From Geomorphologist to President
January 30, 1982
Dr. Robert H. Rutford becomes the University’s second president in May 1982, a position he occupies until 1994. A glacial geologist and expert in geomorphology and Antarctica, Rutford led a party into the Antarctic Ellsworth Mountains in the 1960s and served as director of the division of polar programs for the National Science Foundation from 1975 to 1977. His dedication to the UTD community would later be honored with his appointment as president emeritus in 2007.