Shelley Eubanks
Potter ’78
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Year Awarded: 2019
Dallas, TX
Throughout a life marked by service, Shelley Potter ’78 has been an active leader and trailblazer.
A summa cum laude graduate of Texas A&M’s College of Architecture, Potter earned a B.S. in landscape architecture in 1978. As a student, she chaired MSC OPAS, served as a Fish Camp counselor and served as vice president and president of A&M’s Xi Kappa chapter of Chi Omega, which she founded.
After graduating, she worked as a national con¬sultant for Chi Omega, then as a City of Longview park planner. Today, she is president of design firm POTTER, co-founded with husband Jeff Potter ’78, with offices in Dallas and Longview. As a landscape architect, she has enhanced the built environment with landscape design reflecting beauty and sense of place.
An active mentor and volunteer in the Chi Omega fraternity, Potter is the national president of Chi Omega and a past presi¬dent of the national Chi Omega Foundation.
In 2009, she became the second woman to chair The Association of Former Students’ Board of Directors. During her time on the Board, she co-chaired The Association’s building enhancement task committee during the $17 million renovation of the Clayton W. Williams, Jr., Alumni Center. She is an Endowed Century Club member, with 22 years of giving. Her volunteer positions with The Association have also included area repre¬sentative, president of the Deep East Texas A&M Club and vice president of the Greek Former Student Network, which she co-founded.
In 2009, Potter was recognized by Texas A&M’s College of Architecture with the Outstanding Alumnus Award and in 2011 was honored by the Aggie Women constituent network with the Aggie Women Legacy Award.
"Leaders of character have been produced for generations by their experiences and education at Texas A&M. I have served with, worked with, and volunteered with many of them and hold Shelley Potter at the top of the list."
- Jim Thompson '68
Jeff
Potter ’78
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Year Awarded: 2023
Dallas, TX
Growing up in Shreveport, Louisiana, Potter was drawn to A&M both by the architecture program and the opportunity to compete on the Texas A&M rifle team. An Olympic small-bore rifleman, he was a three-year letterman at A&M and was on the 1976 winning Southwest Rifle Association Championship team. He received both his bachelor’s of environmental design and master’s of architecture at A&M.
In his work, Potter integrates design with community engagement, especially regarding school safety. He and his wife, Shelley ’78, founded their own architecture firm, POTTER, in 1983, which specializes in educational facilities. The firm has received six design awards from the American Institute of Architects. Potter participated in the Texas governor’s 2018 School Safety Roundtable, the only architect to receive an invitation.
Highly involved with the AIA, Potter was elevated to their College of Fellows in 2010, a distinction given to only 2.5% of all AIA architect members. He served a term as AIA president in 2012, sat on their board of directors and was repeatedly an international delegate. He has also held leadership in the Texas Society of Architects and The National Architects Foundation. In 2023, he received the Edward C. Kemper Laureate from the AIA, honoring a lifetime of leadership and significant service.
The Potters recently completed work on the new Distinguished Alumni Tribute in Aggie Park, which they consider a consummate career highlight. They have supported students by establishing an endowed scholarship for nonresident architecture students and by joining the Endowed Century Club through The Association of Former Students.
The Potters are the first married couple to each receive the honor of Distinguished Alumnus; Shelley received the award in 2019.
“He models the values and behaviors that give us hope that others will … actively participate in making our towns, cities, states and the country a better place for all.”
- R. Steven Lewis
Thomas W.
Powell ’62
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Year Awarded: 2022
Giddings, TX
“‘Honors,’ in my way of thinking, are not what I may have done or accomplished, but what I have received,” said Thomas W. Powell ’62. “When I think about Texas A&M and honors, I think about the honor I received by having the privilege of being a student and a member of the Corps of Cadets.”
In addition to being in the Corps of Cadets, Powell also served as a Ross Volunteer and was a member of MSC SCONA. Although Powell earned his undergraduate degree in mathematics, the majority of his career has been in business administration.
Powell has spent decades leading Powell Industries Inc. He served as president and CEO from 1984 until his retirement, as well as the company’s chairman of the board. When he first joined the company in 1964, it was a five-man family business. Currently, the company employs over 3,000 people and has expanded to international locations. This type of growth is no accident. Powell’s leadership philosophy, built on the values he learned at Texas A&M, has prioritized integrity and elevated his employees every step of the way.
In addition to his corporate success, Powell’s convictions have also led him to generously give back to others. He has established many chairs, fellowships and scholarships for Texas A&M, both at the flagship College Station campus and in Galveston. He spent 10 years on Texas A&M University at Galveston’s board of visitors, and is the namesake of that campus’s Powell Marine Engineering Complex. His philanthropic donations have served A&M’s colleges of Science, Engineering and Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He is also passionate about retaining first-generation college students, who he supports with a scholarship through A&M’s Science Leadership Scholars Program.
Powel has two children, Holly '85 and Michael '88; his wife, Kimberly, also has two children, Victoria '13 and Zane.
“He is a fascinating individual with a generous heart and a deep love for this university, and I believe the Distinguished Alumnus Award was made for persons of his caliber.”
- Meigan Aronson
J. Roy
Quinby ’24
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Year Awarded: 1977
Corsicana, TX
Quinby, a renowned plant geneticist and breeder, received a bachelor’s degree in Agronomy in 1924 and later a master’s degree in Genetics. He devoted the major portion of his career to highly productive service to his alma mater and its Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. He was instrumental in the development of hybrid grain sorghum as a significant agricultural crop in the production of feed for cattle, swine and poultry.
This evolution of a new order of plants of economic value has enhanced agricultural operations in other parts of the nation and numerous foreign countries, in addition to having a major impact in Texas. His accomplishments in sorghum breeding resulted in up to three-fold increases in crop yields and led to massive cattle feedlot operations on Texas’ Great Plains. This work was accomplished while he served as superintendent and research leader at the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station’s sub-station in Chillicothe, a position he held from 1925 until his retirement in 1961. During this period, his influence on students and research assistants was immense and contributed immeasurably to numerous fruitful careers.
Since his formal retirement, he has contributed to serve his alma mater as a visiting professor and has been consultant to Pioneer Hi-Bred Company in Plainview, Texas, for which he helped train workers in Nigeria, the Philippines, India, and Afghanistan in seed production techniques.
"The efforts of Mr. Quinby will live far beyond his professional lifetime through his influence upon the agriculture of Texas. Mr. Quinby has been truly outstanding as a creative scientist, a stimulating leader, a citizen and a former student."
- H. O. Kunkel, Former Dean of Agriculture, Texas A&M
Dr. Carl F.
Raba, Jr. ’59
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Year Awarded: 2004
Houston, TX
Dr. Carl F. Raba, Jr. '59 received his bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in Civil Engineering in 1961, 1962 and 1968, respectively. As a student, he served as Cadet Lieutenant, A Engineers of the Corps of Cadets, and was a member honor and engineering societies Chi Epsilon, Sigma Xi, and Tau Beta Phi. Raba was commissioned with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1961 and served in the 16th Combat Engineering Battalion from 1963 to 1965.
In 1968, he became President of Raba-Kistner Consultants, Inc. where he has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since 1980. He has earned recognition from numerous professional socities, including the National Society of Professional Engineers, the Texas Society of Professional Engineers and the American Society of Civil Engineers.
Raba has been a loyal supporter of Texas A&M throughout his life, serving on various advisory and development committees in the Dwight Look College of Engineering, the Board of Directors of the Center for Education and Research for Free Enterprise and 12th Man Foundation, and the Corps of Cadets Development Council. He is also a dedicated community servant, giving his time and talents to the North San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, the Southwest Research Institute, and the Rotary Club.
Born in Houston, Raba and his late wife, Bunny Jean, have five children, Gary '80, Nancy '82, Cathy '84, Cheryl '85 and William '86, as well as nine grandchildren.
"Whatever small accomplishments Bunny Jean and I may have achieved was in large part because of our experiences and personal values learned at Texas A&M University. For this, we are eternally grateful and mindful of our responsibilities to A&M and those students who follow us in the future."
Hon. Jack M.
Rains ’60
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Year Awarded: 1987
Waco, TX
Rains received a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in 1960 and a Doctorate of Jurisprudence from the University of Houston College of Law. He was President, CEO and Chairman of the Board for 3D International and served as Secretary of State under Governor Bill Clements.
Recognized statewide for his devotion to Texas A&M , Mr. Rains has served his alma mater as a Chairman of the Task Force on Academic Institutions of the Target 2000 Project and a s a director and Vice President of The Association of Former Students. Rains was a member of The Association of Former Students Board of Directors for three years. He also helped establish the College of Architecture and Environmental Design Development Council, the Council on the Visual Arts, and the Memorial Student Center Enrichment Fund.
"With regard to Texas A&M I don’t think I can state Jack’s love for this university. He, like many of us, has been bitten by whatever attaches us to the University and he is always willing to give his time and money to assist the University and those students who attend A&M."
- Arno W. Krebs, Jr. '64
Gerald L.
Ray ’54
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Year Awarded: 2011
Dallas, TX
Ray graduated from Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas with a bachelor’s degree in finance. He was a member of the Corps of Cadets and served after graduation as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force and later the U.S. Air Force Reserves. He received his M.B.A. in 1959 from The Wharton School of Finance at the University of Pennsylvania in 1959.
He first worked for Sanders & Co. and then was vice president of Zale Corp. before founding his own firm, Gerald L. Ray Investment Advisors, in 1977. The following year he founded Gerald L. Ray and Associates Inc. (later Gerald L. Ray & Associates, Ltd.). Ray remains chairman of that company, which has become one of the Southwest’s most respected investment firms. He is a past chairman of the National Conference for Investment Analysts and a member of the Investment Company Institute and the Association for Investment Management and Research.
Ray has a long history of supporting Texas A&M. He has endowed the Gerald L. Ray ’54 Pillars of Texas A&M, multiple scholarships, a Foundation Excellence Award for minority or economically disadvantaged students, and the Department of Finance Kupfer Distinguished Executive Award. He has been a major contributor to the Aggies on Wall Street Program, which brings A&M’s best and brightest to the center of the financial world and has resulted in scores of Aggies succeeding in Wall Street careers.
In honoring Mr. Ray’s mother and father, he chose to name the Elizabeth and Joseph Ray Auditorium in the May’s Business School in their honor.
He and his wife, Helaine, have two children and five grandchildren.
“The relationships I made at A&M have been important guide posts in my life. Over the years, they have made a significant impact on many of my goals.”
Dr. Chester J.
Reed ’47
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Year Awarded: 1984
Brown County, TX
Reed received a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree in 1947. He was a successful investor who developed real estate in the Houston area. Reed’s generosity to Texas A&M supported the Corps of Cadets and the College of Veterinary Medicine. Gift’s from Dr. and Mrs. Reed to Texas A&M University include contribution of land worth more than $600,000 to create the Reed Corps Scholarship Program for the Corps of Cadets. They established two President’s Endowed Scholarships and created the Reed Chair in Veterinary Medicine.
He is active in business and community affairs; Reed served as a director of Kincaid School, a prestigious private institution in Houston, and served as a member of the Houston Board of Health.
"I feel that those Aggies who go through the Corps of Cadets gain a unique experience and some what of being an Aggie is all about. I want as many young Aggies as possible to know that feeling."
Bernard C.
Richardson ’41
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Year Awarded: 2000
Kirbyville, TX
Richardson received a bachelor’s degree in Petroleum Engineering in 1942. He served as President of Richardson Chevrolet, the largest dealership in the U.S., and Standard Life Insurance Co. Richardson helped finance several Texas A&M projects, including contributing $6 million for The Zone at Kyle Field, which was named in his honor.
He endowed the Jean & Bernard C. Richardson ’41 General Rudder Corps Scholarship, the President’s Endowed Scholarship, a 12th Man Endowed Scholarship, a Diamond Century Club Endowment, and he provided the funding for the Medal of Honor bas-reliefs at the Sanders Corps Center. He is a member of the Corps of Cadets and Lettermen’s Association Halls of Honor.
"I don’t know if I can put into words what Texas A&M means to me. I owe that university so much for shaping my life and making me into the man I became."
Joe C.
Richardson, Jr. ’49
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Year Awarded: 1989
Amarillo, TX
Richardson received a bachelor’s degree in Petroleum/Mechanical Engineering in 1950. His career placed him in charge of oil and gas operations throughout North and South America. In 1968, he organized Petro-Dynamics, Inc., a public over the counter energy company with operations in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Colorado, Canada, and Venezuela.
After merging the company into worldwide Energy Corporation in 1974, he became an independent oil and gas producer with operations in Texas, Montana, North and South Dakota, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Mississippi. He also, became a real estate investor in Texas, Oklahoma and California and has operated farming interests in Texas.
He served on the Texas A&M University Board of Regents from 1981-1987 and was President of the Amarillo A&M Club.
"Joe truly represents the ‘Spirit of Aggieland’ and has brought much credit to our outstanding university."
- William R. Black ’43