A&M International Dean Named to Prestigious Philosophical Society

Dr. Jerry D. Thompson, dean of Texas A&M International University's College of Arts and Humanities, has been elected a member of the prestigious Philosophical Society of Texas.

The Society, founded in 1837, is limited to 200 members. Membership is by invitation only and limited to those " having lived a life of character and distinction that has furthered the purposes of the organization."

The Society's founding meeting was held in Houston in 1837 and included such historical luminaries as Mirabeau B. Lamar, Anson Jones, Hugh McLeod, Sam Houston, Angus McNeil and others.

As originally chartered, the Society provided an organization for the members who, aware of the "potential greatness of the new Republic....were eager to provide for the symmetrical progress of the nation and to disseminate accurate information regarding the region."

Recharged and chartered in 1936, the Society seeks to perpetuate the memory and spirit of its 1837 founders; to encourage research into literary, scientific and philosophical studies in Texas; to foster the preservation of documents and materials in these fields; to establish and maintain publications to carry out the Society's purpose; to hold real estate identified with the history and development of literature, science and philosophy and personal property consisting of books, manuscripts and other materials related to same.

The Society is housed at the University of Texas at Austin.

Thompson, a member of the A&M International faculty since 1987, holds his doctorate in History from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Penn. He also holds a MA in History from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque and a BA in History from Western New Mexico State University in Silver City.

A Fellow of the Texas Historical Association (TSHA) , he is a Piper Professor honoree and member of the Western Writers of America. A prolific author of over a dozen books, and 30 articles, he is considered one of the country's top scholars on the Southwest Campaign of the American Civil War and Border History.

His most recent publication is A Wild and Vivid Land: An Illustrated History of the South Texas Border. He is at work on two new books, Texas: A History of Five Centuries with Felix D. Almaraz Jr. and Lionel Paranaude; and To Defend the Mexican Name in Texas; A Biography of Juan Nepomuceno Cortina.

The recipient of numerous academic honors and awards, he serves on the Editorial Advisory Boards of the Southwestern Historical Quarterly and the Journal of Arizona History and is vice president of the TSHA.

For additional information, please contact the Office of Public Affairs at 956.326.2180. University office hours are from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday - Friday.

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