Built to Endure: The Walther Professorship and the Power of Faculty Excellence
What began as a shared belief in rigorous, relationship-driven education became a lasting legacy — inspiring Larry and Laurie Walther to establish an endowed professorship that strengthens faculty excellence for generations.
Larry and Laurie Walther like to tell the story of how their paths first crossed long before either of them realized it. As children in Texas, they both attended the same backyard cookout, chasing fireflies with other kids late into the evening. Years later, they discovered that Larry’s uncle had hosted the gathering and that one of the guests was Laurie’s father.
“That’s very romantic, at least for two CPAs,” Larry said with a laugh.
Looking back, their lives have often been shaped by moments like that, quiet signposts that only revealed their meaning over time.
Larry Walther with current professorship holders Chad Simon and Brad Lindsey, whose leadership and commitment reflect the high standards the Walther Endowed Professorship was created to sustain.
In 1993, the Walthers took their family on a vacation to Yellowstone and chose the “road less traveled” on the way home. That decision carried them through Bear Lake and Logan Canyon and into Logan for the first time.
Laurie remembers looking out and thinking, “I could see us living in a beautiful place like this.”
At the time, it was simply a passing thought. More than a decade later, it became something more.
In 2006, Larry was serving on an AACSB peer review team evaluating Utah State’s College of Business, as it was then known. Accreditation visits are rigorous, faculty-driven, and focused on long-term quality and outcomes. Larry had reviewed strong programs across the country, and he arrived in Logan with the measured expectations of someone who had spent a career in classrooms and boardrooms.
What he found surprised him.
He was impressed by the programs, faculty, and students, and by the clear potential he saw for future growth. A year later, in 2007, philanthropist Jon M. Huntsman provided a transformational $25 million gift that renamed the college and accelerated its national trajectory. For Larry, the gift confirmed what he had already sensed during his visit: Utah State was poised for something exceptional.
When the opportunity came to join the School of Accountancy as department head, he and Laurie made a decision that still makes them smile. They would move from Texas to Utah “for three to five years.”
“Three to five” turned into 14.
Larry brought with him a teaching philosophy rooted in rigor, mentorship, and trust.
“Students will strive to meet expectations,” Larry said. “Set a low bar, and it will be cleared, but not by much. Set a high bar, and it will be cleared, maybe by a lot.”
That belief became a steady drumbeat in the School of Accountancy. Within five years of his arrival, Utah State celebrated its first three winners of the prestigious Elijah Watt Sells Award: Jill Aoki (2012), Anthony Lemon (2012), and Tyson Irwin (2013). Presented by the American Institute of CPAs, the award recognizes extraordinary performance on the Uniform CPA Examination and is given only to candidates who achieve an average score above 95.5 across all four sections on their first attempt. In the years these students earned the distinction, fewer than 60 candidates nationwide achieved the honor out of more than 90,000 who sat for the exam. Larry is quick to point out that the students did the work, but he is proud of the culture they built together around high standards and deep preparation.
“What struck me from the beginning was how quickly Larry recognized the inherent goodness of our students and how much he valued them as our greatest asset,” said Doug Anderson, dean of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business. “We talked about building a business school grounded in ethical leadership, global vision, and entrepreneurial spirit, and about our responsibility to help outstanding young people become even better leaders. Larry embraced that mission fully. He later became our unanimous choice as department head, and, supported every step of the way by Laurie, helped elevate the School of Accountancy in lasting ways.”
Those standards mattered because Larry never saw accounting as merely content to be covered. He saw it as a discipline that shapes decision-making, ethics, persistence, and relationships, all qualities that define lives well beyond a first job. Even in retirement, he stays in touch with former students regularly.
“I view teaching as a special calling,” Larry said. “It is a true gift to be entrusted with the opportunity to be constantly surrounded by bright, energetic young minds. Taking an interest in student success often means staying in touch and delighting in their life journey. It is rare that a week passes, even in retirement, where I don’t interact with a lifetime friend who was once a student.”
For Laurie, those relationships have always been the heart of the work. While Larry was leading and teaching, she was building community in ways that often go unnoticed yet make a campus feel like home. She volunteered, supported faculty and students, and helped create a welcoming environment where relationships could flourish.
“In the simplest of terms, the role of a faculty member is to impart knowledge and challenge students to do and be their best,” Laurie said. “Tackling that role with creativity requires technical proficiency and a broad base of ‘real world’ discussion. It makes the classroom or research come to life with relevancy.”
Laurie paused, then added, “Faculty who inspire are likely those who are naturally curious themselves. They are hardworking, lifelong learners. These traits naturally spill over into the classroom teaching environment and can be inspirational to students.”
But Laurie also knows inspiration is not only what happens at a lectern or in a syllabus. It is human. It is personal. It is built on the accumulation of conversations and small acts of attention.
“Challenging students to ‘run with it’ is also personal,” Laurie said. “Relationships evolve because you show interest in someone, and you listen to figure out how you can help them. The subtleties of conversation and outreach matter. Encouragement is key.”
That shared view of higher education as both rigorous and relational is what ultimately led the Walthers to make one of their most significant commitments to Utah State: a $1 million gift to establish the Larry and Laurie Walther Endowed Professorship of Accounting.
At its core, an endowed professorship is a permanent investment in faculty excellence. Unlike funding tied to a single project or moment, it creates ongoing support that helps a college recruit and retain top talent, reward faculty achievement, expand student experiences, and keep academic programs strong through changing times.
For the Walthers, the decision was both strategic and deeply personal.
“The strategic plan the School of Accountancy embraced in 2008 included a specific goal of establishing three named professorships of $1 million or more,” Larry explained. “An academic unit needs to plan around ‘SQI’ — size, quality, image. Highly rated programs typically have two to five major professorships as one of the distinguishing attributes.”
That vision began to take shape in 2015 with the creation of the Bonnie B. and James H. Quigley/Deloitte Foundation Professorship in Accounting, followed in 2020 by the Dr. Jay H. Price, Jr./Arthur Andersen Endowed Professorship. In 2022, the Larry and Laurie Walther Endowed Professorship became the third, fulfilling a goal set more than a decade earlier.
For Larry, that mattered. It was not simply about attaching a name to a title; it was about completing a strategic vision that would position the School of Accountancy among the strongest programs in the country.
A professorship, in other words, is not a luxury item. It is infrastructure for excellence. It gives a school the ability to compete for outstanding faculty, the stability to plan with confidence, and the flexibility to support teaching and student development in meaningful ways. It strengthens the long game of a program’s reputation, student outcomes, and national standing.
Larry is also frank about why that stability matters now. Higher education, he believes, is navigating real risks, and the antidote is not lower expectations. It is a sustained investment in the people who can uphold high standards while caring deeply for students.
“I have complete confidence in the current holders of the professorship, Dr. Chad Simon and Dr. Brad Lindsey,” Larry said. “Dr. Lindsey, who served for four years as director of the Master of Accounting program, and Dr. Simon, who served for five years as associate dean for academic affairs, exemplify the kind of leadership and commitment that strengthen the School of Accountancy in the classroom, in their research, and across the academic community. At the same time, I do worry about broader trends in higher education — grade inflation, emphasis on retention over rigor, prioritization of student satisfaction ahead of learning outcomes, and so forth. The system has its challenges.”
For Larry, those challenges are precisely why sustained investment in faculty matters. He believes philanthropic support can help universities maintain high standards even as pressures across higher education continue to evolve.
“Failing to recognize these risk factors will ultimately dilute the value and importance of higher education,” Larry said. “The American education system has historically been the envy of the world. I hope we can continue in that role. That’s another reason we chose to invest through philanthropy.”
The Walthers understand that scholarships change lives immediately, and they celebrate donors who step forward to meet students’ needs. They also know that the faculty who teach, mentor, research, and lead programs are the engines that make opportunity possible. A professorship supports the people who shape the learning environment for every student who passes through it.
“Scholarships are important and are far easier for most alumni to embrace,” Larry said. “They see an immediate value proposition in connecting to student assistance. Professorship gifts usually fit better for donors who are later in their career, more of a lasting legacy concept. But it takes all these components to achieve the right strategic balance.”
That “balance” reflects how the Walthers view a thriving university. Students need support. Facilities matter. Programs need vision. Faculty excellence is the throughline that lifts everything else.
Larry often names four principles he reinforced in his own teaching, principles he hopes will be echoed by future faculty, including the holders of the professorship that bears his and Laurie’s names: technical proficiency, persistence, strong ethics, and valuing relationships.
“When students embrace these principles, it’s pure gold,” Larry said. “I know the current, and hope the future, professorship holders will keep repeating these lessons to empower many other lives.”
Today, Larry and Laurie are back in Texas, with family close and roots that run deep. Larry still writes and maintains online accounting texts and courses, manages investments, and enjoys time outdoors at their ranch with his dog, Cricket, an English Springer Spaniel he affectionately calls an “English Speaking Spaniel.” Laurie enjoys volunteering for a dedicated community arts group and other local charity organizations. They travel, spend time with friends, and delight in six granddaughters who fill their lives with energy, questions, and possibilities.
And still, Utah State remains part of their story.
The Walthers do not talk about their gift as a farewell. They talk about it as a vote of confidence. They want Utah State to grow from a regional beacon into something even bigger, known not only across the Intermountain West but nationally, sending graduates into leadership roles everywhere.
“USU is known in the region,” Larry said, “but it can be much more. I believe USU can attain a truly national reputation so that our students can more readily step into leadership roles everywhere. I trust them to make a positive difference in the world.”
In many ways, the Larry and Laurie Walther Endowed Professorship is another quiet signpost in that journey, one that will guide students and faculty long after Larry and Laurie’s own path has led them back to Texas. Like so many moments in their lives, it reflects a belief in paying attention to what matters and investing in what lasts.
Inspired by Larry and Laurie Walther’s commitment to excellence, you can help ensure Utah State’s faculty continue to challenge, mentor, and prepare students for lives of impact. Support for endowed chairs, professorships, and faculty programs allows USU to recruit and retain outstanding educators who elevate every classroom and every college. Create Your Aggie Impact by investing in the faculty area that inspires you most.
Larry Walther with former student Jill Aoki, valedictorian of the School of Accountancy in 2011 and a recipient of the prestigious Elijah Watt Sells Award. Now Director of Financial Accounting (Studio Entertainment) at The Walt Disney Company, Jill’s success reflects the lasting impact of mentorship and high expectations.
From classrooms to concerts, Larry and Laurie Walther have built a life grounded in shared experiences, curiosity, and connection.
Larry Walther with Jim Quigley and Lynn Rees, a holder of the Quigley Deloitte Professorship, reflecting a shared commitment to faculty excellence and a vision that continues to elevate the School of Accountancy.
Through their philanthropy, Larry and Laurie Walther have invested in what endures — supporting faculty, strengthening programs, and shaping the student experience for years to come.
Contact
Kimberly Larson
Business, Senior Development Director
kimberly.larson@usu.edu