Robert Edison Moyers (November 12, 1919 – January 8, 1996) was an American orthodontist who was the founder of the Center of Human Growth and Development (CHGD) at

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

and chair of its orthodontic program for 28 years. He made significant contributions towards orthodontics through the development of CHGD and interdisciplinary research involving craniofacial biology. He is credited for developing the Moyer's Mixed Dentition Analysis.

Life

He was born in

Sidney, Iowa Sidney is a city in Fremont County, Iowa, United States. The population was 1,070 at the time of the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Fremont County and is one of the smallest county seats in the state. History Sidney was laid out in 1851 ...

, among three other siblings and spent majority of his early childhood there. He moved to

Iowa City Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the time ...

in 1937, to start his college education at

State University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 coll ...

. He also went to

University of Iowa College of Dentistry The University of Iowa College of Dentistry is the dental school of the University of Iowa. It is located in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. It is the only dental school in Iowa and is one of only two dental colleges in the United States to offe ...

and received his dental degree from there. During his time in college and dental school, he served at a small church as a pastor for eight years. After his graduation from dental school in 1942, Moyers joined the army in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He was the senior Allied medical liaison officer at the resistance movement happening in Greece at that time. In 1945, he was discharged from the army and received many accolades. Among them were

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. Wh ...

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

Purple Heart The Purple Heart (PH) is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those wounded or killed while serving, on or after 5 April 1917, with the U.S. military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, w ...

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

and Order of Phoenix. He returned after the war and received his Orthodontic Certificate from

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is org ...

. He also earned his doctorate in physiology from the same university. He was married to Barbara Quick Moyers and had two daughters.

Career

* In 1948, he started his career by becoming chairman of Department of Orthodontics at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. * In 1952, he became the chair of Michigan's orthodontic program. * In 1964, he founded the Center of Human Growth and Development at University of Michigan. This center was established after the initiative taken by the University of Michigan to develop a research unit which involved many disciplines. * In 1980, he stepped down as the director of the center. * In 1990, he retired and became professor emeritus of dentistry and also a fellow emeritus of the center. * In 1974, the University of Michigan decided to establish

Moyers Symposium Moyers may refer to the following: * Moyers, Oklahoma * Moyers, West Virginia People with the surname Moyers * Bill Moyers (born 1934), American journalist and public commentator * Edward L. Moyers (1928–2006), American railroad executive * Ke ...

in honor of Moyers. This symposium was designed to discuss recent evidence in new approaches in the field of orthodontics. He is known to have authored the textbook ''Handbook of Orthodontics'' and participated in co-authoring or editing another 15 books. He died at the age of 75 in 1996.

Awards

* Albert H. Ketcham Award – highest award given in speciality of orthodontics, 1988 * Member of

Royal College of Surgeons of England The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wales. The ...

, 1955

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moyers, Robert American orthodontists People from Sidney, Iowa 1919 births 1996 deaths University of Michigan faculty University of Iowa alumni 20th-century dentists United States Army personnel of World War II

Life

Career

Awards

See also

References