Phillips, Dr. Darrell G.

Dr. Darrell G. Phillips, 82, of Coralville, passed away Saturday, Sept. 21, 2013, at Country View Assisted Living in North Liberty. A Remembrance Gathering for Darrell will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26, at Lensing's Oak-Hill in Coralville.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to either Rocky Mountain National Park or Country View Assisted Living. For Rocky Mountain National Park, follow this link: http://goo.gl/RmsYQ6 and reference “Phillips memorial” in the online form. For Country View Assisted Living, direct memorials to: Country View Assisted Living, Attn: Kelly Quigley, 1515 W Penn St., North Liberty, IA 52317, and reference “Phillips memorial.”

Darrell was born Dec. 15, 1930, in Sweetwater, Texas, to Gordon and Maurine Phillips. He earned his Bachelor's Degree in Music from Sul Ross State University in Alpine, Texas, in 1952, and married his first wife, Dorothy Bridges (Drake), that same year. Darrell also served in the United States Army from 1952 to 1954, where he played clarinet in the 7th Army Band. In 1955, Darrell and Dorothy welcomed a daughter, Denise, and in 1958, they were blessed with their second daughter, Karen. In 1960, Darrell earned his MA in Physics from The University of Texas and worked in nuclear physics at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tenn., from 1960 to 1964. In 1967, he earned his Ph.D. in Science Education from Florida State University, then moved to the Iowa City area in 1968. He worked as an associate professor of Science Education at the University of Iowa until his retirement in 1998 and was married to Virginia Dale (Rubley) Phillips from 1972 until the present. In 1978, Darrell and Dale welcomed their daughter, Danielle, to the family.

Working with his wife, Dr. Dale Phillips, Darrell originated and codirected the Developmental Activities Project, or dap, a math and science education program for grades K-12. In the 1980s and 90s, dap was implemented in classrooms nationwide and throughout the Iowa City Community School District. Darrell was also a master woodworker and enjoyed crafting furniture.

Darrell is survived by his wife, Dale; and three daughters, Denise Phillips (Debra Weldon) of Vancouver, Wash. Karen Brigid Taliesin (Brian Taliesin) of Seattle, Wash. and Danielle Rubley Phillips (Andrew Fuerste-Henry) of Dubuque.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at .

Published in The Gazette Sept. 24, 2013.