Everett T. Keech, former vice dean of the graduate program and adjunct professor of public policy and management in the Wharton School, died on May 24 of complications from Parkinson’s disease. He was 84.

Mr. Keech was born in Rochester, New York. He earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Rochester in 1961 and a master’s degree in business administration from Penn’s Wharton School in 1969. He joined the Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Corps while attending the University of Rochester, served in the U.S. Navy from 1961 to 1967, and flew A-4 Skyhawk jets off aircraft carriers on assignments in the Mediterranean and elsewhere. He was John McCain’s wingman and continued flying in the Naval Reserve until retiring in 1972 as a lieutenant commander. 

Mr. Keech served under President Gerald Ford from 1974 to 1977 as deputy associate director in the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, assistant secretary for financial management of the Air Force, and acting undersecretary of the Air Force. He helped President Jimmy Carter establish the Department of Energy in 1977 and was named chairman of the board of visitors for the Department of Defense Systems Management College in 1982 under President Ronald Reagan. Mr. Keech also worked as a consultant to the Department of the Interior and earned the Exceptional Civilian Service Award and the Distinguished Service Award from the federal government. 

Mr. Keech moved to Philadelphia from Washington in 1977 to become the vice dean and director of Wharton’s MBA program. He mentored many students and colleagues as a lecturer and adjunct professor of business policy, federal budget policy, corporate governance, entrepreneurship, and innovation in both Wharton and in the LPS Organizational Dynamics program. He joined Penn’s 25-Year Club in 2002.

Mr. Keech served as managing director of the Philadelphia First Group, as board chairman at Laser Technology Inc. and Teletrac Corp., and as chief executive officer, director, trustee, and senior consultant for many other firms and start-ups. He served on the Pennsylvania State Ethics and Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commissions in the 1980s and was a trustee of the Philadelphia-based Eisenhower Fellowships. He helped found the Pennsylvania Center for Adapted Sports in Fairmount Park and was a member of Links Inc. and the Philadelphia and Cosmos Clubs. 

He is survived by his wife, Ann; his sons, Will and Stephen; his daughter, Allison Sanka (Jefferson); his grandsons, Evan Sanka and Lucas Keech; his sister, Susan Keech McIntosh; and nieces and nephews.

A celebration of his life will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, September 14, at Main Line Unitarian Church, 816 S. Valley Forge Rd, Devon, Pennsylvania. Donations in his name may be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation, 200 SE First St, Suite 800, Miami, FL. 33131.