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Posted: 12/20/01

A&M International's Dr. Jerry Thompson Named Regents Professor

 

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Dr. Jerry Thompson, dean of the College of Arts and Humanities and professor of history at Texas A&M International University, has received the Regents Professor Service Award from The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents.

The prestigious award is presented to the A&M System's top faculty who have made a lifetime commitment to public service, and Dr. Thompson was among 10 recipients.

Regents Professor Service Awards are among the highest honors given by the A&M System Board of Regents. With the 10 new award recipients, the regents have awarded a total of 47 awards since 1996.

The Regents Service Awards were designed to honor professors and senior-level researchers and service delivery professionals who have provided exemplary service not only to their university or agency, but also to the community, the state, the nation and the world.

Eligibility requires a minimum of five years employment at an A&M System university or agency or at the System's health science center; a distinguished record of public service, research, teaching and creative or scholarly activity; recognition within his or her field; and a demonstrated commitment to his or her institution.

Each recipient designated a "Regents Professor" is given a $9,000 monetary award, an A&M medallion for academic regalia and a commemorative certificate.

Thompson said he feels honored to have been selected for the award.

"It's really a great thrill and a real honor. I've received a number of awards through my life, but this certainly has to be one of the most prestigious and meaningful of all. It's very gratifying to work for a System that honors hard work and scholarship," he said.

Thompson, who has been part of the A&M International faculty since 1987, holds his doctorate in history from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Penn. His M.A. in history was received from the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, while his B.A. in history was earned at Western New Mexico State University in Silver City, N.M.

He is a member of the prestigious Philosophical Society of Texas and a Piper Professor honoree. He is also a member of the Western Writers of America and president of the Texas State Historical Association.

A prolific author of 18 books and more than 30 articles, he is considered one of the country's top scholars on the Southwest Campaign of the American Civil War and Border History.

Among his other publications are Civil War in the Southwest, A Wild and Vivid Land: An Illustrated History of the South Texas Border, Fifty Miles and a Fight: Samuel Peter Heintzelman's Journal or Texas and the Cortina War, and Into the Far, Wild Country: True Tales of the Old Southwest. In addition, Thompson is presently at work on a biography of Juan Nepomuceno Cortina and is finishing a book with Larry Jones on the Civil War on the Rio Grande, which includes 130 rare photographs.

For further information, please contact the Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at 326-2180. University office hours are 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

 


Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at pais@tamiu.edu