William "Bill" Plante was born on November 29, 1957 in Watertown NY the son of Paul and Phyllis Burns Plante. Bill was raised in Watertown with his three siblings, Stephen, John and Nancy. He was a 1976 graduate of Immaculate Heart Central High School where he played lacrosse and football.
Upon graduation he attended Morrisville Community College and graduated with a B.S. in Environmental Studies in 1984 from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry at Syracuse University.