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Office
Hours

Step into unique campus offices and meet the faculty and staff who have made these spaces their own.

By Lydia Hill ’21

Photography by Leighton Jack ’14

shelves full of coca cola shelves full of books and cameras shelves full of micky mouse toys

Whether prim and proper or cluttered and chaotic, every office reflects something of its inhabitant. However, some Texas A&M University faculty and staff members take this idea to the next level. From photos on the walls to items on the shelves, every decoration in these uniquely themed offices encapsulates a memory and provides a glimpse into the life and passions of the person behind the desk.

Dr. Poppy
Capehart '75

Advisor, Department of Food Science and Technology

photo of Poppy Capehart in his Mickey Mouse themed office

I It all started with a few students bringing Mickey Mouse toys to Dr. Poppy Capehart for his daughters. Today, his office is a trove of more than 900 items bearing the famous mouse, including clothes, books, pictures, mugs, food and office supplies. Each item collected over the past 30 years reveals the story of the student who gave it to express their appreciation for Capehart’s impact on their life. “There’s a certain gratitude at Texas A&M that has played out in this delightful way in my life,” he marveled. “Many of these things would be meaningless to most people, but to me, they’re of great value because they’re gifts that remind me of all the Aggies who’ve come through my door.”

Theme:
Mickey Mouse

Disney World Visits:
5 (and 5 Disney cruises!)

Many of these things would be meaningless to most people, but to me, they’re of great value because they’re gifts that remind me of all the Aggies who’ve come through my door.

Dr. Poppy Capehart '75

Jeremy Brett

Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection Curator, Cushing Memorial Library and Archives

photo of Jeremy Brett in his science fiction themed office

F Filled floor-to-ceiling with posters and figurines of superheroes, warriors and space travelers, Jeremy Brett’s office provides daily inspiration for his job. “We like to emphasize that our special collections are for everybody and have items that interest people generally,” he explained, “and I think my office reflects that.” Collected from comic conventions or job connections, much of the memorabilia represents women in science fiction or reflects items in Cushing’s sci-fi collection, like paintings of Daenerys Targaryen from “Game of Thrones” or a cyborg from “The Murderbot Diaries” series by Martha Wells '86.

Theme:
Science fiction and fantasy

Favorite sci-fi franchise:
Currently the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it changes

We like to emphasize that our special collections are for everybody and have items that interest people generally. I think my office reflects that.

Jeremy Brett

Dr. Alice
Blue-Mclendon '85 '87 '89

Clinical Associate Professor and Director of the Winnie Carter Wildlife Center

photo of Dr. Alice Blue-Mclendon in her animal-themed office

T The ostrich eggs in Dr. Alice Blue-McLendon’s office proudly symbolize the two things she loves most about her job: her students and the animals she teaches them to look after. Aggies painted most of the hollowed eggs for fundraisers or as gifts for McLendon. Other items, like peacock and ostrich feathers, porcupine quills and antler buttons from the world’s first cloned white-tailed deer, also serve an educational purpose. “It helps students appreciate how amazing animals are and how they are all different,” she said.

Theme:
Animals

Favorite Animal:
Elephants

It helps students appreciate how amazing animals are and how they are all different.

Dr. Alice Blue-Mclendon '85 '87 '89

Glen Vigus '05

Director of Operations, School of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts

photo of Glen Vigus in his vintage camera themed office

S Stepping into Glen Vigus’s office is like visiting a photography museum. The former news cameraman and photographer has given a good home to old film and video cameras since he was a kid, and his current collection ranges from the early 1900s to the present. “Cameras are like small time machines that preserve moments of time,” he observed. “I like to think about the memories and special moments they might have captured.” With everything still in working order, the cameras also serve as photography teaching tools and show students how technology has evolved.

Theme:
Vintage cameras

Favorite Camera:
1940s Graflex Super D

Cameras are like small time machines that preserve moments of time. I like to think about the memories and special moments they might have captured.

Glen Vigus '05

Amy Loyd

Assistant Director, Student Activities

photo of Amy Loyd in her Hello Kitty themed office

F For Amy Loyd, forming lifelong connections with students is the best part of the job, so it’s only fitting that her office is filled with a feline focused on friendship. From the “Hello Kitty for President” sign that a student found on a Washington, D.C., trip to the massive Hello Kitty Fish Camp flag made by Camp Loyd students, many items remind her of the former students who gave them and help break the ice with new Aggies. “My office shows that you don’t need to fit into a mold,” Loyd shared. “Whatever you like, this is a safe space of acceptance.”

Theme:
Hello Kitty

Continents represented by Hello Kitty items:
Five

My office shows that you don't need to fit into a mold. Whatever you like, this is a safe space of acceptance.

Amy Loyd

Dr. Detlef
Hallermann '89

Clinical Professor and Director of the Reliant Trading Center and the Trading, Risk & Investments Program

photo of Detlef Hallermann in his animal mounts themed office

E Each mount in Dr. Detlef Hallermann’s office has a story behind it, like the white-tailed deer he spent six days chasing or the blackbuck antelope he shot on a friend’s ranch. But collectively, they also tell the story of a lifelong love of hunting and the connections the hobby can bring. “There’s a certain bonding that happens in the field,” he said. “It gives you a relationship you wouldn’t have otherwise.” His decorations have attracted students to stop by simply to share hunting stories, while Hallermann’s passion has also led to hunting trips with university officials and former students like the late Clayton Williams Jr. ’54.

Theme:
Animal mounts

Largest Kill:
A 1,500-pound elk

There’s a certain bonding that happens in the field. It gives you a relationship you wouldn’t have otherwise.

Dr. Detlef Hallermann '89

Dr. Stephen
McDaniel '71 '72

Senior Professor and Regents Professor Emeritus of Marketing

photo of Stephen McDaniel in his Coca-Cola themed office

D Dr. Stephen McDaniel has always enjoyed drinking Coca-Cola, but when he brought back a Coke can with a Hebrew label from a trip to Israel in 1989, he didn’t plan to start a collection. Thanks to gifts of gratitude from Aggies, though, that one Coke has grown into 500 from around the world, including Italy, Thailand, China and the United Arab Emirates. “It humbles me every time,” McDaniel expressed. “My collection is a wonderful example of students’ selfless service and how generous Aggies are.”

Theme:
Coca-Cola

Favorite Coke Flavor:
Cherry

My collection is a wonderful example of students’ selfless service and how generous Aggies are.

Dr. Stephen McDaniel '71 '72

Dr. Kenneth
Anderson Taylor

Assistant Professor of Practice and Director of Outreach and Professional Development for the Center for Nonprofits and Philanthropy

photo of Kenneth Anderson Taylor in his cultural art themed office

D Dr. Kenneth Anderson Taylor’s art comes from various sources: a local Black folk artist, international travels and even his mother. “Having art in my office provides inspiration,” he said. “Without art, I wouldn’t feel whole.” Each piece is an extension of himself and his heritage, and he’s always on the lookout for the next work to add to his collection. An artist himself, Taylor learned his mother’s quilting skills eight years ago, and his fabric portrait of Sen. Matthew Gaines was displayed at two Texas A&M exhibits.

Theme:
Cultural art

Time to Complete Matthew Gaines Quilt:
2 months

Having art in my office provides inspiration. Without art, I wouldn’t feel whole.

Dr. Kenneth Anderson Taylor

Angela Degelman '22

Graduate Programs Recruitment and Admissions Coordinator, School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences

photo of Angela Degelman in her Harry Potter themed office

W When Angela Degelman first opened a “Harry Potter” book, she fell into a world of adventure, magic and wonder. Visitors experience the same world when they step into her office. Filled with posters, wands and other magical items, Degelman’s collection proclaims her love for the series and her desire to share it with others. Through the years, she has introduced family members and students to the Wizarding World by reading them the first chapter. “There’s something in ‘Harry Potter’ for everyone,” she enthused. “I hope people walk away from my office with a little bit of magic.”

Theme:
Harry Potter

Hogwarts House:
Ravenclaw

There’s something in ‘Harry Potter’ for everyone. I hope people walk away from my office with a little bit of magic.

Angela Degelman '22

Painting graphic

Art for All

For Texas A&M faculty and staff looking to spruce up their space, the University Art Galleries’ Campus Art Loan Program has the answer. Established in the 1980s to help expose students to a greater variety of art, the program allows university departments and employees to borrow original and reproduced art pieces for their offices. The program, which currently furnishes 105 offices with 400 pieces, provides art for a six-month loan that can be renewed.


For more information about the program and its requirements, contact Catherine Hastedt at chastedt@uart.tamu.edu or 979.845.8501.

Having art in your office reduces stress, stimulates the imagination, and opens your heart and mind to possibilities.

Catherine Hastedt,
University Art Galleries director

Painting graphic
Contact
  • Dunae Reader '15

  • Assistant Director of Marketing & Communications/Spirit Editor
  • Call: 979.321.6343

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