University Park, Pa. -- William E. Leonhard, one of Penn State's most generous benefactors, died on Tuesday, Nov. 11, in San Dimas, Calif.
Over the years, Leonhard and his wife, Wyllis, made numerous gifts to the University, including the College of Engineering, Intercollegiate Athletics, College of Arts and Architecture and College of Medicine.
Leonhard, a 1936 electrical engineering graduate, was the retired chair and chief executive officer of the Parsons Corp., where he worked for 24 years.
He was a well known advocate of engineering education. He endowed the Leonhard Center for the Enhancement of Engineering Education, the William Leonhard Chair in Engineering, the William E. Leonhard Professorship in Engineering and the William and Wyllis Leonhard Honors Program in Engineering.
The couple also created the Wyllis Leonhard Endowment for Music and Dance in the College of Arts and Architecture and the Colorectal Surgery Operating Room Fund for the College of Medicine at Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.
William Leonhard served on visiting committees or the board of trustees at a number of institutions, including Penn State; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; the California Institute of Technology; the University of California, Los Angeles; Pepperdine University; the University of Southern California and Harvey Mudd College.
In 1993, Penn State's Board of Trustees voted to name a building in the Leonhards' honor to recognize their generous support and dedication to the University. The Leonhard Building was completed and dedicated in October 1999. Located on West Campus, it serves as the home of the College's Harold and Inge Marcus Department of Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering.
William Leonhard was elected to the National Academy of Engineering and named a Penn State Distinguished Alumnus in 1982. The University named him an Alumni Fellow in 1988.
Before joining the Parsons Corp., Leonhard served 14 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring with the rank of brigadier general in 1964. He was a chief engineer in postwar Germany, a period that included the Berlin airlift; a deputy commander of the Air Force missile and space division; and chief of staff of the Air Force systems command.
Leonhard also served 14 years in the Army Corps of Engineers. He was stationed in Panama and on the Alcan Highway project during World War II, and was chief of staff of the 2nd and 20th Armored Divisions in Europe.
He held a master's degree in electrical engineering from MIT and was a graduate of the Air War College.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by three children, a grandchild and a great-grandchild.
He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va.