In Memoriam: Faculty and Friends

Notices sorted by graduation date

Ann J. Lane of Charlottesville died May 27, 2013. She was a professor of history and women’s studies. Ms. Lane arrived at the University in 1990 to lead the women’s studies program, now the Women, Gender & Sexuality program, and she taught in the history department in the College of Arts & Sciences. She advocated for equal treatment of female faculty and students and helped transform the University into a more diverse community. Before arriving at U.Va., she taught history at Douglass College of Rutgers University, the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York, and Colgate University. Ms. Lane was a research fellow at the Mary Ingraham Bunting Institute of Radcliffe College/Harvard University from 1977 to 1983 and was a recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Ford Foundation and the Virginia Social Science Association. Her early scholarly work focused on Southern and African-American history, but she ultimately turned her attention to feminist theory and women’s biography, most notably the work and life of Charlotte Perkins Gilman. Her published works include The Charlotte Perkins Gilman Reader, which helped direct attention to the neglected feminist writer, and numerous scholarly and popular articles. Ms. Lane, known for her warmth and her vital interest in the people around her, stepped down as women’s studies director in 2003, although she continued to teach until her retirement in 2009. Survivors include two daughters and five grandchildren.