Ruth (Perry) Hodge '54

Distinguished Alumni Humanitarian Award | 2023

After graduating from WHS in 1954, Ruth Perry Hodge earned a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Lycoming College.

She settled in Carlisle, Pa., in 1959 after marrying her late husband, Marcus. There, she began her career as a clerk stenographer at Carlisle Barracks in 1960. Her 1973 Master’s in Library Science from Shippensburg University propelled her 33-year career at the US Army War College and the US Army Military History Institute. Pioneering dialogue, she organized the groundbreaking Conferences on African Americans in World War II in 1992 and 1993.

Transitioning to archivist at the Pennsylvania State Archives from 1993 to 2001, she authored the acclaimed “Guide to African American Resources” at the Pennsylvania State Archives, receiving the MARAC M. Miller Finding Aid Award in 2000.

Her community impact reverberated at the Cumberland County Historical Society. She played a pivotal role in naming Carlisle High School after Emma Thompson McGown, an African American educator.

Recognition followed her journey, including receipt of the Angela R. Kyle Outstanding Alumnus Award from Lycoming College, the Department of the Army Achievement Medal for Civilian Service, and the 2020 Historian of the Year Award from the Cumberland County Historical Society. She earned the Lifetime Achievement Award from Shippensburg University and the Albert Nelson Marquis Who’s Who Achievement Award.