Reuben D. Law
| Reuben D. Law | |
|---|---|
| 1st President of BYU-Hawaii | |
|
In office 1954–1959 |
|
| Preceded by | Inaugural president |
| Succeeded by | Richard T. Wootton |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
March 19, 1903 Avon, Utah |
| Died | April 19, 1981 (aged 78) Provo, Utah |
| Spouse(s) | Leda Ethelyn Call (1925–1973) Lue Groesbeck (1973–1978) |
| Children | 5 |
| Alma mater |
Brigham Young College Utah State Agricultural College University of Southern California |
| Profession | Professor of education Academic administrator |
Reuben Deem Law (March 19, 1903 – April 19, 1981) was the first president of the Church College of Hawaii (CCH), which was later renamed Brigham Young University–Hawaii (BYU–Hawaii).
Law was born in Avon, Utah, and raised on a ranch and farm. He married Leda Ethelyn Call in 1925 in Logan, Utah, and they had five children.
While in Logan, Law graduated from Brigham Young College and Utah State Agricultural College, receiving his bachelor's degree in history and education. He later attended the University of Southern California (USC) where he received a master's degree in education and educational administration, followed by an Ed.D. in teacher education in 1941.
Law's career began as an elementary school principal in Box Elder County, Utah. After teaching some high school, he became the first principal at the consolidated South Rich High School in Randolph, Utah. After one year, he became the county superintendent, here he served for six years in the 1930s. He then briefly served as superintendent in Duchesne County School District before joining the faculty at Brigham Young University (BYU) in 1936. Law was appointed dean of BYU's college of education from 1946 to 1954.
Three years after becoming president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), David O. McKay decided that the church would establish a college in Hawaii. Although Law had just finished building a new home in Provo, Utah, he accepted the invitation plan the new school and be its first president and "turn President McKay's vision into a reality." Eric B. Shumway, BYU–Hawaii's president fifty years later, said Law was "a man of strong character, [who] wielded a firm hand" and held an "absolute and fervent testimony of President McKay's calling as a prophet, seer, and revelator". Some contemporaries also saw him as a strict or authoritarian figure.
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