gift from robbie hughes establishes the dudley j hughes 51 teaching microscopy laboct 5 2017a legendary aggie geologists family has continued his legacy of excellence and generosity with the establishment of a new teaching laboratory equipped with the latest technologythanks to an incredibly generous gift by mrs robbie w hughes the texas a&m university department of geology and geophysics in the college of geosciences has announced the establishment of the dudley j hughes '51 teaching microscopy lab which will be constructed in 2018 the gift was given in honor of her late husbands devotion passion and generosity for texas a&m university and the department of geology and geophysics mr hughes was an acclaimed exploration geologist and celebrated philanthropist during the sept 29 2017 department open house and the re-dedication ceremony of the dudley hughes '51 lecture hall texas a&m college of geosciences interim dean dr debbie thomas announced the gift by mrs hughes the new laboratory will add significant opportunities for hands-on learning for geology and geophysics students the impact that this technology will have on each and every students future is undeniable dr thomas said our mission is to prepare the next generations thought leaders for solving the worlds most pressing issues and this teaching laboratory enables our faculty to teach and train our students specifically for their careers the impact will be immediate and transformative dr mike pope geology and geophysics department head said that the lab will be a game-changer for the department mrs robbie hughes gift provides our undergraduate students with a world-class undergraduate microscopy laboratory and will provide them with an incredible high-impact learning experience that is second to none said dr pope we are very grateful to mrs hughes for choosing to honor her husband with this outstanding gift mrs hughes recalled her beloved husbands devotion and generosity to texas a&m and praised aggies and the department during the ceremony the honesty integrity and outlook of texas a&m are second to none she said mr hughes grew up near palestine texas and graduated from texas a&m in 1951 with a bachelors degree in geology robbie received her bachelors degree from texas womans university also in 1951 and she and dudley married later that year he then served as a first lieutenant in the us army in the korean war and was awarded the bronze star medal after returning from the war mr hughes and his twin brother dan hughes started a company hughes & hughes for independent operations in mississippi mr hughes had an accomplished 40-year career in exploration geology dudley and robbie lived in jackson mississippi and also championed numerous philanthropic causes in the arts sciences and church-related organizations he received numerous professional and civic honors including a lifetime achievement recognition from the alabama oil and gas board in 1994 induction into the mississippi business hall of fame in 1996 the american association of petroleum geologists' 2008 outstanding explorer award and the 2010 colonel edwin l drake legendary oilman award honoring a lifetime of achievement with the oil and gas industry in 2010 he was given the distinguished alumni award by texas a&m university – the highest honor a former student can receive from the university mr hugues was also instrumental in the establishment of the berg-hughes center for petroleum and sedimentary systems in 2009 the berg-hughes center was named for distinguished professor dr robert berg and for the hughes family dan a hughes and dudley hughes '51 and dan a hughes jr '80 in recognition of their generous financial support survived by his beloved wife of 64 years his two daughters vikki and cynthia and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren dudley died on april 21 2015 as aggies around the world gathered for aggie muster more details on the construction and opening of the microscopy lab will be forthcoming for more information on giving to the college of geosciences contact rachel rodriguez at rrodriguez@tamuedu or (979) 862-1730 by leslie lee view pictures from the re-dedication here: http://bitly/2drvq6c robbie and dudley hughes