Office of the President alphabetical correspondence, 2003-2009

Sub-Series — Multiple Containers

Identifier: UA 5514 Series 1 Sub-Series 2

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

Consists of the chronological correspondence files of Cecil O. Samuelson. Topics include the governance of the university, fundraising, and interactions with the leadership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Dates

2003-2009

Creator

Brigham Young University. Office of the President (creator, Organization)
Samuelson, Cecil O. (Cecil Osborn), 1941- (contributor, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Restricted. Closed for 70 years from the end date of the administration, and thereafter open to the public in accordance with the University Archives Policy.

Conditions Governing Use

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances. Permission to use material from this collection must be obtained from Reference Services at specialcollections@byu.edu.

Administrative History

From the Collection:

The Office of the President (est. 1903) is the central administrative body at Brigham Young University, and is the direction of the university president.

Brigham Young University has had a president since Brigham Young Academy was changed to Brigham Young University in 1903. While the school was still called Brigham Young Academy the head officer was titled principal.

The Board of Trustees delegates to the university president the responsibility to conduct the operations of the institution and administer the policies enacted by the board. Since 1996, the president of the university has also been a General Authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Past and present Brigham Young University presidents include George H. Brimhall (1903-1921), Franklin S. Harris (1921-1945), Howard S. McDonald (1945-1949), (acting president) Christian Jensen (1949-1951), Ernest L. Wilkinson (1951-1971), Dallin H. Oaks (1971-1980), Jeffrey R. Holland (1980-1989), Rex E. Lee (1989-1995), Merrill J. Bateman (1996-2003), Cecil O. Samuelson (2003-2014), and Kevin J. Worthen (2014- ).

Biographical History

From the Collection:

Cecil O. Samuelson (born 1941) was a university president and ecclesiastical leader in Utah.

Cecil Osborn Samuelson, Jr. was born in 1941 in Salt Lake City, Utah to Cecil O. and Janet Brazier Mitchell Samuelson. He attended the University of Utah, earning a bachelor's of science degree. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Scotland. He then returned to the University of Utah to earn a master's degree in educational psychology and a medical degree. On November 25, 1964 he married Sharon Giauque, and together they have five children.

After graduating from the University of Utah, Samuelson completed his residency at the Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina in rheumatic and genetic diseases. He then returned to Salt Lake City, joining the faculty of the University of Utah School of Medicine in 1973. He became dean of the school in 1985, and then vice-president for health sciences. In 1990 he left the university, working as a vice-president for Intermountain Health Care (IHC) and president of the IHC Hospitals. Over the course of his career, Samuelson was also deeply involved in Church service serving as a high councilor, branch president, counselor in a stake presidency, and a stake president.

In 1994 Samuelson was called to serve as a General Authority of the Church. Leaving his position at IHC, he served as an area president, as president of the General Sunday School organization, and in the presidency of the Seventy. In 2003 he was asked to serve as president of Brigham Young University, becoming its twelfth president. He was granted emeritus general authority status in 2011, and was released as university president in 2014.

Biographical History

From the Collection:

Merrill J. Bateman (born 1936) is a Mormon ecclesiastical leader in Utah.

Merrill Joseph Bateman was born on June 19, 1936 in Lehi, Utah to Joseph Frederic and Belva Smith Bateman. He was raised in American Fork, Utah, and served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Great Britain. After his return Bateman attended the University of Utah, and on March 23, 1959 he married Marilyn Scholes in the Salt Lake Temple. They had seven children.

In 1960 Bateman completed a bachelor's degree in economics, and then went on to earn a Ph.D. in economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1965. After finishing his degrees he taught at the United States Air Force Academy from 1964 to 1967, before joining the faculty at Brigham Young University in 1967. He stayed at BYU from 1967 to 1971, when he left to worked as an executive for Mars, Inc. He returned to the university in 1975, serving as dean of the business school until 1979. He left once more for Mars after his term as dean, then opened his own consulting and management firms in 1980.

In 1992 he was called as a General Authority of the Church, and served in the Second Quorum of the Seventy and as an area president. Between 1994 and 1995 he served as the Presiding Bishop of the Church, before being called to be president of Brigham Young University. He served as university president from 1996 to 2003. Following his term as president he returned to Church service as a member of the Presidency of the Seventy and president of the General Sunday School. In 2007 he was appointed as president of the Provo Utah Temple.