ON APRIL 26, more than 100 members of the Lafayette community gathered in Colton Chapel to honor the life and accomplishments of John W. Landis ’39, who died March 16 in Roanoke, Va. The Board of Trustees, on which Landis served for 18 years, adopted a memorial resolution May 24 in his honor. He was elected to emeritus status in 1988.
Retired president of Stone & Webster Engineering Corporation, Boston, Mass., Landis was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1981 for leadership in the design and construction of advanced nuclear steam supply systems. The American Nuclear Society presented him with the Henry DeWolf Smyth Award and the Alvin Weinberg Award.
The College awarded him an honorary doctor of science degree in 1960. He also received the Joseph E. Bell ’28 Alumni Distinguished Service Award and the George Washington Kidd Class of 1836 Award for distinction in his profession. At Commencement 2007, Landis was presented with the Lafayette Medal.
Landis and his wife, the late Muriel T. S. Landis, committed $1 million to the Lafayette Leadership Campaign to create a major endowment supporting community outreach. The Landis
Community Outreach Program was dedicated in 1999. Members of the Société d’Honneur, they also funded the Landis Lecture Series, a scholarship, and the Landis Atrium in Farinon College Center.
His four brothers are the late Paul E. Landis ’42, Richard B. Landis ’43, the late Glenn K. Landis ’44, and Edwin C. Landis Jr. ’56. Their father, Edwin C. Landis Sr., joined his five sons and grandson, William Landis ’71 (son of Richard), as an alumnus when he was awarded an honorary master of arts in 1993.