Distinguished Alumni Award

Lloyd J. Palmer, 49BSC, is a loyal UI supporter and accomplished businessman who has spent a lifetime giving to others, both in time and resources. This Postville, Iowa, native has made significant contributions to the University of Iowa and to his many other personal and professional communities.

Palmers many decades of tireless personal and professional contributions began at the UI business college, where he earned a B.S.C. degree in accounting after serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II. The talented graduate, one of Henry B. Tippies classmates, became a rising star in the world of business.

After spending ten years with Ernst & Ernst in Chicago—and earning his C.P.A.—Palmer joined the Nalco Chemical Company in 1959. There, he rose to the rank of chief financial officer in just seven years and subsequently held a number of high-level positions within the company, becoming vice president, executive vice president, chief administrative officer, and ultimately a member of the board of directors.

Though he retired in 1986, the longtime civic contributor has continued to work on behalf of the causes that matter most to him. In 1999, he and his wife established the Lloyd J. and Thelma W. Palmer Faculty Fellowship Fund to support distinguished faculty fellowships in the Tippie College of Business. Since that time, five business faculty members have received Lloyd J. and Thelma W. Palmer Research Fellowships, which have supported teaching and research initiatives and contributed to retaining outstanding faculty in the college. In 2000, Iowas business college recognized Palmer with an Outstanding Accounting Alumnus award.

The Palmers also gave generously to support artistic commissions for the Hancher Millennium Festival in 1999. In addition, they have given to the UI Libraries, Old Capitol Museum, the UI Museum of Art, and to mens and womens athletics. These important gifts helped earn the Palmers membership in the University of Iowa Foundation Presidents Club Silver and the Tippie College Deans Club, which recognize the universitys and colleges most generous donors.

In addition to the familys financial contributions to the university, Palmer has given selflessly of his time. He has served on the board of directors of the UI Foundation and has been the chairman of its audit committee. He was a member of the IE2000 National Steering Committee and served on the Chicago Regional Campaign Cabinet. He has served the broader community as a member of the board of trustees for Elmhurst College for 21 years—with five years as chair. For 11 years, he served on the board of the American Red Cross of Greater Chicago.

A member of the University of Iowa Alumni Associations Old Capitol Club, Palmer celebrated in the spring of 2001, when two granddaughters received B.B.A. degrees from Iowas Tippie College of Business.

The pride Palmer feels for the University of Iowa is the same pride the university takes in his accomplishments. Palmer truly stands out in his commitment to his alma mater, and for that reason is most deserving of the UIAA Distinguished Alumni Award for Service.