Honorary Degrees
Texas Tech has bestowed honorary degrees since 1930. Honorary degrees conferred by Texas Tech are recommended by the President to the Chancellor and authorized by the Board of Regents.
They are conferred for public service, scholarship, or other contributions in the public interest. Nominations for honorary degrees may be made by faculty, staff, or members of the Board of Regents. Nominations are evaluated by an advisory committee appointed by the President, with administrative, faculty, and student representation, and recommendations will be made to the President.
Honorary degrees are awarded at commencement exercises.
Operating Procedure: https://www.depts.ttu.edu/opmanual/op30.08.php
Honorary Degrees Conferred
| Name | Degree | Date |
| Amon G. Carter | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1930 |
| Clifford Winslow Seibel | Doctor of Science | Spring, 1937 |
| John Augustus Hulen | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1940 |
| Ernest Othmor Thompson | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1940 |
| John William Carpenter | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1940 |
| Clifford Bartlett Jones | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1940 |
| T. Whitfield Davidson | Doctor of Laws | Nov., 1944 |
| Thomas Campbell Clark | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1947 |
| William M. Whyburn | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1947 |
| Dan Thornton | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1952 |
| Fred G. Gurley | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1953 |
| Dessie Marion Wiggins | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1953 |
| Robert Earl Karpor | Doctor of Science | Fall, 1957 |
| Charles Bates Thornton | Doctor of Laws | Fall, 1957 |
| Houston Harte | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1958 |
| Charles Collins Thompson | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1958 |
| Fred Farrel Florence | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1959 |
| Leonard Franklin McCollum | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1960 |
| George Herman Mahon | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1962 |
| Wilfred Thomas Doherty | Doctor of Science | Spring, 1963 |
| Cal Farley | Doctor of Humanities | Spring, 1963 |
| George W. Pfeiffenberger | Doctor of Science | Spring, 1964 |
| John B. Connally | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1965 |
| George W. Dupree | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1965 |
| Peter Hurd | Doctor of Fine Arts | Spring, 1966 |
| Licenciado Don Emilio Portes Gil | Doctor of Laws | Nov. 1, 1966 |
| Stewart L. Udall | Doctor of Laws | Nov. 1, 1966 |
| John W. Gardner | Doctor of Laws | Nov. 1, 1966 |
| Laurance S. Rockefeller | Doctor of Humanities | Nov. 1, 1966 |
| Waymond Austin Davis | Doctor of Science | Spring, 1967 |
| Preston Smith | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1967 |
| Ben Barnes | Doctor of Laws | Spring, 1967 |
| Carey Croneis | Doctor of Science | Spring, 1967 |
| Lyndon Baines Johnson | Doctor of Laws | Oct. 26, 1967 |
| Licencidado Gustavo Diaz Ordaz | Doctor of Laws | Oct. 26, 1967 |
| Charles Armor Guy | Doctor of Laws | June 1, 1968 |
| Lewis George Weeks | Doctor of Science | May 16, 1970 |
| Harold Hinn | Doctor of Science | May 16, 1970 |
| Philip Overton (MS) | Doctor of Science | Dec. 4, 1975 |
| W.O. Milligan | Doctor of Science | May 3, 1980 |
| Carolyn Eisele | Doctor of Humanities | May 3, 1980 |
| Betty Jane Brisco (HSC) | Doctor of Humane Letters | June 1, 1980 |
| Alvin R. Allison | Doctor of Laws | May 15, 1981 |
| Robert Cabaniss Goodwin | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 15, 1981 |
| Sybil Harrington (HSC) | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 31, 1981 |
| Sister Maureen Van der Zee (HSC) | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 14, 1982 |
| Henry G. Cisneros | Doctor of Laws | Dec. 17, 1982 |
| Billy Wayne Clayton | Doctor of Laws | May 13, 1983 |
| Richard S. Colley | Doctor of Science | May 13, 1983 |
| John Goodwin Tower | Doctor of Laws | May 11, 1984 |
| George Valter Brindley, Jr. (HSC) | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 11, 1984 |
| James Harris Sammons (HSC) | Doctor of Humane Letters | Jan. 18, 1985 |
| May Owen (HSC) | Doctor of Humane Letters | Jan. 18, 1985 |
| James Laurence Johnson | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 14, 1989 |
| Trammell Crow | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 14, 1989 |
| Turgut Ozal | Doctor of Humane Letters | Dec., 1988 |
| J. Fred Bucy, Jr. | Doctor of Science | Dec. 17, 1994 |
| Glenna Goodacre | Doctor of Fine Arts | May 11, 1996 |
| Queen Noor of Jordan | Doctor of Humane Letters | Dec. 14, 1996 |
| Elmo Russell Zumwalt, Jr. | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 10, 1997 |
| Thomas Royal Phillips | Doctor of Laws | Dec. 20, 1997 |
| Bobby G. Stevenson | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 9, 1998 |
| Elmer Kelton | Doctor of Humane Letters | Dec. 19, 1998 |
| Barry Lopez | Doctor of Humane Letters | Dec. 16, 2000 |
| D. Allan Bromley | Doctor of Sciences | Dec. 15, 2001 |
| Joe Pevehouse | Doctor of Humane Letters | Aug. 10, 2002 |
| Dolph Briscoe | Doctor of Humane Letters | Dec. 14, 2002 |
| Jack Dale | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 17, 2003 |
| John A. Buesseler | Doctor of Humane Letters | Dec. 17, 2005 |
| Susan Polgar | Doctor of Humane Letters | May 12, 2007 |
| Becky J. Lanier | Doctor of Laws | May 15, 2010 |
| Margaret Talkington | Doctor of Humanities | Dec. 18, 2010 |
| Carin M. Barth | Doctor of Humane | May 13, 2011 |
| Wayne Isom, M.D. | Doctor of Science | Aug. 9, 2013 |
| Timothy Cole | Law and Social Justice (Posthumous) | Mar. 6, 2015 |
| Lauro Cavazos Ph.D. | Doctor of Science | Feb. 26, 2016 |
| Carey Hobbs | Doctor of Humanities | Aug. 12, 2016 |
| Susan Graham | Doctor of Musical Arts | Feb. 22, 2019 |
| John A. Sellers | Bachelor of Science (Economics) | Nov. 17, 2022 |
| Tommie Huckabee | Master of Architecture | Aug. 11, 2022 |
| Jere Lynn Burkhart | Doctor of Humane Letters | Spring, 2024 |
Commencement
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Phone
806.742.3352 -
Email
commencement@ttu.edu