Dorothy Denniston, associate professor emerita of English and Africana studies, died Saturday, August 2, 2014.

Denniston, a resident of Providence, earned her Ph.D. in English from Brown in 1983 and returned to Brown as a postdoctoral fellow in 1986. She was appointed a visiting assistant professor a year later and joined the Brown faculty as assistant professor in 1988. She served as assistant dean of the College twice, from 1995 to 1996 and again from 1999 to 2000.

Denniston’s research focused primarily on African American literature and culture and African American women writers. She was the author of The Fiction of Paule Marshall: Reconstruction of History, Culture and Gender (1995) as well as several articles, essays, and book reviews in literary journals. She was also a contributing editor to several anthologies and encylopedias.

During her time at Brown, Denniston received several awards and honors, including the Wriston Fellowship Award for Excellence in Teaching; the Faculty Mentor Book Award, presented by the Mellon Mays Minority Undergraduate Fellowship Program; and the Award for Exemplary Leadership, Dedication and Service from the National Office of the Andrew Mellon Mays Minority Undergraduate Fellowship Program in New York City.

A candlelight memorial service for Denniston will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday, August 16, 2014, in the Helen Hills Hills Chapel at Smith College, 123-125 Elm Street in Northampton, Mass.