Associate Dean, School of Business; Executive Associate Dean, School of Business; Executive Dean and Dean of Faculties, IUPUI
Passed by the IUPUI Faculty Council at their meeting on February 6, 2003.
Howard G. Schaller had many aphorisms, but the one that most characterized his philosophy was “never tire of doing good.” Often at the end of a conversation as you were about to leave his office following the discussion of a difficult problem, he would use this phrase. Howard’s academic career covered a span of 40 years during which he distinguished himself as a teacher, scholar, and administrator, who never tired of doing good.
His roots were in Pennsylvania, growing up in Sharon where his father worked in the steel mills for 47 years. Following his father’s advice to not follow in his footsteps, he enrolled in Duke University receiving his A.B. (magna cum laude) in 1947, where he majored in economics with minors in history and business economics. Howard subsequently earned an M.A. in economics (1948) from Northwestern and a Ph.D. in economics (1953) from Duke.
Howard joined Tulane University in 1953 and worked his way up the academic ladder, culminating in his being appointed Dean of the School of Business Administration in 1960. While at Tulane, his scholarly research and publications were in the area of regional economics.
In 1964, Howard joined the Indiana University School of Business and began an administrative career that led to important posts on both the Bloomington and Indianapolis Campuses. As the Associate Dean and Executive Associate Dean of the School of Business during the 1970s, he was the primary implementer of the merger of the School’s Indianapolis and Bloomington operations, which followed the 1974 University reorganization under then President John Ryan. Facilitating the merger was difficult and complicated as the size and composition of the faculty and student body on these two campuses were quite disparate.
During the years when Howard was expected to be on both campuses at once, Professor George Hettenhouse, then a newly tenured Associate Professor, was asked to join the Dean’s Office as Howard’s assistant albeit with a more impressive title. Howard showed himself to be a skilled and patient mentor, sharing his experience and wisdom while never losing his temper over youthful mistakes.
In recognition of the dedication and administrative skills that Howard brought to the Indianapolis merger and the superb job he did in accomplishing the bonding of the two business entities, he was appointed Executive Dean and Dean of Faculties of the Indiana University-Purdue University Campus at Indianapolis (IUPUI) in 1982. As the number two administrator on that campus, he worked effectively with Dr. Glenn W. Irwin to make the IUPUI campus one of the crown jewels in the Indiana University system. After retiring in 1988, he continued to live in Indianapolis.
Perhaps the challenge Howard most enjoyed was the time he spent in Bangkok, Thailand, serving first in 1968 as the Senior Advisor of the Midwest Consortium for International Activities project creating the National Institute of Development Administration. The $3.3 million project was sponsored by the Ford Foundation with Indiana University being the lead school in the Consortium. In recognition of Howard’s talents, Ford offered him the job of Deputy Representative for Southeast Asia, a position he held from 1969 to 1971. He became the Representative from 1971 to 1973. As Deputy Representative and as Representative, he was responsible for Ford’s work in the arts, archaeology, agriculture, economic development, engineering, education, law, management, and population, throughout Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Indochina. For his outstanding work at Ford in Thailand, he was awarded the Order of the While Elephant in 1973 and the Order of the Crown in 1986 by the King of Thailand. Not bad for a kid from Sharon, Pennsylvania.
The tie to Pennsylvania was strong. Every spring hope sprung anew for his Pittsburgh Pirates. A trip to his office in the spring and early summer usually began with a discussion of baseball, particularly if the Pirates were doing better than the woeful Cubs, who had many more fans in Bloomington.
Howard’s professional demeanor was a constant attribute, but he was not above the practical joke. Hearing a faculty colleague complaining about a particular Masters student, Howard related a story that indicated that the student was a special admit, the relative of a distinguished senior faculty member. Only after the student was graduated did Howard reveal to all that the whole story was made up on the spot. One had to be on their toes around Dean Schaller!
Howard brought to Indiana University and the School of Business his vast administrative and international experience and was a major contributor to the School’s international and national stature. He was a source of inspiration to his colleagues throughout his career; and, if anyone lived the aphorism “never tire of doing good,” Howard certainly exemplified it. Knowing Howard, he would have modestly shrugged off the above recognitions as another of his favorite aphorisms was “be your own scorekeeper.”
Joseph M. Waldman
George W. Hettenhouse
Kelley School of Business