AEC alum appointed Nat'l Ranching Heritage Center's Executive Director
A graduate of Texas Tech's Department of Agricultural Education and Communications is the new executive director of the university's iconic National Ranching Heritage Center. Jim Bret Campbell, who received his bachelor's degree in agricultural communications (1996) and master's degree in agricultural education (1997) from Tech, returns to Lubbock to head the NRHC beginning Jan. 9.
"The National Ranching Heritage Center is truly a gem on our campus," said Tech's Interim Provost Michael Galyean. "With his experience in leading various organizations and his roots and extensive connections in the ranching and livestock sectors, Jim Bret is exceptionally qualified to be the executive director of the center. We look forward to seeing the center grow in national prominence and increase its academic presence under his leadership, while continuing to serve our community and the region through high-quality outreach and engagement events."
Campbell, who also severed on Tech's College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources Advisory Board from (2006 -2009), has worked for the American Quarter Horse Association, the Texas Cattle Feeders Association and the National Cutting Horse Association in the 19 years since he earned his master's degree.
His experience will help him oversee key priorities at the NRHC, including building its endowment, increasing membership, broadening university partnerships, expanding the center's national scope and enhancing engagement between the NRHC and the public.
Campbell said he's looking forward to returning to Texas Tech; the opportunity to partner with the NRHC and the university was one about which he and his family felt strongly. His goals include working with university administration, the Ranching Heritage Association and the NRHC staff to increase national exposure by engaging ranchers from throughout the country and increasing membership in the RHA. He also will focus on increased attendance and effective programming and branding.
The NRHC is truly a special place, Campbell said. "The collection that has been assembled there is one-of-a-kind, and I think it says even more with the way it was established: a group of committed ranching families and community leaders came together to ensure these important structures, and the stories behind them, are preserved," he said.
Program officials note that the 27-acre museum and outdoor historical park was established to preserve and interpret ranching history. With 30 of its 49 historic structures between 100 and 177 years old, the historical park speaks volumes about the frontier settlers who lived in those structures and created legends and history in the process. The historic structures at the facility are chronologically arranged to exhibit the evolution of ranch life from the late 1700s through the mid-1900s.
Reporting by Heidi Toth
CONTACT: Steven Fraze, Interim Dean, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Texas Tech University at (806) 742-2808 or steven.fraze@ttu.edu
1202NM16 / Editor's Note: For more information on the National Ranching Heritage Center, click http://www.depts.ttu.edu/nrhc/
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