Thomas Rohlen

1940 - 2022

Thomas Rohlen
October 29, 1940 - March 6, 2022
Thomas Payne Rohlen died peacefully surrounded by family on March 6, 2022 at the age of 81. He was beloved and adored as a husband, father, grandfather, colleague, and friend. He was an internationally respected academic, an anthropologist, educator, program builder, philanthropist, policy analyst, and business consultant specializing in a wide expanse of research topics related to Japanese and Asian cultures.
Tom was born on October 29, 1940, the oldest child of Karl and Frances Rohlen. Tom grew up in Winnetka, Illinois and graduated from New Trier High School in 1958. He received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University in 1962 where he was a member of the Cap and Gown Club, played lightweight football, and was a much sought-after barber for his dorm. After college he served in Japan for the U.S. Foreign Service from 1962 to 1965, sparking a lifelong interest in the study of modern Japan. Upon returning to the United States, he received a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1970.
His first academic appointment as a professor was at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Over the course of his academic career, Tom spent time as a visiting scholar at the University of Hawaii, at the University of Toronto in the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, and at Harvard University as the Reischauer Chair where he worked closely with sociologist Ezra Vogel and Edwin Reischauer, founder of Harvard's Japan Institute and former U.S. Ambassador to Japan.
Tom joined the faculty at Stanford University in 1980 where he held joint appointments at the Graduate School of Education and the Freeman-Spogli Institute for International Studies. During his two decades at Stanford, Tom proved to be a rarity among academicians, seamlessly balancing the dual roles of educator and builder of interdisciplinary institutions and programs. After establishing the Asia Pacific Research Center at Stanford where he spent the bulk of his time as Senior Fellow, Tom also established the Stanford Center in Kyoto, Japan where he served as its first director. Additionally, Tom founded the executive program on Japan at the Asian Institute for Humanistic Studies.
As a teacher, advisor, program administrator, and colleague at Stanford, Tom touched the lives of thousands of students and researchers over the span of 20 years. He made himself available and treated everyone, regardless of age or status, with open-mindedness, honesty, respect, warmth, sensitivity, and an upbeat sparkle of human spirit. His research interests moved across diverse fields and topics, including Japanese corporate organization, labor markets, banks, governments, education, Asian urban clusters, and the impact of economic growth on socio-cultural change.
Tom married Shelagh Hickey Covington in 1995, 48 years after first meeting her in high school. Tom and Shelagh were avid travelers, often taking more than two overseas trips a year accompanied by their many dear friends. Tom was a lifelong gardner who created two beautiful gardens in San Francisco and Sonoma County. In retirement, Tom became an accomplished and prolific painter, specializing in botanical subjects with near photographic realism. He was a lifelong tennis player and played tennis the day before he entered the hospital. He was a loving father and grandfather and enjoyed nothing more than long dinners and debates with family members.
Tom's philanthropy was done quietly and broadly. In addition to helping large national and international organizations, Tom gave his time and money to a wide variety of small grassroots groups that he believed could make the world a better place.
Tom is survived by his wife Shelagh, his children Ginger, Katie, Duke, Brooks, Alison, and Michael, his stepchildren Karen, Jean, and Sarah, 19 grandchildren, his brother Karl and sister-in-law Carolyn, and his sister Ann. He is predeceased by his son Christopher.
The family is planning a private celebration of Tom's life.
Donations in Tom's honor may be made to:
The Solid Start Program
San Francisco General Hospital Foundation
1001 Potrero Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94110