Hise and Haynes: Department Loses 2 Retired Luminaries in 3 Months

The department has lost 2 very important retirees in the past 3 months, and the impact is being felt by colleagues and alumni alike.  Mr. Billy (Bill) Rollin Hise, a resident of Baton Rouge, LA passed away on November 16, 2020, from natural causes at home. Mrs. Mary Eloise (Harris) Haynes passed away on February 6, 2021.  Along with a description of years of service, we have included below memories and reflections from colleagues and alumni.

In 1964, Professor Bill Hise accepted a position in the Petroleum Engineering Dept (now endowed as the Craft & Hawkins Dept of Petroleum Engineering), after working 2 years' service with the United States Air Force and a total of 8 years for Shell Oil Co.  He, alongside engineer Mr. Roy Sullins, is credited for creating the Blowout Prevention School (now the PERTT Lab) at LSU.  While he was a professor at LSU, he was honored as the Halliburton Professor of Petroleum Engineering. 

Retired Petroleum Engineering Dept Chair and former College of Engineering Dean Dr. Adam (Ted) Bourgoyne, Jr. recalls, "Bill Hise was a special and very hard working person who went out of his way to help people. He played an important part in my professional development starting with recruiting me out of high school to attend LSU and enroll in Petroleum Engineering. His leadership helped us to develop a strong program in blowout prevention and he played a key roll in acquiring the wells that led to the development of the Petroleum Engineering Research and Technology Transfer Laboratory. I benefitted from being able to work closely with Bill both during my career at LSU and after my retirement from LSU with Pennington Oil and Gas." 

Alumnus William (Bill) Stone also recalls Mr. Hise fondly.  He reflects on that period of the department history.  "After Bennie Craft died in early 1964, the department only had Dr. Frank Birdwell, Bill Holden, and Murray Hawkins as professors. Dr. Birdwell was not interested in teaching  as much as research. Bill Holden was about to leave to go to the University of Texas to get his PhD. So Murray hired Dr. Oscar Kimble and Bill Hise to start in the fall of 1964. Dr. Kimble taught the reservoir courses and Bill Hise taught the production, drilling and economics courses. They both had hands-on experience and were very excellent teachers. I learned so much that I was able to apply in my engineering career from both of them that I attribute  to my successes.  Although Bill Hise did not have a doctorate, he was the type of  professor that the petroleum engineering department should have. I have always been amazed how much more I understood economics than graduates from other petroleum engineering schools, and I attribute that to Bill Hise." 

Professor Hise retired from the department in 1980, and he and his wife Anne established their oil & gas consulting company Hise & Hise. The company was changed to the Hise Company when son Richard Hise joined the firm in 1982. Upon completion of his Petroleum degree with the department, grandson Forrest joined in 2017, and three generations of Hise worked at the firm.

In 2014, Bill Hise was inducted into the LSU College of Engineering Hall of Distinction at LSU and a Petroleum Engineering scholarship was established in his name.  Upon his induction into the Hall of Distinction, Mr. Hise provided his reflections on his time at LSU, which can be found here.

 

Mary Haynes worked as a Coordinator of Academic Area in Petroleum Engineering for 34 years (1959-1993).  Faculty, staff, and students looked up to her and would seek her advice. Dr. Bourgoyne reflects, "Mary Haynes loved LSU and played an important roll in the success of the Petroleum Engineering Program. Her attention to our students as they went through our program was a key factor in our ability to maintain strong alumni support." 

When Mrs. Haynes was first hired in 1959, her title was Coordinator-Continuing Education Division.  Her job responsibilities were closely tied to the Blowout Prevention School.  She worked alongside Mr. Hise as the school was used for educating students enrolled in the Petroleum Engineering programs and for Continuing Education purposes. Mr. Bill Stone recalls, "Mary Haynes always said that when Bennie Craft hired her the only question he asked her was "could she make coffee". I worked with her when I was the lab tech in the Petroleum Engineering Dept and remained friends with her after I graduated. She was a real asset when Bennie died and Murray became department head. She was a pleasant person to work with." 

She was a recipient of the LSU Foundation Staff Outstanding Service Award in 1990. Even after retiring, former faculty, staff, and students kept in touch with Mary and would send her cards and letters. Mary enjoyed seeing old friends and meeting our new students as she continued to join us at our annual crawfish boils through the years. Mary's funeral service is Friday, February 12, 2021, and if you are interested in leaving the family messages or memories, feel free to include them at this site.