Issue date: 7/27/05 Section: News

Andrew Burleson - The Battalion. Source: Ronnie Edwards Professor and Associate Dept. Head for teaching in animal science.

Howard Hesby believed in helping students just as much outside the classroom as in it. The animal science professor and adviser helped more than 15,000 students during his 35 years at Texas A&M, said Ronnie Edwards, professor and associate department head for teaching in the Department of Animal Science.

Hesby died unexpectedly of a heart attack Saturday at the age of 62, Edwards said.

"He was a very caring person, probably one of the strongest people in terms of moral character I've ever known," Edwards said. "He was very dedicated to the students.

Edwards said that dedication outside of the classroom is what Hesby will be remembered by the most.

"He was very heavily involved in internships, student advising and job placement - probably more so than anyone in the department," Edwards said.

Hesby worked with students on topics such as resume writing and business interview classes to help prepare them for finding careers after graduation, said Jeremy Hill, a senior agricultural development major.

"He connected a lot of students with jobs coming out of A&M," Hill said. "I went on a spring break trip to California to study agricultural businesses, and he was the chaperone. The majority of the business and ranch owners were his former students."

Hill said students also felt comfortable going to Hesby's office to get help with class or with other problems they were having.

"He was one that would always work with the students," Hill said. "He was always professional. Even though you were in class, he made it seem like a business situation. He was formal in class but informal out of it. "

Amanda Fletcher, a senior animal science major who worked as a teaching assistant under Hesby, said he always made time for his students.

"If you needed anything done he would come to the school at two in the morning," she said. "He treated everyone like they were his children."
Hesby's ability to connect with students is what Aggies will miss the most about him, she said.

"He was the kind of professor you could just sit down and talk with," she said. "If you were having a bad day he could always make it better. I think we will miss his personality and his smile. It's like we lost one of our family members."

Edwards said Hesby was born in Arlington, S.D., on Oct. 25, 1943. He earned a bachelor's degree in animal science from South Dakota State University and a master's degree in animal nutrition and doctorate in swine nutrition from Purdue University.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Peace Lutheran Church, 2201 Rio Grande Street in College Station. A reception will be held immediately after the services in the atrium of the Kleberg Center on the A&M campus.

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