![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/www.uww.edu\/images\/library\/blog\/Jack_Heide.jpg\")
John A. \u201cJack\u201d Heide was hired at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, then called Whitewater State Teachers College, in 1948, where he took on the role of English Department Chair.[1]<\/sup><\/a> During the 1950s and 1960s, Heide greatly expanded the English department, eventually making it the largest department on campus at the time. Heide was a big proponent of keeping class sizes small, even the typically larger required freshman courses, to aid student\/professor relationships.[2]<\/sup><\/a> His dedication to students extended outside of the classroom. In 1949, Heide organized a student writing club called the Wits and sponsored a student literary magazine named The Tower<\/em>, a precursor to the Muse, <\/em>UW-Whitewater\u2019s current literature and arts magazine.[3]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Wits club was known as an informal writing club, in which all students were invited to meet and discuss various literary topics, including members\u2019 writings.[5]<\/sup><\/a> In the same year the club began, they published the first edition of The Tower<\/em> to exhibit club members’ writings. The opening paragraph of the first edition reads, \u201cIn presenting this magazine, it is the intention of the club to give the public a chance to read samples of the types of creative writings at which club members have been working during the year.\u201d[6]<\/sup><\/a> The magazine could be bought for a small fee.[7]<\/sup><\/a> The fee was then used to raise money for guest speakers to attend campus events; as Chair of the University Convocation Committee, Heide was in charge of planning said events. [8]<\/sup><\/a> While anyone could be a member of Wits, The Tower<\/em>\u2019s staff was hand-picked by the Wits club members.[9]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Eventually, the Wits club began hosting writing competitions where winning students would receive a cash prize of $5, later bumped up to $10, and a feature in The Tower<\/em>.[11]<\/sup><\/a> At first, four categories were made available for submission: one-act play, fiction, non-fiction, and poetry.[12]<\/sup><\/a> In the 1960s, when the cash prize grew to $10, three more categories were added: essay, two-dimensional art, and three-dimensional art.[13]<\/sup><\/a> When these contests began, The Tower<\/em> provided a way to highlight the writing and artistic talents of all students, not just the Wits club members.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sadly, in April of 1968, Heide passed away from smoke inhalation during an accidental house fire. Weeks later, devastated by the loss, the UW-W campus dedicated the new humanities building to Heide.[14]<\/sup><\/a> The last edition of The Tower<\/em>, in 1968, was also dedicated to his memory.[15]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n You can browse issues of The Tower <\/em>online at https:\/\/www.jstor.org\/site\/uww\/<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n [1]<\/sup><\/a> Richard C. Haney, Campus Cornerstones, University of Wisconsin\u2013 Whitewater: biographical sketches of the people for whom buildings & facilities are named<\/em> (Whitewater, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin\u2013 Whitewater, 1997), 59.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [2]<\/sup><\/a> Ibid., 59.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [3]<\/sup><\/a> Ibid., 59.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [4] Haney, Campus Cornerstones, <\/em>58.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [5]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cLiterary Club Discusses Art,\u201d Royal Purple<\/em>, Sept. 10, 1963.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [6]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cThe Word Before,\u201d The Tower<\/em>, 1949, 3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [7]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cWits Plan To Publish New Literary Magazine,\u201d Royal Purple<\/em>, May 17, 1949.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [8]<\/sup><\/a> Haney, \u201cCampus Cornerstones,\u201d 59.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [9]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cWits Club to Choose TOWER Staff Tonight,\u201d Royal Purple<\/em>, March 14, 1961.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [10] Lee Ashton and John Leslie, The Tower, <\/em>1949. <\/p>\n\n\n\n [11]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cWits Contest Ends April 20,\u201d Royal Purple<\/em>, April 17, 1956.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [12]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cWits Contest Winners Told,\u201d Royal Purple<\/em>, May 8, 1956.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [13]<\/sup><\/a> \u201cWinners of Wits Contest Are Chosen,\u201d Royal Purple<\/em>, May 8, 1962.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [14]<\/sup><\/a> Haney, \u201cCampus Cornerstones,\u201d 59.<\/p>\n\n\n\n [15]<\/sup><\/a> The Tower<\/em>, 1968, 43.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Written by Riley Smith Jack Heide[4] John A. \u201cJack\u201d Heide was hired at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, then called Whitewater State Teachers College, in 1948, where he took on the role of English Department Chair.[1] During the 1950s and 1960s, … Continue reading ![\"Cover](\"http:\/\/www.uww.edu\/images\/library\/blog\/Tower_Cover_1949.jpg\")
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