Williams, Chester W.

Chester W. Williams was a four-sport letterman at South Georgia Teachers College, 1931-1933, and in 1991 was inducted into GSU's Sports Hall of Fame. He served in the Navy during World War II. His main career was as a high school principal.

Chester Wheldon Williams was born in Chicago in 1906. He graduated from Oberlin College in 1929 and received a master's degree from Harvard University in 1939. Prior to coming to NEC, Williams held positions as an instructor at Grinnell College, and assistant professor at Cornell College in Iowa. In 1946, Dr. Williams was appointed to the theory department faculty at New England Conservatory - he would remain a faculty member for over 55 years. During that time, he served in various capacities including Dean (1953-1962, 1967-1976) and President (1962-1967). From 1957-1960 Williams held the position of regional vice president for the National Association of Schools of Music. In 1976, Williams retired and received an honorary doctorate from NEC. However, he continued to serve NEC as Dean Emeritus and Special Assistant to the President for the remainder of his life. Williams also ran NEC's Summer School for several years and served as a trustee for the Frank Huntington Beebe Fund (which provided financial assistance to students pursuing music study or performance abroad.) Williams's memoir of his time at NEC, entitled Indeed music : my years at New England Conservatory, was published in 1989. Williams and his wife Janet (Sprague) were long time residents of Wellesley, MA--with Williams only moving to Westwood in 1992. Williams conducted and played oboe in the Wellesley Symphony and conducted the Wayland-Weston Sudbury Community Chorus in the 1950s, as well as the Wellesley College Orchestra. He served as conductor of the Harvard Musical Association of which he was a member for over 50 years. Also, Williams was a member of St. Andrew's Episcopal Church in Wellesley, where he served on the music committee. Dr. Williams passed away on Nov. 2, 2001 at The Clark House, Fox Hill Village in Westwood at the age of 95.