Major accomplishments during his tenure (1941–1959) include the establishment of the faculty senate, student government and the University Foundation; creation of The Forum, one of the oldest continuous lecture series in the country; the first addition of academic buildings since the founding of the school in 1916; building of the first residence halls, student center and library; acquisition of the 230-acre Putnam Park; purchase of 48 acres of land for an upper campus; the first accreditation by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools; and the first bachelor and liberal arts degrees.

He was the third son of David and Sarah Davies, pioneer settlers of Welsh ancestry who had moved to Washington from Wisconsin.

[2] Davies began his teaching career in 1915, as the assistant principal of the Endeavor Academy, a private Congregational school in Marquette County.

In September 1917 Davies joined the YMCA staff at Camp Custer in Michigan, and in November he enlisted in the U.S. Army Medical Corps.

[6] In 1942 Davies established The Forum, one of the longest continuous lecture series in the United States, to express his vision of what the college might become as a cultural center.

Speakers presented during the Davies years included John Mason Brown, Margaret Bourke-White, Bennett Cerf, Norman Cousins, Bernard DeVoto, Sinclair Lewis, Wayne Morse, Carl Rowan, Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., and Dorothy Thompson.

Two years later Davies was married to Delpha Smith, supervisor of music in the Eau Claire public schools.

In 1946, after three Eau Claire citizens advanced the capital, a State Street mansion two blocks away from Old Main was purchased and remodeled for the first women's residence facility on campus.

In September 1951 he set in place the cornerstone for four interconnected buildings that were the first permanent structures built on the campus since the school's founding in 1916.

Haas succeeded to the presidency when Davies died in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, on December 10, 1959, after a heart attack.

[18] On May 7, 1960, the Wisconsin State College Foundation launched its first major fundraising campaign, the W. R. Davies Memorial Fund.

A goal of $15,000 was set, with all funds to be directed to match federal grants for National Defense Student Loans.

The campaign kicked off with a live three-hour television broadcast hosted by students, in which more than 200 people participated.

[23] "No drama was found in the revelation that the new UW-Eau Claire student center will retain the W. R. Davies moniker," reported the Leader-Telegram, "just satisfaction that a key early leader of the university will continue to be honored for many decades to come.