Since 1955, The Association of Former Students and Texas A&M University have recognized outstanding members of Texas A&M’s faculty and staff for their commitment, performance and positive impact on Aggie students, Texas citizens and the world around them.
In recognition of their achievements, each recipient will receive a monetary award, an engraved watch and a commemorative certificate, all made possible by the generous donors to The Association of Former Students. Recipients will also be honored on April 24 at the Academic Awards Ceremony in the Memorial Student Center’s Bethancourt Ballroom.
The selection process for this award is rigorous, with the recipients chosen by a campus-wide committee composed of faculty, staff, students and former students. The award is a testimony to the esteem and high regard in which colleagues hold the recipients.
The 2026 recipients are:
Administration
- Shawn G. Gibbs, Office of the Dean, School of Public Health
- Joseph P. Pettibon II ’92, Strategy and Business Services, Office of the President
Extension, Outreach, Continuing Education, and Professional Development
- James D. Pennington, Department of Chemistry, College of Arts & Sciences
Graduate Mentoring
- James D. Batteas, Department of Chemistry, College of Arts & Sciences
- Quan Li, Department of Political Science, Bush School of Government & Public Service
Individual Student Engagement
- Daisey M. McCloud, Student Career Planning & Placement, College of Marine Sciences & Maritime Studies
- Christopher William Diem ’05, Office of Student Affairs, Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine
Management Executive
- Kristie Scrutchfield Orr ’91, Disability Resources, Division of Student Affairs
- Cheryl L. Hanks ’94, Office of the Dean, College of Arts & Sciences
Research
- Jodie Lutkenhaus, Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering
- Sherry J. Yennello, Department of Chemistry, College of Arts & Sciences
- Akhil Datta-Gupta, Harold Vance Department of Petroleum Engineering, College of Engineering
- Shuiwang Ji, Department of Computer Science & Engineering, College of Engineering
- Yuxiang Sun, Department of Nutrition, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences
- Arum Han, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, College of Engineering
Staff
- Maggie Guzman ’20, Residential Life & Housing, Division of Student Affairs
- Jamie Norgaard ’02, Office of the Dean, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences
Teaching
- Anna W. Wolfe, Department of Communication & Journalism, College of Arts & Sciences
- Dawson T. Nodurft ’19, Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Arts & Sciences
- Karen E. Rambo-Hernandez, Department of Teaching, Learning & Culture, College of Education & Human Development
- Shannon Washburn ’94, Department of Veterinary Physiology & Pharmacology, College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
- Jeremy W. Holt, Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Arts & Sciences
- Rebecca Creasy Buckley, Department of Food Science & Technology, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences
- Christopher G. Yust ’06, James Benjamin Department of Accounting, Mays Business School
- Timothy M. Dellapenna, Department of Marine & Coastal Environmental Science, College of Marine Sciences & Maritime Studies
- Diane C. Bedford, Dance, Music, Theatre, & Performance Section (DMTP), College of Performance, Visualization & Fine Arts
- Sara D. Lawhon ’97, Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences
Distinguished Achievement Award University Level: Criteria & Nomination Information
