September 11, 1940 – July 10, 2025
Ralph Levine passed away in his sleep at his Palo Alto home on July 10. He was well cared for during his rapid decline due to Alzheimer’s.
Ralph was gifted, from his perfect musical pitch, to his natural athleticism (he played shortstop), to his overall brilliance. He had ideas how to improve the world, and would send occasional beautifully-crafted letters to the New York Times (on baseball rules) — and to Stanford presidents. He had a quick wit and a Bronx sense of sarcasm. He remembered a professor’s words, “The more you know about different subjects, the more interesting your own life will be.”
But his special talent was friendship. He loved children. He cherished a vast network of friends including childhood playmates, people from his colleges and his old jobs, students he mentored at Stanford, and neighbors. He was a wonderful friend—so full of warmth, humor, and kindness. Many regarded him as their best friend and mentor. His trips all over the globe were often to visit or travel with those friends. They in turn would often come to stay with him in Palo Alto, and he joked that his home was the “moochery.”
Music was a delight for him throughout his life. Ralph composed his own melodies and could play any song after hearing it once. He was a master of many instruments, often self- taught, and played both organ and piano in his living room. He loved opera. He read three daily newspapers and had insightful views on both local and national politics. Ralph relished amateur photography and his photo albums recorded his happy times with friends. And, as volunteer family archivist, he prepared albums that systematically organized the family photos from the 1940’s onward.
Ralph Sanders Levine was born September 11, 1940, in New York City, the son of Samuel, who was a beloved elementary school teacher and principal, and Ruth, the wise and intelligent center of the family. His grandparents lived in the apartment next door. He grew up in what was then the thriving working-class neighborhood of Highbridge in The Bronx. Ralph was educated at P.S. 11, one block from the family apartment; at the renowned Bronx High School of Science, where he later taught math; at Bard College, where he won the prize in science, was the college organist, chaired the college council, and was later a generous donor. And then at Harvard he earned his Master of Arts in Teaching and Doctor of Education degrees.
In his long and successful career in educational administration, he was a school district official first in Connecticut and later in Oakland where he was responsible for Federal grants. He taught higher ed administration at Cal State Sacramento, taught at the College of the Center for Early Education in Los Angeles, and was principal of the secular section of a Hebrew day school in the Bay Area. Joining Stanford, for years he was at the School of Education helping to lead Pew Foundation national initiatives on standards-based education, and then was promoted to be the long-serving manager of the Aeronautics and Astronautics Department in the School of Engineering.
Ralph brought care and intelligence to everything he did, formed close relationships with the graduate students, and delighted to volunteer as advisor to Stanford undergraduates. He will be missed in Palo Alto, from coast to coast, and from Korea and Japan to Switzerland. He is survived by his sister Laura Steinberg and brother Martin Levine, his nephews David Steinberg (Mona) and Ben Levine and niece Diane Hiller, and grandnephews Matthew and Evan Steinberg and grandnieces Sydney Hiller and Cara Phillips (Billy). Pasepa Kolo and her family were his devoted caretakers.
Ralph will be buried in Mount Sinai Hollywood Hills, 5590 Forest Lawn Drive, in Los Angeles, on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, at 2:00 PST. For those who cannot attend in person, the service will be livestreamed at https://Mount-Sinai-Memorial-Parks-and-Mortuaries. livecontrol.tv/687a5e59 An obituary will be posted at https://mountsinaiparks.org/
obituaries/
Donations in his memory can be made to the Fund for New York City Public Schools, 52 Chambers St. Room 305, New York, NY 10007, to support PS 11, Bronx (Highbridge School.). https://www.fundfornycps.org/donate