In Memoriam: Mary Zeiss Strange, 1950-2024

Mary Zeiss Strange, professor emerita of women’s studies at Skidmore College, passed away on July 6. She was 74 years old.

Dr. Strange served as a professor of women’s studies and religion at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York, for nearly three decades. She also served as the college’s inaugural director of the women’s studies program. Her teaching interests centered around the intersection of feminism, history, religion and spirituality, environmental studies, and politics. Upon her retirement in 2016, the college established the Mary Zeiss Strange Award in Religion. The honor is awarded annually to an outstanding senior student majoring in religion.

Prior to her long tenure with Skidmore College, she held several teaching positions with various institutions across the country including Clarkson University in Potsdam, New York, Black Hills State University in Spearfish, South Dakota, Dana College in Blair, Nebraska, Montana State University at Billings, and Central Michigan University.

Over the course of her career, Dr. Strange edited and authored several books on various religion and feminist topics including Woman the Hunter (Beacon Press, 1998), Gun Women: Firearms and Feminism in Contemporary America (NYU Press, 2000), and her memoir, Hard Grass: Life on the Crazy Woman Bison Ranch (University of New Mexico Press, 2010).

Dr. Strange was a three-time graduate of Syracuse University in New York, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in English literature, a master’s degree in religion, and a Ph.D. in religion.