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Over an extraordinary career that spanned six decades, William Mulder's influence was felt from Utah to India and beyond.
A global thinker at a time before the world was connected by the Internet, Mulder taught at the University of Utah for 41 years and helped broaden its geographical focus. The retired scholar, who died last week at 92, founded the University of Utah's Center for Intercultural Studies (now the Middle East Center) and developed its American Studies Research Center in Hyderabad, India.
"Professor Mulder was a pioneering force in connecting the U. to the world beyond Utah," said University of Utah President Michael K. Young in a statement. "We would not be as prominent on the academic world stage without his immeasurable contributions to administration, collaboration and research."
Some traced Mulder's passion for cross-cultural understanding to his own background as an immigrant. Born in Holland in 1915 to LDS Church converts, he immigrated to the United States with his parents in 1920, arriving in Salt Lake City six years later. His father worked on printing presses and brought home editions of classic books, which may have sparked his son's early interest in literature and poetry.
Mulder earned undergraduate and master's degrees in English from the University of Utah and his doctorate degree from Harvard. He joined the U.'s English department in 1947, where he soon gained a reputation for witty and inspired teaching.
"He had a way of bringing out the best in students," said LDS writer and educator Emma Lou Thayne, who studied under Mulder. "He was always a gentleman. He made people feel like they gave credible responses to the questions he asked. Sometimes teachers can put students down. He never did that."
In the 1950s, Mulder became part of a well-known group of LDS intellectuals, nicknamed the "Swearing Elders," who met regularly on campus to discuss Mormon issues. Later he drifted from the church. He told The Salt Lake Tribune in 2005, "the trouble with various theologies is that they build walls around things that should be open."
Mulder took a similar approach to his scholarship, reaching across disciplines to study literature, Mormon history, the immigrant experience and other subjects. In the early 1970s he introduced then-groundbreaking courses in literature by blacks, American Indians and other ethnic minorities.
A brief memorial service will be held March 29 at 2 p.m. at the University of Utah Alumni House. In lieu of flowers, his family suggests contributions to the U.'s Marriott Library.