[8][7] The county's board of education formally appointed him on June 11, 1940, slating him to take office on August 1, 1940.
[12] His tenure here, together with his previous stint as superintendent in Caroline County, helped to earn him a reputation as a leader in the field of education.
[13][14] On July 1, 1947, Willis became superintendent Yonkers Public Schools,[15] a position he held until September 1, 1950.
He gave his support amid these efforts having faced negative allegations that the channels would be used for propaganda, mind control, and would function as state media.
[7] He left Buffalo for his new job in Chicago, starting on September 1, 1953,[21][22] and becoming the highest-paid educator in the United States.
[23] For his first eight years in the job, despite encountering some problems related to the growth of school system, Willis received strong public support.
[7][8] During the earlier part of his tenure, Willis was among the most celebrated school superintendents of the time, and was hailed in both local and national media for modeling efficiency and competence.
[7][9] Several bond issues were approved by voters during his tenure for new school construction, and the money was carefully spent with strong planning, heavily overseen by Willis.
[27] He also decreased class sizes, reintroduced summer school, and expanded the junior college system.
[9] Despite his praise in the first years of his tenure, Willis would, ultimately, become among the most controversial school officials in the United States.
[24] As superintendent, Willis was accused of continuing racial segregation by refusing to integrate Black children into predominantly White schools.
[9] Protest actions included student boycotts of classes, hunger strikes, picketing outside of Willis' personal residence.
[30][32][33][34] In 1963, future United States senator Bernie Sanders, was arrested while protesting segregation in the Chicago Public Schools.
[41] That year, he also conducted a survey of schools and quality of education on a three-member panel serving alongside Robert J. Havighurst and Eldridge T.
[41][42] In 1963, a lawsuit was filed by twenty parents of Black school children over Willis' refusal to integrate.
Instead of going to trial, the Chicago Board of Education agreed to make an out-of-court legal settlement in which they would commission a study to recommend measures for integration.
[7][8][9] Ahead of his departure, Mayor of Chicago Richard J. Daley praised Willis as, "a fine administrator and hard working public servant".
[8] In the 1960s, he served as chairman on a Congressional advisory committee to advise Congress on new federal legislation regarding vocational education.
[8] Willis died of a heart attack at his residence in Plantation, Florida (where he had retired to) on August 27, 1988, at the age of 86.