Presidential Citations Awarded to Two College of Education Alumni - February 8, 2011

Of the five winners of The University of Texas at Austin’s prestigious Presidential Citation, two honorees – Teresa Lozano Long and Shirley Bird Perry – are distinguished graduates of the College of Education.

The Presidential Citation was created in 1979 to recognize the extraordinary contributions of individuals who personify the university’s commitment to transforming lives. The university does not award honorary degrees. These citations salute those whose service exemplifies the values shared by the university community. Four students will receive a Presidential Citation Endowed Scholarship honoring the recipients.

Teresa Long earned a master’s degree from the College of Education and was the first University of Texas at Austin Hispanic student ever to complete a doctorate in health and physical education.  Together, Teresa and husband Joe created the Long Foundation to promote programs statewide that offer opportunities to youth. The foundation also provides educational scholarships at eight Texas institutions of higher education and supports arts and civics programs. In 2000, Teresa and Joe gave The University of Texas at Austin a $10 million endowment to support what was named the Teresa Lozano Long Institute of Latin American Studies. With their contribution of $20 million, the Longs were the lead donors in the renovation of Austin’s Palmer Auditorium, now named the Joe R. and Teresa L. Long Center for the Performing Arts.

Teresa Long has served on dozens of state and national boards and committees, including presidential appointments to the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Council on the Arts. She has been honored for her generosity and leadership with recognition as Distinguished Texas Exes Hispanic Alum, University of Texas at Austin Distinguished Alumnus, member of the College of Education Department of Kinesiology and Health Education Hall of Honor and Texas Medal of Arts Award. Long has earned a reputation as an avid education supporter and has been a board member for The University of Texas Interscholastic League, the College of Education’s Education Foundation Advisory Council and the UT Press Advisory Council.

Shirley Bird Perry, who obtained a master’s degree from the College of Education, has devoted over four decades of her adult life to higher education, most recently serving as Senior Vice President at The University of Texas at Austin. In that capacity, she has been responsible for overseeing the President's fund-raising efforts and maintaining momentum in contacts with potential donors, coordinating the President's program of community visits around the state and working with the University's Center for American History to create a better historical record of the university. She is a member of the Vice President's Council and the University Leadership Council.

Before joining The University of Texas at Austin as Senior Vice President, Perry was Vice Chancellor for Development and External Relations with the UT System from 1992 until 2004. In that position she directed fund-raising operations, public affairs activities, management of estates and trusts, event planning and special services.

Prior to that, she was Vice President for Development and University Relations under University of Texas at Austin Presidents Peter T. Flawn and William H. Cunningham. In 1979, Dr. Flawn appointed her as Assistant to the President and Coordinator of the University's Centennial Observance, which culminated in 1983. Perry was promoted to Vice President and Coordinator of Centennial Programs in 1981.

Perry received the Marvin D. (Swede) Johnson Award in State Relations for her contributions in the areas of public affairs and governmental relations and was the first woman to be elected to the Association of College Unions-International’s executive committee. She also was the first woman to serve as president of the organization and received the association's highest recognition, the Butts-Whiting Award. Perry was the first woman to receive that award.

A life member of the Texas Exes, she received the organization's Top Hand Award in 1984. The Parents' Association presented its Award of Distinction to her in 1992, and the Texas Union named a special student recognition award in her honor – the Shirley Bird Perry Leadership Award. In 2003, she was named a Woman of Power by Austin Business Journal, and in 2005, she received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Texas Exes.

Perry serves as an advisory director of JPMorgan Chase Bank in Austin. Her past corporate board memberships include service on the boards of directors of Southwestern Public Service Company and Lomas and Nettleton Mortgage Investors.

—Kay Randall, University Communications, 512-232-3910