Dr. William 鈥淏ill鈥� Odom, USM College of Arts and Sciences Faculty Member, Dies
Fri, 01/05/2024 - 11:13am | By: David Tisdale
A longtime University of Southern Mississippi (USM) College of Arts and Sciences educator is being remembered by colleagues and former students for his exceptional intelligence and wit, along with an indefatigable devotion to his work in a nearly half-century of service to the school.
Dr. William 鈥淏ill鈥� Odom, professor of German in the USM School of Social Science and Global Studies鈥� World Languages Program, died Jan. 4 in Hattiesburg at age 84. He was a member of the USM faculty since 1974, when he joined its then Department of Foreign Languages.
鈥淲e are saddened by the loss of Dr. William Odom, and share condolences with his family, friends and colleagues,鈥� said USM President Dr. Joseph S. Paul. 鈥淏ill was a true scholar and renaissance man who loved the life of the mind. He will be deeply missed.鈥�
Dr. Chris Winstead, dean of the USM College of Arts and Sciences, said Dr. Odom鈥檚 dedication to his students and passion for teaching 鈥渨as evident in everything he did.鈥�
鈥淒r. Odom served the university with distinction and honor for almost 50 years,鈥� Dr. Winstead continued. 鈥淲hen most of us would have retired, he still loved teaching and being a member of the faculty and the university community. He will be missed by the entire Southern Miss family.鈥�
One of Dr. Odom鈥檚 former students, USM alumnus Dr. David Nobles Jr., described him as 鈥渁n incredibly knowledgeable professor with a tremendous intellect鈥� who approached teaching 鈥渨ith a marvelous combination of professionalism and humor.鈥�
Dr. Odom earned a bachelor鈥檚 degree from Louisiana State University and a Ph.D. from
Tulane University. At USM, he taught German and Russian language courses. His publications
include German for Singers: A Textbook of Diction and Phonetics, used for decades at leading conservatories and universities as a guide for singers
in learning German opera and art songs.
Dr. Odom鈥檚 other work includes translations of JAZZ: A Photo History, and Tomorrow We'll Be in Switzerland, a play which tells the story of a group of Jewish children hidden from the Nazis
in the south of France during World War II. He also translated Hellmut Haasis鈥� biography
of Georg Elser, Bombing Hitler, about the carpenter who tried to assassinate German dictator Adolf Hitler in 1939
by placing an explosive device in a platform in Munich where Hitler was giving a speech.