Dr. Elizabeth Cummins, professor emerita of English and technical communication at Missouri University of Science and Technology, died on Saturday, Nov. 9. A memorial gathering will be held 1-3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 23, at Null and Son Funeral Home in Rolla. Instead of flowers, she asked that donations be made to the Larry Paul Vonalt and Elizabeth Cummins Vonalt Endowed Scholarship at S&T.

“Elizabeth was an amazing teacher, advocate, writer and friend,” says Dr. Kristine Swenson, chair and professor of English and technical communication. “She never stopped working to improve the campus experience for our students – especially women at S&T.”

Cummins earned an associate’s degree from Cottey College in 1958, and a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English from the University of South Dakota in 1960 and 1962, respectively. She earned a Ph.D. in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1985.

Prior to joining the Missouri S&T faculty in 1967, Cummins taught at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Her research interests included the science fiction works of Ursula K. Le Guin and Judith Merril, and literature by women – particularly in the fields of science and engineering.

Her S&T employment included nine years as department chair from 1990 to 1999. She was the first woman in the history of the university to become a department chair. For her support of women students and her active research program, she received S&T’s first Woman of the Year award in 1997.  

“Dr. Cummins was a person who tirelessly worked to create a better campus community,” says Dr. Mo Dehghani, chancellor of Missouri S&T. “This university is forever in her debt for paving the way for other women in faculty and leadership roles. She taught for over 30 years, touching the lives of numerous students. Missouri S&T is an infinitely better place because Dr. Cummins was a member of our faculty.”

After retiring, Cummins served as the first woman president of the Miner Retirees Association from 2012 to 2014. She also served as a representative of the association for the University of Missouri System Retirees Leadership Association.

Along with numerous journal articles, Cummins published three books: Ursula K. Le Guin: A Primary and Secondary Bibliography in 1983, Understanding Ursula K. Le Guin in 1993 and Judith Merril: A Primary and Secondary Bibliography in 2007.

In 2017, the Dr. Elizabeth Cummins Women’s Advocate Award was established at Missouri S&T. The award is given to any Missouri S&T employee, regardless of gender or job designation, who demonstrates commitment to the women on campus through mentorship and advocacy and by setting an example through professional achievement. As part of the award, recipients earn a $1,000 stipend funded by Missouri S&T graduate Cynthia Tang, founder and former chair of Insight Industries Inc.

While at the 2017 ceremony, Cummins spoke about the need for more support for women on campus and in STEM fields in general.

“We need as many voices as possible to speak for women on campus, particularly when they want to go into STEM fields, but also for women who want to go into the humanities,” said Cummins. “The ultimate aim is to have a voice speaking out for women’s issues, noting their intelligence and ability, and then the women themselves will have the confidence to also become a voice.”