{"673640":{"#nid":"673640","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Remembering Bill Schaffer and His 35-Year Legacy","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts is saddened to share the passing of William \u201cBill\u201d Schaffer, a decades-long member of Georgia Tech\u0027s School of Economics. Schaffer \u201clived and breathed\u201d the School of Economics, said his son, Teddy Schaffer. \u201cIt was the central part of his life for so long.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EAfter earning a B.S. in Industrial Management from Georgia Tech and a Ph.D. in Economics from Duke University, Schaffer returned to join the Georgia Tech faculty in 1966. He was an expert in regional economics, publishing two books and more than 50 papers, research reports, and monographs throughout his career. However, Schaffer\u2019s time at Georgia Tech was defined by his dedication to his students.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cStudents at Georgia Tech were fortunate to have him as a professor \u2014 they were more important to him than any research project he might have been doing,\u201d said Jim Coffin, IM 1985. Coffin was a student in Schaffer\u2019s class in 1983 and emphasized how important Shaffer\u2019s guidance was to his success at Georgia Tech.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cAfter graduation, our student\/professor relationship evolved into a 39-year-long friendship. My wife Libby and I were fortunate to have Dr. Schaffer and his wife, Lee, as friends,\u201d he said.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EPatrick McCarthy, a professor emeritus in the School of Economics, estimates Schaffer taught over 11,000 students across more than 200 classes and guided three dozen through their M.S. and Ph.D. theses during his 35 years at Georgia Tech.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI have very fond memories of him. He was a real Southern gentleman,\u201d McCarthy said. \u201cHe possessed an infectious smile, a kind demeanor, and a melodious chuckle. He always erred on the side of students, helping them as much as possible. It\u0027s no wonder that he captured the hearts and minds of so many of them.\u201d\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EHaizheng Li, now a professor in the School of Economics, was hired by Schaffer 26 years ago. \u0022As a new assistant professor facing numerous challenges and considerable stress in my early years, I found Bill\u0027s advice, care, and friendship incredibly valuable,\u0022 he said.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Bill\u0027s passion for students was something beyond what words can describe. His deep care was so powerful whenever he spoke about them,\u0022 Li added. \u0022Equally impressive was his love for Georgia Tech. I recall a conversation with Bill about the annual campaign drive at the institute. He mentioned that he had accidentally entered his annual contribution as a monthly amount. When I pointed out that this was ten times the intended amount and asked if he planned to correct it, he replied, \u0027No, it\u0027s good to help.\u0027\u0022\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ESchaffer\u0027s commitment to Georgia Tech extended to extracurricular involvement. Alongside his late wife, Lee Schaffer, Bill was an ardent supporter of Georgia Tech baseball. The two took on the role of \u0022team parents\u0022 and traveled to away games to support the student-athletes however they could. Schaffer was also the faculty advisor for the Beta Theta Pi fraternity for 20 years.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EWhen he retired in 2001, the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/econ.gatech.edu\/alumni\/board-of-advisors\u0022\u003EBoard of Advisors\u003C\/a\u003E for the School of Economics established the Bill Schaffer Scholarship fund to honor Schaffer and his passion for helping undergraduate students. Schaffer also personally gave back to Tech, establishing the ODE Endowment, which supports the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/econ.gatech.edu\/econ-organizations\u0022\u003EGT Economics Honor Society\u003C\/a\u003E and their activities.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Bill Schaffer leaves a lasting legacy at the School through the scholarship fund named in his honor, the ODE endowment, and countless students and faculty whose lives he touched,\u201d said Laura Taylor, a professor and chair of the School of Economics. \u0022I think we\u0027d be hard-pressed to find a faculty member with a longer or deeper affiliation with Georgia Tech.\u0022\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ESchaffer \u201clived and breathed\u201d the School of Economics, said his son, Teddy Shaffer. \u201cIt was the central part of his life for so long.\u201d\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Schaffer \u201clived and breathed\u201d the School of Economics, said his son, Teddy Shaffer. \u201cIt was the central part of his life for so long.\u201d "}],"uid":"35766","created_gmt":"2024-03-21 14:32:44","changed_gmt":"2024-04-30 20:29:35","author":"dminardi3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-03-21T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-03-21T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"673455":{"id":"673455","type":"image","title":"Schaffer.jpg","body":null,"created":"1711032142","gmt_created":"2024-03-21 14:42:22","changed":"1711032119","gmt_changed":"2024-03-21 14:41:59","alt":"William \u0022Bill\u0022 Schaffer","file":{"fid":"256853","name":"Schaffer.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/03\/21\/Schaffer.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/03\/21\/Schaffer.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":246551,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/03\/21\/Schaffer.jpg?itok=RLFSop0f"}}},"media_ids":["673455"],"groups":[{"id":"1282","name":"School of Economics"}],"categories":[{"id":"130","name":"Alumni"}],"keywords":[],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:dminardi3@gatech.edu\u0022\u003EDi Minardi\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EIvan Allen College of Liberal Arts\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}