Ralph R. Fields, educator
Ralph R. Fields, a retired educator who had been vice president of the old Baltimore International College, died Wednesday from influenza at the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center. The Lutherville resident was 79. Ralph Rodney Fields was the son of Ralph Raymond Fields, dean of the Teachers College at Columbia University, and Catherine Tinker Fields, a bookkeeper and real estate professional.
He was born in Palo Alto, Calif., and was raised in New York City and Tenafly, N.J., where he graduated from Tenafly High School.
A 1960 graduate of Cornell University, Mr. Fields served with an Army infantry unit from 1960 to 1962 at Fort Dix, N.J., and Fort Benning, Ga.
After being discharged from the Army, Mr. Fields obtained a master’s degree and an Ed.D. degree, both from Columbia University. He also held a second master’s degree in legal studies from the University of Baltimore.
From 1962 to 1964, he taught history and social studies at Ridgewood High School in Ridgewood, N.J.
In 1964, he was appointed dean at the Community College of Baltimore, where he was responsible for implementing the Allied Health Programs that trained nurses and medical technicians.
In 1990, he was named vice president of Baltimore International College, a culinary arts college at which he oversaw the school’s accreditation study and transition to a four-year institution. The college was later taken over by Stratford University in 2012. Mr. Fields retired in 2000. After retiring, he served as a longtime docent and volunteer at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.
He enjoyed reading, fine dining, playing tennis and vacationing at a second home in Ocean City. He also liked taking road trips to the West and traveling to Europe and Central and South America. Services are private. Mr. Fields is survived by his wife of 57 years, the former Carolyn Butterweck; two sons, William F. Fields of Towson and Ralph Robert Fields of Tacoma, Wash.; a daughter, Christine F. Will of Timonium; a sister, Kay L. Fields of Bethesda; and seven grandchildren.