Merle Richard Rose (March 6, 1933 – April 10, 2021) was an American academic. He was the tenth president of

Alfred University Alfred University is a private university in Alfred (village), New York, Alfred, New York. It has a total undergraduate population of approximately 1,600 students. The university hosts the New York State College of Ceramics, which includes The ...

from 1974 until 1978, when he left to become the seventh president of the

Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private university, private research university in the town of Henrietta, New York, Henrietta in the Rochester, New York, metropolitan area. The university offers undergraduate and graduate degree ...

from 1979 until 1992.

Early life

Merle Richard Rose was born in Fredonia, Pennsylvania on March 6, 1933. Rose earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

from

Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania Slippery Rock University, formally Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania (The Rock or SRU), is a public university in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. SRU is a member of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). The university ...

in 1955, a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

counseling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of co ...

from Westminster College and a

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

in higher education administration from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the universit ...

Career

He served in the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

as a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

, serving in active duty from 1955 to 1959 and in active reserves from 1962 to 1986. He was also a schoolteacher at the Lakeview School District in

Mercer County, Pennsylvania Mercer County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 110,652. Its county seat is Mercer, and its largest city is Hermitage. The county was created in 1800 and later organized in 1803. Merce ...

, eventually leaving to become a professor of education and assistant provost at the University of Pittsburgh from 1962 to 1972. He was appointed a Deputy Assistant U.S. Secretary of Defense for Education in 1972. In the same year of 1972, Rose published ''An Educational Road Map to Human Goal Fulfillment''. In 1975, he wrote, ''Educating the American Military Officer. The System and Its Challenges: An Overview'.

Alfred University

Rose became president at

in 1974, and served until 1978. He came into his tenure at Alfred University with a shrinking applicant pool with the national economy in a recession and inflation threatening private institutions. Edward G. Coll, Jr, the twelfth President of Alfred University, described Rose's tenure as bold, in the face of this economic crisis. During this time academic programming was not cut and admissions standards were kept high in order to stay competitive with the nation's leading institutions. Rose was quoted as saying, "Alfred University has a proud heritage, one not built on size. I do not believe the future of our institution rests in number of students, but rather on quality."

Rochester Institute of Technology

Rose was the seventh president of the

from 1979 until 1992. Under Rose's leadership, RIT incorporated

Eisenhower College Eisenhower College was a small college named after U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower, located on Cayuga Lake in Seneca Falls, New York. History Ground was broken on September 21, 1965, in a ceremony that featured President Eisenhower and his frie ...

in 1979 and expanded liberal arts and humanities programs. The first PhD program in

imaging science Imaging is the representation or reproduction of an object's form; especially a visual representation (i.e., the formation of an image). Imaging technology is the application of materials and methods to create, preserve, or duplicate images. ...

was launched during his tenure in 1990. In 1990, RIT paired with the University of Cape Town to offer a joint business management education program for black, Indian and mixed race students, aimed at reducing the racial divide in South Africa under the Government's

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

policy. In 1991, Rose touched off a firestorm of controversy by allegedly accepting a covert position working for the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

(CIA) at its headquarters in

Langley, Virginia Langley is an unincorporated community in the census-designated place of McLean in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Langley is often used as a metonym for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), as it is home to its headquarters, the Geo ...

, while simultaneously serving as RIT President. The resulting outcry and investigations by the local paper effectively ended his career at RIT, and he resigned, ending his presidency at the close of the 1991–1992 school year. In 1998, Rose was inducted into the RIT Athletic Hall of Fame. He is honored for his distinguished service to the university. His dedication describes: "With Rose’s encouragement in the 1980’s, RIT intercollegiate athletics steadily gained national prominence.... RIT virtually transformed its athletics program from one that seldom saw national championship play to one where NCAA appearances became commonplace in such sports as hockey, soccer, lacrosse, basketball, volleyball, wrestling, cross country and swimming."

Later career

Rose was a Trustee

Emeriti ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

Roberts Wesleyan College Roberts Wesleyan University is a private Christian university offering liberal arts and professional programs in Rochester, New York. It was the first educational institution established for Free Methodists in North America. Roberts is accredit ...

, a private Christian liberal arts college in New York state. He was also a trustee of the U.S. Air Force University.

Personal life

He was married to Clarice Ratzlaff for 65 years. Together, they had three sons: Scott, Eric, and Craig.

Death

Rose died on April 10, 2021, at his home in

Brooksville, Florida Brooksville is a city in western Florida and the county seat of Hernando County, Florida, United States. As of the 2010 census it had a population of 7,719, up from 7,264 at the 2000 census. Brooksville is home to historic buildings and residence ...

References

External links

Herrick Memorial Library Special Collections at Alfred University on M. Richard Rose
by Michael Saffran; Number 11, Volume 39, March 2007 issue of RIT ''News & Events'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Rose, M. Richard 1933 births 2021 deaths People from Mercer County, Pennsylvania Military personnel from Pennsylvania Presidents of Alfred University Presidents of Rochester Institute of Technology Slippery Rock University alumni United States Marines United States Marine Corps reservists University of Pittsburgh alumni Westminster College (Pennsylvania) alumni 20th-century American educators University of Pittsburgh faculty