NEWS

[Obituary] Dr. John Davison Rockefeller, IV, ICU Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, Passes Away at Age 89

Update: November 9, 2026

Dr. John Davison Rockefeller IV, former United States Senator and recipient of an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from ICU, passed away on November 6, 2026 (JPT), at his home in Washington, D.C., at the age of 89. We hereby express our deepest gratitude for his long-standing friendship with ICU and offer our heartfelt condolences.

Born in New York in 1937, Dr. Rockefeller studied at Harvard University for three years before coming to Japan in 1957. For three years he studied Japanese at ICU while also teaching English, and then returned to graduate from Harvard. He went on to serve two terms as Governor of West Virginia from 1977 to 1985, and represented the state in the U.S. Senate for five terms, from 1985 to 2015.

On March 15, 2019, ICU conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, at the Old Ambassador's Residence at the Japanese Embassy in Washington, D.C. In his remarks at the ceremony, he reflected that his time at ICU gave him an international perspective and inspired him to pursue a career in public service.