THE BATTALION
Friday, March 25, 1960 College Station, Texas Page 5
A&M’s President Upholds Aggie Traditions
Of Soldier, Statesman, Knightly Gentleman
Army General? Land Commissioner
Presidency Make Full Life for Rudd
The College President
President Earl Rudder is congratulated here by Chancellor
M. T. Harrington following his promotion to president of
A&M effective June 1, 1959, by the A&M College System
Board of Directors. A graduate of A&M, President Rud
der returned to his alma mater in February, 1958, to be
come vice president, a post he held until his promotion to
president. Prior to World War II he held a position in
the A&M College System when he was football coach at
Tarleton State College from 1938 to 1941.
James Earl Rudder, born May
6, 1910, in Eden, Concho County,
Tex., will be inaugurated the 14th
president of A&M tomorrow morn
ing at ceremonies in G. Rollie
White Coliseum.
The appointment to the presi
dency of A&M is the culmination
of a full and varied career. Pres
ident Rudder has been teacher,
rancher and football coach. He
has been successful in civilian as
well as military life. In the field
of politics, President Rudder has
also excelled.
One of Six Sons
President Rudder was one of six
sons of Dee Forest Rudder and
Ann Powell Rudder. His father
farmed and operated a livestock
commission business in Eden.
His early education was in the
public schools of Eden. Upon
graduation from Eden High School
in the spring of 1927, he entered
John Tarleton Agricultural College
(now Tarleton State College).
President Rudder entered A&M
in 1930 where he majored in in-
The Family Man
President Earl Rudder has more pride in
his family than his other honors and ac
complishments and rightly so. President
Rudder is shown here with his family in a
portrait shot taken shortly before he was
named vice president of A&M in February,
1958. In the picture, left to right on back
row, are James Earl (B»d) Rudder Jr.,
Mrs. Earl Rudder, Robert Rudder, Presi
dent Rudder and Margaret Ann Rudder and
kneeling are, left to right, Jane Rudder and
Linda Rudder.
dustrial education and lettered in
football. He graduated from A&M
in 1932 with a B.S. degree in in
dustrial education and a reserve
commission as a* second lieutenant
of infantry.
Immediately after graduation
from A&M in 1932, President Rud
der began working for the State
Highway Department. In Sep
tember of 1933 he began coaching
football and teaching at Brady
High School. 1
Met Wife
It was while teaching at Brady
that President Rudder met his fu
ture wife, Miss Margaret William
son of Menard, another Brady
teacher. They were married June
12, 1937. Mrs. Rudder is a 1936
graduate of the University of
Texas.
President Rudder returned to
John Tarleton Agricultural Col
lege in 1938, this time as football
coach and teacher. He remained
at Tarleton until 1941 when he
was called to active duty in the
Army as a first lieutenant.
Upon call to active duty, Pres
ident Rudder was assigned as
Company Commander, Company B,
38th Infantry, 2nd Division, Fort
Sam Houston, Tex.
Attended Staff School
President Rudder attended Com
mand General Staff School in the
fall of 1942 and winter of 1943.
After attending the school he re
turned to the 83rd Infantry Divi
sion and was named Assistant G-3
of the division.
In July of 1943, President Rud
der was asked to organize and
train the 2nd Ranger Battalion.
The training took place at Camp
Forrest, Tenn.
The Rangers were sent to Eng
land in December, 1943. The fol
lowing month his command was
assigned its D-Day mission, scal
ing 100-foot cliffs at Pointe du
Hoe on the Normandy beach.
‘more difficult task. . .’
“No soldier in my command has
ever been wished a more difficult
task than that which befell the
34-year-old commander of this
provisional Ranger Force,” said
Gen. Omar Bradley, commander of
the U. S. Ground Forces in Europe
at the time.
Following victory in Europe,
President Rudder spent eight
months on special War Department
missions. He was released from
active duty with the rank of col
onel in April of 1946.
Military Decorations
Among the military decorations
and awards President Rudder has
won are the Distinguished Service
Cross, Legion of Merit, Silver
Star, Bronze Star with Oak Clus
ter, Purple Heart with Oak Leaf
Clusters, French Legion of Honor
with Croix de Guerre and Palm
and Belgian Order of Leopold with
Croix de Guerre and Palm.
President Rudder returned to
Brady after the war and, among
varied interests, served as mayor
of Brady from 1946 to 1952.
He was employed by the Brady
Aviation Co. in 1953 as public and
labor relations counselor.
During this time President Rud
der also served as a member on
the State Board of Public Welfare.
On Jan. 4, 1955, President Rud
der was appointed Commissioner
of the General Land Office of the
State of Texas. He stepped into
an office shaken by scandals in
the Veterans’ Land Program. In
time, suspicion surrounding the
program dissolved and the office
was returned to a place of integ
rity and respect in Texas govern
ment.
During these post-war years,
President Rudder remained active
in the Army’s Reserve program.
As commanding general of the
90th Infantry Division, he was
first promoted to brigadier gen
eral and now holds the rank of
major general.
On Feb. 1, 1958, the A&M Board
of Directors appointed President
Rudder vice president of the col
lege. He was promoted to the
presidency on July 1, 1959, in
which capacity he presently serves.
Returned to France
President Rudder returned to
France as a member of the presi
dential party to commemorate the
tenth anniversary of the libera
tion of France.
Beside his various military hon
ors, President Rudder has been the
recipient of several other awards
and commendations. In 1956 Pres
ident Rudder received the McCul
loch County Distinguished Service
Award. He was presented the
Veterans of Foreign Wars Silver
Citizenship Award in 1958.
All-American
In 1956 Sports Illustrated named
President Rudder to its Silver An
niversary All-American football
team.
President Rudder lives with his
family in the President’s Home,
100 Jones Street, <fn the campus.
The Rudders have five children,
James Earl Jr., (Bud) 20; Mar
garet Anne, 18; Linda, 13; Jane,
12; and Bob, 6. The Rudders are
members of the A&M Methodist
Church.
Member of Board
Since 1956, President Rudder has
been a member of the Department
of the Army General Staff Com
mittee on National Guard and
Army Reserve Policy. In Novem
ber of 1959 he became a member of
the Reserve Forces Policy Board.
Pie was appointed to the National
Sponsoring Committee, Army Dis
taff Hall Sponsoring Committee,
in February.
The Army Reservist ^
This picture was taken shortly after President Earl Rud
der was promoted to major general in the United States
Army Reserve. President Rudder was active in the
Army Reserve program following his graduation from
A&M in 1932 until he was called to active duty in 1941.
Following his separation from active duty he remained
active in Army Reserve and was named 'commander of
the 90th Infantry Division USAR, with , the rank of brig
adier general and was subsequently^,promote^ to major
general, his present rank.
The Fohtieai Figure
On Jan. 5, 1955, President Earl Rudder was
sworn in Commissioner of the General Land
Office of the State of Texas. He stepped
into an office shaken by scandals in the
Veterans’ Land Program. His prior po
litical experience was when he served as
mayor of Brady, Tex., from 1946-52. Dur
ing his time as Land Commissioner, Presi
dent Rudder brought the office from the
depths of scandal back to a respected place
in Texas government. This picture shows
President Rudder, center, being sworn in as
Land Commissioner by then Texas Supreme
Court Justice Will Wilson, left, while then
Gov. Allan Shivers looks on.
.
*
7 Kiciffy
The World War II Hero
French General de Lattre Tassigny is shown in
this picture pinning the Croix de Guerre on the
chest of President Earl Rudder, then a lieutenant
colonel and in command of the 109th Infantry
Regiment. President Rudder entered active duty
during World War II as a first lieutenant and rose
to the rank of colonel when he was released from
active duty in April,-1946. President Rudder’s
military decorations include the Distinguished
Service Cross, the Legion of Merit, the Silver
Star', the Bronze Star with Oak Leaf Cluster, the
Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Clusters, the French
Legion of Honor with Croix de Guerre and Palm
and the Belgian Order of Leopold with Croix de
Guerre and Palm.
iiipsfr
v
President Earl Rudder is shown
of his sheep on land he owns in McCulloch County.
President Rudder’s other business interests have
included teaching and football coaching, both at
Brady High School and Tarleton State College,
wamB
The Rancher and Businessman
herewith some and vice president of Brady Aviation Corp. Pres
ident Rudder presently owns more than 7,000
acres of land in Menard'and McCulloch counties
and'raises cattle and sheep. He has also had other
business interests in Brady since 1935.