Professor Rita Nealon Cooley died on October 1, 2006, in her home in New York City. She was born in New York in 1919 and attended a Catholic School in the Bronx where she won the Classics prize and was the Class Valedictorian. After graduating from Hunter College in 1940, cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and as winner of the Constitutional Law prize, she was awarded the Penfield Fellowship by the department of politics at NYU in 1943 and began taking courses in the graduate school.
One of her courses, on English history, was taught by the then dean of the graduate school. She received an “A” in the course, as well as in the other four courses she took and was summoned to the dean's office. The dean said to her: “Mrs. Nealon, I think you have the makings of a very good teacher and I want you to help us out by teaching in the history department two sections of the required European history.” Rita always said this was the most momentous event in her life and began her illustrious career as a university teacher. She received an M.A. in 1946 and completed her Ph.D. in 1949. She was promoted through the ranks and was the first woman to be given tenure and become a full professor in the politics department. She retired in 1986 and was designated Professor Emerita. During her 42 years at NYU she taught more than 30,000 students.
At her retirement party, a colleague quipped: “She paid all our salaries for years.” He was referring to the fact that she taught very large classes, up to 275 students including many who were on the GI Bill of Rights. The politics department also recognized her by naming a seminar room and a student prize in her honor.
She was the first woman in the liberal arts to win the Great Teacher Award and won the “Golden Dozen” award (a choice by undergraduates of their 12 favorite professors) for six successive years. One had to be on campus to receive this award and she was not eligible for the 1965–1966 academic year because she had been awarded a Fulbright Professorship at the University of Innsbruck in Austria. During that year, she also lectured at the Universities of Graz and Salzburg and at the Austrian-American Gesellschaft in Vienna.
Professor Cooley was very active in university affairs. She was elected several times to the All-University Faculty Council and became the chairperson in 1975, another first for a woman. She was a member of the Graduate Dean's Advisory Committee, serving under five successive deans.
Despite her heavy teaching and committee schedules, she supervised 12 doctoral dissertations and was able to publish scholarly articles. Her publications included a 30-page article on “Teaching Social Science” in Steven M. Cahn's book Scholars Who Teach (1978), and a textbook, Government in American Society (1950), which she wrote with three colleagues. Her articles appeared in several journals including Social Science, American Journal of Legal History, Journal of the American Judicature Society, Western Political Quarterly, School and Society, American Political Science Review and the New York University Law Review. She also authored many reviews of books in the field of American government.
After her retirement, she continued to attend meetings of the current NYU Faculty Council which invites former chairpersons for their “institutional memories.” She was very well known throughout the University. At the retirement party for a colleague in the history department in the spring of 2002, the honoree in addressing those present (about 100) said: “I want to acknowledge the presence of Prof. Cooley at this event. I have known, admired, and loved her for more than 50 years.” Everyone in the room stood up and applauded.
In 1977, a former student and sitting judge conceived and organized a “Friends of Rita Nealon Cooley Association.” The group assembled on October 19, 1997, at the home of another former student to honor their favorite professor and life-long friend. Thirty-five in all attended the joyous occasion, traveling from Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Oregon, and as far away as London. Included were an international financier, a noted author, a New York State Supreme Court Justice, and several university professors, as well as physicians, lawyers, and other professionals. Even the New York Times made note of the occasion, publishing a feature article on the gathering in its “City” section. Age spans of former students who attended ranged from 38 to 83; each recounted their relationship with Professor Cooley. She, in turn, regaled her audience with recollections of classes each had taken, papers written, and grades and critiques she had given them, dating as far back as 40 years. Her humor, dynamic personality, passion for her profession, and love for her students filled the room.
Rita Cooley died in October 2006. Her husband, Professor Hollis R. Cooley of the NYU's Courant Institute for Mathematical Sciences, had died in 1987. Her survivors include her stepson, a stepgranddaughter, and two nieces.
Rita Cooley was a legendary NYU Professor. May she rest in peace.
