William C Bayless Jr

Bill Bayless was the co-founder, President & CEO of American Campus Communities, Inc. Bayless was born and raised in the northern panhandle of West Virginia. He attended West Virginia University from 1982 – 1986 graduating from The College of Business and Economics with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. Bayless worked to establish student housing divisions within traditional real-estate companies in Columbus, Ohio and Houston, Texas. In 1993 the then 29-year old Bayless moved his wife and two small children to Austin, Texas where he co-founded American Campus. Bayless is married to his college sweetheart, Jamie Myers Bayless of Weston, WV. They have two grown children and three grandchildren. In 2022, American Campus Communities was acquired by Blackstone. Bayless retired from American Campus Communities (ACC) effective April 21 2023, nearly 30 years after co-founding the company. Bayless led the company as CEO for 20 years before transitioning to the role of vice chair shortly after the firm’s 2022 acquisition by Blackstone.