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Salomon Dissertation Fellowship
Former undergrads will remember Roger Salomon as the man who introduced them to the intricacies of James Joyce or the wonders of modern American literature. Graduate alumni may have sharper, deeper memories. For years and years Roger interviewed every applicant to the graduate program who could travel to Cleveland , and his judgment on their achievements and promise was unerring.
Not that he let you off easily, for he legendarily refused to accept work he regarded as unfinished or unpolished. Remember the “incompletes” he insisted on at the end of the semester to give you time to continue revising your seminar paper until it met his standards? How could you forget, for once you finished your coursework, he was the one you sought out as a mentor. No one directed more dissertations than Roger in the last decades of the 20 th century.
You may also recall the many times Roger and his wife Betty opened their home for holiday parties, events for visiting writers and scholars, and events devoted to the other arts (painting and dance especially) they supported. Well, Roger retired some years back, leaving others of us to initiate students in Joyce and vet grad student applications, but he and Betty remain involved in the life of the department and, as the accompanying photo attests, they continue to host the annual Christmas party with unchanged grace and generosity.
Your own generosity seeded a dissertation fellowship in Roger's name, which has been helping to support worthy graduate students since 2003. This year the Department decided to use the remaining funds to establish a permanent endowment. We hope that if you are thinking of donating to the University you will consider helping us grow the Salomon Dissertation Fellowship fund.
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