Homer L. Shantz

Homer LeRoy Shantz (1876–1958) was an American botanist and former president of the University of Arizona.

Shantz was born in Kent County, Michigan on January 24, 1876. He received his doctoral degree in botany from the University of Nebraska in 1905. He served as the President of the University of Arizona from 1928 to 1936, where he focused his attention on Arizona and the Sonoran Desert. During this period, he worked with John E. Harrison Jr. in the acquisition of land for the creation of what is now called the Saguaro National Park In 1936, he resigned after disagreements with the legislature and the Board of Regents.

From 1936, he served as Chief of the Division of Wildlife Management of the U.S. Forest Service until he retired in 1944.

Shantz died June 23, 1958.