Roslyn Jaffe, an impactful member of the Teachers College community for more than 35 years, died at the age of 96 on April 12.

Jaffe — with her late husband, TC Trustee Emeritus Elliot Jaffe, and their beloved family — created the College’s landmark Jaffe Peace Corps Fellows Program, which has provided more than 750 scholarships to returning volunteers committed to teaching in New York City public schools since it was established in 1985. Building upon the College’s long-standing relationship with the Peace Corps dating back to the1960s, the program was the first of its kind, leveraging the unique perspective and tenacity that returning Peace Corps members bring to the classroom. Today, there are approximately 120 programs across the country.

“Roslyn Jaffe was a true visionary in both business and philanthropy,” said Thomas Bailey, President of Teachers College. “TC has benefited so much from Roslyn’s remarkable friendship and deep compassion. She, like Elliot, will be deeply missed and also very fondly remembered.” 

In 1962, Jaffe and her husband established Dress Barn to fill a critical need in the retail market for affordable, professional clothing for women. As the company expanded nationwide, Jaffe insisted on hiring and promoting women, and championed policies to help support working mothers. The company went public in 1982, and evolved into Ascena Retail Group to reflect its numerous subsidiaries including Ann Taylor, LOFT and more. 

An entrepreneur in her own right, Jaffe forged her own path at the beginning of what would be a new era for women in American society. Born in Waterbury, Connecticut, Jaffe earned her degree in business math from Simmons College, moved to New York and began working in retail, where she would meet Elliot.

“Women were coming into the workplace and they needed clothes to wear,” Jaffe told Spectrum News, noting that the idea for Dress Barn very much reflected her own journey. 

In addition to her robust career, Jaffe and her family made profound impacts through their philanthropy. At Teachers College, their generous support of the Jaffe Peace Corps Fellows provides tuition scholarship support for those returning from the Peace Corps who commit to teach full-time in NYC’s public schools for at least four years.  

“Many of the returning Peace Corps veterans come back to the United States with a more nuanced perspective of the world and greater insights into the opportunities afforded by our society,” Peace Corps Fellow Michele St. John-Denerstein (M.A. ’18) once noted. “Serving as Jaffe Fellows allows us to communicate that through our lessons.”

Jaffe was predeceased by her cherished husband of 70 years, Elliot, who died in 2023. She is survived by her children, Elise (the late Jeffrey Brown), Richard (Lynette), and David, whose spouse, Helen Jaffe, has served on the TC Board of Trustees since 2017; five grandchildren and one great-grandchild.