William D. Nelligan, III, CAE, FACC, passed away on July 23 in Rockville, MD. Nelligan, who served as ACC executive director/CEO for 27 years, would have been 93 in August. He is survived by his wife Dorothy Nelligan.

Nelligan joined the ACC as executive director in 1965, succeeding Philip Reichert, MD. During his more than two decades at the College, he played pivotal roles in ACC’s move from New York to Washington, DC, and led the creation and expansion of ACC’s former Heart House in Bethesda, MD. He is also credited for guiding the overall growth of the College and its education, science, advocacy and membership offerings

When asked several years ago for his thoughts on ACC’s biggest accomplishments over its history, Nelligan cited “the realization that the ACC needed to establish a world recognized continuing education center where ACC members and others could assemble and learn and discuss research and clinical advances in the cardiovascular field.”

Nelligan’s contributions towards this vision and making it a reality are unparalleled. In a tribute to Nelligan on his 25th anniversary with the College, then President William L. Winters Jr., MD, MACC, noted how the College had grown from a “budding organization” of roughly 2,000 members, four administrative staff and an annual budget of $80,000 to 18,000 members, a much bigger annual budget, and approximately 100 staff under his leadership. “In word and deed [Nelligan] has elevated himself and the College to a lofty level in the worldwide cardiovascular community,” Winters said.

Nelligan was awarded the ACC Presidential Citation in 1975 and was recognized for the “breadth of services to his fellow men, his profession and his friends and colleagues, with ACC’s Distinguished Service Award in 1986. Upon Nelligan’s retirement from the ACC in 1992, then President Robert L. Frye, MD, MACC, summed up Nelligan’s “extraordinary leadership and management skills,” saying: “Bill Nelligan has a unique and highly sensitive antenna to the feelings of others that influences all his personal and working relations. It is reflected as well in his strong commitment to understanding and serving the ACC membership to the fullest possible extent.”

“Bill Nelligan greatly valued both the members and the mission of the ACC, and in so many ways contributed to the very foundation on which the College continues to build for the future,” said ACC President Richard J. Kovacs, MD, FACC. “He will be greatly missed, but his legacy will continue to live on as we push toward achieving a world where innovation and knowledge optimize cardiovascular care and outcomes.”

Keywords: Leadership, Research, Knowledge, Education, Continuing

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