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A chancellor steely in resolve, calm under pressure

Posted 7/29/2009

Speakers at his memorial compared Alexander Heard to a noble knight and a wizened farmer, but the label “chancellor” still suited him best.

“No one feels more deeply than I do a sense of gratitude to Alexander Heard, who defined and set the standard for the office of chancellor of Vanderbilt University,” said Chancellor Nicholas S. Zeppos at the service on July 29.
 
“No one feels more acutely today the challenge of living up to his extraordinary standards.”

Heard, 92, died July 24 at his home after a long illness. He was Vanderbilt’s chancellor from 1963 to 1982, leading it through the turbulent 1960s and fiscally challenging 1970s.

During that time, pointed out longtime Vanderbilt administrator John Poindexter, Vanderbilt increased its budget tenfold, doubled enrollment, conducted two successful fundraising campaigns, added three schools and constructed or renovated 36 buildings. In an era rife with campus violence nationwide, Heard kept Vanderbilt peaceful while strongly supporting the rights of all to express their political viewpoints.

“It has been said that every man’s life is his legacy,” Poindexter said. “Alexander Heard’s legacy is secure.”

Officiated by the Rev. Roderic L. Murray III of Christ Church Cathedral, the memorial in a packed Benton Chapel featured music by Schubert, Bach, Mozart and Beethoven. Heard’s ashes will be interred in the chapel.

Poindexter offered a litany of adjectives to describe Heard including “courteous, considerate, courageous under attack, steely in resolution … calm under pressure and demanding but not overbearing.”

“He was in sum an activist, not in the militant sense, but in the sense of moving to do what society required and what a university could offer,” he said.

Heard pushed for racial integration at Vanderbilt, successfully got the first woman (Mary Jane Werthan) appointed to the board of trust and endured severe criticism for having speakers like Stokely Carmichael at Vanderbilt.

Zeppos noted that Heard was a presence at Vanderbilt long after retirement, signing many notes “Bully to you” and always having vanilla ice cream with chocolate sauce for dessert at the University Club.

“I cannot put into words the majesty of his charm, his grace, his presence, his erudition,” Zeppos said. “He used it all like a farmer used a pocket knife – to repair, to improve, to tune, and on occasion … to cut something out.”

Heard’s nephew Edwin MacKethan offered insight into Heard’s private life, including their shared interests in genealogy and travel.

“My mother adored him,” MacKethan said. “So did I.”

Contact: Jim Patterson, (615) 322-NEWS
jim.patterson@vanderbilt.edu

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