Board of Regents honors four Texas State professors

By Mark Hendricks
University News Service
May 25, 2007

The Texas State University System Board of Regents has honored four retired Texas State University-San Marcos professors with the title Distinguished Professor Emeritus.

Honored were Douglas Gary Carman (finance and economics), Wilbon P. Davis (computer science), Joan Francis Hays (dance) and Robert A. Northcutt (mathematics).

Carman retired at the end of the 2004-05 academic year after 26 years of academic and administrative service to Texas State. He began his Texas State career in 1978 as an assistant professor, was promoted to associate professor in 1980 and to full professor in 1984.

He served as director of Texas State’s MBA program from 1979 to 1982, on the Faculty Senate from 1987 to 1988, as head of the financial planning curriculum from 1991 to 2001 and on the University Endowment Investment Committee from 1998 to 2004. He served as director of the certified financial planner curriculum for more than 10 years and proposed, developed and taught courses in that curriculum.

Davis recently came out of retirement to serve as professor and chair in the Texas State Department of Computer Science. He will return to retired status in August. Davis’ association with Texas State as both a professor and a student spans more than 46 years.

Davis served at various times as director and chair of computer science during its development within the Department of Mathematics and its growth to departmental status. He made major contributions to the development of the curriculum for bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in computer science at Texas State, including courses in languages, operating systems, hardware, security, digital forensics, computer graphics and software engineering.

Hays developed the dance program at Texas State, preparing 18 courses in the curriculum in 1978 and elevating it to degree-granting status in 1998. Hays made significant contributions to the university by serving as chair or member of more than 30 university, college or departmental committees, including service as chair of the Faculty Senate from 1999 to 2001.

Hays received three awards from the Texas Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, including that associations TAHPERD Scholar award in 1986-87. She was named to the Hall of Fame of Texas Dance Educators in 2002. Hays has received four Piper Professor teaching award nominations, four Faculty Senate Teaching Awards and was a President’s Seminar honoree in 1983.

Northcutt served Texas State as a teacher, scientist and scholar for 42 years from 1964 to 2006. A former chair of the Department of Mathematics, Northcutt is the recipient of the Texas State Teaching Award and the Mathematical Association of America, Texas Section, Distinguished Teaching Award.

Northcutt has been active in the university and the San Marcos communities. He has served with distinction on numerous committees, councils and task forces at the department and university level, as well as in professional organizations. He is a past section chair and section governor of the Texas Section of the Mathematical Association of America.