Erwin Levine
Erwin Levine, professor emeritus of government, died January 12, 2002. He was 75.
Erwin received his Ph.D. from Brown University. He joined the Skidmore faculty in 1961 and taught until his retirement in 1988. He chaired the department of government from 1979 to 1986. A specialist in American presidential politics and government, he wrote several books, including An Introduction to American Government (considered a definitive text for government students) and a two-volume biographical study of the Rhode Island politician and statesman Theodore Francis Green. Erwin and Elizabeth Maiden Newell ’68 were co-authors of Public Law 94-142: An Act of Congress, The Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975, published in 1981. In addition to his essays in academic journals, he wrote several articles for Grolier’s American Government Encyclopedia. In 1972, his fellow faculty selected him as the Moseley Faculty Research Lecturer.
Erwin served on and chaired many committees on educational policies, tenure, appointments, and more. He frequently participated in programs coordinated by the alumni, development, and admissions offices. He was also active in a number of civic and governmental pursuits, and in 1998 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Capital District chapter of the National Society of Fund-Raising Executives.
Skidmore president Jamienne Studley wrote that Erwin “epitomized the faculty ideal of teacher, scholar, and citizen. He was passionate about his teaching, insightful and productive in his scholarship, and effective and tireless in his service to the Skidmore and Saratoga Springs communities. He was demanding of and devoted to his students, and generations of Skidmore students responded with respect, loyalty, and gratitude.”
His son, Dana, predeceased him. Wife Mary Ellen Fischer, professor emerita of government at Skidmore, his daughter-in-law and grandson survived him.