Robert Kenny

Robert Wayne Kenny of McLean, Virginia departed this life on April 4, 2025 at the age of 92. Bob, as he was known to friends, was widely admired for his wisdom, kindness, generosity, and seemingly limitless patience – and for the natural modesty to question whether that admiration was deserved. His talent as a painter was matched by his exceptional writing ability and quick wit, and his former students had warm memories of his lectures even decades later.

He retired from the George Washington University in 1992 to paint full-time after serving 25 years as Professor of British and Irish History and five as Dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School. (He joked that his selection as Dean was due to having missed a meeting of the search committee, leaving him defenseless.) The University established the Robert W. Kenny Prize for Innovation in Teaching of Introductory Courses in his honor. He also served as principal author of the 1998 Boyer Commission Report on Reinventing Undergraduate Education, which has shaped educational policy ever since.

Bob was born in San Angelo, Texas on October 4, 1932, one of four children of Jack and Ava Kenny. He earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Texas, master's from the University of Minnesota, and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He served in U.S. Army counterintelligence in 1955-56. He and Shirley Strum of Tyler, Texas, were married at her parents' house on July 22, 1956. Bob completed a Master of Fine Arts in Painting at GWU in 1992. His work is found in private collections in New York, Virginia, Maryland, and New Mexico.

He is survived by his wife of 68 years, former Queens College and Stony Brook University President Shirley Strum Kenny; elder sister Mary Jo Kenny of Carrollton, Texas; twin brother Raymond and sister-in-law Peggy of Stephenville, Texas; younger sister Sue Weathers and brother-in-law Dale of Dallas, Texas; sons David and daughter-in-law Anne of Frederick, Maryland, Daniel of Alexandria, Virginia, and Jonathan of Alexandria, Virginia; daughter Sarah Kenny Azzara of Rocky Point, New York; daughter-in-law Deborah Kenny of New York, New York; grandchildren Avraham Kenny of Durham, North Carolina, Ava Kenny of Somerville, Massachusetts, Rachel Kenny of Washington, D.C., and Casper Azzara of Baltimore, Maryland; and great-grandson Tyler Joel Kenny of Somerville, Massachusetts. He was preceded in death by his son Joel Strum Kenny, who succumbed to leukemia in 1999.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, April 8 at National Funeral Home, 7482 Lee Highway, Falls Church, Virginia 22042 followed by interment in King David Memorial Gardens.