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Sterling C. Evans: A Life of Leadership and Innovation

Every day, wave after wave of students come to Sterling C. Evans Library, a bustling hub of activity in the heart of Texas A&M University. But who is Evans’ namesake? And why is the building named after him?

Sterling C. Evans, Class of 1921, one of history’s most storied Aggies, lived a remarkable life that spanned 101 years, from 1899 to 2001.

Evans’ Depression-era policies as a leader at Texas-based federal financing institutions revolutionized agriculture credit systems. These policies were critical steps that led  farmers and ranchers out of despair brought on by the worst financial crisis in U.S. history.

During the 1960s, Evans was a prominent voice of change at Texas A&M that helped elevate it from a regional college to a globally known, Tier One research university. 

Evans was an innovator. By nature, innovators create change. For many, change is hard. So it was no surprise that some of the paths Evans blazed faced stiff resistance.

Sterling C. Evans had his hands full. Evans, president of the board of directors of what was then called the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas, was accused by some former students of trying to ruin his alma mater. What did this proud former student, with decades of leadership in public and private agribusiness financing, do to earn this venom?

Evans, who had long believed that women should be allowed to benefit from an education at A&M College, was part of a unanimous board vote in April 1963 to begin limited admission of women — a vote that deeply angered many former students.

After the vote to conditionally admit women to A&M College, Evans’ leadership of the board helped lead to a gradual increase of women’s presence on campus. In 1971, Evans’ final year on the board, Texas A&M became a fully co-educational institution without compulsory service in the Corps of Cadets. The latter was another cause of turmoil at Texas A&M.

Evans supported military training at Texas A&M. He was a cadet during his A&M days and was proud of its military traditions. Still, he felt that many promising students chose other universities instead of A&M’s mandatory cadet training and military service after graduation.

Ending compulsory training was supported by A&M President Earl Rudder ’32, a legendary World War II officer whose credentials regarding military matters were beyond dispute. 

After his second term on the Texas A&M Board of Directors ended in 1971, Evans, looking for new challenges, sharpened his focus on his already successful private agribusiness interests. At the same time, he turned his attention to upgrading the Texas A&M library, which had been a longstanding issue on campus.

Back in 1949, a consulting group said that the campus library was inadequate for the academic needs of the school’s students and faculty. As the years passed, even as Aggie enrollment and faculty size grew, library improvements continued to lag.

Evans understood the importance of a first-rate library from his days as a student. Since his graduation, he’d maintained his love of books, forged by his student days in the Junto Society, a group of avid Aggie readers who discussed and debated philosophy and politics. He had a sense of excitement and adventure about education, and considered ideas that sprung from the printed word as the source of learning.

In 1971, he was elected the first president of the new Friends of the Texas A&M University Library. Many in his wide network of acquaintances across the state, stemming from his many years as a leader in banking and agribusiness, turned into Library donors, elevating its collection and its status as a hub of student life.

In his first three years as the Friends’ president, Evans made an immense difference, said Dr. Irene B. Hoadley, who was appointed library director in November 1974.

“A great deal was accomplished in that time frame, tripling the size of the collections, expanding the building twice, doubling the staff, and expanding specialized services,” she said. 

As his efforts to upgrade the library continued throughout the 70s, the Board of Regents named the library after Evans, an honor that was formally recognized at a November 1979 dedication. 

Even as Evans entered his 80s, and then his 90s, his staunch advocacy for the Libraries continued.

He established an endowed chair in library administration, and eventually sold his 14,000 acre ranch so he could route the proceeds to benefit the library.

Over the years, with Evans’ help, the library expanded to five campus facilities and emerged as a major research center, earning consistently high rankings from the Association of Research Libraries.

Even as his remarkable life passed the 100-year mark, Evans was a vibrant Libraries champion. He helped cut the ribbon to commemorate an Evans Library renovation in 2000. 

The history of our university is the history of Sterling Evans, said Ray M. Bowen, president of Texas A&M, at the ceremony. “The Sterling C. Evans Library, like Mr. Evans, stands as a bridge between Texas A&M’s past and its promise for the future.”

Evans died on July 5, 2001. His legacy in farm and ranch finance and at Texas A&M University will last forever.