Dotty and Dr. Joseph McAdams have established the Mrs. Dotty and Dr. Joseph McAdams Endowed Chemical Engineering Scholarship. Distributions from this endowment will be used to provide one or more scholarships to full-time students in good standing pursuing an undergraduate degree in chemical engineering from Texas A&M University.
Dr. Joseph McAdams has been involved with the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering’s advisory council for 20 years. During this time, he developed relationships with the faculty within the department, as well as the department head, Dr. Arul Jayaraman. The dedication he witnessed encouraged him to give back to the department.
As an advisory council member, McAdams also had the opportunity to conduct many of the graduating seniors’ exit interviews. He enjoyed seeing how enthusiastic the students were for the department. Their commitment to the study of chemical engineering impressed McAdams and inspired him to establish the endowment, and he hopes this scholarship will help educate chemical engineers on how valuable and needed they are in Texas.
“I was impressed by the commitment of the department to undergraduate students,” McAdams said. “I hope my gift will ease the cost burden students face while in school at Texas A&M.”
McAdams obtained his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Lehigh University. He completed his Master of Business Administration in finance and doctorate in chemical engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. He worked for the downstream organization of Shell Global for over 25 years, where he held a variety of roles. He is now retired and living in The Woodlands, Texas.
Dr. Jack Rodden, a professor of practice at Texas A&M, served with McAdams on the Chemical Engineering Advisory Council for more than a dozen years. “I have never met a more engaged individual who cared more about the education of Aggie chemical engineers and, more broadly, our university,” Rodden said. “Joe’s attendance and significant contributions to each committee meeting over many years were outstanding. He was always ready to take on work that went beyond the meetings and required even more of his free time.”
Although almost anyone who had ever met McAdams assumed he was an Aggie, he was not. He just had a lot of love for Texas A&M, the chemical engineering department and its mission. “The contributions he made with the council were already noteworthy, but now the department is honored and humbled by his continued generosity, which will help support chemical engineering students,” Rodden said.