1969-1981
A native of Oklahoma, Dr. Shilling held a bachelor of arts degree from McMurry
College in Texas, a bachelor of divinity degree from Southern Methodist University,
and a master’s degree and Ph.D. from Indiana University. Before his arrival at Hendrix,
Dr. Shilling had also served as an assistant to the president of Tennessee Wesleyan
College, the director of planning and research at Baldwin-Wallace College in Ohio, and the executive vice president of Southwestern University in Texas. His graduate
work had been in higher education administration, and consequently he became the
first professional administrator to head the College. He was also the first president
since A.C. Millar in 1887 who had no previous connection with Hendrix.
The cultural and intellectual life of the school expanded with the beginning
of a series of special academic programs such as the Murphy Foundation and the Steel
Center, the construction of three new buildings was completed and the market values
of both the endowment and the physical plant increased during Dr. Shilling’s tenure.
In 1980, Dr. Shilling resigned as president of Hendrix to become president at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.