Paul Lewis Boynton

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, there are presidents who coast, and there are presidents who hold the whole ship together when the waters get rough. Paul Lewis Boynton was the second kind.

Born in Belton, Bell County, Texas, he didn't exactly take the short road to higher education. He attended Sam Houston State Teachers College, then served as principal of Lufkin High School, then taught in Wichita Falls. And then he went all the way to Nashville, Tennessee, to George Peabody College, where he earned himself a master's degree and a PhD, both in Psychology.

He rose to chairman of Peabody College's department of Psychology. That's the résumé of a man who builds things carefully, and that matters for what comes next. In 1942, Paul Lewis Boynton was named the second president of Stephen F.

Austin State Teachers College. And almost before he could settle into the chair, the world went sideways. World War II was pulling male students off campus and into uniform, and Stephen F.

Austin State Teachers College was staring down the real possibility of closing its doors. Now that is the kind of problem that ends institutions. But Boynton didn't flinch.

He went to the federal government, made his case, and convinced them to open a Women's Army Corps School right there on campus in 1943. He kept the college alive. And while all this was happening, he was writing letters.

Letter campaigns, reaching out to students wherever they served, keeping that thread of connection alive across the whole wide theater of war. Then, when the war shifted and some federal operations in the area became obsolete, Boynton moved again. He secured buildings, he secured farm property, and in 1945, a department of forestry opened at the college.

The man had a gift for turning the left-behind into something lasting. The 1950s brought a different kind of challenge. Enrollment at SFASTC increased dramatically, and Boynton met that wave first with temporary buildings, buying time while he built something bigger in his mind.

His master plan called for upgrading the school's faculty, putting in place a strong system of student guidance, and raising up permanent educational structures. He was laying a foundation not just for a college, but for a university. He knew where this was all headed.

In 1958, Paul Lewis Boynton was at work when he suffered a heart attack. He died shortly afterwards in Memorial Hospital. The work stopped, but the foundation held.

Today, he is remembered for the ingenuity it took to keep Stephen F. Austin State Teachers College open during World War II, and for building the groundwork that allowed the institution to make its move to university status and stand as one of Texas's foremost centers for higher education. A man who built carefully, and built to last.

What the marker says

President of Stephen F. Austin State Teachers College (SFASTC) from 1942 to 1958, Paul Lewis Boynton made vital contributions to the institution's future. Born in Belton (Bell Co.), Boynton attended Sam Houston State Teachers College. He then served as principal of Lufkin High School and taught in Wichita Falls before attending George Peabody College in Nashville, Tennessee, where he earned MA and PhD degrees in Psychology. Boynton was chairman of Peabody College's department of Psychology when he was named the second president of STASTC (now Stephen F. Austin State University). As male students withdrew to fight in World War II, Boynton worked to keep the college from closing by convincing the federal government to open a Women's Army Corps School here in 1943. In letter campaigns, he kept in contact with students wherever they served. When war made some federal operations in the area obsolete, Boynton secured buildings and farm property, leading to the opening of a department of forestry here in 1945. Enrollment at SFASTC increased dramatically in the 1950s. Boynton first met this demand by securing temporary buildings. His master plan focused on upgrading the school's faculty, implementing a strong system of student guidance and providing permanent educational structures. In 1958, while at work, boynton suffered a heart attack and died shortly afterwards in Memorial Hospital. Today, Paul Boynton is remembered for his ingenuity in keeping sfastc open during World War II and creating a foundation for the institution's move to university status and success as one of Texas" foremost centers for higher education.