Ralph Dudley Rutenber Jr. ’26

Ralph Rutenber, wellknown educator of Springfield, Mass., and from 1941-72 headmaster of the MacDuffie School for Girls, died Mar. 20, 1996, after a long illness.

Ralph came from Kentucky, where his father was a minister. He joined our junior class in 1924, transferring from Blackburn College, Ky. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa in his senior year.

After graduation Ralph was a master in Latin and English at the Choate School and in 1933 became senior master at the Wooster School. He was appointed headmaster at MacDuffie in 1941. He received an MA from Columbia in 1940 and an honorary Doctor of Literature from American Intl. College in 1959.

Under Ralph's leadership the MacDuffie changed greatly. It was moved to a new location, neighboring properties were acquired through gifts and purchases, new buildings were added, and the enrollment went from 30 to more than 360 students. Ralph also found time for other activities. He wrote several books, articles for leading publications, and took time for community affairs and his family.

In 1932 Ralph married Cleminette Downing, who became associate headmaster at MacDuffie, assisting Ralph in his work. Ralph is survived by Cleminette and their two children, Anne Clifton and John, a granddaughter, Dawn Clifton, a sister, Margaret Armstrong, and a brother, the Rev. Culbert Rutenber, to all of whom we extend our sympathy.

The Class of 1926