Barbara Flaschenriem

With great sadness, the members of the Department of Classics at Grand Valley State University mourn the passing of our dear friend and colleague, Barbara Flaschenriem.

Barbara passed away on August 15, 2013, at Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan, following a long illness. Initially appointed in the Department of English in 1998, she became a founding member of the Department of Classics in 2000.

Professor Flaschenriem held the Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of California at Berkeley. Prior to joining Grand Valley, she held faculty appointments at Seton Hall University and Yale University. Her teaching and scholarship were informed by aspects of feminist theory focusing upon representations of women in Roman literature and society. Her writing was marked by great subtlety and intellectual grace. Colleagues and students cherished her unassuming but wry demeanor and her intense passion in the classroom. Prof. Flaschenriem was at work on a monumental study of the Roman poet Propertius that was left uncompleted at her death.

A memorial gathering was held at the Alumni House on GVSU's Allendale campus on Sunday, September 8.