On the recordApril 9, 2014
Kent Hance was headed for a life of crime and waywardness before he attended Texas Tech University. Texas Tech would not be where it is today without Kent Hance, but Chancellor Hance wouldn't be who he is today without having attended Texas Tech in 1961. A storied career as a political servant, one of Kent Hance's political accomplishments, as it has been said, was that he was the only person to defeat President George W. Bush in an election. He won Texas' 19th Congressional District seat with his folksy humor, quick wit, and good old-fashioned hard work. Kent Hance once remarked that had President Bush defeated him in that congressional race, Bush would have wound up as chairman of the House Agriculture Committee instead of Governor and President of the United States. Everyone has a Kent Hance story. Some of us have even been the victims of his punch line. But his ability to weave experiences, real and imagined, to make a point or disarm an opponent, is legendary. Kent Hance has been known as many things--an attorney, a professor, a State senator, a railroad commissioner, a Congressman, and friend--but I believe his best role has been as chancellor of Texas Tech University. We thank you for your service at Texas and our Nation. Your leadership and legacy will shine bright for years to come. And I wish Kent Hance and his family Godspeed in the next chapters of their lives.
