-liners are often quoted by them. On wine: "I never met a Pinot Grigio I didn't like." On observing the P-rade (and paraphrasing F. Scott Fitzgerald): "watching the privileged classes enjoy their privileges." Her splendid sense of humor brightened both social occasions and many a long faculty and staff meeting.

While at Princeton, Gita served, for many years, on the Institutional Review Board (IRB), which reviews all research proposals for concerns regarding safety and privacy. She also served as a student advisor for freshman and sophomore undergraduate students.

Among her many volunteer and community activities were: Member, Board of Overseers and Chair of Evaluation Committee, Governors School of New Jersey; Trustee, Mill Hill Child and Family Development Center, Trenton, New Jersey; Literacy tutor, Literacy Volunteers of America. Also, for the entire 50 years she lived in Princeton, she was active in the Bryn Mawr Club of Princeton and worked on the Bryn Mawr book sale that raised money for the school's scholarship fund.

On a personal level, she enjoyed playing and listening to music during her entire life (she was first bass violinist in the All-Philadelphia High School Orchestra). She was also an inveterate knitter and supplied baby sweaters, hats, mittens, scarves, and afghans to what seemed like half of Princeton.

Gita is survived by her husband of 56 years, Joseph Wilder of Princeton; their daughter, Susan Wilder of Washington, D.C.; their son, Michael Wilder, his wife Elizabeth, and their daughters Isabel and Annie, also of Washington, DC; and their son David Wilder, his wife Lihi and their sons Aviv and Lev of Glendale California. She is also survived by her brother Arthur Zabarkes, his wife Irene, of New York, New York, and his children, Adriana and Rachel.

There will be a celebration of Gita's life on Sunday, September 29 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton, 50, Cherry Hill Road.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Bryn Mawr Scholarship Fund will be welcome.