Leon David Epstein (May 29, 1919 – August 1, 2006) was an American political scientist. He was born in Milwaukee on May 29, 1919, and raised in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. He enrolled at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1936 to study economics, earning his bachelor's and master's degree in 1940 and 1941, respectively. While serving in the military, Epstein was stationed in the United Kingdom and took classes at the University of Oxford. He subsequently completed a doctorate at the University of Chicago in 1948. Epstein began teaching at the University of Oregon in 1947, and accepted a faculty position at his alma mater, UW–Madison, in 1949. Two years later, Epstein was promoted to associate professor, followed by full professor status in 1958. He chaired the political science department from 1960 to 1963, and was dean of the College of Letters and Sciences between 1965 and 1969. Epstein led the

Midwest Political Science Association The Midwest Political Science Association (MPSA) is a professional association of political science scholars and students in the United States. It was founded in 1939, and publishes the ''American Journal of Political Science'' in conjunction with ...

in 1972, and served as president of the

American Political Science Association The American Political Science Association (APSA) is a professional association of political science students and scholars in the United States. Founded in 1903 in the Tilton Memorial Library (now Tilton Hall) of Tulane University in New Orleans, ...

from 1977 to 1978. He received a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

in 1979. Epstein retired from teaching in 1988, and became the Hilldale Professor of Political Science, Emeritus. He died at home in Madison on August 1, 2006, of injuries from a fall. The Leon Epstein Outstanding Book Award given by the American Political Science Association is named for Esptein. He was married to Shirley Golewitz from 1948 to her death in 2001.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Epstein, Leon 1919 births 2006 deaths American political scientists University of Chicago alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty Writers from Milwaukee People from Beaver Dam, Wisconsin Accidental deaths from falls Accidental deaths in Wisconsin 20th-century political scientists