Dale Evan Metz

Dr. Dale Evan Metz, age 72, died Wednesday, March 25, 2020. Dale was born and spent his life in his beloved Finger Lakes region although his professional contributions were felt world-wide. He was a 1966 graduate of Gorham Central School Marcus Whitman, and received degrees from Geneseo (B.S. 1970), Purdue (M.S. 1972) and Syracuse (Ph.D. 1976). Dale devoted his professional life to cutting edge research in speech science as one of the world’s leading researchers whose work led to clinical advances in stuttering, voice disorders, deafness, and hearing impairment.

Dale was an original member of the Communication Research Department at NTID from 1977 to 1993 and was instrumental in their receiving the 1988 Scientific Achievement Award from the National Council on Communication Disorders. He then became a full Professor at SUNY Geneseo where he served with distinction until his retirement in 2012. He received many accolades, including the “Triple Crown” of the highest award, the Honors of the Association, from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), the National Student Speech-Language-Hearing Association, and the New York State Speech-Language-Hearing Association. He was the Editor of two journals published by ASHA: The Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research and Contemporary Issues in Communicative Disorders and Sciences. He published over 50 refereed journal articles, several book chapters, many state and national convention papers, and co-authored six editions of the textbook “Evaluating Research in Communicative Disorders.”

A resounding theme of his professional involvement was the impact he had on students by including them in his ground-breaking research that contributed to continued excellence in his field. A student who went on for her PhD said: “Dr. Metz is the reason I am where I am today. It was his belief in me that sparked me to achieve my dream of earning my PhD.” A stutterer at Geneseo credited him for her success in life: “I was afraid to talk until Dr. Metz showed me how to deal with my stuttering.”

For those who knew Dale on a personal level and called him dad, brother, friend, saw him not as an accomplished professional but a person who was sensitive and loved deeply. His family and close friends were everything to Dale. He was so very proud of each and every member of his family, especially his son, Sean. Dale embraced life with tenacity. Failure was never an option. His mantra for life as an educator did not end in his classroom. He passed so many amazing attributes, and lifelong skills onto his family members. These principles and skills he taught will be shared throughout the Metz family for years to come.

He found passion in boating for many years with his wife Wendy, skiing, and teaching himself to play piano as his father was an accomplished pianist, and music was an integral part of his formative years. Dale knew without a doubt his family and friends were the very best part of him. He would want each and everyone of us to know he loved us more than we could imagine.

Dale is predeceased by his parents, Ernest and Rhea Metz and his wife, Wendy. He is survived by his loving wife, Susan Ashley; his devoted son, Sean (Sara); his two beautiful grandchildren, Tobin and Ryder; his first wife, Jackie Metz; his sisters Dorne Eastwood (Steve), Shelley (Greg) VanLare; nieces/nephews, Joseph (Patty) Furco, Stacey (Christian) Saccameno, Jordan (Zhenia) VanLare and Emily (Brian) Dawson.

Please consider contributions to The Shepard Home, 1959 Five Mile Line Rd, Penfield, NY 14526.

A celebration of Dale’s life is planned for a future date.