Regents Approve 16 Regents Professors, 11 Regents Fellows
BRYAN, COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents on Thursday named 16 faculty members Regents Professors and 11 agency service, extension and research professionals Regents Fellows for exemplary work during fiscal year 2025-26.
The Regents Awards are among the highest honors the A&M System gives. This year’s Regents Professors teach at eight A&M System universities. The Regents Fellows work for seven A&M System state agencies and Prairie View A&M University’s extension program.
Board Chairman Robert Albritton said the awards put names on work most Texans never see.
“Some of these people teach in classrooms. Others work in labs, on highways and in county extension offices all over Texas,” Albritton said. “Most Texans will never learn their names, but they count on their work every day. This board wanted to say thank you, in public and by name.”
The board created the Regents Professor Award in 1996 to honor faculty whose work serves their universities and the people of Texas. It added the Regents Fellow Service Award for agency professionals in 1997. This year’s honorees bring the totals to 356 Regents Professors and 225 Regents Fellows.
This year’s Regents Professors are:
• Nurul M. Alam, Texas A&M University-Texarkana
• Mark Benden, Texas A&M University
• Orion Ciftja, Prairie View A&M University
• Francois Gabbai, Texas A&M University
• Christopher M. Hearon, Texas A&M University-Kingsville
• LaVelle Hendricks, East Texas A&M University
• Felix Mormann, Texas A&M University
• Seth Murray, Texas A&M University
• Rodolfo Nayga Jr., Texas A&M University
• Michael J. O’Brien, Texas A&M University-San Antonio
• Luis Tedeschi, Texas A&M University
• Maria del Carmen Tejeda-Delgado, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi
• Shannon Van Zandt, Texas A&M University
• Shelley Wachsmann, Texas A&M University
• Bryant M. Wyatt, Tarleton State University
• Renyi Zhang, Texas A&M University
This year’s Regents Fellows are:
• Robert E. Brydia, Texas A&M Transportation Institute
• Angela Bohannon Burkham, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
• James C. Cathey, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
• David E. Coatney, Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service
• Jacob Donellan, Texas A&M Forest Service
• David Marquez, Texas Division of Emergency Management
• Natriez Peterson, Prairie View A&M University Extension
• Yuxiang Sun, Texas A&M AgriLife Research
• Blair Walsh, Texas Division of Emergency Management
• Deidra White, Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station
• Fujie Zhou, Texas A&M Transportation Institute
Recipients keep the title Regents Professor or Regents Fellow for as long as they work in the A&M System. Each receives a $15,000 stipend, paid by the recipient’s university or agency as $5,000 a year for three years, along with a medallion bearing the A&M System seal and a certificate signed by the chairman and the chancellor.
Chancellor Glenn Hegar said the honor is a chance to notice the kind of work that rarely gets noticed.
“Most of the good work in this System never makes the news,” Hegar said. “A professor stays late with a student who’s ready to quit. An extension agent drives two hours to help a rancher after a drought. These awards are how we make sure that work gets seen, and how we tell the people doing it that it matters.”
About The Texas A&M University System
The Texas A&M University System is one of the largest and most impactful higher education systems in the country, with an annual budget of $9.1 billion. Its statewide network includes 12 universities, a comprehensive health science center, eight state agencies, Texas A&M-Fort Worth and the Texas A&M-RELLIS Campus. The A&M System also plays a direct role in U.S. national security as a member of the teams that manage and operate Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Pantex Plant for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration. The A&M System serves approximately 184,000 students and reaches millions more through research, service and outreach programs each year. With nearly $1.6 billion in annual research expenditures, the A&M System fuels innovation, supports communities and drives Texas’ economy forward.
