Maxwell School News

Duffy, associate professor emeritus of political science, was known for his pragmatic analyses of headline-garnering international events, including arms control talks between the U.S. and former Soviet Union. He died Sept. 6, 2025, in Syracuse. He was 75. 

Bock, professor emeritus of political science and public administration and international affairs, taught at Maxwell for more than 30 years. He died on July 28, 2025, in Syracuse. He was 103.

Marotta ’50 B.A. (PSc)/’51 M.P.A. is considered an architect of the Peace Corps, established by the U.S. government in 1961 to assist developing countries by providing skilled workers in fields such as education, health, entrepreneurship, women’s empowerment and community development. He died July 26 at the age of 98 in Palo Alto, California.

Marquardt taught in the Maxwell History Department until his retirement, when he was granted emeritus status. He was an expert on German social history with a special interest in the history of German workers and catechisms, the texts that were used to instruct young Catholics in church doctrine. He passed away on July 10 at the age of 85.

Patricia Wallace Ingraham, a longtime Maxwell School faculty member who, among many accomplishments, was founding director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute and the first woman to be named a distinguished professor. Ingraham passed away on June 22, 2025. She was 82. 

Carroll, who retired in early 2024 as a research associate professor at Maxwell, passed away on June 21, 2025. He earned a master’s degree in social studies education from the University’s School of Education in 1970, followed by a Ph.D. in social science from Maxwell in 1985. 

Valerie earned a bachelor’s degree in policy studies in the spring of 2024 after just three years and with a 4.0 GPA, and was in her first year with the organization Teach for America. She passed away on Dec. 23, 2024.

Townsend joined the faculty in 1973, and through the decades served as a professor, mentor, writer and researcher in the Anthropology Department. He faced long-term health conditions but, so devoted to his craft and his students, he continued to teach through the spring of 2024. He passed away on Jan. 22, 2025, at the age of 83. 

Baldanza, a longtime Maxwell supporter and innovative business leader who helped transform the airline industry, passed away on Nov. 5, 2024. He was 62.

Kissel—a devoted supporter of Maxwell—passed away on July 21, 2024, at her home in Washington, D.C. She was 76.

Doris “Dottie” Payson ’57 passed away on Feb. 12, 2024, at the age of 87. She served on the Maxwell Advisory Board from 1998 to 2013 and was a life member of the University’s Board of Trustees, which she joined in 2000.

Ralph Hockley ’49 B.A. (RusSt) passed away on Nov. 8, 2023. He was 98. He fought valiantly to defend the U.S. and other allied countries against Nazis and threats to democracy through two wars and beyond. 

Roland Droitsch ’65 M.A. (PSc), who served as the deputy assistant secretary in the U.S. Department of Labor, passed away in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Jan. 26, 2024. He was 82.

Susan M. Walter ’69 B.A. (Hist)/’71 M.A. (PSc) passed away on April, 23, 2023, at the age of 75. She had a distinguished career in government and private industry and authored two books.

Chris Snow ’03 B.A. (PSt) passed away on Sept. 30, 2023, at the age of 42. He had a successful career in professional hockey and publicly lobbied, fundraised and raised awareness to help find a cure for ALS. 

Thomas P. Lauth ’76 Ph.D. (PSc) passed away on May 13, 2023, at the age of 85. He was a highly regarded professor and administrator.

Through his generosity to Syracuse University, he had a profound impact on the reputation of the Department of Philosophy and advanced the careers of some of the nation’s brightest philosophy scholars. Sutton passed away on May 31, 2023, in his home in Rancho Santa Fe, California, at the age of 90.

After graduating with a degree in history from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs and the College of Arts and Sciences, Goekjian remained an engaged alumnus, a trusted advisor to leadership, and an active board trustee and philanthropist—all in service to his alma mater. Goekjian passed away on Dec. 9, 2022, at the age of 95.