Brock Brown named Piper Professor

Dr. Brock Brown, Geography

May 1, 2008—Brock J. Brown, Texas State University-San Marcos Department of Geography faculty member, has been named a Piper Professor for 2008 by the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation.

The Piper Foundation annually makes 15 awards of $5,000 each to professors for superior teaching at the college level. Selection is made on the basis of nominations submitted by each college or university in Texas. Since the Piper Foundation made its first awards in 1958, seventeen Texas State professors have been named Piper Professors, 11 of them on the Liberal Arts faculty.

Brown was named Piper Professor on May 1 in honor of his dedication and service to teaching at the collegiate level. Piper Foundation honorees are chosen by committee members who look for well-rounded, outgoing teachers, devoted to their profession and have made a special impact on their students and the community.

“I personally approach this with extreme humility,” Brown said. “We have many, many outstanding professors here at Texas State who are just as deserving. I was just fortunate enough to have gotten through the process.”

Years ago, Brown said, he decided to dedicate his life to teaching because it was, simply, the career through which he could affect the most positive impact on the world.

 “In reality, it’s the only legit contribution I can think of that I can make,” Brown said. “As my generation passes authority on to the next generation, for me it’s a matter of preparing this younger generation for the responsibility of dealing with the world’s problems.

“I try to help these young people become more aware of the world around them, to help prepare them to identify problems we may not even be aware of yet,” he said. “I feel this is the most important contribution I can make to the next generation of leaders.”

A member of the Texas State faculty since 1992, Brown was recruited to Texas State for his excellent teaching skills, and he has worked to build the undergraduate Geography program into one of the nation's top 10 programs.  For many years he served as undergraduate program coordinator and he established much of the undergraduate program assessment and management procedures in place today. Brown currently serves on the Undergraduate Committee and also serves as a major advisor to approximately 150 undergrads each semester.

Brown also serves on the advisory board for the Multicultural and Gender Studies Program, sponsors several student organizations, including Earth First! He is a Texas State Ally. He was recently assigned to the TA-Adjunct Faculty Mentoring and Review Committee.

In addition to being named a Piper Professor, Brown also has received numerous accolades and is the only Texas State professor to win the Presidential Award for Excellence at the instructor/assistant professor level, the Alumni Association Teaching Award of Honor, the International Studies Professor of the Year Award, the Honors Program Goodbread Advisor of the Year Award and the Jackie Couture NTSO Professor of the Year Award.

Brown earned his B.A. in education in from Wichita State University in 1971, where he also earned his M.E. in 1977. In 1984 he earned his M.A. in geography from the University of Oklahoma and completed his Ph.D. in geography in 1992, also from the University of Oklahoma.

Brown is the eighth consecutive Texas State professor and 17th overall to be named a Piper Professor. Other Texas State Piper Professors have been Emmie Craddock, 1962, History; Robert Galvan, 1968, Modern Languages; Thomas Brasher, 1970, English; Dan Farlow, 1975, Political Science; Clarence Schultz, 1976, Sociology; Henrietta Avent, 1979, Health and Physical Education; Robert Walts, 1982, English; Beverly Chiodo, 1988, Computer Information Systems and Administrative Sciences; Barbara Hatcher, 1993, Curriculum and Instruction; Michael John Hennessy, 2001, English; Nancy Fehl Chavkin, 2002, Social Work; Paul Nathan Cohen, 2003, English; James David Bell, 2004, Business; Byron Dale Augustin, 2005, Geography; Christopher Frost, 2006, Psychology; and James Housefield, 2007, Art and Design.