Remembering Professor Frank Occhiogrosso, PhD
Frank Occhiogrosso, PhD, Professor of English, Drew University, passed away on June 24, 2026, at the age of 82. His Memorial Service will be held at 1:00 pm on Saturday, August 8, 2026, at Craig Chapel, Seminary Hall, Drew University.
He and his wife, Jane, raised three daughters. The Friends, Director, and Trustees of the Madison Public Library extend their condolences to the Occhiogrosso family.
The Friends thank Professor Occhiogrosso for enriching the lives of the students who enrolled in their Minicourse Program. He brought not only wisdom but humor to all of his teachings. He was a very warm, engaging professor, and his students loved him. His minicourses were immensely popular and always sold out.
Professor Frank Occhiogrosso taught five ‘English’ minicourses beginning in 1995 and ending in 2016:
The Plays of Shakespeare – An Introduction – Fall 1995
English Poetry from Shakespeare to Auden – Fall 1997
Masters of American Drama – Fall 1998
Shakespeare: An Introduction – Spring 2015
Introduction to Poetry – Spring 2016
Although Professor Occhiogrosso was a Shakespearean scholar, he also taught seven minicourses on Broadway musicals:
1. The Poets of Tin Pan Alley: The Lyrics of the Great American Songwriters – Fall 1996
2. The American Folk Song – Fall 1999
3. The Poets of Broadway: Great Lyricists of the American Musical Theater – Fall 2000
4. The Great Broadway Musicals – Fall 2002
5. Great American Musicals of the 1940s – Spring 2004
6. Great American Musicals of the 1950s – Fall 2005
7. The Poets of Tin Pan Alley – Spring 2014
The Friends are deeply indebted to Professor Occhiogrosso for obtaining Drew University instructors for three years after the founder, Frank Benedict’s retirement. Professor Occhiogrosso gave an amazing introduction for each Drew professor at the start of each minicourse. When Sylvia Luber, current coordinator of the program, complimented him on these wonderful introductions, he replied, “They truly deserve it.”
He retired in 2019 when Drew decided to withdraw as co-sponsor, and the Friends became the sole sponsor of ‘Minicourses at Madison Library.’
