IOWA CITY, Iowa—Dick Smith, founder and chairman of the board of Agri-Industrial Plastics Co. (AIP), received the University of Iowa’s Eight Over 80 Award at a special luncheon held recently at the Levitt Center for University Advancement in Iowa City.
Presented by the University of Iowa and the Barbara and Richard Csomay Center for Gerontological Excellence, the Eight Over 80 Award celebrates and honors Iowa alumni, age 80 and over, who continue to make an impact, who carry the Hawkeye spirit of achievement, and continue to help others in their community. Awardees have continued to change lives through a passion, profession or volunteerism.
Awarded annually to eight distinguished alumni since 2022, previous Eight Over 80 honorees include Tom Brokaw, former NBC Nightly News anchor, author and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient; Robert Osterhaus, former president of the American Pharmacists Association and former member of Iowa’s House of Representatives; Ann Howard Jones, former director of choral activities at Boston University, a position she held for 24 years; Willard L. “Sandy” Boyd, former president of the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago; and Jean Lloyd-Jones, former member of Iowa’s House of Representatives and Senate.
Smith received bachelor’s of science degrees in mechanical and industrial engineering from the University of Iowa in 1960, and his MBA from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1965. He began his career at Plax in Stonington, Connecticut, before holding positions at Monsanto and Schlueter Manufacturing Co. in St. Louis, and Corry’s Machine and Tool Co. in Bonaparte, Iowa. In 1978, he founded Agri-Industrial Plastics in Fairfield, Iowa. Today AIP, where his daughter Lori Schaefer Weaton serves as president, employs more than 200 and is recognized as a leading manufacturer of non-automotive multi-layer fuel tanks and other custom blow molded parts. Smith is a recipient of the Society of Plastics Engineers’ Lifetime Achievement Award and the Legends Award in Manufacturing from Iowa Association of Business and Industry.
For further information on the University of Iowa’s Eight Over 80 visit foriowa.org.
