Prof's impact remembered

April 14, 2008 —

For more than four decades, Leslie Whittaker brought a dynamic, nurturing presence to SVSU classrooms.

The University lost that presence April 3 when Whittaker, 89, died from heart disease-related complications.

SVSU's longest-serving professor joined the University in 1966, two years after the institution's opening.

"He was part of the history of SVSU," English professor Basil Clark said. "We've lost a piece of our history."

Clark said the Portsmouth, England native brought sensitivity to the classroom.

Clark remembers the English professor as a person who initiated various changes during his time at SVSU.

"He didn't like to beat around the bush," he said. "One of his favorite lines was, 'Well, if you want to know the honest truth...'"

Clark utilized Whittaker's knowledge of SVSU when he wrote SVSU - The Early and Formative Years.

"Leslie was such a big resource for the University's history," he said. "He was present for the entire growth of the English department."

Whittaker, however, did not confine his motivation to the classroom.

He was involved in the community, something, Clark says, of which most people were unaware.

Whittaker regularly tutored children at Trinity Lutheran Church, 350 S. Ninth in Saginaw.

Whittaker also found some unorthodox ways to help his colleagues.

Clark recalls Whittaker's involvement in a trip Clark and his wife planned to take in early 2002.Whittaker laid the groundwork for the trip after hearing about it, said Clark.

"He put in a lot of phone calls to places we might stay," he said. "He must've talked for quite a while, because when I called one of those places, the lady was already very familiar with me because of Leslie."

Clark and Whittaker would often get together outside of school.He remembers Whittaker's passion for life shining through on a boating trip to Higgins Lake years ago.

"You should have seen him when we went swimming," Clark said. "He was like a kid again to be out there swimming."

Whittaker, eager to help out new faculty members, also sought out spots on faculty evaluation teams, according to Clark. The evaluation teams are designed to help guide staff members in their first years at the University.

Whittaker's 89-year life included a stint in the British Army. He spent almost five years during World War II battling the Germans in North Africa.

He parlayed his love for language into a teaching job in England, where he taught grammar.

Though he was on medical leave to recover from knee surgery, University officials expected him to return in the fall.

Clark said Whittaker never mentioned plans to stop teaching.

"He sort of fooled us," Clark said. "We just expected he'd be around forever."