Distinguished Alumni Achievement Awards : College of Liberal Arts : Texas State University

Skip to Content

College of Liberal Arts

2026 Distinguished Honorees with Kelly Damphousse and Dr. Brennan

Poster for 2027 Distinguished Alumni Benefit Gala

Previous Honorees

Erika Aguilar

Executive Producer of Morning Edition and Up First on National Public Radio

Pablo Mercado

Co-founder and Head of Research and Development at Vox Media

Tomas Morin

Award-winning author and Assistant Professor of Creative Writing

Diana Lopez

Award-winning author and Vice President of the Texas Institute of Letters

The Honorable Rose Vela

Director of the President's Commission on White House Fellowships

Dr. Todd Votteler

President of Collaborative Water Resolution LLC and Water Opinions LLC

The Honorable Dr. Christian Bolden

Interim Chair in the Criminology and Justice Department at Loyola University

Myric Polhemus

Director of Talent, HR Technology, and Partner Learning Development at H-E-B

The Honorable Dr. Jeff Wilson

Award-winning educator, entrepeneur, and founder of Kasita

The Honorable Oliver Del Cid

Currently serves as ambassadaor to Mexico for Belize

Latrice Hertzler

President and owner of Future-Link Technologies, Inc.

The Honorable Fred Guerra

Retired policy analyst of government relations for the Children's Health System of Texas

Dr. Beverly C. Tomek

Associate Provost for University College and Associate Professor of History at the University of Houston-Victoria

Andrea C. Powell

Executive Director and Co-founder of FairGirls.org and adjunct professor at the Elliot School of International Affairs

Dr. Pamela S. Meyer

Regents Professor in the Department of Psychology and Sociology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, Texas

Sonia V. Diaz

Director of Public Relations and Digital Strategies at Balsera Communications

James S. Taylor

Founding partner of Vianovo in Austin, Texas

Diane Hirsch

VP of Litigation for Valero Energy Corporation

Jessie Karr

Founder of Coyote Ventures and developer at Impossible Foods

Dr. Jason Weiserma

Director of Forensic Anthropology and Emergency Management at HCIFS

Barbara Smith

Vice President of Peace Programs at The Carter Center

Geoff Connor

Member of the Texas Philosophical Society, the Explorers Club of New York, and an officer of the Order of St. John.

Chance Sparks

Principal and Vice President of Freese and Nichols, Inc.

Sandra Carey

Author, consultant, teacher, and retired U.S. Navy Captain.