Bowman to Head WT’s Center for the Study of the American West

Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, [email protected]

CANYON, Texas - Dr. Tim Bowman is the new head of the Center for the Study of the American West at West Texas A&M University.

Bowman, formerly head of the Department of History in the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities, officially assumed the role June 1, moving into a role held since the center's formation by Dr. Alex Hunt.

"It's one the biggest honors of my career that Alex trusts me enough to step into CSAW and continue its important work," said Bowman, who also was named Vincent-Haley Professor of Western Studies. "The work that he's done in setting CSAW on a path for success over the last decade is nothing short of extraordinary. I can't wait to work with the students and visiting scholars in promoting western history and literature, and I'm also very glad that Alex is staying on in a different role."

Hunt, who also serves as Regents Professor of English in the Department of English, Philosophy and Modern Languages, will remain at CSAW as its associate director.

"I am excited at the convergence of all the right circumstances for CSAW," Hunt said. "As founding director, I think at 10 years later, it's time for me to make way for new energy and vision. Happily, Tim is looking forward to the new challenge of leading CSAW. Tim has been involved with CSAW in one way or another since we started up, so I'm thrilled that things are working out this way."

CSAW was founded in 2016 to showcase important and interesting scholarly and artistic production relevant to the region served by WT. The program is focused on creating high-quality research as well as providing community educational programs.

The Center awards both internal and external research grants to invest in the development of the study of the American West in scholarship. Its "Forgotten Frontera" project has earned state and federal funding to further research into Mexican American histories on the Southern Plains.

Additionally, CSAW endeavors to support research on a broader scale through the Bonney MacDonald Annual Book award-presented to exceptional new-release books that are concerning the American West or some aspect of its history, culture, society, or environment. Most recently, Zak Podmore's "Life After Dead Pool: Lake Powell's Last Days and the Rebirth of the Colorado" was selected as the 2025 MacDonald Award winner.

CSAW also hosts the Garry L. Nall Lecture in Western Studies biannually, offering insightful discussions led by Western American scholars, authors and artists.

CSAW's internship program builds professional and leadership skills as well as regional literacy in WT students; in turn, these students graduate ready to serve their community.

Bowman joined WT in 2012 after earning a bachelor's degree from Texas Christian University, a master's from the University of Texas-Arlington and a Ph.D. from Southern Methodist University.

His research interests include Mexican-Anglo relations in the 19th and 20th centuries, the history of the modern border and surrounding regions, migrant labor, and Mexican and Mexican-American life in the modern United States.

Bowman is currently working on his third book, a history of the Texas Farmworkers movement during the 1960s, '70s and '80s.

Hunt earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Colorado State University and his Ph.D. from the University of Oregon. He joined WT in 2002 and was named a Regents Professor of History by the Texas A&M University System in 2020.

Hunt has published books on novelist Annie Proulx, postcolonial ecocriticism, and 19th century British investment in the American West. He has published articles on Texas Panhandle history, works of Western and Southwestern literature, Native American and Chicano/a studies, and popular culture-most recently on the television series "Breaking Bad."

"Los Llaneros: The Mexican Southern Plains 1500-1900," which Hunt co-edited and co-wrote, will be released in June from the University of Oklahoma Press. He is working on a biography of prominent area pioneer Cordelia Adair that is scheduled for release in 2027.

CSAW is a prominent example of WT's role as a Regional Research University, the key mission of the University's long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World. In 2025, WT was classified as a Research College and University, or RCU, a new designation that identifies research happening at colleges and universities that historically have not been recognized for their research activity.

According to American Council on Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, the RCU designation encompasses institutions that spend more than $2.5 million annually on research, regardless of whether they offer doctoral degrees.

WT spends approximately $10 million per year on research activities and currently offers two doctoral degrees: one in agriculture and one in educational leadership.

WT 125 is fueled by the One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which raised more than $200 million dollars, the largest such campaign in Texas Panhandle history.

About West Texas A&M University

West Texas A&M University is a Regional Research University in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus, as well as the Harrington Academic Hall WTAMU Amarillo Center in downtown Amarillo. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT boasts an enrollment of more than 9,000 and offers multiple options for students to graduate and succeed: 66 undergraduate degree programs, including eight associate degrees; and 44 graduate degrees, including an integrated bachelor's and master's degree, a specialist degree and two doctoral degrees. WT recently earned a Carnegie Foundation classification as a Research College and University. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 16 men's and women's athletics programs.

Photo: Dr. Tim Bowman, left, has officially assumed the role of director of West Texas A&M University's Center for the Study of the American West. Dr. Alex Hunt, right, the founding director, will stay on as associate director.

-WT-