Donna Mae Gelfand

Donna Mae Gelfand passed away peacefully on April 6, 2025 in Logan, Utah, at the age of 87. Donna was a well-known and widely-published Distinguished Professor of Developmental Child Psychology at the University of Utah. Born in a tiny mill town in Washington State, as a child she attended a one-room school house. She went on to earn an undergraduate degree from Reed College and her doctorate at the age of 23 from Stanford University. In addition to her faculty role, Donna served as Department Chair of the Psychology Department at the U, and she was the first female Dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences, a position she held for ten years.

Donna was happily married to Sidney Gelfand (d. 2010), for nearly 50 years, and she is survived by their daughter, Laura. Together, the three of them skied, backpacked, camped, ran many western rivers, and sought out rock art that Donna then embroidered on chambray shirts. Their life together was full of laughter, books, and adventures. After Sid’s death Donna accompanied her daughter on several international trips, but her true passion was a hiking group made up of fellow emeritus faculty from the U. Their ambitious weekly hikes structured Donna’s life in retirement and kept her happy and healthy well into her 80s.

Donna, who was clever, funny, and kind, will be missed by her many friends, and her daughter Laura, who idolized her with good reason. A memorial service will be held later this spring. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Western Environmental Law Center are encouraged.

The family is grateful to the staff at Legacy House in Logan, and the hospice nurses from Intermountain Health for making Donna’s final few months as easy and positive as possible.