Cecil O. Samuelson

Last updated
Cecil O. Samuelson Jr.
CecilSamuelson.JPG
Samuelson leading the April 2008 commencement exercises at BYU
First Quorum of the Seventy
October 1, 1994 (1994-10-01) – October 1, 2011 (2011-10-01)
End reasonGranted general authority emeritus status
Presidency of the Seventy
August 15, 2001 (2001-08-15) – April 5, 2003 (2003-04-05)
End reasonHonorably released to become president of BYU
Emeritus General Authority
October 1, 2011 (2011-10-01)
12th President of Brigham Young University
In office
May 1, 2003 – May 1, 2014
Predecessor Merrill J. Bateman
Successor Kevin J Worthen
Personal details
Born (1941-08-01) August 1, 1941 (age 82)
Salt Lake City, Utah
Alma mater University of Utah  (B.S., M.Ed., M.D.)
Spouse(s)Sharon Giauque Samuelson

Cecil Osborn Samuelson Jr. (born Aug 1, 1941) is an American retired rheumatologist [1] and professor of medicine who served as the 12th president of Brigham Young University (BYU) from 2003 to 2014. Samuelson is an emeritus general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), a former dean of the school of medicine at the University of Utah, and a former senior vice president of Intermountain Health Care (IHC). [2] [3] While he was president at BYU, Samuelson pushed professors and students to raise their expectations and encouraged mentored learning. During his presidency, student enrollment limits stayed constant, new sports coaches were hired, new buildings were built, and a hiring freeze during the Great Recession reduced faculty.

Contents

Education

Samuelson holds a bachelor's degree, a master's degree in educational psychology, and an M.D. from the University of Utah. He completed his residency at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina. [2] He is a Brother of Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity. [4]

Samuelson worked at the University of Utah in 1973 as assistant dean of admissions and at the medical school as a faculty member. In 1977, he became acting dean of the University of Utah medical school, and in 1985 was promoted to dean of the medical school. In 1988 he became vice president over health services at the University of Utah, where he gained a reputation as a sensitive negotiator. [5] In 1990, IHC appointed Samuelson as senior vice president and then IHC Hospital president. [5]

BYU President

At the beginning of Samuelson's tenure as president of BYU, he invited students and faculty to "raise the bar" in their learning and teaching and in their expectations of student behavior. [6] During his time as president, the College of Health and Human Performance was dissolved into existing colleges. The university replaced old student dorms with New Heritage Housing, and built the Gordon B. Hinckley Alumni and Visitors Center (2007), BYU Broadcasting Building (2011), and Life Sciences Building (2014). [7] During the 2008 recession, along with the LDS Church which owns and operates the university, BYU instituted a hiring freeze for almost two years, and 70-80 faculty retired or left. [8] [9] Enrollment limits stayed consistent, and Samuelson pushed for more mentored learning experiences, where professors work together with students on research. [8]

In 2005, the university hired Bronco Mendenhall to coach the football team, Tom Holmoe to direct the athletic department, and Dave Rose to coach the basketball team. In 2011, BYU football signed an 8-year contract with ESPN. [7] In 2004, students started cheering "Woosh, Cecil" after successful BYU basketball free throws, in an effort to elicit a response from Samuelson, who often attended games. Samuelson acknowledged the cheer with a thumbs-up in 2009, and continued to give a thumbs-up to subsequent free throw cheers. The tradition inspired the BYU Creamery to name an ice cream flavor "Whoosh, Cecil". [10] [8] In 2006, students created "Cecil is my homeboy" t-shirts, which became part of student culture. [11]

Samuelson gave a talk in September 2007 to BYU students, quoting statements by J. Reuben Clark that the Constitution of the United States was not "a fully grown document", and that "we believe it must grow and develop to meet the changing needs of an advancing world." He also stated, in agreement with the doctrine of LDS Church, that the Constitution is a divinely inspired document. [12] [13]

On March 11, 2014, it was announced that Samuelson would be succeeded by Kevin J Worthen as the president of BYU, effective May 1, 2014. [14] In November 2014, he began service as president of the church's Salt Lake Temple. [15]

Other LDS Church callings

Samuelson served in the church as a full-time missionary in Scotland as a young adult and has continued church service in his adulthood. [2] From 1977 to 1982 he served as president of a stake on the campus of the University of Utah. [2] He was called to the First Quorum of the Seventy in 1994, and while a general authority he served as an area president, in the Presidency of the Seventy, and as general president of the church's Sunday School organization. [16]

While serving in the presidency of the North America West Area, Samuelson was a signatory to a May 11, 1999 letter to all adult congregants in California which encouraged members to donate time and money to pass Proposition 22. [17] [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brigham Young University</span> Private university in Provo, Utah, US

Brigham Young University (BYU) is a private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dallin H. Oaks</span> Apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Dallin Harris Oaks is an American religious leader and former jurist and academic who since 2018 has been the first counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was called as a member of the church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in 1984. Currently, he is the second most senior apostle by years of service and is the President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henry B. Eyring</span> American religious leader

Henry Bennion Eyring is an American educational administrator, author, and religious leader. Eyring has been the second counselor to Russell M. Nelson in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since January 14, 2018. Previously, Eyring was the first counselor to Thomas S. Monson in the First Presidency from 2008 until Monson's death on January 2, 2018. Eyring was the second counselor to Gordon B. Hinckley in the First Presidency from October 6, 2007, until Hinckley's death on January 27, 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeffrey R. Holland</span> American educator and religious leader (born 1940)

Jeffrey Roy Holland is an American educator and religious leader. He served as the ninth President of Brigham Young University (BYU) and is the acting president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As a member of the Quorum of the Twelve, Holland is accepted by the church as a prophet, seer, and revelator. Currently, he is the third most senior apostle in the church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Russell M. Nelson</span> President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Russell Marion Nelson Sr. is an American religious leader and retired surgeon who is the 17th and current president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Nelson was a member of the LDS Church's Quorum of the Twelve Apostles for nearly 34 years, and was the quorum president from 2015 to 2018. As church president, Nelson is recognized by the church as a prophet, seer, and revelator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">W. Rolfe Kerr</span> American Mormon leader

William Rolfe Kerr is an emeritus general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He served previously as the fifteenth Commissioner of Church Education and as president of the Logan Utah Temple.

Merrill Joseph Bateman is an American religious leader who served as the 11th president of Brigham Young University (BYU) from 1996 to 2003. He is an emeritus general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served as the LDS Church's 12th presiding bishop in 1994 and 1995. Bateman served as the Sunday School General President of the LDS Church from 2003 to 2004, a member of the Church's Presidency of the Seventy from 2003 to 2007, and the president of the Provo Utah Temple from 2007 to 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elaine S. Dalton</span>

Elaine Schwartz Dalton was the thirteenth president of the Young Women organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 2008 to 2013.

The history of Brigham Young University (BYU) begins in 1875, when the school was called Brigham Young Academy (BYA). The school did not reach university status until 1903, in a decision made by the school's board of trustees at the request of BYU president Benjamin Cluff. It became accredited during the tenure of Franklin S. Harris, under whom it gained national recognition as a university. A period of expansion after World War II caused the student body to grow many times in size, making BYU the largest private university of the time. The school's history is closely connected with its sponsor, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Ned Cromar Hill is the American National Advisory Council professor of business management and was dean of the Marriott School of Business (MSB) at Brigham Young University (BYU) from 1998 to 2008. From 2011 to 2014, he served as president of the Romania Bucharest Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin J Worthen</span> American lawyer and educational administrator

Kevin J Worthen is an American professor who served as the 13th president of Brigham Young University (BYU) from 2014 to 2023. From 2010 to 2021, he also served as an area seventy in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Worthen served previously at BYU as the Advancement Vice President and as dean of the J. Reuben Clark Law School (JRCL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Dehlin</span> American historian

John Parkinson Dehlin is an American podcast host. He holds a PhD in psychology. Dehlin founded the Mormon Stories Podcast, as well as several other podcasts, blogs, and websites. He was an influential early participant in the "Mormon blogosphere," and blogs at Patheos.com. He advocates for LGBT rights and other views outside mainstream religious culture. In January 2015, Dehlin was excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Dean Cornell Jessee is a historian of the early Latter Day Saint movement and leading expert on the writings of Joseph Smith Jr.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matthew O. Richardson</span>

Matthew Ottesen Richardson was the Advancement Vice President at Brigham Young University (BYU) from 2014 to 2020. He served previously as a professor of religion at BYU and from 2002 to 2006 he was an associate dean of religious education at BYU.

Matthew Scott Holland has been a general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since April 2020. He previously served as the 6th president of Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem, Utah, and its first president after UVU was granted university status.

Mormon studies is the interdisciplinary academic study of the beliefs, practices, history and culture of individuals and denominations belonging to the Latter Day Saint movement, a religious movement associated with the Book of Mormon, though not all churches and members of the Latter Day Saint movement identify with the terms Mormon or Mormonism. Denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement include the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, by far the largest, as well as the Community of Christ (CoC) and other smaller groups, include some categorized under the umbrella term Mormon fundamentalism.

Students identifying as LGBTQIA+ have a long, documented history at Brigham Young University (BYU), and have experienced a range of treatment by other students and school administrators over the decades. Large surveys of over 7,000 BYU students in 2020 and 2017 found that over 13% had marked their sexual orientation as something other than "strictly heterosexual", while the other survey showed that .2% had reported their gender identity as transgender or something other than cisgender male or female. BYU is the largest religious university in North America and is the flagship institution of the educational system of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints —Mormonism's largest denomination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FreeBYU</span>

FreeBYU is an advocacy organization dedicated to changing Brigham Young University (BYU) policies such that students can have an environment of religious and academic freedom. These policies mean that students who enroll in the university as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are not able to express a change in religious beliefs or express their lack thereof without risk of being evicted from their student homes, fired from their campus jobs, or expelled from the university. Currently BYU does not allow students who enrolled as Mormons to change their religious affiliation, and FreeBYU is advocating for university policy to apply the same standards for formerly LDS students as it does for non-LDS students, including charging a higher tuition rate.

Below is a timeline of major events, media, and people at the intersection of LGBT topics and Brigham Young University (BYU). BYU is the largest university of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Before 1959 there was little explicit mention of homosexuality by BYU administration.

References

  1. ↑ Bergin, M. Sue; McClellan, Jeffrey S. (2003). "Fit for Office". Y Magazine. Archived from the original on 26 June 2022. Retrieved 25 November 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "News of the Church: Elder Cecil O. Samuelson, Jr. Of the Seventy". Ensign . The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: 103–112. November 1994. Retrieved May 4, 2009.
  3. ↑ BYU - Cecil O. Samuelson Archived July 15, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ↑ The Utonian Yearbook. University of Utah. 1964. pp. 360 & 361. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
  5. 1 2 Bergin, M. Sue; McClellen, Jeffrey S. (2003). "Fit for Office". BYU Magazine. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  6. ↑ Samuelson, Cecil O. "A Few Questions and Answers from a BYU President - BYU Speeches". speeches.byu.edu. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  7. 1 2 Lane, Rebecca (11 March 2014). "BYU President Samuelson leaves unique legacy in his wake". UtahValley360. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 Walch, Tad (1 May 2014). "Samuelson departs after proving he fit at BYU after all". DeseretNews.com. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  9. ↑ Askar, Jamshid Ghazi (10 December 2010). "BYU ends hiring freeze, will fill jobs gradually". DeseretNews.com. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  10. ↑ Lee, Sugene (2 April 2013). "BYU basketball cheer becomes tradition – The Daily Universe". The Daily Universe. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  11. ↑ Walch, Tad (30 December 2006). "Sober? BYU is full of drollery". DeseretNews.com. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  12. ↑ Samuelson, Cecil O. "Year of the Constitution". speeches.byu.edu. BYU Speeches. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  13. ↑ BYU News – Release Archived January 15, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  14. ↑ "New BYU president named in devotional" Archived October 22, 2016, at the Wayback Machine , KSL March 11, 2014.
  15. ↑ New temple presidents Archived October 22, 2016, at the Wayback Machine , Deseret News , 14 June 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  16. ↑ Cecil O. Samuelson, Jr., General Authority Archived August 4, 2016, at the Wayback Machine
  17. ↑ AP (5 July 1999). "LDS urged to back a ban on gay marriage". Deseret News .
  18. ↑ "Proposition 22 Dominates California Wards' Attention, Divides Members" (PDF). Sunstone. Sunstone Education Foundation. April 2001. pp. 86–92. Retrieved 2017-03-08.
Academic offices
Preceded by President of Brigham Young University
2003 – 2014		Succeeded by
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.