Alfange, Dean, Jr.

Dean Alfange, Jr. was a professor in the political science department at UMass Amherst teaching constitutional law and civil liberties until his retirement in 1999. During that time he also served in the positions of Dean of the Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences and Acting Provost. Growing up on New York’s West Side, he earned a B.A. at Hamilton College in 1950. He served in the military from 1952 to 1957; this was followed by twenty years of serving in the Air Force Reserves, retiring in 1980 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. In 1960 he earned a master’s degree from the University of Colorado followed by a doctorate from Cornell University in 1967. During his teaching career he received distinguished teaching awards from both Lafayette and UMass. The Dean Alfange Lecture Series in Constitutional Law was funded by a group of former students and brought distinguished scholars in that field to speak annually. Following his retirement from teaching, he was able to pursue his interest in the arts and became a supporter of several small theatrical groups in New York City.

The Alfange papers contain a small array of correspondence, photographs, course syllabi, handwritten lecture notes, writings, awards, and documents related to the Alfange lecture series. A small amount of files relate to his time in the military and his interest in theater and music.