Texas A&M Distinguished Alumnus Awards honor Shafer and Youngkin
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences graduates among 11 recognized by The Association of Former Students
Leroy “Shafe” Shafer ’67 and Bill Youngkin ’69, J.D., both graduates of the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications, ALEC, are among 11 former students recognized with the Distinguished Alumnus Award by The Association of Former Students.
The Distinguished Alumnus Award, the highest honor bestowed upon a former student of Texas A&M University, has been awarded since 1962 to only 354 of Texas A&M’s more than 604,000 former students.
Presented jointly by the university and The Association of Former Students, this award recognizes Aggies who have achieved excellence in their chosen professions and made meaningful contributions to Texas A&M and their local communities.
Shafer: Communications, leadership and dedication
Shafer is chief operating officer emeritus of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. During his 40-year helm of the event, his innovative vision shaped the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo into an internationally recognized entertainment and sports venue with state-of-the-art presentation technology, an in-house advertising and marketing agency and a radio and television production facility.
Shafer is an Outstanding Alumnus of Texas A&M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. He has been awarded Texas A&M’s Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communications Department Alumni Excellence Award and is a member of the university’s Former Journalism Student Association Hall of Honor.
He also serves on the ALEC Development Advisory Board and is the vice chairman and a member of the executive committee of the Texas A&M University Press Advancement Board.
Shafer earned his bachelor’s degree in agricultural journalism from Texas A&M and a master’s degree in technical journalism and mass communications from Iowa State University, where he became a member of Gamma Sigma Delta, the honor society of agriculture.
In 2022, Shafer and his wife, Nancy, helped kick off a $2 million campaign goal established to fund an endowed chair in leadership education and student excellence through the Dr. Chris and Dr. Joe Townsend ’67 Chair in Leadership Education and Student Excellence.
Also, the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo established a Leroy Shafer Scholarship, presented each year to a student at Texas A&M majoring in agricultural communications and journalism.
Youngkin: From cadet to yell leader to lawyer
As a cadet, Youngkin was a member of Company B-2 and the Ross Volunteers, served on 2nd Brigade and 3rd Battalion Staffs, and held the positions of Class Officer, Head Yell Leader and a Ross Volunteer in the Corps of Cadets. He was also recognized as a Distinguished Student.
After graduation, Youngkin served two years as an officer in the U.S. Army, first stationed with the 18th Airborne Corps at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, and then in Vietnam.
Youngkin earned his Juris Doctorate from Baylor University. A practicing lawyer for over 40 years, Youngkin is the current owner of Youngkin and Associates PLLC in Bryan. He is a civil litigator and certified mediator, is a past president of the Brazos County Bar Association and serves as a board member of the Greater Texas Foundation.
Youngkin and his wife, Marilyn, are Fish Camp namesakes who were named Texas A&M Parents of the Year in 2000-01. He has generously established scholarships with the 12th Man Foundation and the Corps of Cadets. Youngkin was inducted into the Corps of Cadets Hall of Honor in 2014 and was the campus Muster speaker that year. He also is a past president of the Former Yell Leaders Association.
Youngkin is a past president of The Association of Former Students, a past Brazos County A&M Club director and a former member of the 12th Man Foundation executive committee. He also served on the advisory board of the Corps Development Council.
