Pictured Above: As a professor and campus leader, Bill Heller was “an unflinching advocate for the campus and the city,” said Regional Chancellor Martin Tadlock.
Courtesy of USF St. Petersburg
By Sophie Ojdanic and Catherine Hicks
Bill Heller, a cornerstone at USF St. Petersburg as a professor, dean and executive for 27 years, died Saturday morning in the company of his loved ones.
Longtime friend Joan “Sudsy” Tschiderer said his death came after “a courageous battle with a slew of medical challenges.”
“Bill deeply loved students and cared deeply for their welfare and their success,” said Tschiderer, the longest serving staff member in campus history. “I know many times he served as a mentor, or a person of last resort, in order to go above and beyond for students. He deeply cared that his students would have opportunities and grow. It wasn’t just words with Bill; he wanted to make students’ lives better.”
Pearl Williamson, Heller’s former executive assistant, knew Heller as “one of the warmest, (most) caring campus leaders that I had the occasion to serve.”
Heller, 85, the longest serving chief executive in the campus’ 55-year history, was the son of a poor farmer who frequently moved his family. So Heller began his education in a series of rural, one-room schools in Illinois.
He went on to serve as an Army paratrooper and earned his academic degrees at Southern Illinois University, Northern Illinois and Northern Colorado.
In 1975, Heller took a leave of absence from a position at the University of Alabama to become the superintendent at Bryce Hospital – Alabama’s largest residential institution for the mentally ill.
Heller became dean of the College of Education and Allied Professions at the University of North Carolina Charlotte in 1980.
Twelve years later, he was hired to become dean and executive officer of USF’s St. Petersburg campus, which was then a commuter school that served only upperclassmen and graduate students.
Heller served in that role for 10 years. When he was suddenly ousted by then-USF President Judy Genshaft in 2002, the move stunned the campus and rankled many community leaders.
Heller remained on the campus as a professor of education and eventually became dean of the College of Education and then director of the Bishop Center for Ethical Leadership. He retired from the university in 2018.
Heller also served in the Florida House of Representatives for four years and served on multiple community boards.
Last spring, the education building on campus was named in his honor.
“I’m simply heartbroken,” said Pinellas County Commissioner Charlie Justice, a former campus administrator and former colleague of Heller in the Florida House who advocated renaming Coquina Hall as H. William Heller Hall.
“Bill was a great boss, mentor, friend, role model. He cared so deeply for people, for the community. He was the most genuinely kind man I’ve ever known.”
Regional Chancellor Martin Tadlock, who worked closely with Heller when Tadlock was vice chancellor for academic affairs, said Heller “was a natural born friend of people.”
“Whenever we had a conversation, the question Bill always asked was, ‘How is this going to affect students?’ ” Tadlock said.
Heller and his wife, Jeanne, made substantial contributions to the campus, including monetary gifts, the Scholar’s Lounge in the Nelson Poynter Memorial Library and the H. William Heller Scholarship in Special Education. The scholarship is for students in the College of Education who focus in special education or who have special education needs.
Much of Heller’s generosity wasn’t on a large scale.
“At Christmas parties, he dressed up as Santa Claus and brought a sack full of gifts,” according to an article in The Crow’s Nest last year. “On Thanksgiving, he bought dinner for the faculty and staff.”
St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman, who served in the House with Heller, ordered that flags on city property be flown at half-staff for the next week to honor him.
“Today is a sad day for St. Petersburg and the countless lives touched (by Heller),” Kriseman said in a statement. “In his capacity as educator, elected official, leader on numerous boards and committees, philanthropist and friend to all, he made our community – every single person he met – better, kinder and smarter.”
Heller is survived by his wife, a retired elementary school librarian; three children; three grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
He will be buried in the Bay Pines National Cemetery at the Veterans Administration Center just west of St. Petersburg.
In lieu of gifts, Heller’s family requested donations be made to the Great Explorations Children’s Museum or the SPCA of Tampa Bay.
Editor’s Note:
This article was updated on Sept. 14, 2020.
