William Coulter ‘68

I was excited to start college and was well prepared having graduated from Servite High School in Anaheim. My sister, Carol, was a senior at Long Beach State after returning from her junior year in Denmark. We commuted together from Anaheim in a Sunbeam Alpine. I was fortunate to be a member of the freshman honors program. A great group of students surrounded me and professors who got to know each of us on a one-to-one basis. However, school was not all work and no play, as I was a member of the TKE pledge class in the fall of 1964.

I took classes in a wide range of subjects before choosing political science as my major. Inspired by my sister I applied to a number of universities in the UK and studied at the London School of Economics and Political Science before returning to Long Beach State for my senior year.

I have way too many memories to single out just one. However, 49er Days (long gone) was a special time when the fraternities built a street right out of a western movie. My senior year was special because my girlfriend, Cheryl, (and now my wife of 50 years) transferred to Long Beach State and was a Tri Delta. We both maintain friendships from our time at Long Beach despite the many years that have passed.

I recall attending football games at Veteran’s Stadium when Long Beach fielded a football team. It was typically a group activity including many fraternity brothers and our dates.

The campus was a very simple place in the 60’s. My two favorite places were the Hill (as I believe it was called) and the library. But Joe’s Jost was the place to be off campus. Schooners of beer, pickled eggs, and pretzels. I am pleased that it has survived to this day.

I am experiencing a “senior moment” as I cannot recall the name of my political science advisor who worked with me as I applied to the LSE and who ensured that I was credited with a full year of study upon my return. With a bit of help I hope to remember his name, as I would like him to have a special mention in any article about my time at Long Beach State. He was just one of many outstanding professors that I had the good fortune to get to know.

Just as Servite was the foundation for my college studies, my time at Long Beach and in London lead to me being awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship to study at the University of Colorado. After earning a Master’s Degree I spent an additional year at the Thunderbird Graduate School of International Management in Glendale, Arizona. Each school helped prepare me for my career in banking, investment banking, and private equity.

I began my career at the Chase Manhattan Bank in New York City. Cheryl and I return to NYC on a regular basis to share time with friends and to enjoy all that NYC has to offer. Cheryl and I have traveled the world from New York City, to London, to Hong Kong.

I am happily retired and living north of Tucson, Arizona in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. We have three adult children and five grandchildren. I hope that our grandchildren are inspired to focus on their schoolwork and to travel the world. Without the benefit of a first class education I would not have had the opportunity to pursue my dream. I was able to study abroad and Cheryl and I have lived in England (twice) and in Hong Kong.

A few additional random thoughts. Cheryl and I have supported the President’s Scholars Program since its inception. I first met President Robert Maxson and his wife in NYC at an alumni party. Years later when our daughter was changing careers (from advertising to teaching) she was a student of Mrs. Mason’s at CSULB. We don’t get to Long Beach very often, but hope to do so this year. I will email you a few photos including one of me with my two granddaughters. The photo was taken last summer in Colorado where we attended a family reunion. Another photo was taken last fall when Cheryl and I were in NYC. And I will include a recent selfie with my three oldest grandchildren. I will send you two photos of me no later than tomorrow. Cheryl will take a photo and she has offered to look for a photo from our time together during the 60’s.