Beloved Detroit educator Rose Marie Dickens Swanson dies at age 83
Detroit Free Press, 12/29
Beloved Detroit educator Rose Marie Dickens Swanson dies at age 83
By Cassandra Spratling
Rose Marie Dickens Swanson was an exemplary educator and a nationally-admired community leader who served Detroit students with unwavering compassion while raising her own three children and serving as a role model to countless others. Swanson, 83, died Dec. 15 in Denver, Colorado, where she had relocated a few years ago to be closer to two of her three children. After battling and recovering from COVID-19 this summer, Swanson passed away due to several other health complications. Her career as an educator spanned more than 30 years. After retiring from Detroit Public Schools in 1989, she taught in the Colleges of Education at Eastern Michigan University and her beloved alma mater, Wayne State University. In addition to earning her bachelor’s degree from Wayne State University, she earned a master’s degree from the University of Michigan and an education specialist certificate from the University of Detroit. In 2019, she was honored for her contributions to Wayne State’s College of Education. One of the dean’s scholarships was awarded to a doctoral student in her name. While a student at Wayne State University, she was initiated into Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., a public service sorority. There, too, she demonstrated her leadership skills and love of service. She served as president of the Detroit Alumnae Chapter of Delta from 1989 to 1991.