French, Dexter, 1918-1981.

Dexter French was born in Des Moines, Iowa, on February 23, 1918. He received his A.B. (1938) in chemistry and mathematics from the University of Dubuque and his Ph.D. (1942) in plant chemistry from Iowa State College (University). He was a Postdoctoral Fellow (1942-1944) at the Harvard Medical School. French worked as a Research Chemist (1944-1945) for Corn Products Co. and as a Consultant (1947-1948) for the Sioux Honey Association and the National Starch and Chemical Corporation. In 1946, French was named Assistant Professor (1946-1951) of plant chemistry at Iowa State. He was promoted to Associate Professor (1951-1955) and Professor (1955-1960) of chemistry. French served as Professor (1960-1968), Distinguished Professor (1968-1981), and as Chair (1963-1971, 1974-1975) in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics. French's research focused on the chemical and physical structure of starches.