Stanford Cazier

Stanford Orson "Stan" Cazier (June 11, 1930 – March 14, 2013) was an American educator, university administrator and scholar. He was president of California State University, Chico from 1971–1979 and Utah State University from 1979–1992.

Biographical background Cazier was born in Nephi, Utah. He studied at the University of Utah, receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1952. During 1952–1953, he served as an Ensign in the United States Navy. He briefly attended Brigham Young University for graduate work, but then transferred to the University of Utah to complete his Master of Arts degree in 1956, writing his thesis on William Henry Hooper. He then earned a Ph.D. in history under the well-known intellectual history historian, Merle Curti, at the University of Wisconsin in 1964.

While an undergraduate, Cazier met Shirley Anderson at the University of Utah. They were married June 11, 1952 in Salt Lake City and had three sons. Shirley died in Logan, Utah on February 16, 1999.

Professor Returning to Utah, Cazier became a professor of history at Utah State University (USU) in 1960, where he was the Teacher of the Year for 1966. In 1967 he was awarded a Ford Foundation Fellowship by New York University's Academic Administration.

Before completing his Ph.D. dissertation, Jan Shipps was one of Cazier's students at USU in 1960–1961 for a Civil War class. However, Cazier focused mostly on the Utah War, much like others at USU who taught Mormon issues in their classes and influenced Shipps to become a historian of Mormonism.

While at Utah State University, he later served as assistant to the president and vice-provost.

University president In July 1971, Cazier replaced Lew D. Oliver as president of Chico State College in northern California. On June 1, 1972, Cazier brought Chico State College into the California State University system, renaming it California State University, Chico. He also oversaw campus expansion, including the construction of some larger buildings on campus and the remodeling of the auditorium and administration buildings. During his presidency, the faculty expanded and unionized. Cazier remained a full-time professor at Utah State University until 1997 and continued to teach occasional classes as professor emeritus.

Personal struggles At the end of Cazier's tenure at USU, his wife Shirley developed Parkinson's disease, coupled with dementia. In November 1998, his son Paul developed glioblastoma multiforme, a fatal brain cancer. A week later, Cazier's sister was killed in an automobile accident while traveling to help care for Shirley, who died three months later.

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