Peter Rollins

March 23, 2015 

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Peter Rollins, 72, passed away on March 23, 2015, in Stillwater. He was born April 1, 1942, in Boston, MA, the youngest of three brothers. He was raised in Brookline, MA, and graduated from the public school system in Brookline. Peter was active in several major sports in high school, where he also discovered the joy of expression in creative writing. Several of his works received awards. Peter attended Dartmouth for his first two years of college, after which time he transferred to Harvard where he majored in its interdisciplinary area of history and literature as an honors student. During his freshman year, Peter joined the Platoon Leader Corps of the U.S. Marines. Following his graduation (with high honors) in June 1963, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marines and served until 1966, both at home and in Vietnam. Following his military discharge, he returned to Harvard to earn his Ph.D. in the history of American civilization. Upon graduating, he moved to OSU to be the assistant director of the Will Rogers Publication Project. In time, this project produced 21 volumes. Peter later became a valued member of the OSU English Department and held the distinctive title of Regents Professor of English.