Texas A&M University and The Association of Former Students have selected 24 outstanding members of the school’s faculty and staff to be honored with 2017 Distinguished Achievement Awards. The university-level Distinguished Achievement Awards were first presented in 1955 and have since been awarded to more than 1,000 professionals who have exhibited the highest standards of excellence at Texas A&M.

The 2017 Distinguished Achievement Awards will be formally presented at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, April 24, during ceremonies in Rudder Theatre on the Texas A&M University campus. In recognition of their achievements, each recipient will receive a cash gift, an engraved watch and a commemorative plaque.

The 2017 recipients, along with their departments/affiliations are as follows.

For Teaching

James D. Batteas, Department of Chemistry, College of Science

Ben F. Bigelow ʼ05, Department of Construction Science, College of Architecture

Christian Brannstrom, Department of Geography, College of Geosciences

Audrey K. Cook, Department of Veterinary Small Animal Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Alan Dabney, Department of Statistics, College of Science

Amy E. Earhart ʼ99, Department of English, College of Liberal Arts

Larry Johnson, Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Mary P. McDougall ʼ97, Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering

Mary Margaret “Meg” Penrose, Texas A&M University School of Law

Connie D. Weaver, Department of Accounting, Mays Business School

For Research

Wendy R. Boswell, Department of Management, Mays Business School

Timothy R. Elliott, Department of Educational Psychology, College of Education and Human Development

Paul E. Hardin, Department of Biology, College of Science

Casey J. Papovich, Department of Physics and Astronomy, College of Science

Ping Yang, Department of Atmospheric Sciences, College of Geosciences

Hong-Cai “Joe” Zhou ʼ00, Department of Chemistry, College of Science

For Student Relations

Elizabeth Crouch ʼ91, Biomedical Sciences Program, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences

Henry Musoma ʼ00, Center for International Business Studies, Mays Business School

For Administration

Mark A. Hussey ʼ79, Dean, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

For Extension, Outreach, Continuing Education and Professional Development

John T. Cooper Jr. ʼ92, Department of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning, College of Architecture

For Staff
Kevin Gustavus ʼ08, Business Office, College of Architecture

Veronica (Sprayberry) Stilley ‘90, Department of Information and Operations Management, Mays Business School

For Graduate Mentoring

Robert S. Chapkin, Department of Nutrition and Food Science, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Yalchin Efendiev, Department of Mathematics, College of Science