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Department of Agricultural, Environmental, and Development Economics

CFAES

Saying Goodbye to Our Good Friend, Bill Swank

Sep. 24, 2019

The department is saddened by the passing of Bill Swank, retired Executive Vice President of the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation, OSU alumnus, colleague, and friend. (1931-2019)

Bill received his Bachelor of Science, Masters, and Doctorate from The Ohio State University. In 1995, an endowment was established to support the C. William Swank Chair in Rural-Urban Policy, honoring Bill for his outstanding leadership and vision in addressing rural and urban issues, and recognizing the need for objective analysis to promote the understanding and resolution of critical policy issues.

The Swank Program was launched in summer 1997 with the hiring of Dr. Lawrence (Larry) Libby, first holder of the C. William Swank Chair in Rural-Urban Policy. In 2005, Larry was named Interim Director of the John Glenn School of Public Affairs at Ohio State. Dr. Mark Partridge, second and current Swank Chair, joined the department in summer 2006. Mark leads this nationally and internationally recognized program focused on priority issues related to rural and urban communities and their growth.

The Swank Program conducts and supports research, teaching, and outreach within the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences; the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center; and Ohio State University Extension

We will miss Bill’s knowledge, passion, wit, and enthusiasm. Our condolences to the Swank family.