The City College is mourning the loss of David S. Rumschitzki, a stalwart professor of chemical engineering for four decades in the Grove School of Engineering. He died suddenly in his office on Nov. 2, 2023. He was 66.
Professor Rumschitzki was a colossus both on campus and in his field, with numerous accomplishments and honors to his credit.
Athletic and indefatigable, he was an enduring figure in Steinman Hall, guiding and advancing the educational careers of generations of students in one of the best public engineering programs in the nation.
Professor… Read More »
James de Jongh, a scholar and playwright best known for fashioning oral histories left by formerly enslaved people in the 1930s into “Do Lord Remember Me,” a 1978 stage work that painted an unflinching picture of the human cost of slavery, died on May 5 in the Bronx. He was 80.
Professor de Jongh was a longtime member of the English department faculty at City College and the City University of New York Graduate Center, where he specialized in African American literature and the literatures of the African diaspora. But briefly in his early career he had been an actor, and he… Read More »
Centenarian Benjamin B. Ferencz, a distinguished 1940 City College of New York alumnus, and the last surviving prosecutor from the post-WWII Nuremberg trials, died in Boynton Beach, Fla., on April 7. He was 103.
Three years ago, Mr. Ferencz had turned 100 a month earlier when he delivered the keynote speech at The City College’s first ever “Virtual Salute” in celebration of its Class of 2020. He received the honorary degree Doctor of Laws from his alma mater, and is believed to be the oldest honorary… Read More »
Dear Members of the City College Community,
I am so sad to bring you the news that Professor Rishi Raj passed away this week, following a protracted illness against which he struggled mightily. He was at home, surrounded by his family and that, his daughter Rashmi reports, was a great comfort to them all.
She was also particular to share the news that Rishi was tremendously proud to have finished off this past semester with his students; seeing it through to completion became one of his most fixed goals as his health declined, and that drive is emblematic of his dedication to… Read More »
It is with great sorrow and a heavy heart that I communicate the unfortunate passing of our dear friend and colleague Barry M. Gross, Professor of Electrical Engineering.
Barry passed away on December 27, 2022 at Mount Sinai West Hospital surrounded by family and colleagues.
Barry was a two-time alumnus of the Department of Electrical Engineering at CCNY, having earned his master's in 1988 and his PhD in 1992. He then returned to join the electrical engineering faculty in 1993. Throughout his tenure, he displayed an unwavering devotion to the College, his… Read More »
George Lois, art director, designer and advertising man died on Nov. 18, 2022. A long time friend and backer of The City College of New York, Lois was born in the Bronx in 1931 and graduated from the the High School of Music and Art when it was located on the CCNY campus. He was accepted to the Pratt Institute. He left during his second year to work for designer Reba Sochis. He was drafted into the army six months later, where he fought in the Korean War.
Upon returning from Korea, Lois went to work for the advertising department… Read More »
General Colin L. Powell will be remembered as a man of extraordinary accomplishment: a trailblazer, a role model, and an inspiration. And he was a proud son of City College, a person from humble origins who never forgot where he started. The son of Jamaican immigrants, born in Harlem and raised in the South Bronx, when it came to college, it was CCNY or nowhere, as he often reminded us. He found ROTC here, and he discovered his purpose and direction. He went on to greatness, but he never left this College behind.
The Colin Powell School reflects his vision,… Read More »