Boyd Petersen

Boyd Petersen
Born February 23, 1962 (1962-02-23) (age 50)
Provo, Utah
Nationality American
Education B. A. in international relations
M. A. in comparative literature
Ph.D. in comparative literature
Alma mater Brigham Young University
University of Maryland, College Park
University of Utah
Occupation University professor, author
Known for Biographer of Hugh Nibley.
Nominee for the Utah House of Representatives
Political party Democratic
Religion The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Spouse Zina Nibley Petersen
Children 4
Website
boydpetersen.wordpress.com

Boyd Jay Petersen (born February 23, 1962) is a biographer of Hugh Nibley, a professor at Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University, and a former candidate for the Utah House of Representatives.

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Biography

Petersen was born in Provo, Utah, and raised as a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). From 1980-1981, he was a proselyting missionary in Paris, France.

After his mission, Petersen attended Brigham Young University (BYU), receiving his bachelors degree French and international relations in 1988. In 1995, he received an M.A. in comparative literature from the University of Maryland at College Park.[1] In 2007, he completed his Ph. D. in comparative literature from the University of Utah's Department of Languages and Literature.[2]

Petersen has been an intern for the U.S. House of Representatives, in the staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and a Senior Information Specialist for the Congressional Research Service at the Library of Congress.[3]

In 1984, Petersen married Zina Nibley, a daughter of Hugh Nibley.[4] They have four children and reside in Provo, Utah.[1]

Petersen has been a lecturer in the honors program at BYU, and for the English and Humanities Departments at Utah Valley University, where he received a Faculty Excellence Award in 2006.[5] Through his familial relationship to Hugh Nibley, Petersen authored the 2002 biography Hugh Nibley: A Consecrated Life (ISBN 978-1589580206). Petersen has also published articles in several journals, including BYU Studies, Sunstone, Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, and the Journal of Mormon History.[1]

Petersen is the program coordinator for Mormon Studies at Utah Valley University.[6] He has also been on the board of directors for the Association for Mormon Letters, Mormon Scholars in the Humanities, and Segullah, a Mormon-themed literary journal.[5] He will be AML's next president.

2008 political campaign

In March 2008, Petersen announced his candidacy for District 64 of the Utah State House of Representatives, running as a socially conservative Democrat in a heavily conservative region. He opposed Republican Rebecca Lockhart on a platform of ethics and health care reform, as well as improved public education.[7]

Petersen lost the election on November 4, receiving 30 percent of the vote, compared to Lockhart's 66 percent.[8]

Published works

Notes

  1. ^ a b c "Boyd Jay Petersen". Mormon Literature & Creative Arts Database. Brigham Young University. April 2, 2003. http://mormonlit.lib.byu.edu/lit_author.php?a_id=1832. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  2. ^ "Allegorical renderings of the birth topos : myth, technology, gender and selfhood in nineteenth-century poetic production / by Boyd Jay Petersen". J. Willard Marriott Library Catalog. University of Utah. http://hip.library.utah.edu/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=M2251321CV109.39649&profile=mrmain&uri=link=3100007~!14007993~!3100001~!3100002&aspect=subtab75&menu=search&ri=1&source=~!horizon&term=Petersen%2C+Boyd+Jay.&index=PAUTHBR. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  3. ^ "Candidate information". Deseret News. http://www.deseretnews.com/utah/election/candidate/bio/1,5024,10000178,00.html?listID=d&sc=dmn. Retrieved 2008-11-29. 
  4. ^ Petersen, Boyd (2002). "Preface". Hugh Nibley: A Consecrated Life. Salt Lake City, Utah: Greg Kofford Books. pp. xi. http://www.koffordbooks.com/petersen/preface.PDF. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  5. ^ a b "House 64: Boyd Petersen". Utah County Democrats. http://www.utahcountydems.com/content/view/151/141/. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  6. ^ "Petersen, Boyd". Professional Home Page. Utah Valley University. September 30, 2008. http://www.uvu.edu/profpages/profiles/show/user_id/3565. Retrieved 2008-11-28. 
  7. ^ "Candidate promises to restore sanity". Deseret News. March 7, 2008. http://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695259581,00.html. Retrieved 2008-10-27. 
  8. ^ "2008 Results". Deseret News (Salt Lake City, Utah). https://secure.deseretnews.com/utah/election/candidate/0,5022,d,00.html. Retrieved 2008-11-29. 

External links