William Drea "Bro" Adams is an American educator and advocate for the humanities. He was the tenth

Chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

of the

National Endowment for the Humanities The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency of the U.S. government, established by thNational Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965(), dedicated to supporting research, education, preserv ...

from 2014 to 2017. He served as the 14th President of

Bucknell University Bucknell University is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal-arts college in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1846 as the University at Lewisburg, it now consists of the College of Arts a ...

from 1995 to 2000, and as the 19th President of

Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college in Waterville, Maine, United States. Founded in 1813 as the Maine Literary and Theological Institution, it was renamed Waterville College in 1821. The donations of Christian philanthropist Gardner ...

from 2000 to 2014.

Early life and education

Adams was born in

Birmingham, Michigan Birmingham is a city in Oakland County, Michigan, Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is a northern suburb of Detroit located along the Woodward Corridor (M-1 (Michigan highway), M-1). As of the 2010 United States Census, 2010 censu ...

, attended the Holderness School, and began undergraduate studies at

Colorado College Colorado College is a private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Founded in 1874 by Thomas Nelson Haskell in his daughter's memory, the college offers over 40 majors a ...

. He left the school and served for three years in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

, including one year in Vietnam as an infantry advisor in the

Mekong Delta The Mekong Delta ( or simply ), also known as the Western Region () or South-western region (), is the list of regions of Vietnam, region in southwestern Vietnam where the Mekong, Mekong River River delta, approaches and empties into the sea th ...

, but returned to graduate in 1972 magna cum laude. He subsequently spent a year in France as a

Fulbright fellow The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people o ...

, studying at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes and the

École Normale Supérieure École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by Secondary education in France, secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing i ...

before earning a Ph.D. in the History of Consciousness program at the

University of California at Santa Cruz The University of California, Santa Cruz (UC Santa Cruz or UCSC) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Cruz, California, United States. It is one of the ten campuses in the University of California system. Located in Monterey Bay, ...

in 1982.

Career

Adams began his professorial career as a visiting assistant professor of political science at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

and then

Santa Clara University Santa Clara University is a private university, private Jesuit university in Santa Clara, California, United States. Established in 1851, Santa Clara University is the oldest operating institution of higher learning in California. The university' ...

. In 1986 he moved to

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

where he coordinated the Great Works in Western Culture program. He earned his nickname, Bro, from his father, in memory of a friend who died in World War II. In 1988 he took an administrative position at

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

, eventually becoming the vice president from 1993 to 1995. Adams authored a PhD dissertation in history of consciousness titled ''Digging in the same place: an essay in the political and social philosophy of Maurice Merleau-Ponty'' (1982). He served five years as president of

in Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2000, and became

's 19th president on July 1, 2000. Adams served as a director of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network from 2002 to 2012, Wittenberg University from 2007 to 2011, and the Unitil Corporation since 2009.

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Obama announced his intention to nominate Adams to be the tenth

of the

in April 2014, and the nomination was confirmed by the Senate in July 2014. Adams resigned his NEH appointment in May 2017, citing accomplishments in the public humanities under the NEH ''Common Good'' initiative and the transition in federal administrations.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, William Drea Presidents of Bucknell University Wesleyan University faculty Presidents of Colby College Chairpersons of the National Endowment for the Humanities Living people Colorado College alumni United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War People from Birmingham, Michigan Year of birth missing (living people) University of California, Santa Cruz alumni United States Army soldiers Holderness School alumni