William Wallace Destler (born August 26, 1946) is an American university professor and administrator. In 2017 he retired after having served for exactly 10 years as the 9th president of the Rochester Institute of Technology. He held the position from July 1, 2007, succeeding Albert J. Simone. Destler received his bachelor's degree from the Stevens Institute of Technology in 1968, and a Ph.D. in applied physics from Cornell University in 1972. His research specialized in "high-power microwave sources and advanced accelerator technologies". * A 1902 cello banjo in Destler's collection *