Robert James Waller

UNI 150: People you should know

Robert James Waller: Inaugural dean of the College of Business becomes a best-selling author

Before his name appeared on bestseller lists, Robert James Waller was the founding dean of UNIBusiness and a distinguished leader and scholar.

Waller attended the State College of Iowa, graduating in 1962 with a bachelor's degree in business education teaching and a master’s degree in education in 1964. He returned to UNI in 1968 as an assistant professor of management and economics and was promoted to full professor in 1977. 

From 1980 to 1986, Waller served as inaugural dean of the School of Business at UNI, now known as the Wilson College of Business. He was known for recruiting four former vice presidents of Fortune 200 corporations to run External Services and directing UNI’s Department of Accounting into a top 10 spot nationwide. In 1987, he received the UNI Achievement Award for his contributions. 

In the early 1980s, he began writing travel pieces, nature essays and personal reflections for “The Des Moines Register.” While photographing covered bridges in Madison County, Iowa, he found inspiration for what became his first novel. He completed “The Bridges of Madison County” in less than two weeks, and it was published in 1992.

The book became a success, selling more than 50 million copies and translated into over 40 languages. It was adapted into a major motion picture in 1995, starring Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep, and later into a Broadway musical nominated for a Tony Award.

Waller followed up with his second novel, “Slow Waltz in Cedar Bend,” which also became a bestseller. He went on to write several more romance novels, with an exception of his final book, “The Long Night of Winchell,” a Western thriller published in 2006. 

In 2012, Waller made a seven-figure donation to UNI. The gift established the Robert James Waller Scholarship in Economics, the Robert James Waller College of Business Faculty Enrichment Fund and supports jazz scholarships and the Honors Program. The Robert James Waller Scholarship in Economics provides full tuition and fees scholarship for a student majoring in economics.