Photos courtesy Mike Lewis / Public Relations

President Clark: a man, a father, a president

Amy Barrus BAR04050@BYUI.EDU Campus Assistant Editor

The image of President Kim B. Clark is one of firm stature and organization, as President Bednar before him. But how is he as a dad and how does his family perceive him?

“He can be very serious, but he’s a very fun guy,” said Julia Clark, his daughter, and a student at BYU. “He enjoys the bright side of life.”

She also described his personality as genuine. Most fathers have different responsibilities such as family, church callings and occupation, but Julia said he’s the same across the board.

“He remains the same individual through wearing the different hats,” she said.

If President Clark has the opportunity to take a break from playing these roles, Julia said, he’s most likely to spend it outdoors, either on the golf course or doing yard work. Reading is also a hobby, especially reading about historical people.

Teaching is another love of President Clark, so it makes sense that he has been involved in education almost his whole life.

“He’s always looking for opportunities to teach us,” Julia said. “Everything we do is a learning opportunity. He loves to do that.”

He has a greater chance to do that now that he’s here at BYU-Idaho.

One of the perks of coming to Rexburg from Boston is that President Clark can see his twin daughters more often than he did when he and his wife lived in Massachusetts.

“My mom loves that about coming to Rexburg,” Julia said.

When the Clark parents go to visit, they take their daughters out to dinner and then talk about their lives, including their studies.

Because Julia is majoring in the same field and in the same undergraduate program at BYU as her father, economics is often a topic of discussion.

“I always take that opportunity to get advice for my classes,” Julia said. “I’m majoring in economics and he knows all the professors, so I get input from him.”

Although it’s nice to have him a little closer to her, Julia said that even when they lived in Massachusetts, he maintained a good balance between his family and his work.

“He tried to be home for dinner every night,” Julia said. “It was always awesome when dad came home, and he was always happy to be home.”

Apparently, his rule at Harvard was that if he was in a meeting and someone in his family called, to get him out immediately.

Julia expressed that it was hard to call with a question because if he was in a meeting, it was hard to convince them to not get him out because it wasn’t that important.

When Julia and Jennifer, his twin daughters, moved to college, President Clark would call and ask them if they were doing the “basics:” personal prayer, scripture study, going to church and being conscientious in school. Then he’d ask a rather interesting question.

“He’d always ask us if we were brushing our teeth,” Julia said. “We’d say, ‘Yes Dad’ and sometimes he’d ask, ‘Are you flossing?’”

“He likes to tease us a lot,” Julia said. “I guess you get a different perspective when someone’s your father.”

Other than twins Julia and Jennifer, President Clark is also the father and father-in-law of Bryce and Stephanie Clark, Erin and Brian Bradford, Jonathan and Deborah Clark, Michael and Hannah Clark.