Dennis L. Law

Dennis L. Law, 77, passed November 2, 2021 after a battle with Parkinson’s disease at Meadowlark Hills Retirement Community, Manhattan, Kansas.

Law grew up on the family farm south of Plainview, Texas. He attended and graduated from Petersburg (Texas) High School in 1962. Law was a member of Kansas State University Landscape Architecture faculty for 38 years serving until he retired in 2009. Professor Law received his bachelor’s degree in Park Administration at Texas Tech University in 1967. After graduating, he worked in public and private practice until he earned a Master’s degree in Landscape Architecture at Kansas State University while at the rank of instructor. Upon graduating with an MLA in 1974, Law was promoted to Assistant Professor in 1976. He served as Professor and Department Head in the Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning. He became Dean of the college of Architecture, Planning and Design in 1995. Among his many accomplishments as Dean, he marshalled the fund raising for significant renovation of Seaton Hall, successfully advocated for and fostered limited enrollment to the College, and presided over the successful conversion of the professional programs offered in the College from baccalaureate to non-baccalaureate master graduate programs.

Dean Law has seen his landscape architecture come to life across the nation. His projects have included city parks, theme parks, residences, landscape development, plazas and reclamation plan for 43,000 acre site in western Wyoming. He has been and international speaker on global environmental issues, with more than 75 papers presented, including lectures to members of the Hungarian Parliament in Budapest, he also presented in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Shanghai, China; Warsaw, Poland; Prague, Czech Republic and San Jose, Costa Rica. In addition, he has written numerous books and other publications on planting design, reclamation of disturbed lands, environmental ethics, the design of a sustainable tropical farm using hydroponics systems in Costa Rica, and landscape architecture education. Dean Law was a fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects, Sigma Lambda Alpha National Landscape Architecture Honor Society and Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. He has been recognized numerous times as one of America’s Most Admired Educators of Design Intelligence Magazine. Dean Law was honored in 1991 by the Blue Key National Honor Society and the Alpha Delta Pi Sorority for outstanding teaching.

Preceding him in death were his parents, Alvin and Daisy Wilson Law.

Law is survived by his wife, Linda Hyman Law, they married on December 20, 1964, in Brownfield, Texas, he and Linda are members of the First United Methodist Church in Manhattan. They had three children including Dwight (Melissa), also a landscape architect in Shanghai, China; Andrea Law who teaches in the English Language Program at Kansas State University; and Brent Law (Jeanine) active Army Reserves, who resides in Frisco, Texas. Dennis and Linda have four grandchildren, Josh Law who resides in Hawaii; Jaxon Carey and Mari Carey from Manhattan, Kansas; and Isabella Law, Frisco, Texas; Sister Sylvia Kay Law Morris (Otis) of Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Dennis is known for paintings and drawings. He has years of experience in pen and ink drawings and acrylic paintings. In spite of having been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2015, Dennis continued to play racquetball with close friend Roger Allerheiligen, qualifying to compete in the Senior Olympics in 2015 and 2017 and won a silver and gold medal in the State of Kansas senior games. Dennis made a point of knowing the names of every student and speaking to them. He learned to say hello and goodbye in 35 languages so international students would feel welcome. At Christmas time Dennis and Linda would give each student two cookies.

Memorial services for Law will be held on Sunday, December 19, 2:00 pm, at the First United Methodist Church, 612 Poyntz in Manhattan, with Pastor Melanie Nord officiating. Dennis donated his body to the Kansas University Medical Center; burial will be held at a later date in the Sunrise Cemetery in Manhattan.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are suggested to the KSU Foundation – Dennis and Linda Law Scholarship in Landscape Architecture or the Parkinson’s Program at Meadowlark Hills in Manhattan. Contributions may be sent in care of the Yorgensen-Meloan-Londeen Funeral Home, 1616 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, Kansas 66502.