Marilyn Gaddis Rose, a distinguished professor of comparative literature and the co-director of the the Translation Research and Instruction Program (TRIP), passed away on November 15 at the age of 85.

Gaddis Rose received her bachelor’s degree in English from Central Methodist College in Fayette, Missouri in 1952. She acquired a master’s degree in French at the University of South Carolina in 1955 and received her Ph.D. from the University of Missouri in 1958. She taught at William Jewell College, the University of South Carolina, the University of Missouri, Indiana University and Stephens College before finally joining the faculty at Binghamton University in 1968.

Her son, David Gaddis Rose, said that his mother overcame great difficulties to have such a successful career.

“She will be remembered for her amazing journey from the daughter of a Methodist pastor in a conservative small town to the top of her field in academia at a time when it was rare for women to have careers,” David said.

He said that she was a devoted mentor, teacher, parent and philanthropist who influenced the person that he became.

“She taught me right from wrong, how to be selfless and to pursue my passions,” David said. “She will be missed by all those who loved her, including a remarkable number of former students and colleagues.”

Luiza Moreira, the chair of the comparative literature department, said Gaddis Rose was a person who was dedicated to her students and colleagues, both with her time and with her finances.

“She was wonderful, she was very generous with her time with her students, graduate students and colleagues,” Moreira said. “She also endowed a fellowship, and one graduate student in the translation studies program was supported in his studies; as a result it was called the Marilyn Gaddis Rose Scholarship.”

María Constanza Guzmán, a former student of Gaddis Rose’s who graduated in 2001, said Gaddis Rose has an international reputation due to her translation program that continues to draw international students to the University today. She said this is in part why she received the Alexander Gode Medal Award from the American Translators Association (ATA) in 1988.

According to Guzmán, Gaddis Rose’s helpfulness and reputation also influenced her decision to study at BU.

“She welcomed me before I was admitted to the program,” Guzmán said. “I visited Binghamton, and she invited me to come to a conference she organized so I could meet people, and she arranged for me to be hosted and taken care of at Binghamton. She’s one of the reasons I decided to go to Binghamton; she had created a culture of a cohort and a community.”

Guzmán also said that Gaddis Rose’s dedication and caring was not exclusive to her; rather, she cared for all her students both in the classroom and out.

“She was very dedicated, she was always thinking of every single person — their strengths and their needs both academically and socially,” Guzmán said. “She was very caring for international students; I’m from Colombia, and many her of her students were international students, and she was very understanding of their differences.”

In her last years at the University, a book was dedicated in her honor featuring a collection of essays from her students. The book was called “Translation and Literary Studies: Homage to Marilyn Gaddis Rose” and was edited by three of her former students.

She is survived by her son, David, and two granddaughters, Alexis Jihye Rose and Lauren Kahye Rose.