William Brantley Aycock (October 24, 1915 – June 20, 2015) was an American educator who served as chancellor of the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...

from 1957 until 1964 and was the retired Kenan Professor of Law at the UNC School of Law. He was born in Lucama, North Carolina in 1915. A native of

Lucama, North Carolina Lucama is a town in Wilson County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 1,108 at the 2010 census. History The Lucama Municipal Historic District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986. Geography Lucama is lo ...

, Aycock served the University of North Carolina for nearly 40 years from his first faculty appointment in the School of Law in 1948 to his retirement as Kenan professor in 1985. He was named chancellor in 1957 and led the university in that capacity until 1964. A 1948 graduate of the UNC School of Law, Aycock was first in his class and editor-in-chief of the North Carolina Law Review. He also holds a master's degree in history from UNC, and a bachelor's degree in education from

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The univers ...

where he was president of the student body and a member of

Phi Kappa Tau Phi Kappa Tau (), commonly known as Phi Tau (), is a collegiate fraternity located in the United States. The fraternity was founded in 1906. As of November 2022, the fraternity has 161 chartered chapters, 79 active chapters, 6 Associate chapte ...

fraternity. Prior to entering law school, he served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and attained the rank of colonel. He was awarded the

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. W ...

, the

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

and the

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight u ...

. Throughout his academic career, Aycock received many honors and awards. He was the first recipient of the UNC School of Law's McCall Teaching Award, and eventually received it a total of five times. He was an honorary member of

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

and a member of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He received the Thomas Jefferson Award from UNC, the Distinguished Alumnus Award and Lifetime Achievement Award from the UNC Law Alumni Association, the William R. Davie Award from the UNC Board of Trustees, the University Award from the UNC Board of Governors, and the Liberty Bell Award from the North Carolina Bar Association. In 1990, as a tribute to his chancellorship, the department of family medicine’s building was named for Aycock. This honor was in keeping with his long-standing interest in the field of medicine, and his support of family medicine as a way to address the health-care needs of North Carolina's rural citizens. The William B. Aycock professorship in his name was established by his many friends and is held as an endowment at the Medical Foundation of North Carolina, Inc. Aycock died after a fall on June 20, 2015 at the age of 99. Aycock was a cousin of North Carolina Governor

Charles Brantley Aycock Charles Brantley Aycock (November 1, 1859 – April 4, 1912) was the 50th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1901 to 1905. After starting his career as a lawyer and teacher, he became active in the Democratic Party during the pa ...

and is best known to sports fans as the man who hired legendary basketball coach

Dean Smith Dean Edwards Smith (February 28, 1931 – February 7, 2015) was an American men's college basketball head coach. Called a "coaching legend" by the Basketball Hall of Fame, he coached for 36 years at the University of North Carolina at Chapel H ...

. He forced head coach

Frank McGuire Frank Joseph McGuire (November 8, 1913 – October 11, 1994) was an American basketball coach. At the collegiate level, he was head coach for three major programs: St. John's, North Carolina, and South Carolina, winning over a hundred games at e ...

to resign after the 1960-61 season in the face of major recruiting violations. McGuire decided to leave and coach

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain (; August 21, 1936 – October 12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player who played as a center. Standing at tall, he played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 years and is widely reg ...

and the

Philadelphia Warriors The history of the Golden State Warriors began in Philadelphia in 1946. In 1962, the franchise was relocated to San Francisco, California and became known as the San Francisco Warriors until 1971, when its name was changed to the current Golden St ...

, before later moving to the University of South Carolina. Aycock named Smith, who had been McGuire's top assistant, as his successor. Years later, Aycock recalled that McGuire came to his office on a Saturday and told him he was resigning. Smith was waiting in McGuire's car, so Aycock called him in and offered him the job. When the 30-year-old Smith accepted the job, Aycock told him that wins and losses didn't matter as much as running a clean program that represented UNC well.Chansky, Art. ''Blue Blood:Duke-Carolina: Inside the Most Storied Rivalry in College Hoops''.

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

: St. Martin's Press, 2006. This charge is somewhat ironic, as Smith led the Tar Heels to 879 wins over 36 years.

References

External links

Office of Chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: William Brantley Aycock Records, 1957-1964
in the University Archives, UNC-Chapel Hill.
William B. Aycock Papers, 1942-2006
in the Southern Historical Collection,

Aycock's lineage
from ttp://docsouth.unc.edu/sohp/ Oral Histories of the American South
William B. Aycock In Memoriam, A Digital Library by the Kathrine R. Everett Law Library
UNC-Chapel Hill. {{DEFAULTSORT:Aycock, William Brantley 1915 births 2015 deaths University of North Carolina School of Law faculty Recipients of the Silver Star Recipients of the Legion of Merit Leaders of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army officers North Carolina State University alumni People from Wilson County, North Carolina University of North Carolina School of Law alumni