Don H.
Davis, Jr. ’61
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Year Awarded: 2010
Sedona, AZ
Davis graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering and received a Master of Science in business administration from Texas A&M in 1963. During his time at A&M, he was a member of the Corps of Cadets, the varsity baseball team and the Shreveport Hometown Club.
After graduation, Davis worked as an engineering sales trainee with Allen-Bradley and moved up through the sales and marketing ranks to become president of Allen-Bradley in 1989, four years after its acquisition by Rockwell. Davis was named president of Rockwell International in 1996, CEO in 1997 and chairman in 1998. He retired in 2005 after a distinguished 42-year career with the company.
Davis was honored with the Dwight Look College of Engineering Outstanding Alumni Award in 1990, and he was elected to the Department of Mechanical Engineering’s Academy of Distinguished Graduates in 1992.
Davis and his wife, Sallie, have supported Texas A&M with endowments, including the Sallie and Don Davis ’61 Professorship in Engineering, two graduate fellowships in mechanical engineering, and a major gift to support the renovation of Olsen baseball field. Davis has served on the College of Engineering external advisory committee and he continues to serve on many boards. He is an Endowed Century Club member of The Association of Former Students and he volunteers and contributes to many educational and cultural organizations, including the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.
"As all Aggies know, Texas A&M is a special place that affects you at a very deep level. The values that are a part of A&M's culture helped me to understand the importance of honesty, integrity, responsibility, discipline and perseverance."
Marvin J.
Girouard ’61
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Year Awarded: 2002
Port Arthur, TX
Girouard received a bachelor’s degree in Marketing in 1961. Upon graduation, he was commissioned an Ensign in the U.S. Navy, served in the Vietnam War, and retired as a Commander after 20 years in the U.S. Naval Reserve. He was elected Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Pier 1 Imports in 1999.
Raymond
Hannigan ’61
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Year Awarded: 2015
Bryan, TX
Ray Hannigan, Class of 1961, received a bachelor’s degree in general business from the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, where he was a member of the Corps of Cadets, a student manager for the baseball team and four-year letterman, a SCONA member and participant and a Distinguished Student inducted into Phi Kappa Phi.
Hannigan was president and CEO of Kinetic Concepts Inc. from 1994 to 2000, and before that, he was president of the international division of Sterling Drug and president of Beecham SmithKlein Canada. He was appointed by Gov. Rick Perry ’72 to the State Board of Health and served four years. In San Antonio, he has served on the board of directors for Christus Santa Rosa Hospital, Our Lady of the Lake University and Southwest Research Foundation. He is a Meals on Wheels volunteer in Bryan and has served on the leadership council of St. Mary’s Catholic Center in College Station.
His involvement with Texas A&M’s Mays School of Business has included serving on the advisory council to the Center for International Business Studies, serving as a guest lecturer and receiving the Outstanding Alumnus Award. He established in 1998 the Raymond R. Hannigan, Jr. ’61 Endowed Overseas Study Scholarship Fund. He and wife Patty have established three President’s Endowed Scholarships.
Hannigan has been a host and speaker for Aggie Musters in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and Caracas, Venezuela. Irish American magazine named him one of the Top 100 Irish Americans in Business in 1999.
His Aggie family includes his late brother Edward Hannigan ’67. He and Patty have three children, including Chris Hannigan ’92 and Rush Hannigan ’09.
"Ray Hannigan's actions have earned him the respect of businessmen, politicians, faculty, religious leaders, and most importantly, fellow Aggies. He exhibits the selfless spirit that makes Aggies one of a thousand points of light."
- Richard Box '61
RADM Robert
Smith ’61
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Year Awarded: 2006
Dallas, TX
Rear Adm. Robert Smith III received a bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics from Texas A&M University in 1961 and is a graduate of Louisiana State University’s School of Banking of the South in 1977. As a student at Texas A&M, Smith was a member of the Corps of Cadets, the Agricultural Economics Club and the Dallas Hometown Club.
Smith was commissioned into the U.S. Navy in 1962. He is a graduate of the Naval War College and also attended the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, completing a course in national security in 1991. During his 35 years of service, he participated in assignments in the Pacific, Washington, D.C., and the Atlantic, and retired in 1996 as chief of staff to the Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. In 1987 Smith was selected a Rear Admiral (lower half) and later earned his second star in 1991. The U.S. Navy recognized his distinguished military career with honors including the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal and the Navy Unit Commendation Award. Smith began his civilian career with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas in 1968. Smith has served as secretary to the bank’s board of directors and to the Federal Reserve System’s Conference of Presidents. In 1975, Smith served as assistant secretary to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Today he is senior vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank, responsible for its Houston’s branch.
Smith is actively involved as a Texas A&M former student as an ardent supporter and past president of The Association of Former Students and the Dallas A&M Club and past chairman of the Texas A&M Foundation. He is a past member of the 12th Man Foundation Board of Directors and Chancellor’s Century Council. He is a member of the Corps of Cadets Development Council, vice chairman of the Presidential Board of Visitors and chairs the President’s Council of Advisors. In 1999 he received the Jimmy Williams Distinguished Service Award from the Dallas A&M Club and the Houston A&M Club named him “Outstanding Houston Aggie of the Year” in 2002. Born in Dallas, Smith and his wife, Mary Sue, reside in Houston and Rockwall, Texas.
"He always does what is right- the hallmark of a good Aggie."
- Joe B. Mattei ’53, Distinguished Alumnus, 2004
Edward C. "Pete"
Aldridge, Jr. ’60
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Year Awarded: 2009
Arlington, VA
Aldridge earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from Texas A&M and a master’s degree in the same field from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1962. As a student, he was a member of the Corps of Cadets, the Institute of Aerospace Sciences, Sigma Gamma Tau Aerospace Engineering Honor Society, Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society and the Shreveport Hometown Club.
Aldridge’s distinguished 42-year career in the aeronautics field included 18 years of service in the Pentagon under three separate presidential administrations. He served as the director of Planning and Evaluation, as Under Secretary and then Secretary of the Air Force, and finally as the under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics. He also served as president of McDonnell Douglas Electronic Systems Company from 1988-1992 and as president and CEO of The Aerospace Corporation from 1992-2001.
Aldridge was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, presented the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy by the National Aeronautic Association and has been a volunteer and contributor to dozens of educational and non-profit organizations. He is an Honorary Fellow and Past President of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Active in his support to Texas A&M, Aldridge has donated generously to the Department of Aerospace Engineering and is an Endowed Century Club member with The Association of Former Students.
He is a native of Shreveport, La., and currently lives in Arlington, VA with his wife, Jody. They have three sons; Michael, David, and Mark; a daughter, Lori Aldridge-Boyd; and six grandchildren.
"The academic education I received at Texas A&M is clearly at the top, since it gave me the background and skills to continue my education and to prepare me to enter my professional career. But almost as important, are the leadership skills I obtained from my years at Texas A&M in the Corps of Cadets. The Corps not only taught me how to follow, but also how to lead. These academic and leadership skills have benefited my career and my life."
William B.
Heye, Jr. ’60
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Year Awarded: 1991
San Antonio, TX
Heye received a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering in 1960 and later, a Master of Business Administration degree from the Harvard Business School. After a 20+ year career with Texas Instruments, Heye served as Vice President and General Manager of the Ampex Corp., which markets products used in graphics, editing and special effects.
Mr. Heye has been a Campus Muster Speaker and a Distinguished Visiting Executive Series speaker in the College of Business. Heye and his wife, Joan, were awarded Aggie Parents of the Year 1986-87.
Dr. Jack E.
Little ’60
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Year Awarded: 2000
Dallas, TX
Little received bachelor’s, master’s and Doctorate of Petroleum Engineering degrees. Near the end of his 32-year career with Shell Oil Company, he was named President and Chief Executive Officer.
He received Texas A&M’s Look College of Engineering Outstanding Alumni Honor Award, the Texas A&M Department of Petroleum Distinguished Alumni Award, and the Distinguished Achievement Medal from Texas A&M as well. Little was named an Outstanding Houston Aggie by the Houston A&M Club.
He serves on the Board of Directors of the United Way of America and M.D. Anderson Board of Visitors and on the Board of Trustees of the Baylor College of Medicine and Houston Baptist University.
"I love Texas A&M and I want to see us be at the top."
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
Dr. Charles H.
Bowman ’59
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Year Awarded: 2015
College Station, TX
Dr. Charles H. Bowman, Class of 1959, received a Bachelor of Science degree from Penn State University and received both a master’s degree and doctorate in petroleum engineering at the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas.
Dr. Bowman rose to the top of the international oil industry, working with Gulf Oil Corp. for 24 years in all aspects of the business, concluding in 1982 with his appointment as president of Gulf Refining and Marketing Co. He then joined BP, where he spent 12 years, initially in the U.S. and Europe, then as managing director of BP Australia, and finally in 1993 becoming chairman and CEO of BP America. Following retirement from BP in 1997, he joined Texas A&M as a professor and head of the Department of Petroleum Engineering. He later led the negotiating team that created a new Texas A&M campus in Qatar, eventually serving as its interim dean and a member of its joint advisory board. He is dean emeritus of Texas A&M University at Qatar and professor emeritus of petroleum engineering.
Dr. Bowman and wife Lynn Holleran are Endowed Diamond Century Club members of The Association of Former Students and members of the Texas A&M Foundation Legacy Society. Their gifts to A&M include endowments for International Programs, the Department of Petroleum Engineering’s Resource Center and the College of Liberal Arts’ Cervantes Project, as well as a College of Engineering faculty fellowship.
He has served as a director of the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, a trustee of Case Western Reserve University, a director of National City Corporation, a director and treasurer of the American Petroleum Institute, chairman of the Cleveland Ballet board, a director of both the Cleveland Orchestra and the Cleveland Opera, and an advisory board member at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, D.C., think-tank.
With first wife Ethel Kenah Bowman, he has five children, including Lisa Bowman Villalobos ’90.
"Dr. Bowman's four-decade career in the oil and gas industry helped the world meet its energy needs. He is an exceptional individual with outstanding professional achievements, extraordinary contributions to society and dedicated service to Texas A&M."
- Dr. Mark Weichold '78, Dean and CEO, Texas A&M University at Qatar
David G.
Eller ’59
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Year Awarded: 2016
Houston, TX
DAVID G. ELLER ’59 received bachelor’s degrees in business administration and geological engineering; as a student, he was a Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band commanding officer, Limestone County A&M Club president and on the Fish Football Team.
He is co-founder, chairman and CEO of Celltex Therapeutics Corp.; previous positions include president of DuPont Pharmaceuticals-Europe; CEO and president of Virbac Corp.; and founder, chairman and CEO of Granada BioSciences.
The youngest chair ever selected to lead The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents, he was a member of the board 1983-89, served as chairman 1985-89, and for a time was simultaneously System chancellor. He was the first in A&M’s history to be awarded the title of chairman emeritus. During his time as chair, the Texas A&M Health Science Center Institute of Biosciences & Technology in Houston and the Texas Institute of Oceanography in Galveston were created and A&M’s Research Park were established, and the university launched its first capital campaign.
For many accomplishments such as these, the David G. Eller Oceanography & Meteorology Building on A&M’s campus was named in his honor.
He is a member of The Association’s Endowed Century Club and has established several A&M scholarships.
Eller has served on boards including the Texas Chamber of Commerce, Greater Houston Partnership, Baylor College of Medicine, Memorial Hermann Hospital, Allied Bancshares, First Interstate Bank, the Houston Ballet and the Rice University Energy and Environmental Systems Institute. He is a lifetime director of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo and has supported 4-H programs in several counties.
He served eight years as an officer on active duty and reserves in the U.S. Army.
His family includes wife Candy and sons David Erik Eller ’93 and Dirk Gustaf Eller ’94, as well as brother James M. Eller ’53.