Robert Witters Booth Library Fund

Established to honor the life and career of Eastern Illinois University alumnus Dr. Robert “Bob” Witters. Bob was born and raised on a livestock and grain farm west of Charleston, Illinois which resulted in a lifelong interest in the field of agriculture. Bob’s association with Eastern Illinois University began as a young man when he attended Eastern State High School on the grounds of Eastern Ilinois University, graduating in 1953. Bob married Joan Phipps, the mother of their three daughters, and continued farming south of Charleston raising cattle and swine as grain and forage crops. He returned to EIU’s campus six years later as a college student majoring in Botany with minoring in Zoology. Bob graduated in 1962 with a Bachelor of Science in Education.
Bob embarked on his teaching career at New Holland-Middletown High School where he taught biological and general science courses for four years. He also served as the Freshman-Sophmore basketball coach for three of these years. During this time, Bob was awarded two different National Science foundation summer grants to begin work on graduate studies in plant ecology, attending both EIU and the University of Illinois. Bob won a three-year National Defense Education Act Fellowship in 1966 and selected Michigan State University to study crop physiology, graduating with a Master of Science in 1967 and a Doctorate in 1970. He also attended the University of Minnesota to complete post-doctoral studies in photosynthesis and water use in plants during 1970 and 1971.
In 1971, Bob joined the faculty of the Agronomy and Soils Department at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. He both taught and conducted research with a focus on photosynthetic and water-use efficiency in wheat, barley, soybeans, and dry peas. Bob became an Associate Director of the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station at Oregon State University (OSU) in 1977 which included oversight of various research programs on campus and at ten field research stations throughout the state. His appointment was expanded in 1981 to include a half-time appointment as Assistant Dean of Research for OSU. It was during this time that Bob became involved in OSU International Agricultural Development Programs that led to consultancies in four developing countries. During his overseas assignments, Bob was appointed Assistant Dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences and retained his Professorship in Crop Science.
The Robert Witters Booth Library fund is further established to honor Edith White Charlesworth Witters, mother to EIU graduates Robert and Charles Witters, and a long-time Eastern employee. Edith (1910-2000) was a Charleston native and Eastern alumna. She served Eastern’s Library for 24 years, first as the librarian of the University’s teacher training Buzzard Elementary Laboratory School, and later when she transferred to Booth Library as a supervisor in charge of the children’s book collection. Edith retired from Eastern in 1984.