Dr. Landis Monroe Stetler

Landis M. Stetler, age 92, retired from the Florida Dept. of Education, passed away at his home on Wednesday, October 26, 2016, after a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease. The only child of Monroe Spahr and Gail (Shettel) Stetler, he was born June 14, 1924, in Harrisburg, PA, and attended public schools there, graduating from William Penn High School in 1942. From the time he was 9 years old he was active in the YMCA, participating in the summer camp program, which he later directed for several years. He attended Springfield College in MA, where he was active in the exhibition gymnastics program until drafted into the U.S. Navy. He served for three years during World War II, part of the time in the Central Pacific Theater (Majuro, Marshall Islands). He was assigned to the Navy V12 program at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, PA, and ROTC at Harvard University.

Upon discharge he returned to Springfield College to obtain a B.S. degree in 1948, and an M.S. degree in physical education and recreation for the handicapped. He began his teaching career in 1949 in Baltimore, MD, principally at the William S. Baer School, where he taught the physically handicapped, and later taught mentally handicapped students at Waverly Elementary School. Beginning in the summer of 1954 he entered the doctoral program at Syracuse University and completed the course work in the 1958-1959 school year. He received his Ed.D degree in Administration of Special Education in 1966. He began work in the Florida Dept. of Education in 1960 as a consultant in Exceptional Student Education, eventually becoming Bureau Chief in 1973.

During his tenure, there was a teacher walk-out and a special study which resulted in a state mandate and massive expansion of the program from 900 teachers statewide to over 10,000 by 1982. He is responsible for initiating over 20 pieces of legislation that shaped the growth and development of Florida’s exceptional student program, after conferring with future governors Lawton Chiles and Reuben Askew. He served on numerous councils, advisory committees, and panels relative to both the gifted and the disabled; was the recipient of many state and national awards, and also served as President of the National Association of State Directors of Special Education. When he retired in October 1992, Commissioner Betty Castor designated Dr. Stetler as Bureau Chief Emeritus. After retiring, he continued working for the next two years on a volunteer basis, helping with the transfer of ESE data records into the new computer system, then eventually working part-time for 12 more years, helping to coordinate the state mediation program. The State Association for Exceptional Students established a leadership award at FSU in his name, and in 2005, established a scholarship for administrators in exceptional student education in his name. In his spare time, he enjoyed water skiing with his sons, oil painting, and traveling with his family. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Tallahassee. He is a direct descendant of Conrad Weiser (1732-1760), a pioneer, Indian interpreter and treaty maker, who has a State Park dedicated to his memory in Womelsdorf, PA.

He was preceded in death by his son, Andrew Rae Stetler. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, L. Mae (Guice) Stetler; a daughter, Janet Louise Stetler; a son, David Landis Stetler; and 3 grandchildren, Linzy Stetler, Emily Stetler and Cody Stetler, all of Tallahassee. Memorial contributions may be sent to: Florida Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), Stetler Memorial Fund, 8802 Reparto, Orlando FL 32825-8324. The family will receive friends during the visitation at 12:00 pm on Tuesday, November 1, 2016, at Culley’s MeadowWood Funeral Home at 1737 Riggins Road with the funeral service to follow at 1:00 pm under the auspices of Big Bend Hospice. Interment will take place at Tallahassee Memory Gardens, 4037 N. Monroe Street, Tallahassee, FL, following the funeral service.