JON WESTLING
(Oregon & St John's 1964) (7 June 1942 - 15 January 2021)
Jon Westling graduated from Reed College in Oregon. He was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship in 1964 and studied history at St. John’s College, Oxford University.
Westling’s career at Boston University spanned 46 years and included several top leadership posts, although his most lasting avocation was teaching students about the history of Europe. He came to the University in 1974 to work on a project to produce films for the US Bicentennial. While that project never materialized, John Silber (Hon.’95), then BU president, took notice of the 32-year-old and drew him into his administration. He was named provost in 1984, and later became executive vice president. Westling (Hon.’03) served as president of the University from 1996 to 2002.
Westling was proud of his activities as a Freedom Rider, including participation in a sit-in in southern Virginia in 1963.