William Lewis Scholarship
Mary Frances Lewis, family and friends have established this scholarship in honor of Dr. William E. Lewis to mark his retirement from ASU after more than 42 years as a professor and administrator. He retired in June 2008. During young Lewis’ studies at Johns Hopkins University, he received a four-year Maryland State Senatorial Scholarship (1/2 of his Hopkins tuition). Yet, as a young married student, finances were strained. Fortunately, Westinghouse presented him with another 1/2 tuition scholarship his senior year. It is Professor Lewis’ and his family’s hope that other students will be helped by this scholarship.
Professor Lewis, fondly referred to as “Bill” to those who know him best, was a 1958 graduate of a very small high school in Maryland. At that time he was awarded a Maryland State Senatorial Scholarship to Johns Hopkins University where he enrolled to study engineering. In June 1962 he received his bachelor of engineering science degree from Johns Hopkins and was awarded a National Defense Education Act Fellowship for graduate work at Northwestern University. Lewis received his master’s degree from Northwestern in 1964 and his Ph.D. from Northwestern in 1966. While at Northwestern, he served as a part-time instructor teaching statistics in the School of Engineering and thus realizing that teaching was the rewarding career he was seeking. In December 1965, Lewis chose to accept his offer of employment as assistant professor in the Industrial Engineering Department at ASU. He said at the time, “that of all the offers he had in hand, though ASU being the lowest financial offer, the best future opportunity in education rested with ASU.”
During the ensuing years at ASU, he became an associate professor then a tenured full professor. He served when called upon for administrative duties as Founding Chair of the Computer Science Department in Engineering; Assistant Dean, College of Engineering; Associate Dean, College of Engineering; Interim Director, Academic and Communications Technology, Vice Provost for Information Technology Chief Information Officer and Vice Provost; Associate Director, School of Computing and Informatics, Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering.
As Emeritus Professor of Engineering of Computer Science and Engineering at Arizona State University, it is his desire to maintain contact with the students and provide insight and assistance as called upon by his colleagues. Dr. Lewis and his wife recognize the difference it makes when there is caring and support for students at Arizona State University as they seek to educate themselves for the future.
