Dr. Marilyn Daniels, 87, of Newport, Vermont passed away Thursday, November 30th, in Whitefield, NH. She was born on May 30th, 1936, in Butler, New Jersey to the late Phyllis Tintle (Tripp) and Myron Tintle.

She was predeceased by her late ex-husbands Anthony M. Maltese and Robert L. Daniels. In addition to her former husbands, she was predeceased by her sisters, Lorraine and Sandy, nephews Robbie and Colin, and her beloved son-in-law, Richard Spaulding.

Marilyn Daniels held dual doctorate degrees from Princeton University and New York University in religious history and communications. 

Marilyn Daniels was a professor of communication arts and sciences at Pennsylvania State University. She was both nationally and internationally known as an expert on using American Sign Language to improve childrens’ literacy. For more than two decades, she taught at Penn State University — producing visionary research, writing, lecturing and instructing parents, caregivers, and educators on the benefits of the use of ASL. Her book, Dancing with Words; Signing for Hearing Children’s Literacy, is one of the most used and quoted books in America on the subject.

Marilyn Daniels traveled across the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Japan to conduct research studies and present her findings. Marilyn also authored a series of books to help parents successfully and informatively sign with their children at each stage of development. Sign to Speak: Babies Can Talk and Sign to Speak: Toddlers at Play.

In addition to being the author of five books, Professor Daniels published more than twenty-five articles in peer-reviewed journals. Her research received attention in popular media and in magazines such as Business Week, Family Circle, Psychology Today, Better Homes and Gardens and many radio and television segments on outlets like NPR’s Morning Edition and NBC’s Everybody is Talking. She has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors.

In 1979, Marilyn Daniels received her bachelor’s degree in speech communication, summa cum laude, also from William Paterson. She was granted a master’s degree in communication arts, summa cum laude, from William Paterson University in 1980. Marilyn then earned her Ph.D. from New York University in 1989. 

Marilyn was a loving mother, grandmother and great grandmother. She had a strong appreciation for the arts. She enjoyed visiting art galleries, reading, poetry, writing, singing, music and the theater. She adored the outdoors, traveling, cross country skiing, swimming, and biking. She loved spending time with her family and friends. She was also a devoted parishioner at many churches throughout her life and served as youth minister for several reformed churches.  She was a loving mother who wanted to give the best of experiences to her children and grandchildren. Every year she took her family to Cape Cod in the summer and Vermont in the fall. She instilled in her children to always look for joy, fun, and excitement in all places and to always “Be happy.”

Marilyn is survived by her son Marc Daniels and his wife MaryBeth and their children, Lyndsee (husband, Armando and their children, Anthony, Lia and Vincenzo), Timothy (and his daughters, Teagan and Isla); Jessica (husband Joe), Roy and Shavane; Lisa Spaulding and her children, Tucker (and his children, Elijah, Findlay, and Winter); Brendon (partner, Liza) and Shannon (partner, Justin); David Daniels and his children, Ashley (partner, Travis and their daughter, Madison); and Ethan (partner, Jessica).

Her commitment to learning is evidenced by the fact that she donated her body to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical School. When she finishes teaching the medical students, there will be a service at Dartmouth for her cremation. Although deceased, Marilyn’s legacy continues to live on by providing future doctors with invaluable learning opportunities.

In late June, the family is planning a celebration of life. More details to follow. In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to fight Alzheimers at act.alz.org.

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