Professor Peter Howe remembered for his love of family and teaching
Courtesy of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
Peter Howe, an assistant professor of economics at Syracuse University, died suddenly on December 23. He is best remembered by his love for his family and teaching and respect for his students.
Peter Howe had a deep love for his family, teaching and living life to the fullest, friends said.
“I’ve known Peter for probably close to 20 years,” said Donald Dutkowsky, a professor of economics in Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. “I don’t say this lightly: He was a really good human being.”
Howe, an assistant professor of economics at SU, died over Winter Break on Dec. 23. He was 62.
Some of those who knew Howe at the university said they will never forget his respect for others, his dedication to economics and his faith.
After serving in the U.S. Army and then working for 17 years at Miller Brewing Co. plant in Volney, New York, until it shut down in 1994, Howe returned to school. He received a master’s degree in management from the State University of New York at Oswego in 1995 and a master’s degree in economics from SU in 2000.
Howe earned a Ph.D. in economics from Maxwell in 2004, going on to work as a faculty member at both Cazenovia College and SUNY Oswego before returning to SU in 2014.
Stuart Rosenthal, a professor of economics in Maxwell, was Howe’s Ph.D. dissertation adviser and said Howe “loved what he was doing.”
“He was very successful in the classroom,” Rosenthal said.
Jerry Evensky, a professor of economics in Maxwell, remembers Howe most for his treatment of students. Evensky said he has served on the economics department teaching evaluations committee, and one thing that stood out with the evaluations was that Howe was the top-ranked professor in the department for being respectful toward students.
“He was a very happy guy,” said Joe Maleh, a senior economics major at SU who had Howe for two semesters. “You could see he was very passionate about economics.”
Even with a growing family, Howe was able to push through and get his Ph.D.
“It was rare to find a completed economic Ph.D. who has children,” Dutkowsky said. “But it’s even rarer — I think he’s the only one — to complete an economic Ph.D. with grandchildren.”
Dutkowsky, Evensky and Rosenthal all noted Howe’s love for his family. He is survived by his wife Joanne Howe, his four children and seven grandchildren.
Even Maleh, after only seeing Howe a few days a week for two semesters, said he knew his professor was a family man.
“He was a good teacher of economics, but a better human being,” Dutkowsky said.
Published on January 16, 2017 at 7:19 pm
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