Franklin D. Roosevelt III is an American retired economist, academic, and social activist. He is the 8th grandchild of 32nd American president, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Let’s learn more about his life, profession and more.
Quick Bio
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born on July 19, 1938. He was born to Franklin D. Roosevelt Jr. and Ethel du Pont in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. He is 85 years old as of 2024. His father was an American lawyer, politician and entrepreneur. He was born into a very renowned family. From his father’s side, he is related to the popular Roosevelt family and from his mother’s side, he is related to the prominent du Pont family.
He has a younger brother named Christopher du Pont Roosevelt from his parents’ marriage. He also has two younger half-sisters, Nancy Suzanne Roosevelt and Laura Delano Roosevelt and a younger half-brother, John Alexander Roosevelt, from his father’s later marriages. He had another younger half-brother named Benjamin S. Warren III from his mother’s second marriage to Benjamin S. Warren Jr.
Education
He comes from an educated and well-off family. He attended high school at St. Mark’s School in Southborough, Massachusetts. In 1961, he received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Yale University. He did his post-graduation from Columbia University in 1968 and then his Ph.D. from The New School. He was a brilliant student. His topic for dissertation was entitled Towards a Marxist Critique of the Cambridge School.
Personal life
He married Grace Rumsey Goodyear on June 18, 1962. She also comes from the prominent goodyear family. She graduated from Milton Academy. She has been an alumna of Smith College. They have three children together, Phoebe Louisa Roosevelt, born on February 25, 1965, and one pair of twins named Nicholas Martin Roosevelt and Amelia Roosevelt, born on June 8 1966.
Profession
In 1977, he started his career in teaching. He was appointed as a professor at Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York. He also served as the chair of the social sciences faculty from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1991 to 1993. He has expertise in teaching. He is a former economist. He primarily focused on combining Marxism and capitalism to make modern economic systems more ‘fair’ and less prone to the “winner takes all” scenario. He is a radical economist. He was awarded ‘Lipkin Family Prize for Inspirational Teaching.
Important Contributions
- He wrote the book “Understanding Capitalism: Competition, Command, and Change”, along with two other writers, Samuel Bowles, and Richard Edwards.
- In 1981, he made a lot of efforts to put the Manhattan Country School’s tuition system on a sliding scale while being a member of its Board of Trustees, from 1970 to 2010.
- His efforts led to the building of his grandmother Eleanor Roosevelt’s monument at Riverside Park in Manhattan, which was unveiled in 1996.
- He is the co-writer of “Why Market Socialism?” (1994).
- His former student, Rhona Free, who is a professor of economics at Eastern Connecticut State University, was named as one of four professors of the year, in 2004.
Conclusion
Franklin D. Roosevelt is a well-known retired economist and academic. He is also popular as the grandchild of the 32nd U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt, who served four terms in American history, from 1932 to 1945. He currently lives in Manhattan with his family.
