CAROLYN HOUSE SIMMONS

October 17, 1940 - May 9, 2018
CAROLYN HOUSE SIMMONS

Memorial Gifts & Donations




Carolyn House Simmons passed away peacefully in her home in Wilmington on May 9, 2018 at the age of 77.

Carolyn was born in Manchester, CT in 1940, and was known as “Happy” to her family. She attended Wellesley College where she received a B.A. in English. She earned a Masters and a Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Kentucky. She was a Professor of Psychology at Howard University and at the University of Colorado at Denver, where she won numerous teaching awards and served as associate dean. While in Denver, she served on the boards of the Piton Foundation and Graland Country Day School. In 1990, she moved to Wilmington, where she was the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Her scholarly work included studies of child psychology, cross-cultural psychology, theories of justice, and altruism. She was very active in the Wilmington area, serving on a number of charitable boards in the community after her retirement from the university. She enjoyed needlepoint, gardening, reading, scrapbooking and international travel. Above all, she was devoted to her family.

Carolyn married Roger Simmons in 1962 and the couple had two sons, Clif and Ric. She is survived by her two sons and their wives Karen Simmons and Angie Lloyd, as well as her five grandchildren: Parker, Cyrus, Aquila, Zeke, and Skylar; and her brother and sister-in-law, Arthur and Rita House, and sister and brother-in-law Betsey House and Jerry Eubank.

All friends and family are invited to stop by Carolyn’s home on Sunday, May 27th between 1-4 for an informal remembrance.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations made to Wellesley College or the University of North Carolina Wilmington Psychology Department, in loving memory of Carolyn, would be greatly appreciated.

Please share memories and condolences with the family by clicking on the “Post a Condolence” tab below.

Wilmington Funeral & Cremation, 1535 S.41st Street Wilmington, NC 28403. 910.791.9099.


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  • November 25, 2018
    linda ginzel says:
    Carolyn was my teacher at the University of Colorado at Denver almost 40 years ago. I was fortunate to work as a teaching assistant for her popular Developmental Psychology course. When I graduated, she gave me a stick pin of a bird in flight. Carolyn told me that the pin was to remind me how high I could fly. She was one of my first professional role models. I still have her gift of the bird in flight and she continues to be with me all these many years. I will always remember her many kindnesses. May her memory be a blessing.

  • November 26, 2018
    Daniel Gilbert says:
    I took my first social psychology course with Carolyn at the University of Colorado at Denver in 1979. Mid-way through the course she took me aside. I had gotten 100% on the quizzes and exams, and she was worried that I might be bored. She offered to let me skip the rest of the quizzes and exams if I would be her Teaching Assistant, and I agreed. This vote of confidence meant more to me than she would ever know, and it was one of the reasons why I became a professor of social psychology, and have spent my life teaching the things that she taught me. When Carolyn retired, she was cleaning out her office and came across the class grade book from 1979. She sent it to me as a memento. What a gifted and dedicated teacher she was, and what a wonderful human being. I'll never forget her. May her memory be a blessing.

  • November 26, 2018
    Nancy Cowles says:
    Kids In Danger has received a gift from Linda Ginzel in loving memory of her teacher, Carolyn Simmons.