Former Luther College President Elwin D. Farwell dies at age 98

Luther College's sixth president, Dr. Elwin D. Farwell, has died at the age of 98.

Farwell dedicated his life to serving Luther College and higher education in Iowa and the nation.  "President Farwell was a kind and gracious man who loved Luther College....(and) transformed the college during his nearly twenty years as president," said Luther president Paula Carlson.

Farwell graduated from Michigan State University in 1943. He served with the U.S. Army during World War II and was discharged in 1946 with the rank of captain. He earned a master of science degree from Michigan State in 1947, then served on the faculty at Michigan State from 1947 to 1955, during which time he helped establish an agricultural college in Colombia. In 1955, he headed west and served from 1955 to 1959 as administrative assistant to the director of the Center for the Study of Higher Education at the University of California–Berkeley.

He was ordained in 1959 and left California for Iowa.  He became president of Luther College in 1963, in which capacity he served for the next 18 years. During his tenure the college added several new buildings to its campus, including the Field House (now the Regents Center); Preus Library; an addition to the Union; Storre Theatre; Ylvisaker, Miller, and Dieseth residence halls; and the Center for Faith and Life, once nicknamed "Farwell's Folly" and now a centerpiece of campus.

Under Farwell's leadership, Luther increased enrollment by 71 percent, from 1,215 to 2,072. The initial influx of new students was so great that area homeowners were asked to house students until more residence halls could be built. The Farwells themselves hosted seven students in their basement.

Farwell believed strongly in liberal arts education, and in 1977, he helped develop Luther's signature Paideia program, an interdisciplinary course sequence that exposes all Luther students to a core liberal arts foundation.

Also under his leadership, the college moved from a semester to a 4-1-4 calendar, which lets students engage in focused learning each January. Farwell was responsible too for building up faculty in the social sciences, leading to the creation of college departments in psychology, anthropology, and social work. He steered the college through periods of intense social and political unrest, and the quality of education and the national reputation of Luther College improved dramatically under his leadership.

A great advocate for affordable education, in 1969, Farwell helped establish the Iowa Tuition Grant Program, which allows Iowa students to receive financial aid to attend an Iowa private college or university. In 1983, Luther founded the Farwell Endowed Scholarship as a tribute to the former president's recruitment and support of minority students.

After retiring from Luther in 1981, Farwell served for 15 months as interim president of Dana College in Blair, Nebraska.  He also served as an interim bishop for ELCA synods in Omaha and Denver.

When Farwell retired, the Elwin and Helen Farwell Lecture Endowment was created. Funded by the Humanities Endowment and the Farwell Endowment, the Farwell Distinguished Lecture Series generally hosts two major speakers each year who are connected to important current conversations at Luther. The Farwells attended every lecture together until 2016.