MCC Daily Tribune

Professor William G. Yanklowski, Engineering Technologies

Our hearts are with the family and friends of MCC Professor William G. “Bill” Yanklowski (Engineering Technologies) who died on May 5, 2022 at 70 years of age.

His funeral mass will be celebrated at 10:00 a.m. today at St. Christopher's Church, 3350 N. Union Street in North Chili. He will be buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to St. Jude's Children's Hospital or a charity of one's choice.

According to his obituary, Professor Yanklowski is survived by his loving wife, Linda; children, Daniel (Lindsay), Michael (Bridget) and Karen (Joe) Brown; five grandchildren; several nieces and dear friends.

Professor Yanklowski joined MCC in 1978 as an instructor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering/Electronics/Instrumentation Technology under then MCC President Moses Koch. During his 43-year career inspiring Engineering Technologies students, Professor Yanklowski was promoted to assistant professor in 1982, associate professor in 1992 and full professor in 2009.

He once wrote that he decided put off retirement until he was 70 “due to the success [he was] having in educating Electrical Engineering Technologies students.” He was determined to present complicated electronic material in such a way that all of his students could understand it and be successful in electronics field.

Colleagues and students will fondly remember him in the ELT lab, building partnerships with local employers such as RF Harris Corporation, Eastman Kodak and building bridges with universities such as Rochester Institute of Technology—all to benefit students. He organized advisory committees and rallied colleagues to increase the number of highly qualified tutors with engineering backgrounds to support the success of students studying Optics, Construction Technology, Electrical and Mechanical Engineering and expand the Technology Learning Center.

He participated in phone-a-thons to encourage students to register, advised students and took them on tours of local employers to show how what they were studying at MCC connected to life-changing career opportunities. He stayed abreast of emerging technologies to strengthen his department and program and contributed to many collegewide efforts—from Faculty Senate to Middle States Accreditation—to ensure the success of MCC. His contributions to our community and college over the past four decades are immeasurable.

MCC deeply mourns the loss of Professor Yanklowski and honors his memory and dedicated service today and always.

DeAnna Burt-Nanna
Office of the President
05/11/2022