Elaine Bernasek was born in Lorain, Ohio, on September 2, 1930. She met Victor Andrews when they were both 15. They married on July 9, 1954.

After receiving a B.A. in Russian History from Stanford University in 1952, Elaine worked for the National Security Agency in Washington, D.C. Victor served in the Army Reserves during the Korean War, in a Strategic Intelligence Detachment and worked at the Pentagon in the summers. He and Elaine began dating and married while Vic was at the University of Chicago, where he earned an M.A. in Economics and an M.B.A. before earning a Ph.D. in Economics from MIT in 1958.

While living in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Elaine earned a Master of Arts, a Masters in Law and Diplomacy, and a Ph.D. in international economics, all from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. She taught economics at Boston University and Simmons College before the Andrews moved to Atlanta in 1968, where Victor was hired to create the Finance Department at Georgia State University. He chaired the department for twenty-five years and served as the Mills B. Lane Professor of Banking and Finance.

In Atlanta, Elaine began doing corporate work and then became an early consultant on computer administration and computer applications for corporations. In addition to his work in the academy, Victor taught in-house financial programs at banks all over the South. The Andrews also collaborated together, consulting on real estate investment trust salvage programs and out-of-court bankruptcies.

Victor retired as chair of the Finance Department in 1993, and in 1997 the Andrews moved to Savannah, where the couple enjoyed golfing, travel, and becoming involved in local and state non-profit institutions.

In January 2008, Elaine was diagnosed with cancer. She died on July 5, 2009, four days shy of their 55th anniversary. She is buried in Bonaventure Cemetery.

In 2014, as part of GHS’s Next Century Initiative, Victor created the Victor L. Andrews Charitable Remainder Unitrust, a planned gift that created an endowed position, The Dr. Elaine B. Andrews Distinguished Historian. The position honors Dr. Elaine Bernasek Andrews and ensures the sustainability of high-quality, scholarly-based educational programming at GHS. It is a fitting tribute to Dr. Elaine B. Andrews.