The University of Utah community is mourning the loss of professor, mentor, colleague and friend Dr. David Buhler. Dr. Buhler passed away in his Salt Lake City home on July 16 of this year from natural causes. He was 67.
Prior to his time as a political science professor at the U, Buhler built a legacy in public service and Utah politics. Buhler served as Utah’s Commissioner for Higher Education from 2012 to 2019. Before that, he served one term as an Utah State Senator and served two terms on the Salt Lake City Council.
Buhler was awarded a PhD in political science from the University of Utah. He also spent a year on the U’s Board of Trustees from 1999 to 2000, and spent 16 years teaching as an adjunct professor from 1990 to 2006. He returned to the U in 2020 as a regents professor in the Department of Political Science.
Remembering Dr. Buhler
As a Political Science Professor and colleague of Buhler, James Curry first got to know Buhler during his return to the U in 2020.
“I just got to know him more and more over the years, working with him and having him as a fellow professor in the department,” Curry said.
“He was always very student-oriented,” he added. “What do students need to learn? How do they need to learn it? And what could he bring to the table for each of those things based on not only his academic credentials, but more importantly, in the case of [his career] experience — his practical, lived experience in the world of both Utah and Salt Lake City governance and politics.”
Max Lepore, a former student of Buhler’s, remembered immediately sensing Buhler’s commitment to his students.
“I remember the very first day in class, I could just tell Dr. Buhler taught because he loves his students,” Lepore said. “He loved being able to work with students very much.”
Curry, Lepore and U alumni Nicholas Jorgenson all describe Buhler as an engaging and passionate professor.
“He ended up being one of my favorite professors throughout my time at the U, just because he explained things really well and he always had his contacts from his life as a politician coming in to teach us,” Jorgenson said.
Lepore also discussed how Buhler conducted his learning environment.
“I just think he valued diversity of viewpoints, and I fear that’s something our country has moved away from to some extent,” Lepore said. “Dr. Buhler was very accommodating to others and what they thought and believed.”
Fond Memories
“I would describe him as just one of my favorite people to talk to in the department,” Curry said. “Some political science professors aren’t always particularly interested in politics. But that’s not true of me, and it wasn’t true of Dave. I think we sort of bonded over chatting in the hallway or in the office about whatever was going on in Utah politics.”
Curry added Buhler was “a friend more than anything, and somebody I looked forward to seeing on campus.”
He also remembered memories of discussing all things politics with Buhler over a burger at Hires Big H, a local burger joint near campus.
“He’s a regular there, and when he walked in he knew all of the employees by name and they loved him,” Curry said. “It was clear that this is the kind of person he was. He took time to talk to the people who work there and he got to know them. That’s how he operated in every facet of his life, whether he was meeting with the governor or someone who worked at Hires Big H.”
Jorgenson remembered how understanding Buhler was when he got an injury while enrolled in his class.
“He’s a super compassionate and understanding person. Towards my last semester of college when I was taking his Utah politics and interest groups class, I ended up with an injury and I was in the hospital for a couple of weeks,” Jorgenson said. “And when I came back he was the most helpful out of all of my professors with helping me get back on my feet so I could actually graduate.”
Lepore shared a memory of Buhler at a Hinckley Institute event last fall.
“This was a large event and there were lots of political leaders in our community there,” Lepore said. “Dr. Buhler was there as well. Dr. Buhler was talking to all of these important people he has gotten to interact with in his career in public service … I forget if we bumped into him or if he came over to us, but he took time out of that short event to come over to us, and he said something along the lines of, ‘It’s so good to see my star students.’ It was so small, but it was so meaningful to us. In a room full of important political leaders and stakeholders, he was able to spot two of his students and say something like that to us. And that was the kind of person he was.”
