William Ransom Wood
William Ransom Wood (February 3, 1907 – February 25, 2001) was an American politician and leader of the University of Alaska.
Wood was born near Jacksonville,
University of Alaska
Dr. Wood assumed the presidency of the University of Alaska in 1960, serving in this capacity at the university for the next 13 years. During his presidency, the Fairbanks campus gained a new residence hall complex, gymnasium, classroom buildings, a heating and power plant, a library-fine arts complex, and a campus activity center. In 1964 an area was selected on the campus' West Ridge for further expansion, primarily of research facilities. The first of these was the
Wood served on national and international education boards and committees and was very active in the Alaska community. His wife, Dorothy Jane, is widely acknowledged as an important element in his success. During his tenure as president and afterward, he wrote books of poetry which were published by the University of Alaska Foundation.
Project Chariot
Dr. Wood strongly supported
Wood Center
The William Ransom Wood Center was dedicated on Sept. 29, 1972. Originally, it was decided that the new center would be totally paid for by university students. The Associated Students of the University of Alaska successfully lobbied the state legislature to provide a special, $4 million low-interest construction loan, which would be paid back from student fees over 25 years. However, in 1980, state Rep.
The building was designed by a former UA student as a solution to
The “stairs to nowhere” in the center of the building (also called the Bird’s Nest) are there because the Wood Center was originally designed to have three floors, and when construction plans changed due to unforeseen permafrost problems, the stairs had already been built.
Public life
After his retirement from UA in 1973, he served as mayor of Fairbanks from 1978-1980. He helped lead the creation of Fairbanks Memorial Hospital and continued in his strong commitment to the beautification of Fairbanks through the Festival Fairbanks Foundation. His efforts included the Golden Heart Plaza and the Cushman Street Bridge of Flags, among many others. Wood remained active on the University of Alaska Foundation Board of Trustees. He was also president emeritus. Wood and his wife were both given honorary doctorates by the University of Alaska Board of Regents in 1990.
- City of Fairbanks mayoral runoff election, October 24, 1978
- William R. Wood - 1,940 (55.9%)
- Chuck Rees - 1,533 (44.1%)
References
- Post War Expansion – President Wood, University of Alaska Stories
- The Firecracker Boys, by Dan O'Neill. 1994, New York: St. Martin's Griffin. 2007, Basic Books.
- "Alaska's Trailblazers for Academic Freedom"
- City of Fairbanks Elections 1903 – 1994, compiled by Bernard A. Smith. 1994, Office of the Fairbanks City Clerk.
External links
- Video on YouTube via Alaska Film Archives – Wood, as UA president, makes introductory comments during the inaugural broadcast of KUAC-TV, December 22, 1971