The Thomas S. Gathright Scholar Award was established in April 1973 by The Association of Former Students in conjunction with Texas A&M's Student Government Association. The award was given annually at the Parents' Weekend All-University Awards Ceremony to the outstanding sophomore, junior, and senior of each academic college. Named in honor of the first president of the A&M College of Texas, this award recognizes outstanding scholastic achievement on a university-wide scale.
Since 2019, the Gathright Award merged into a collaboration between The Association of Former Students, LAUNCH: Academic Excellence, and the Texas A&M chapter of Phi Kappa Phi.
The Gathright Phi Kappa Phi Awards annually recognize a top freshman, sophomore and junior from each college. Freshman and sophomore awards are made through the Dean's Excellence Award process and awarded at a fall ceremony. The junior award is made through the Outstanding Junior award process and is presented at an annual induction ceremony each spring. The awards are named the Gathright Phi Kappa Phi Dean's Excellence Award and the Gathright Phi Kappa Phi Outstanding Junior Award, respectively.
Criteria and Selection Procedure
Selection for the Gathright Award at all levels is now based on an evaluation of research and/or creative production, community engagement, accomplishments/awards, and academic record, with the final selection criteria determined by the dean of each respective college.
To learn more about the Gathright Award's namesake, visit these links:
TSHA Handbook article on Texas A&M
TSHA Handbook article on Gathright
If you have questions about the Gathright Scholar Award, or would like to learn more about the program, please contact the Campus Programs office at The Association - (979) 845-7514.
| Portrait of President Thomas S. Gathright provided courtesy of Cushing Memorial Library and Archives, Texas A&M University |
Previous Gathright Scholar Award Recipients
