Curt Langford: Texas Tech honors alumni at homecoming
"Homecoming 2023: A Century of Tradition" arrived this week, and the Texas Tech Alumni Association has been excited to help celebrate. A Matador Evening was hosted Friday evening at the McKenzie-Merket Alumni Center on campus. The association honored four outstanding alumni with its traditional association awards.
The Lauro F. Cavazos Award is presented annually to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to Texas Tech and the TTAA through acts of service and financial support. This year’s Cavazos award was presented to Barry Street, a 1979 agricultural economics graduate. After graduation, he returned to farm in his native Kress, Texas. He later established Street Community Gin, Ltd. in Kress.
Street is past chair and member of the TTAA National Board of Directors, on which he began serving in 2009. In addition to his dedication to the TTAA, he and his wife, SuDe, also a 1979 graduate, are strong supporters of the Davis College of Agriculture and Texas Tech Athletics. Street currently serves on the Texas Tech Foundation Board of Directors and is a member of the Chancellor’s Council.
Distinguished Service Awards were presented to Kishor C. Mehta, Ph.D., Horn Professor of Civil Engineering who has served on the Texas Tech civil engineering faculty for almost 60 years, and Lou Ortiz, U.S. Air Force Colonel, Retired, and Texas Tech School of Law graduate who oversees the Military & Veterans Programs at Texas Tech.
In the aftermath of the May 11, 1970, Lubbock tornado, Mehta and fellow researchers developed the Enhanced Fujita Scale for assessing tornado intensity. They then established the National Storm Shelter Association. Out of those efforts came the Wind Engineering Research Center and eventually, the National Wind Institute at Texas Tech.
Mehta currently serves as director of National Science Foundation IUCRC Wind Hazard and Infrastructure Performance (WHIP). He also is key developer of a doctoral degree in a Multidisciplinary Program in Wind Science and Engineering.
Ortiz is director of Military and Veteran Programs, which has a team of six full-time staff and 10 Veterans Affairs work/study student employees who help 2,200+ Texas Tech military and veteran students and their families in transition to pursue educational goals on campus. The MVP office is the focal point for all military and veteran-related matters.
The colonel’s Air Force career spans 30 years as an enlisted airman, aircraft logistics and maintenance officer, staff officer and legislative liaison. Since then, he has served TTU as research associate, assistant vice president for research and special assistant to the university president.
Tech student Taylor Vaughn was selected to receive the Brent Ross Fearless Champion Award. The award is named for former TTAA employee Brent Ross who fought a valiant fight against cancer.
Homecoming week events included the spirit boards and banners competition which were on display in the Student Union Building and the Broadway entrance to campus. Tech hosted a variety of other activities, including the Rowdy Raider Rally on Monday at Red Raider Plaza, S.O. Sing on Thursday in the United Supermarkets Arena, the Techsan Memorial Thursday at Memorial Circle Thursday, followed by the homecoming parade and bonfire Friday evening. In addition to these events, academic colleges hosted their own alumni receptions.
Homecoming is a nostalgic time for alumni returning to campus. In this centennial year, Red Raiders have been celebrating a century of Texas Tech tradition.
Curt Langford is President and CEO of the Texas Tech Alumni Association. Contact him at curt.langford@ttu.edu
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Curt Langford Texas Tech honors alumni at homecoming
