The Texas Exes Black Alumni Network (The Network) will tip its hat to three outstanding titans of industry, community activists and educational advocates at the group’s annual Legacy Dinner Friday at the University of Texas @ Austin.

The Network will present its Young Alumnus, Unsung Service and Alumnus of the Year awards to Houston educational consultant Henry Keculah, Jr; Dallas community activist and minister Alshare Hughes; and Houston community leader and retired engineer Lonnie Fogle.

“The Black Alumni Network is honored to recognize these individuals for their trailblazing contributions to their professional fields and communities as well as for their continued support and commitment to UT,” said Network President Stephanie Johnson. “They truly personify the Longhorn spirit.”

· Young Alumnus of the Year Awardee – Henry Kopia Keculah Jr. graduated from UT in 2011 with a Bachelor of Science in Government. After graduating, he joined the Teach for America Corps, to more positively impact the lives of inner-city children. He is the founder and executive director of 4.0 Growth Productive Accountability, a Houston-based education consultant firm that prepares students for college and provides motivational speeches to schools.

· Unsung Service Awardee – Houston native and longtime Dallas resident Alshare Hughes earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from UT in 1999. The registered professional engineer currently works in regulatory compliance for a major Dallas-based public utility company. Hughes also is the co-founder and serves as the Chair Emeritus of the Black Ex Students of Texas Association (BEST). In addition, he is the founder and executive director of Real Life in Christ Ministries, a non-profit ministry focused on building disciples of Jesus Christ who live out their faith.

· Alumnus of the Year Awardee – In recognition of his extraordinary vision, civil rights activism and outstanding leadership both then and now, Nacogdoches native Lonnie Fogle will receive the Alumnus of the Year Award. Fogle, who earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from UT in 1966, is retired senior engineer from DuPont. The longtime Houston resident has worked tirelessly to recruit African American students to UT, particularly from Houston and East Texas, and to help them to successfully matriculate through the university. He formerly served as a council member of the Texas Ex-Students Association and as the second president of UT’s Black Advisory Committee. Fogle worked on a committee to study and advise on “Developing a Sense of Community” on the 40 Acres. He also is the founding president of The Precursors, an organization focused on enhancing the “UT” experience for students and former students at UT and beyond, and is now a member of the board of directors. His wife Maudie and two of his sons are also Longhorns. The couple was awarded the Heman Sweatt Legacy Award in 2011.

“Helping, mentoring and working on behalf of African-American students to connect them to UT has been my life’s mission,” said Fogle. “It’s the rent that I pay for being here. You never know how well you can compete until you get the opportunity to do so. That’s one of the lessons that I learned from UT. You can’t make quick judgements on someone’s potential. It takes a flower time to bloom just like it takes someone’s potential to be fully realized.”

It was people that he knew that first drew Keculah to UT.

“As a kid growing up, I watched TJ Ford out of Houston go to UT to play basketball, and I saw Ricky Williams blaze a trail on the football field,” said Keculah. “I didn't know much about college as a student in high school, but I knew UT HAD to be awesome if they'd recruited the best basketball and football players in the country. I'm glad I made the decision to attend UT, because the 40 Acres truly changed my life. I was able to build life-long relationships with my professors, and also got the academic support I needed in order to complete my degree and graduate on time.”

The mission of the Black Alumni Network is to identify, inform, and involve African- American alumni in all aspects of The Texas Exes; to recruit and retain African-American students and connect them with alumni through networking and scholarships. The Black Alumni Network is an official network of the Texas Exes.

The honorees will be recognized during the annual Legacy Celebration Dinner at 7 p.m. on Friday, September 8 at the UT Etter-Harbin Alumni Center. Additional information about the annual homecoming weekend may be obtained at https://www.texasexes.org/chapter/black-alumni-network.