Dr. David C. Fletcher, an administrator, social justice advocate, and professor at Lehman College for nearly four decades, died on Sept. 12th, 2022. He was 73.

Dr. Fletcher was a long-time Assistant Professor in the School of Education. Throughout his career at Lehman College, he was also a program coordinator for English Education, Science Education, Technology in Education, Human Rights and Restorative Justice in Education, and the Chair of the Middle and High School Education Department (MHSE). Dr. Fletcher was active in PSC-CUNY and PSC Lehman meetings and worked across departments to implement anti-racist and restorative justice training around Lehman. In the late 1980s, he was an early faculty advisor to the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) club, now the LGBTQI+ club called Crystal Queer. Dr. Fletcher also donated to student scholarships at Lehman and was a 2005 Millennium Club Donor.

“Dr. David Fletcher was an amazing human being,” Counselor Education Professor Stuart Chen-Hayes said, “— a dedicated teacher, a wonderful supervisor of student teachers, and a fierce fighter for equity and social justice as a gay man who grew up in rural North Carolina and dedicated his life to challenging multiple oppressions in the Bronx. A former advisor to the queer and trans student group at Lehman, David was involved in numerous anti-racism initiatives as well reshaping how the School of Education works on anti-racism and how the PSC-Lehman union chapter works to center anti-racism and restorative justice practices…. His presence will be missed by so many on so many levels.”

David Carroll Fletcher was born in 1949 in Brevard, North Carolina. He spent summers swimming at the North Carolina coast and enjoyed cooking with his family. One of his first jobs was as a bus driver while still in high school. Shortly after graduating from Appalachian State University, he bussed, hitchhiked, and motorbiked across Europe, Afghanistan, and India. Upon returning to the U.S., he earned a master’s degree from the University of Michigan before completing his doctorate at New York University in 1985.

Dr. Fletcher co-founded the School for Community Research and Learning (SCRL), a specialized high school on the Stevenson Campus in the Bronx that forwarded student-centric learning and holistic care. For several years, he was a consultant for The CareerVisions Institute, an after-school program for K-12 students around the Bronx. At the time of his death, Dr. Fletcher remained an active board member of the Bronx Community Health Network.

Dr. Fletcher’s colleagues remember him as a positive, kind, and bright person who helped others see the best in themselves. Botany Professor Ed Kennelly recalled meeting Dr. Fletcher as a new faculty member at Lehman 24 years ago:

“I never missed a chance to get together with David.  He was a relaxed and engaging person, and I treasure the time we spent together…. In those early days of using IT in the classroom, David was a leading proponent, and he gave me much-needed guidance in technology and educational theory.”

An online memorial organized by Dr. Fletcher’s family reads: “Although he lived in NY, Dr. Fletcher had strong family roots in Brevard, North Carolina and never lost his accent, to the delight and sometimes confusion of his students. He is survived by sisters Sharon Fletcher Kirby of Marietta, Ga, Laura Fletcher Cassell of Marietta, SC, brother Jerry Fletcher of Brevard, NC and preceded in death by his parents Carroll and Sally Fletcher, brother Richard Fletcher and sister Kathy Fletcher” (sic).

In June 2022, Dr. Fletcher was the first participant in the LGBTQI+ Oral History Project, a multimedia project sponsored by the CUNY LGBTQI+ Consortium and directed by filmmaker Sekou Luke. Dr. Fletcher’s hour-long interview about gay life at Lehman College and in the Bronx will be released next year. Co-producer Aaron Milton said, “It’s a blessing he was able to share his story with us to help guide the future generations.”

The School of Education is planning a fall memorial. The Lehman community is welcome to write to dcfmemorial@gmail.com for information on an online memorial.

In a joint statement, Lehman faculty Dr. Heather Sloan (Earth, Environmental and Geospatial Sciences), Dr. Kennelly, and Dr. Chen-Hayes said:

“The best way to remember Dr. Fletcher is to join the fight for equity and social justice in anti-racism, anti-heterosexism, and other anti-oppression work.”