Ruth Anderson was the UC Davis dean of women, but you could also have called her the dean of women's rights.

Anderson, who died Feb. 13 at age 89, helped establish the campus Women's Center, and the Network for Graduate and Faculty Women. She assisted in implementing Title IX, prohibiting discrimination against female athletes. And she helped found Alternatives in Birth Control at the Student Health Center, among other projects.

She was dean of women and later associate dean of students from 1962 until her retirement in 1987.

"For 2 1/2 key decades, Ruth Anderson was determined to make UC Davis take women seriously," said Robin Whitmore, co-director of the Women's Resources and Research Center, formerly the Women's Center.

Anderson's survivors include her children, Candace Janet Anderson of Davis, Kristine Anderson Pyeatt of Tijeras, N.M., and Katherine Anderson Dixon of Solana Beach.

A memorial service is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday in the University Retirement Center auditorium, with a reception to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for contributions to a UC Davis endowed fund in Anderson's honor; send donations to the UC Davis Foundation, 1480 Drew Ave., Davis, 95616.

— Dave Jones