John S. Vanderoef *68

Body

John Vanderoef, professor of political science emeritus at Florida State University (FSU), died March 23, 2013, at the age of 83.

Vanderoef graduated from FSU with a bachelor’s degree in 1950 and a master’s degree in 1951, both in political science. He served in the Air Force during the Korean War, after which he earned a master’s degree in politics from Princeton in 1958.

In 1959, he began teaching at FSU and remained there until retiring in 1997. He completed his Princeton Ph.D. in 1968.

His major areas of expertise were British government and American political thought. He was a well-regarded professor and adviser to the thousands of students in his classes during his almost 40 years of teaching.

Vanderoef is survived by a first cousin, Jean Kohl, and his lifelong friend and colleague, Dr. Richard B. Gray.

Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA. 

No responses yet

Join the conversation

Plain text

Full name and Princeton affiliation (if applicable) are required for all published comments. For more information, view our commenting policy. Responses are limited to 500 words for online and 250 words for print consideration.

Paw in print

Image
The cover of PAW’s November 2025 issue, featuring a photo of a space probe and the headline "Made in Princeton."
The Latest Issue

November 2025

NASA’s new IMAP mission, London’s big data detective, AI challenges in the classroom.