Larry came to botany along an unusual route. His first college degree was in engineering. After a stint at secondary teaching Larry worked at Collins Radio in Cedar Rapids, then returned to UNI (SCI then) and took a master\u27s degree in biology, He continued his study at the University of Iowa under Dr. Robert Thorne and took his Ph.D. in 1964. He did the flora of the Iowan Surface (the Iowan Drift in those days). He taught at Syracuse University and University of Indiana at Terra Haute before joining the faculty of the University of Northern Iowa
