Bruce P. Bickner, ’68, died on October 21 at his home in Sycamore, Illinois. He was 82.
Bickner earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from DePauw University. At Michigan Law, he was an editor for the Michigan Law Review. After law school, he served in the Judge Advocate General’s office of the US Army and was a member of the National Guard. He began his career at Sidley Austin LLP.
He spent 27 years with DeKalb AgResearch, including as chairman and CEO. He later served as executive vice president for Monsanto’s global seed business after it acquired DeKalb. He served on the corporate boards of more than a dozen companies and also was active on several civic boards.
At the University of Michigan, he was a member of President Mary Sue Coleman’s Advisory Group and Dean Evan Caminker’s Advisory Council. He chaired the Law School’s Development and Alumni Relations Committee and the steering committee for the Law School’s Michigan Difference Campaign, which changed the face of the Law School by raising the funds to build the Robert B. Aikens Commons and South Hall (now Jeffries Hall). In recognition, he received the Law School’s Distinguished Alumni Award in 2012 and the David B. Hermelin Award for Fundraising Volunteer Leadership, U-M’s highest such award.
“Bruce demonstrated inspired leadership and an unwavering commitment to the Law School through a transformational time for our campus,” says Todd Baily, who served as the school’s assistant dean for development and alumni relations from 2004 to 2015. “He was dogged in his pursuit of his peers in order to engage them with Law School. Bruce set the bar high, and Jeffries Hall would not exist without him.”
Bickner is survived by his wife of 58 years, Joan; three children, Brian, Kevin, and Julie; and nine grandchildren.
