William H. Baumer

Published June 5, 2014 This content is archived.

William Baumer.

William H. Baumer, a longtime UB philosophy professor known for his no-nonsense manner, institutional memory and service to the university, died June 2 after a short illness. He was 82.

Baumer held numerous and widely varying roles during his 52-year career at UB, among them assistant vice president for academic affairs, controller, and program consultant and program officer for the National Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (now known as MCEER) when the center was established at UB in 1986.

Born in Louisville, Ky., Baumer was raised in Cleveland. After serving in Germany with the U.S. Army from 1953-56, he earned a BA in philosophy from Lakeland College in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and an MA and PhD in philosophy from the University of Wisconsin, Madison — all within seven years.

He joined the UB philosophy faculty in 1962 after brief stints teaching at the University of Nevada and the University of North Dakota.

He served the philosophy department as director of both graduate and undergraduate studies, and taught “World Civilization” for many years, as well as “Philosophy of Immanuel Kant,” “Business Ethics” and “Professional Ethics.” His areas of specialization also included ethics and philosophy of religion.

Baumer was a mainstay in faculty governance. Over the course of his career, he served as a member of the SUNY Faculty Senate representing UB, and the UB Faculty Senate and its Executive Committee representing the College of Arts and Sciences. A former chair of the UB Faculty Senate (1970-72), he was chair of the senate’s Grading Committee, as well as senate parliamentarian, serving as the ultimate authority on senate procedures and “Roberts Rules of Order.” He also was a member of the College of Arts and Sciences’ Policy Committee — serving as chair at the time of his death.

Baumer explained his commitment to faculty governance in a 2004 interview with the UB Reporter. “If faculty is concerned about the university and what it is and where it's going, this is how you do something about that,” he said. “If you don’t want to participate in faculty governance, what you’re basically saying is that somebody else can decide all these questions. I believe faculty governance is important and if faculty believe that, then they better behave that way and participate and do the work.”

On a more personal note, that UB Reporter story described Baumer as "a tough, but popular philosophy professor with a soft spot for students ... an economist of language and expression, hard-hitting on matters of importance and at times dismissive of issues that ... distract from the issue at hand. His sense of humor? As gritty as No. 12 sandpaper. Brevity may be the soul of wit, but Baumer is its muse."

According to his daughter, Ann Baumer, he had a penchant for good cigars, a fondness for scotch, a stash of dark chocolate in his desks both at home and at the university, and an impressive collection of classical music.”

A celebration of Baumer’s life will be held at 1 p.m. June 15 at St. John Lutheran Church of Amherst, 6540 Main St., Williamsville. The family will receive visitors from 3-6 p.m. June 14 at the Carlton A. Ullrich Funeral Home, 8630 Transit Road, East Amherst.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. John Lutheran Church.

The Department of Philosophy is planning a memorial service on campus in the fall.