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Polly Stevens FIELDS Ph.D.

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Louisiana State University Vanderbilt University

Polly FIELDS Obituary

FIELDS, Ph.D, Polly Stevens Age 79. Daughter of Frank and Adalaide Stevens of Fayetteville, TN, died of natural causes recently in Reno, Nevada. She had been teaching at the University of Nevada at Reno on a part time basis during her retirement. She is survived by her two children, Matthew Thornton Fields of Nashville, TN and Robert Gribble Fields of Huntsville, AL; granddaughter, Bailey Adalaide Fields; brother, Frank Madison Stevens of Kettering, OH. Dr. Fields was born and grew up in Fayetteville, TN, attended Vanderbilt University, taught at The University School of Nashville and then received a Ph.D in English from Louisiana State University at Baton Rouge. She had a long and distinguished teaching career as a Professor of English at Lake Superior State University in Sault Ste Marie, MI. Dr. Fields, a published author and writer, presented her work both here in the United States and abroad.

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Published by The Tennessean on Jul. 30, 2013.

Memories and Condolences
for Polly FIELDS

18 Entries

Gwen Colley

July 27, 2021

I just stumbled on several box sets of the original Magnum PI television show, at a yard sale this Saturday. I immediately grabbed them, and my mind went straight to Polly Fields. It is appropriate that I found this email reminder of her passing later that day. She was a remarkable woman! She was my favourite high school teacher, at USN. I will raise a glass to Polly Fields, when I watch Magnum PI, and remember that she once went on vacation in Hawaii where she saw Magnum PI in action....they were filming. Here's a little known fact. In highschool, I worked at Friedman's Army Surplus on 21st Avenue. We had the largest selection of Levi's in Nashville. Ms. Fields used to come in to purchase her jeans. She always bought the boy-sized (child) Levi's, because she said they best fit her body. Not an important piece of trivia, but I would always be delighted to wait on her......a beloved teacher outside of school hours! I have attached a photo of the students involved in her USN literary magazine. I am the only one looking the wrong direction. Thanks so much for everything you have done, Polly Fields <3

April 29, 2014

I just received my Laker Log and read of Dr. field's passing. She was an eccentric and beautiful soul who taught me English but more importantly how to be a strong woman. She introduced me to many authors, one of who included Kaye Gibbons. She taught me to push the envelope and move forward in life no matter how hard life can get. Blessings to her and those she left behind, she has left a mark.

Anne Beaupre

February 24, 2014

I have just learned of Polly's passing and send my sympathies to her family. I enjoyed her company and I enjoyed doing research for her.

Chris Johnson

September 2, 2013

“It's Dr. Fields. I worked hard for my PhD. Mrs. Fields makes cookies.” This is one of my first memories of Dr. Fields in my EN 110 class at LSSU. She had a passion for both her students and her research. An avid Duane Wade and Jay Cutler fan (probably the only Culter fan that lived in the Soo), she was in her element when she was watching a good football or basketball game. She was a great person, a dedicated professor, and will be missed by many.

Tony Hinson

August 30, 2013

Ms. Fields was a superb teacher, gifted in connecting with adolescents and instilling an excitement about history. Like many others who have shared on these pages, I was lucky enough to be one of her Western Civ students at USN. In addition to teaching dates and events, Ms. Fields constantly challenged us to understand the personalities of historical leaders and the cultural overlay of a particular time and place to consider why individuals and groups would make the decisions and take the actions they did at pivotal moments in history. Her class was part history, part political science, and part psychology. And she did all of this at 2:00 in the afternoon in a room of 15 year olds. We listened, spoke, learned and were fascinated.

Vince Jordan

August 22, 2013

Polly Fields taught a great high school Western Civilzations class and will be missed.

Bill Ables

August 7, 2013

Poly Anne was in the '52 graduating class from Central High in Fayetteville, TN. Myself and others of that class found her to be a young girl who loved life. Unfortunately I lost contact with her other than an occasional class reunion. However, after reading the comments offered by others, her love for life and persuavive personality followed her throughout her life.

More Polly Annes is what this world needs.
.

Gwen Colley

August 1, 2013

It is with great sorrow that I hear of the passing of the wonderful Ms. Fields. I had the privilege of being her student at USN – she was also my cheerleading sponsor my freshman year. She had a way of making history exciting and a little bit naughty, all the while imparting all important dates and names. I can never hear of Henry VIII without thinking that he played tennis and had very good legs. I hear this in her voice. She was challenging intellectually and also very kind to me. My deepest sympathies go out to her family.

Ellen Rubin

July 31, 2013

Ms. Fields was a force of nature. Even though I haven't seen her in decades, it's still hard to believe she's gone. I can only echo the other comments here, that she was my best and favorite teacher in high school (and really, ever), unforgettable, unmatched. And I will never see Tom Selleck without thinking of her. My deepest sympathies to the Fields family. It was a privilege to be her student and friend.

Kim Collins

July 31, 2013

So very sad to learn that perhaps the most amazing teacher I ever had (and I have had the good fortune to have several remarkable teachers along the way), has died. She would not approve of the previous train wreck of a sentence. She demanded excellence... Turabian excellence! She was my Western Civ teacher in high school at University School of Nashville and made history come alive ...She shared just enough of herself to create a vivid Southern mystique. Descriptions she used, turns of phrase and coquettish looks she gave come to mind frequently even all these years later ("lie back and think of England" and pyramids as smooth as a student's hair) She was the first teacher I ever had who used double entendre to get our attention. She treated us as the near-adults we were while letting us know that she believed we could do anything and that the world was ours for the taking. I hope she knew the impact she had in so many.

Reed Hummell

July 31, 2013

Dr. Fields was among the finest educators I have ever known. Her passion for history, dedication to teaching, and her friendship have had a profound impact on my life. She will be greatly missed.

Janice Fischer

July 31, 2013

Polly was one of the first faculty members that I met when I began teaching at USN. She was an outstanding role model. I, along with her many colleagues and students, feel a loss in her passing.

Kelly Midura

July 31, 2013

Ms Fields was one of the best teachers I ever had. She did more to prepare me for college than anyone else in high school and inspired a love of history that still brings so much pleasure to me now. A real loss!

Meg Moynihan Stuedemann

July 30, 2013

I am yet another UMN alum who remembers Miz Fields as an amazing and enigmatic teacher. WHAT an impact that woman had on so many of us and the readers, writers, and critical thinkers that we became. She was demanding as hell, and used to drop tantalizing hints about her private life, which we all speculated about madly. My standards for language and information are so high today in large part because of the ways she shaped me as a learner and interpreter of the world. And she had a unique and elegant style - somehow acerbic and delightful at the same time. And she taught us all to read poetry (out loud) properly.

Tom Ryder

July 30, 2013

I'm so sorry to hear of her passing. She was one of the biggest reasons I became a history teacher. She was the best teacher I ever had. I still reference what she taught me so many years ago.

Mark Levine

July 30, 2013

Ms. Fields was probably the single best teacher I ever had. (And I've had a lot of good teachers!) To this day, I still remember what she taught me in 9th Grade Western Civilization. Her stories and her passion made history come alive. I still remember many of them! I can still picture her dramatic images of King Charles I and Oliver Cromwell. She was tough, and her tests were full of facts and dates, but also of overall themes. She truly helped us see patterns in history. She instilled a fervent love of history for me that remains to this day. I had the distinct honor and privilege to bring her to the White House as a Presidential Scholar. They asked me to bring my best teacher and it was her.

I'm so sorry to hear that she's gone. I wish I had a chance to tell her how highly I thought of her. But I think she knew. She will be sorely missed. She remains the epitome of what I think about when I imagine a truly fantastic teacher. RIP, Ms. Fields, and know that your influence and your stories will live on forever. I've already shared them when I teach history, and I'm confident that many of your students have done the same.

I wonder if her children are aware of how highly so many of us thought of her. To them, I say I'm truly sorry for your loss but I'm very glad to have known and studied under her.

David Eshaghpour

July 30, 2013

I was so sorry to learn of Dr. Fields' passing. She was one of my best teachers in high school at USN.

Anna (Holovaty) Mennerick

July 30, 2013

Ms. Fields was an educational force of nature. Her love of the subjects she taught me (Western Civilization and British Literature) was infectious and her level of expertise and personal discipline set the tone for classes filled with high expectations and true learning.

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