Robert Dodd Lilley (1912–1986) was an American businessman who served as the president of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (

AT&T AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile tel ...

) from 1972 to 1976 and president of the

New Jersey Bell Telephone Company New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

from 1965 to 1970.

Biography

Lilley was born in New York City in 1912. He graduated from Columbia College with a B.A. in 1933, a B.S. in 1934 and an E.M. in 1935 from

Columbia University School of Engineering The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science (popularly known as SEAS or Columbia Engineering; previously known as Columbia School of Mines) is the engineering and applied science school of Columbia University. It was founded as th ...

. He began his career in the telephone industry after joining

Western Electric The Western Electric Company was an American electrical engineering and manufacturing company officially founded in 1869. A wholly owned subsidiary of American Telephone & Telegraph for most of its lifespan, it served as the primary equipment ma ...

as an assistant engineer and worked in the

Bell System The Bell System was a system of telecommunication companies, led by the Bell Telephone Company and later by the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T), that dominated the telephone services industry in North America for over one hundr ...

before ascending the ranks to become its second most senior executive.

The Lilley Commission

Lilley was most known for chairing the Governor's Select Commission for the Study of Civil Disorder in New Jersey, created by

New Jersey Governor The governor of New Jersey is the head of government of New Jersey. The office of governor is an elected position with a four-year term. There is a two consecutive term term limit, with no limitation on non-consecutive terms. The official res ...

Richard J. Hughes Richard Joseph Hughes (August 10, 1909December 7, 1992) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge. A Democrat, he served as the 45th governor of New Jersey from 1962 to 1970, and as Chief Justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court from 1973 to ...

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

in the wake of the

1967 Newark riots The 1967 Newark riots were an episode of violent, armed conflict in the streets of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Taking place over a four-day period (between July 12 and July 17, 1967), the Newark riots resulted in at least 26 deaths and ...

. The commission, charged with the study of civil disorders, later became known as the "Lilley Commission" after its chairman. The comiission's report highlighted racial inequalities between the

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

and

white White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

communities, exposed corruption in the local government, and offered policy recommendations such as improving hiring practices that benefit disadvantaged communities and changing leadership positions in the power structures. For his work, he received a

National Conference of Christians and Jews The National Conference for Community and Justice is an American social justice organization focused on fighting biases and promoting understanding between people of different races and cultures. The organization was founded in 1927 as the Natio ...

Award in 1968.

Public service

Lilley was also active in public affairs. He served as the chairman of the

Local Initiatives Support Corporation The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) is a US non-profit community development financial institution (CDFI) that supports community development initiatives across the country. It has offices in nearly 40 cities and works across 2,100 r ...

from 1980 to 1983 as well as the President's Task Force on Private Sector Initiatives, appointed by

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

. He served on the Board of Trustees of

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

from 1968 to 1980. A resident of the Short Hills section of

Millburn, New Jersey Millburn is a suburban Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States census, the township's population was 20,149, reflecting an increase of 384 (+1.9%) from t ...

, he died in 1986 after a heart attack.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lilley, Robert Dodd AT&T people Businesspeople from New York City American telecommunications industry businesspeople 1912 births 1986 deaths Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni Columbia College (New York) alumni People from Millburn, New Jersey 20th-century American businesspeople