The year was 1970 when Richard Nixon was president and the Vietnam War was still being fought.

It was also the year Richard Boutwell, associate professor of biology, became a member of the Western faculty.
He remembers a Western that was recently constructed when he first walked up the sidewalk to Agenstein Hall.
“There was no grass, only four buildings and no dorms,” Boutwell said.

Western had just moved from downtown St. Joseph to its current location when he first started teaching here.
At the end of this semester Western will bid farewell to Boutwell.

Last summer he made the decision to retire after 38 years of teaching here at Western. “Out of all the other members of the faculty who came to Western in 1970 I’m the last to go,” Boutwell said.

His first day of retirement is Jun. 1.

After a national search for a replacement, the biology department eventually hired Kurt Hartman out of North Carolina.
Currently, Hartman is teaching there at St. Andrews Presbyterian College.

He will become a member of the biology department and begins his teaching here at Western in the fall semester of 2008.
Boutwell has experienced many different changes over the years at Western.

He explained the move from chalk-and-talk to the introduction of computers and power point.

He made an example of some of these changes by pulling out the policy guide for Western from 1970 that only contained a handful of pages compared to the current guide that is thick as a brick.

“This change over time is evolution,” Boutwell said.

After all, Boutwell is an evolutionary biologist.

What Boutwell has enjoyed the most in his years of teaching has been the fact that he has been witness to the growth and success of his students.

“Watching my students become successful and productive citizens in our society has been rewarding,” Boutwell said.
He is known for his entertaining style of teaching.

Sandra Levy, a biology major, likes Boutwell’s style of teaching.

“He is extremely entertaining in his instruction,” Levy said.

Senior Ben Monroe, one of Boutwell’s past students, said Boutwell was very humorous.

“He was always cracking one-liners for a laugh,” Monroe said.  

Todd Eckdahl, professor and chairperson of biology, had good things to say about Boutwell’s performance at Western.
“Boutwell loves biology and it is apparent in the way he teaches his classes and interacts with faculty,” Eckdahl said.

Upon his retirement Boutwell will be moving to Kansas City.

He wants to do some traveling and the things he really enjoys the most, like spending time with family and gardening.