Susan Mandel Glazer (Inducted 2018)
Biographical Statement
Internationally recognized for her many contributions to literacy education worldwide, Dr. Susan Mandel Glazer, 78, of Lawrenceville, NJ, passed away Feb. 13, 2017. Born in Jersey City, Dr. Glazer was a graduate of Syracuse University (B.A.), New York University (M.A.) and University of Pennsylvania (Ed.D). During her 45 years at Rider University, Dr. Glazer made tremendous contributions to literacy education worldwide. She spoke at local, state, national and international professional meetings in all 50 states and in 29 countries of the world. She served as president of the prestigious International Reading Association(IRA). Among the many awards she earned were: IRA Teacher Educator of the Year, Rider University's Faculty Research Prize and over 200 literacy awards from reading councils across the world. Dr. Glazer loved teaching children to read and college students how to teach reading. She founded and chaired the graduate program at Rider University that prepared teachers to be reading specialists. She also established the Center for Reading and Writing where children ages 5 through 17 worked with graduate students. Throughout her 35 years as director of the Center for Reading and Writing, she authored 18 books and more than 200 articles on literacy education.
Tribute
The education community lost a leading literacy advocate in February with the passing of Susan Mandel Glazer, a past president of the International Reading Association (IRA), now the International Literacy Association (ILA). Glazer was a professor at Rider University in New Jersey for 45 years, where she founded the Center for Reading and Writing as well as the graduate program for reading specialists. A prolific author and researcher, Glazer will be greatly missed. The following is a tribute written by Linda B. Gambrell, also a past president of IRA, who served on the Board of Directors alongside Glazer.
Susan Mandel Glazer was a literacy scholar and trailblazer who was committed to serving struggling readers and was recognized for her many contributions to literacy education worldwide. We were fresh out of our doctoral programs when I met Susan, and she was already involved in establishing what would become her lifelong passion: the Center for Reading and Writing at Rider University.
Sadly, Susan, a past president of IRA, passed away in February at the age of 78. Although she will be remembered for her many publications and presentations, she will continue to be known most of all for her spearheading leadership in serving students who struggle with reading and writing.
I first met Susan at an IRA conference in the mid-1970s. She was making a presentation with one of her mentors, Morton Botel, and I was presenting with my mentor, Robert M. Wilson. The four of us crossed paths in the convention center and our mentors introduced us.
A couple of years later, my husband had a job transfer and we moved to Yardley, PA. We made a quick trip to the area to look for a house, and we booked a room in a nearby hotel. As we walked in, it was clear there was a huge IRA state conference in progress. As we were checking in, I looked up to see Susan walking out of the exhibit area.
As fate would have it, this was a very fortuitous encounter. Anyone who has had the pleasure of knowing Susan would not be surprised to learn that when she heard my husband and I were moving to the area, she immediately took us under her wing. She introduced me to literacy leaders throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, she invited us to lovely dinners, and she took us to the best restaurants in the area. Susan was gracious and giving, and she had a deep and abiding love for her profession. She was a magnificent teacher, a productive scholar, and an innovator in developing university centers to serve struggling readers and writers.
I had the pleasure of serving on the IRA Board of Directors during Susan's presidency from 1994–1995, along with Rich Vacca and Jerry Johns. Rich remembers Susan as "the consummate literacy educator. She loved her work, her students, and her colleagues. We will miss her dearly." Jerry and Susan shared an intense commitment to students who struggle with literacy learning. He remembers her "dedication to the reading and writing clinic at Rider University, along with her many professional publications that resulted in significant contributions to our field."
Susan was an exceptional literacy leader and scholar. Her enthusiasm for literacy, warm smile, and contagious laughter will be missed by all who knew her.
Linda B. Gambrell (2017) for the International Reading Association