William J. Collins (1896–1981) was a 20th-century Catholic priest who served as the ninth president of

St. Ambrose College St Ambrose College is a Christian Brothers' Roman Catholic boys' grammar school in Hale Barns, Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. It was founded in 1946 by Dr Joseph Robertson. In 2012 the school became an academy, and was completely re-b ...

Davenport, Iowa Davenport is a city in and the county seat of Scott County, Iowa, United States. Located along the Mississippi River on the eastern border of the state, it is the largest of the Quad Cities, a metropolitan area with a population of 384,324 and a ...

from 1956 to 1963.

Biography

He was born and raised in Millersburg, Iowa and was educated at St. Ambrose College. He was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Davenport at

Sacred Heart Cathedral Sacred Heart Cathedral may refer to: Africa *Sacred Heart Cathedral, Moundou, Chad *Sacred Heart Cathedral, Bamako, Mali *Sacred Heart Cathedral, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo *Sacred Heart Cathedral, Freetown, Sierra Leone *Sacred Heart Cathedra ...

in 1929. He was referred to as "Sailor Bill" since he had served in the Navy. He was assigned to the faculty of St. Ambrose College and served as chairman of the

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for pr ...

and economics departments on campus before becoming president. From 1953 to 1959 he was the moderator of the Te Deum, a lecture program that provided adult education in the diocese. He was named the president of St. Ambrose in 1956, the same year that

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

named him a

Domestic Prelate Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

upon the nomination of Bishop

Ralph Hayes Ralph Leo Hayes S.T.D. (September 21, 1884 – July 5, 1970) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the fourth bishop of the Diocese of Helena in Montana from 1933 to 1935, and as the fifth bishop of the Diocese of Da ...

.Schmidt, 352 Hoping to get the school back on track financially, Collins raised

tuition Tuition payments, usually known as tuition in American English and as tuition fees in Commonwealth English, are fees charged by education institutions for instruction or other services. Besides public spending (by governments and other public bo ...

and temporarily dropped the

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

program. During his term, East Hall (Rohlman Hall) was constructed. Collins was active in the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is a non-profit organization of U.S. war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militi ...

and helped found the Council of World Affairs. After he served as president of the college he was assigned as the chaplain at the Kahl Home for the Aged and Infirmed in Davenport.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Collins, William J. 1896 births 1970 deaths Roman Catholic Diocese of Davenport Presidents of St. Ambrose University People from Iowa County, Iowa People from Davenport, Iowa Religious leaders from Iowa Catholics from Iowa 20th-century American Roman Catholic priests 20th-century American academics