Remembering Bill Speidel
September 30th, 2025
Bill Speidel alsongside young students in Ningbo, China.
It is with great sadness that we at Oberlin Shansi receive the news of the passing of a dear member of the Shansi community, William “Bill” Speidel ‘57. Bill served as an Oberlin Shansi Representative to Taiwan from 1957-59, and again from 1967-73. Bill was not only emblematic of Shani’s values and mission, but was a champion for the normalization of US-China relations more broadly, with an international impact that resonates to the present day.
Bill’s journey with Shansi came at a critical point in our institution’s history, as his arrival in Taiwan was part of a wave of new Shansi partnerships in the 1950s. Bill and Elena, who met one another at Oberlin and married just after graduation, set off for Tunghai University in Taiwan, marking the beginning of a long and ever-evolving journey for them both.
In the field, Bill, who was a student of Geology at Oberlin, often “found himself collecting characters as he might once have fossil specimens,” according to Judy Moore (Taiwan ‘56-58) in a 2007 Shansi publication. This fondness for language acquisition was reflected in Bill’s intellectual and professional journeys as an educator and cultural ambassador.
Beyond Shansi, Bill’s impact remained global, as he continued to build a robust, people-centered, career—from his yearslong journey with the Stanford University Inter-University Program, alongside Elena, to his flagship post with the Hopkins Nanjing program, and lastly, as the first Country Director of the Peace Corps in China. Oberlin Shansi Executive Director Gavin Tritt reflected that “these institutions that Bill established and nurtured have been crucial for generations of students of China and Chinese. By example and by his dedicated work, Bill laid the foundations for a rich legacy of fostering meaningful human interactions and cross-cultural understanding.”
While our hearts are heavy, we at Oberlin Shansi are nonetheless proud to consider Bill part of our Shansi Family.
Bill and Elena Speidel outside of their Tunghai home.