Dr. Jarvis E. Miller ’50
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Year Awarded: 2016

Bryan, Texas

DR. JARVIS E. MILLER ’50 received a bachelor’s degree in agricultural administration. He was a cadet major on Air Force Battalion Staff and a Ross Volunteer; he and a classmate designed the RV sash. Also as a student, he was Town Hall manager, president of the YMCA, head of the YMCA Cabinet and a Hillel Award recipient.

From 1977 to 1980, he served as president of Texas A&M, the third Aggie to do so. In 1980, Gov. Bill Clements asked him to serve in the Office of Budget and Planning to head up his “Texas 2000” planning effort for the state. In 1982, he was made the office’s director.

In 25 years with A&M, Miller’s significant leadership roles included serving as director of the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station and leading A&M’s contracts with the U.S. Agency for International Development in both Argentina and the Dominican Republic.

He is an Outstanding Alumnus of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and an inductee into the

Department of Agricultural Economics’ Tyrus R. Timm Honor Registry; he has served as vice president of the Sul Ross Group and was a longtime Class Agent for the Class of ’50. He is a member of The Association’s Endowed Century Club.

He has been a teacher, board chair and building committee chair at the A&M United Methodist Church;

a charter member and president of the Aggieland Rotary Club; and member of the Downtown Austin and Bryan Rotary clubs.

His family includes wife Alma; daughters Susan Miller Hult, Kathleen Miller Gibson ’81, Margaret Miller

Moten ’83 and Carolyn Miller McCully; and grandchildren including Sarah Gibson ’15. His father was Richard Cook Miller ’26, his brother was Richard Wade Miller ’53 and his great-uncle was Demrie B. Miller, Class of 1900.

Joe R. Straus, Jr. ’50
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Year Awarded: 2023

Selma, TX

Straus’ love of horses and agribusiness stemmed from his childhood in San Antonio. His family owned L. Frank Saddlery, a manufacturer of saddles and other horse equipment. The company later became Straus-Frank Co. and sold wholesale auto parts, but horses remained an important part of the family’s story. He headed to A&M to study animal husbandry, also serving in the U.S. Naval Reserve.

Returning to San Antonio after graduation, Straus worked at Straus-Frank Co. for 55 years, eventually retiring as president.

He is also a partner in the family-owned Straus Medina Ranch, where he successfully imported the first full-blood Simmental cattle into the United States. The European breed had been notoriously difficult to bring in, due to U.S. regulations meant to prevent disease in livestock. He and his partners were able to quarantine a small herd in Germany and move them through Norway before finally establishing the breed in Texas.

Straus remains best known for the role he played in Texas horse racing. In 1973, he founded the Texas Horse Racing Association, which advocated legalizing pari-mutuel wagering in Texas. After this new legislation passed, he established the Retama Park Association in 1989, eventually co-founding and constructing Retama Park Racetrack.

Straus is a longtime member of the Texas A&M College of Agriculture Development Council. He and his late wife, Jocelyn, gave generously to A&M through The Association of Former Students, the Texas A&M Foundation and the 12th Man Foundation.

The Strauses have three children, four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

“Joe R. Straus, Jr. ’50 has a knack for turning dreams into reality.”

  - Phil Adams '70

Dr. Charley V. Wootan ’50
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Year Awarded: 2016

College Station, TX

DR. CHARLEY V. WOOTAN ’50 received bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in agricultural economics; he was a member of the Corps of Cadets’ Company E, Sigma Xi Scientific Research Society, Alpha Zeta Agricultural Honor Society and Phi Kappa Phi Collegiate Honor Society.

He was director of the Texas A&M Transportation Institute from 1976 to 1993 and director emeritus from 1993 to 2001, the year he passed away. In 2003, he was inducted into the Texas Transportation Hall of Honor. He received the Luther DeBerry Award from the Texas Department of Transportation, the S.S. Steinberg Award from the American Road and Transportation Builders Association and honors from the Transportation Research Board.

He was the founder and first president of the Council of University Transportation Centers in 1979. He was a Silver level member of The Association’s Century Club, with 32 years of giving.

He served in the Pacific theater 1944-46 in the U.S. Marine Corps and was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force Reserve 1950-56.

He was the head timer at A&M men’s and women’s track and field meets 1974-1994, a frequent Muster speaker and an A&M economics professor.

He chaired the board of the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation, which in 2001 named the Charley V. Wootan Grant Program for him. In 2012-13, the program awarded $5 million to 1,500 students.

His family includes wife Doxie Wootan; children Richard Charles Wootan ’74 and Debra Alice Wootan Roberson ’75; and Aggie grandchildren are Clint Charles Roberson ’00, Thomas Ross Roberson ’03 and Steven Paul Roberson ’06. His brother was the late A.B. “Pat” Wooten ’42.

Dan A. Hughes ’51
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Year Awarded: 2011

Beeville, TX

Hughes received a bachelor’s degree in geology from the Agricultural & Mechanical College of Texas. While a student, he was a member of the Corps of Cadets, vice president of the Geology Club and a member of the Dallas and Palestine hometown clubs.



After college, he served as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army and earned a Bronze Star in Korea. He went to work for Union Producing Co. of New Orleans as a geological scout in 1953 and has continued to work in petroleum exploration and production. In 1963, he formed a partnership with his twin brother, Dudley Hughes, Class of 1951, to create Hughes & Hughes Oil and Gas. In 1982, Hughes & Hughes was dissolved and he formed Dan A. Hughes Company and has offices in Beeville, San Antonio and Houston. In 1996, he formed Hughes Petroleum Colombia, with offices in Bogota, Columbia.



Hughes was awarded membership in 1978 in the exclusive All-American Wildcatters Club. He has also been honored with the M.B. “Duke” Rudman Outstanding Wildcatter Award and as Outstanding Citizen of Bee County, Texas.



He has been a member of The Association of Former Students Century Club for 35 years and is also a member of the A&M Legacy Society, the 12th Man Foundation and the Geosciences Development Council. He was awarded the Michael T. Halbouty Geosciences Medal in 1997. He endowed the Dan A. Hughes ’51 Chair in Geosciences as well as the Berg-Hughes Center for Petroleum and Sedimentary Systems. He also funded the restoration of A&M’s Military Walk, a historic path in the heart of campus.



Hughes is also active in service to his community. He donated an oil and gas building at Coastal Bend College and has supported the Coastal Bend Community Foundation, the Boys & Girls Club, the Junior Service League, and numerous scholastic athletic programs, among many others.



Hughes has three children and nine grandchildren, four of which attended Texas A&M. He and his wife Brenda reside in Beeville.

“I would recommend that freshman students consider entering the Corp of Cadets. The discipline and leadership that they gain will give them an advantage throughout their lives.”

Dudley J. Hughes ’51
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Year Awarded: 2010

Jackson, MS

Hughes graduated from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas with a Bachelor of Science degree in geology. As a student, he was a member of the Corps of Cadets, the Geology Club and the Palestine Hometown Club.



Hughes served in the U.S. Army as a first lieutenant and was awarded the Bronze Star for his meritorious service in Korea. Afterward, he established a highly successful career in exploration geology, operating more than 10 different oil and gas exploration companies during his 40-plus year career. He is currently the president of Hughes Oil Inc. and Hughes South Corp.



Hughes was recognized by Texas A&M with the Geosciences and Earth Resources Distinguished Achievement Award and received the All American Wildcatters’ Rudman Outstanding Wildcatter Award. He also received the American Association of Petroleum Geologists’ Outstanding Explorer Award and was named the 2009 Philanthropist of the Year by the state of Mississippi.



Hughes has been a loyal supporter of the University and the College of Geosciences. In 1998, Hughes and his wife, Robbie, created the Dudley J. Hughes ’51 Chair in Geology and Geophysics, and he contributed to the Robert R. Berg Professorship in Geology and the William R. Bryant Oceanography Chair for Teaching, Research and Mentoring Excellence. He was instrumental in the endowment of the Berg-Hughes Center for Petroleum and Sedimentary Systems. Hughes is a member of The Association of Former Students’ Century Club and remains active as a volunteer and contributor to dozens of charitable organizations.

"My career has been very successful thanks to a great extent to Texas A&M. My training at A&M was superior to that of geologists from other schools, and eventually led my brother and I to start our on oil companies."

Charles L. Pence ’51
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Year Awarded: 2018

Fredericksburg, TX

As a student, he was a cadet in the Corps’ A Infantry. After Army service in Korea and Japan, he began a 27-year career at ExxonMobil, becoming senior vice president of Exxon’s Friendswood Development Co. and developing Houston area’s first master-planned community, Clear Lake City. As president of Battlement Mesa Inc., he managed the construction of a new town, Battlement Mesa, near Grand Junction, Colo., to house employees of Exxon’s mining operation. Upon retiring from Exxon in 1982, he co-founded Jefferson Development Co., serving as CEO for 12 years; was co-founder and chairman of Entouch Systems for five years; chairman of SiEnergy LLC for 10 years; and is co-founder and chairman of Si Environmental LLC. He has long supported Corps of Cadets scholarships; he is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association with 35 years of giving and an A&M Legacy Society member who has supported the building of the Clayton W. Williams, Jr. Alumni Center and the Corps quad renovation.

His service to his communities includes chairing the transportation committee of the Houston Chamber of Commerce; serving as co-founder and president of the state’s nonprofit Grand Parkway Association developing an outer loop around Houston; and helping start University Baptist Church in Clear Lake City and Grace Fellowship Church in Lampasas.

His family includes wife Kay; four children with his late wife Patsy, including D. Britt Pence ’83; and 10 grandchildren, including Katherine Pence ’07, Kyle Pence ’18 and Connor Pence ’20.

“A&M means hope for our future,” Pence said. “Each time I come to the campus and see these young students, I am filled with a sense of optimism for the future of our country.”

  - Charles L. Pence '51

Daniel D. Clinton, Jr. ’52
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Year Awarded: 1995

Marlin, TX

Clinton received a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering in 1952 and a master’s degree from Stanford University. His 39-year career began at the Houston firm of Lockwood, Andrews & Newnam, Inc., with much of his work done in the Houston area. He was president of the Texas Society of Professional Engineers, which named him Engineer of the Year in 1993, and was president of the National Society of Professional Engineers. Clinton served on The Association of Former Students Board of Directors and was a Class of 1952 Class Agent.

Aaron Cohen ’52
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Year Awarded: 1989

Corsicana, TX

Cohen received a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1952 and later a master’s degree in Mathematical Physics from Stevens Institute of Technology.



He joined NASA in 1962 and managed development and guidance programs for Apollo Moon Landings and Skylab. Cohen was also the Director of the Space Shuttle Orbiter Project and in 1983 he served as Director of Research and Engineering where he was responsible for all engineering as well as space and life science research and development in support of major manned spaceflight programs. Named Director of the Johnson Space Center in 1986, Cohen oversaw medical, life science and physical science activites as well as astronaut training and flight operations.

"His leadership and engineering genius have been evident throughout…"

  - Christopher C. Kraft, Jr., Director of the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

Howard W. Kruse ’52
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Year Awarded: 2002

Brenham, TX

Kruse received a bachelor’s degree in Dairy Manufacturing in 1952. In 1954, he joined Blue Bell Creameries as Assistant General Manager and later served as President until his retirement in 2004. He is the creator of the most noted flavor, Homemade Vanilla.

James S. Moore ’52
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Year Awarded: 1997

Omaha, NE

Moore received a bachelor’s degree in Business in 1952. In 1954 he became the youngest State Representative ever to serve in the Texas Legislature. He was President of The Association of Former Students in 1981 and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Texas A&M Foundation.

"Jim is a wonderful person who has always contributed to his community and alma mater. I believe that one quality that sets Jim apart is his nurturing influence on young people. He has mentored many of them through the years, myself included."

  - Dr. H. Andrew Hansen II '71, Cardiovascular Surgeon