COMMENCEMENT FOCUS: TIBOR NAGY
                  
                         Curated by Steve Bogener, Fabricated by Lyn Stoll
                                                               May 2003, SWC

                   FROM WEST TEXAS TO AFRICA AND BACK AGAIN

The Southwest Collection/ Special Collections Library continues to highlight outstanding Alumni of Texas Tech University.  In 2003, our focus is on Ambassador Tibor P. Nagy, who will deliver the commencement address to graduates in May.  In June, Nagy will become Executive Director of International Affairs and Director of the International Cultural Center at Texas Tech.

Late one night in November 1956, Tibor Nagy left his native Hungary, crossing the Austrian border with his father, a military officer who fought in the short-lived Hungarian Revolution.  Forced to flee their homeland, father and son made their way to the American Embassy in Vienna, settling in Washington D.C. the following year.

After High School graduation, Nagy wanted to attend college somewhere in the American West. In 1966 he came to Texas Tech in pursuit of an architecture degree. At Texas Tech, Nagy participated in intramural soccer and swimming, and grew to love the West Texas region.  He also met his future wife, Jane Whitfill, a native Texan. Nagy also decided to double major in political science and history instead of architecture, a decision which ultimately led to a stellar career. Married in 1971, the Nagys moved to Washington where Tibor completed a master’s degree while Jane finished her bachelor’s degree at Georgetown University. The Nagys have three children, triplets, all of whom live in Texas. 

In 1978, Nagy passed the Foreign Service Exam and moved through a succession of posts in Africa including Zambia from 1979-81, Seychelles, and Ethiopia from 1984-86.  For the next eight years, he was Deputy Chief of Mission at Lome, Togo (1987-90); Yaounde, Cameroon (1990-93); and Lagos, Nigeria (1993-95).  From 1996 to 1999, Nagy served as Ambassador to Guinea, and from 1999 to 2002, he was Ambassador to Ethiopia.  Over the course of his Foreign Service career,
Nagy received a Superior Honor Award, five Meritorious Honor Awards and was runner-up for the prestigious “Deputy Chief of Mission of the Year” award.

From West Texas to Africa and back again, the Nagys bring a wealth of experience to their latest post.