TO THE CHAPTER INVISIBLE
HBCUs and one of the most important educational institutions in the City of Atlanta. My thoughts and prayers are with Bill’s family and with the entire Morehouse community. For all his accomplish- ments, I know Bill had so much still to give. This is a loss we will feel for a generation.” Born on December 15, 1961 in Atlanta, Georgia, Brother Taggart grew up in the Adamsville section of Atlanta and was the oldest of the three children of Marian Howard Taggart and James Taggart. After graduation from Atlanta’s Northside High School, Taggart left his hometown for the nation’s capital to attend Howard University where he earned his bachelor’s degree. At Howard, he was initiated into the fraternity as a proud member of the 21 Sons of B.O.R.G., the 1982 line of the Xi of Kappa Alpha Psi ® at Howard University. While at Howard, he interned in the Reagan Administration, an experience that helped him in the public sector later in his career. He graduated from Howard University in 1984 with a BBA degree in Computer Based Systems. After earning an MBA degree in 1991 from the Harvard Business School, he worked for many years at IBM and Wachovia before leaving the private sector to join the Obama Administration as the Chief Operating Officer of Federal Student Aid (FSA). After two-year stint at FSA, Brother Taggart joined Atlanta Life Financial Group in 2011 as its president and CEO. At the invitation of Morehouse College president Dr. Wilson, he joined Morehouse College in 2015 as executive-in-residence and chief operating of- ficer with primary responsibility for the Office of Institutional Advancement. Dr. Wilson remarked how Brother Taggart, his talent, and his experience would benefit the institution, “This is a final step in a convergence of talent that positions Morehouse to leap toward creating the type of world-of-our- dreams institution that consistently provides a pre- eminent educational experience for our students.” A Life Member of Kappa Alpha Psi ® , he also held memberships in 100 Black Men of America and the Rotary Club of Atlanta. He was board chair-
man of the Atlanta Business League and served on the boards of the Carter Center, the Woodruff Arts Center, Carver Bank, Westside Future Fund, and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. He received an honorary doctorate in business from Atlanta’s Morris Brown College. Just prior to his passing, he was named to the 2018 Class of Leadership Atlanta. A memorial service was held for Brother Taggart at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Chapel on the campus of Morehouse College. He was preceded in death by father and his wife, Lydia Roston. He is survived by his mother Marian Taggart, his daughter Elizabeth Taggart and his fiancé Wonya Morris. Morehouse College established the William J. Taggart Scholarship Fund in his honor.
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