Bill earned his doctorate from Kent State University in 1986, but his impact on the field began a decade earlier. He joined the International Afar Research Expedition as an assistant in 1976 and served as Associate Curator and Head of Physical Anthropology at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History from 1981 to 1985.

He was the Virginia M. Ullman Professor of Natural History and the Environment and former Director of the Institute of Human Origins at Arizona State University. In 1985, he joined the Institute of Human Origins (IHO), initially based in Berkeley, CA and later at Arizona State University. 

He continued to conduct paleoanthropological fieldwork as leader of IHO projects in Olduvai Gorge, Laetoli, Tunisia, and the Younmou Basin in China. In 1990, after a period of Ethiopian political unrest, he re-initiated the Afar Research Expedition as the Hadar Research Project and directed the scientific investigations of that critical A. afarensis site for 30 years.

During more than 40 years as a paleoanthropologist, he was a leader in the field. His research onD the origin, evolution, and anatomy of Australopithecus afarensis, early Homo, and other early hominins has profoundly influenced how we view the evolution of our ancestors. Through his research, public outreach, and student training, Bill's scientific rigor has been a benchmark against which all paleoanthropological work is measured.

Bill is survived by his loving wife, Patricia Sannit, two children, a sister, a brother, a  sister-in-law, a father-in-law, and his beloved mother.

A celebration of Life will be held on Saturday, May 28th, 2:30 pm in the auditorium of the Walton Center for Planetary Health on the Arizona State University campus777 East University Drive, Tempe, Arizona Contributions

Contributions in Bill's name may be made to the Institute of Human Origins at Arizona State University . Please contact Lindsey Mullen, Lindsay.Mullen@asu.edu with questions about donationsWe hope to establish a study grant in Bill's name.