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The Louisiana Tech Alumni Association has named the University’s 2021 Distinguished Alumni Awards. The individuals will be honored during Homecoming week at a luncheon, in the Loyal Blue March and Homecoming Parade, and on the field during the football game.

This year’s recipients are as follows:

Alumnus of the Year: Richard Hoyt “Rick” Shirley Jr.

Shirley earned his bachelor’s degree in Geology in 1975 at Tech and serves as president at RHS Enterprises, LLC. The former Bulldog football player lives in Dallas with his wife Lisa Barteet Shirley. A past member of the University Foundation Board, Shirley and his wife are parents of Steven and John Shirley.

Young Alumnus of the Year: Adam Oliver Ewing

A member of Sigma Nu fraternity, Ewing earned his bachelor’s degree Business Management and Entrepreneurship in 2006. The Ruston native is married to Kelley Lee Grissom Ewing and serves as president and sales manager for Louisiana Insurance Services and is very active in his community.

College of Applied and Natural Sciences: Dr. William H. Green

Green earned a bachelor’s degree in Animal Science in 1966. He then went on to study at LSU where he received his master’s degree in Animal Science in 1968 and then earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at Auburn University in 1972. Green served as commencement speaker in August 2009. The Professor Emeritus of Agricultural Sciences at Louisiana Tech is from Dubach, where he resides with his wife, Barbara Lou McGee Green; the couple have two children, Kayla Green Robinson and William “Kyle” Green.

College of Business: Carl Eugene “Gene” Land, awarded posthumously

Land earned his bachelor’s degree in Business in 1979. He was owner-president of National Chemical Company, Inc., and served on the College of Business Dean’s Advisory Board. Husband to Lynda Reyenga Land, Land recently passed away in August 2021. He was from Bossier City and was father to Carol Beth Land Ivory and grandfather to Ella.

College of Education: Linda Perez Clark

Clark earned a bachelor’s degree in Psychology in 1988 and went on to earn her Juris Doctor degree in 1991 fromTulane University Law School. A former partner at Breazeale Sachse and Wilson LLP, she is currently managing partner with Kean Miller LLP. Clark serves Louisiana Tech through her involvement with Phi Mu, Omicron Delta Kappa, and the Alumni Association National Board of Directors. Clark and her husband Kelwin live in Baton Rouge.

College of Engineering and Science: Roger Dale Danzy

A native of Chatham, Danzy earned his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1971. He recently retired from General Electric where he served as Chief Consulting Engineer, and he serves Louisiana Tech as a member of the College of Engineering and Science Foundation Board of Directors. Danzy is married to Joan Whatley Danzy, and they have two children, Sarah Danzy Wages and Laura Danzy McCurdy.

College of Liberal Arts: John Corey Whaley

A resident of North Little Rock, Arkansas, Whaley earned a bachelor’s degree in English in 2006 and his master’s degree in Secondary Education in 2009. A former teacher, Whaley is now a novelist for Penguin Random House and a content writer for Apptegy.

This year, the Alumni Association also chose to award the Arlis Scogin Distinguished Service Award. This is only the fifth time the award, which honors a person who is a part of the Tech Family and is dedicated to the University but not a graduate of Louisiana Tech, has been given.

This year’s recipient is William Duane “Bill” Hogan.

Hogan is originally from Fort Smith, Arkansas but currently lives in Ruston with his wife, Kelly Michelle Hogan. The couple have two children, Taylor Hogan Mabry and Natalie C. Hogan.

President of Century Next Bank, Hogan earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance in 1985 at Oklahoma State University and previously served the community at Builders Supply of Ruston, Inc. Hogan has served as the University Foundation Board of Director’s president and on the Louisiana Tech Research Corporation Board of Directors and College of Business Dean’s Advisory Board of Directors.

Louisiana Tech’s Alumni Association first recognized Distinguished Alumni in 1968.

This story was written by Communication student Leslee Bennett.