Pieper Retires after 34 Years with NMSU

Date:  Aug. 14, 1997
Editor: D'Lyn Ford  (505) 646-6528, dlford@nmsu.edu

LAS CRUCES -- Rex Pieper, range science professor and assistant department head of animal and range sciences, retired July 31, after 34 years with New Mexico State University's College of Agriculture and Home Economics.

Pieper came to NMSU in 1963 as an assistant professor of range sciences. He served informally as the range science coordinator for the department since 1975 and as assistant department head since 1990.

Pieper received distinguished teaching, research and service awards from the college. He also received the Distinguished Graduate/Teaching Advisement award from NMSU's Gamma Sigma Delta chapter.

Since 1965, Pieper served as adviser for all international undergraduate students in range science. Also, of the more than 100 graduate students he advised, more than half were international students.

"I've learned a lot from working with international students," he said. "I've also had the chance to travel internationally and see what some of the students are doing once they return home."

Pieper earned a bachelor's degree in wildlife management from the University of Idaho, a master's degree in range management from Utah State University and a doctorate in plant ecology from the University of California-Berkeley.

He is a member of the Society for Range Management, the American Institute for Biological Science and the Southwestern Association for Naturalists. He served as editor of the Journal of Range Management for five years, and he's been recognized as an eminent scientist by the New Mexico Commission for Higher Education.

Even though he's retiring, Pieper will continue some work at the college.

"I have a whole list of manuscripts and research projects that need my attention, and I also will be teaching a range analysis class this fall," he said.