Minnesota Law Mourns the Passing of Willard “Sandy” Boyd ‘51, Former President of the University of Iowa

Former UI president Willard "Sandy" Boyd ’51 died on December 13 at the age of 95.

Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Boyd received both his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Minnesota. He went on to obtain Master of Law and Doctor of Juridical Science degrees from the University of Michigan.

Boyd practiced law for two years in Minneapolis, and the joined the faculty of the University of Iowa in 1954. He later served as associate dean of the University of Iowa College of Law, and then UI’s vice president of academic affairs.

Boyd became UI’s president in 1969, serving for 12 years before leaving to serve as president of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. After retiring from the Field, he returned to the UI as a law professor in 1996 and served as interim president in 2002–03. He formally retired from the university in 2015.

For a fuller summary of Boyd’s remarkable career and many accomplishments, see the University of Iowa’s tribute in Iowa Now.