Anthony Andrew Hickey

Dr. Anthony Andrew Hickey

Tony is gone from our sight, but never from our hearts. He lived most of his life in Sylva, North Carolina. Tony is preceded in death by his father and mother Dr. Thomas and Ruth Hickey his three sisters Kathy, Laura, Damian; two brothers Mat, Joseph.

Tony is served by his wife Sharon Hickey(Sylva ,North Carolina)his son Tom Hickey grandchildren Lola, Zoe (Oklahoma) his daughter Michelle Kendrick (Patrick) Hickory, North Carolina granddaughter Courtney, two great grandsons. Three step daughters; six step grandchildren; four step great grandchildren.

Tony will rest in peace with his family at Sunset Beach, North Carolina at later date.

Tony grew up on Long Island in a large family. As a teen, he worked with his veterinarian father and developed a lifelong love of animals, especially dogs. In the late 1960’s, he enrolled at Cornell University to study rural sociology, earning his Ph.D. in 1975. He took a faculty position at George Mason University in that same year. There he became involved in administration as well as teaching.

In 1985, Tony came to WCU as Dean of Graduate Studies and Research and Professor of Sociology. He brought new ideas to his administrative role and developed many programs to support graduate faculty members and students. Throughout his time as a full-time administrator, Tony continued to teach courses in his specialty, thinking it was important to maintain a connection to students and his discipline. As a rural sociologist and as a person, Tony loved Western North Carolina and its people.

After stepping down from the Dean’s Office, Tony returned to the Department of Anthropology and Sociology fulltime where he continued to embrace his role as a teacher, teaching courses on Rural Society, Community Development, Societal and Regional Development, research methods, and statistics. He also took great pride in advising and mentoring students. From 2010 to 2016 Tony and his colleague, anthropologist Nyaga Mwaniki, taught a study abroad class that took WCU students to Wongonyi, Kenya to study economic and community development. The relationships formed from that experience were deeply meaningful and many continue to this day.

Within the first few minutes of meeting Dr. Hickey in class, students knew that their experience was going to be unique. Tony not only challenged his students to understand the concepts of his lectures, he inspired them to see things differently, ask questions and prove to themselves that they could succeed. Tony retired in 2019. To commemorate his retirement, he gave a “last lecture” to the WCU community. True to the bonds he formed with students, dozens of current and former students turned out for the celebration. 

A celebration of life is planned for Tony, but the details have yet to be determined. Please stay tuned to this FB page for more information.