In Memoriam: Florence Rosenfeld Howe, 1929-2020

Florence Howe, educator and the founder of the Feminist Press, who is often referred to as the Mother of Women’s Studies, died on September 12 in New York City. She was 91 years old and had suffered from Parkinson’s disease.

A native of Brooklyn, New York, Dr. Howe was student body president at Hunter College of the City University of New York, where she majored in English. She went on to earn a master’s degree at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Wisconsin.

Dr. Howe began her academic career at Hofstra University and then Queens College in New York, In 1957, she joined the faculty at Goucher College in Baltimore.

In 1970, Profesor Howe founded the Feminist Press, a nonprofit publisher focused on equality and social justice. A year later, she joined the faculty at the State University of New York at Old Westbury, which became the home of the Feminist Press. The press is now affiliated with the City University of New York.

Dr. Howe was the author of the memoir, A Life in Motion (Feminist Press, 2011).