MIKE ROSE
1944–2021

The New Press is deeply saddened to note the passing of award-winning writer and educator Mike Rose who died on August 15 at the age of 77.

Rose taught for more than forty years in a wide range of educational settings, from elementary school to adult literacy to graduate education. In 1994 he joined UCLA's Graduate School of Education and Information Studies as a professor. His work championed under privileged students, the transformative power of education, and the importance of supporting institutions of learning that make education accessible.

Rose's Back to School was the first book to shed a light on the millions of nontraditional college students at community colleges and adult education programs struggling to make their way. His book Why School?, which the Christian Science Monitor called “a must read,” reflected upon the state of public education and decried the drumbeat of test scores and economic competition.

Read an obituary in UCLA News.