Charles E. Scruggs (professor emeritus, SUNY Geneseo) passed away peacefully at his residence on Second Street in Geneseo on the morning of February 20th 2026. He was born in Akron, Ohio to Allie W. Scruggs and Evelyn Miller Scruggs Dandridge. He attended the public schools in Akron and in high school excelled in football and track. Shortly after President Truman integrated our armed forces by executive order, Charles enlisted in the U.S. Navy. After high school graduation, he left for basic training in San Diego. He then boarded the USS Boxer, an aircraft carrier that would tour the Pacific. After completion of active duty, he was encouraged to stay for Officer Candidate School; however, he was anxious to start his college career and so was honorably discharged in June of 1950.

He returned to Ohio and attended the University of Akron where he completed his A.B. in political science a year ahead of schedule. Subsequently, he did graduate work at the University of Akron, Kent State, Boston University and Case Western Reserve, where he completed his PhD. After teaching a few years at public schools in Ware, Massachusetts and Cleveland, Ohio, he accepted a position at SUNY Geneseo in their Education Department where he was promoted to full professor in just three years. During the early 1970s, while at Geneseo, he also held joint appointments with the Rochester City School District and the University of Rochester. During this time, he developed a master's degree program to train teachers to work in urban settings. Concurrently, he worked for the LTI (Leadership Training Institute), a foundation focused on training the teachers of teachers. In the late 1970s, Charles served as a consultant to the Carter Administration's U.S. Department of Education. During his tenure at SUNY Geneseo, he was afforded two sabbatical leaves. The first in 1970 took his young family to Cambridge, Massachusetts. Under the auspices of Harvard's Graduate School of Education, Charles worked with a team of journalists, educators and school administrators addressing current problems in education. The second sabbatical in 1979 took the family to Cambridge, England. As a guest of Cambridge University (Wolfson College), Charles enjoyed having access to libraries and lectures and the fellowship of other educators. Professor Scruggs retired from SUNY Geneseo in 1992. In his retirement, he enjoyed doing genealogical research, reading the New York Times, watching PBS, playing jazz piano, and going to casinos.

Charles' wife and four children were very important to him. In spite of a busy schedule he was always able to balance his professional life and his family life. He was the epitome of a life long learner and through the example that he set and the experiences that he chose for them  he instilled in his children that same love of learning. In addition to the two sabbaticals which provided an array of  places to visit he planned two important excursions. The first in 1981 when the family returned to the UK spending the summer in Greenwich, England and Edinburgh, Scotland. And then in 1984 a train trip to Los Angeles to attend the summer Olympics.

In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his daughter Mary Catherine at age six, his stepmother Sadie Glover Scruggs, his brother Professor Allie W. Scruggs of Brookline, MA and his brother Marc Scruggs of San Francisco, CA. Charles leaves in mourning his wife Elaine, his children Charles of Rochester, NY, Amy (Billy) Wade of Rochester, NY, Robert of Carrboro, NC, Emily of West Palm Beach, FL and his two granddaughters, Emma Grace and Ella Wade. In accordance with Charles' wishes there will be no calling hours or formal funeral service. A private committal burial at Temple Hill Cemetery will be held with Pastor Stephen Sweeting offering words of comfort and support. In lieu of flowers, the family would welcome memorials made to Wadsworth Library, 24 Center Street, Geneseo, NY 14454 or WXXI, 280 State Street, Rochester, NY 14603.