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Northwestern University

Memorial Service Planned for Professor Emeritus T. William Heyck

History professor was mentor, adviser and academic innovator

September 11, 2014
The life of Professor Emeritus Thomas William Heyck will be celebrated at a memorial service on Saturday, Sept. 13 at 11 am at St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, 1140 Wilmette Ave. in Wilmette, Ill.

Heyck died Sept. 7 after a struggle with leukemia. He was 75.

Heyck was the Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence and an internationally respected scholar of British history. During his nearly 40 years at Northwestern, he also chaired the Department of History, served as associate dean at the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, and helped found the University’s residential college system. Through various honors and awards, the university paid tribute to the diverse and integral roles Bill played within the Northwestern community as teacher, scholar, mentor, adviser and academic innovator.

A resident of Evanston, Heyck earned his undergraduate degree from Rice Institute and his master’s degree from Rice University. He then served in the U.S. Army before earning his Ph.D. in British history from the University of Texas. He joined Northwestern in 1968.

Heyck’s honors while on the Northwestern faculty included the Bishop Matthew Simpson Award for outstanding service to undergraduates, fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies and the National Endowment for the Humanities, and a Professor of the Year award from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education, in addition to the Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence award.

Heyck was also the author of many books and publications. His works included The Dimensions of British Radicalism: The Case of Ireland, 1874-95; The Transformation of Intellectual Life in Victorian England; and The Peoples of British Isles: A New History (two volumes).

A reception will follow the memorial service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Leukemia Research Foundation, 3520 Lake Avenue, Suite #202, Wilmette, IL 60091-1064, www.allbloodcancers.org.

For more information about the service, please call 847-675-1990 or visit www.donnellanfuneral.com.

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