In Memoriam: Mary Evelyn Blagg Huey, 1922-2017

Mary Evelyn Blagg Huey, president emerita of Texas Woman’s University, died late last month at her home in Denton, Texas. She was 95 years old. Dr. Blagg Huey was the only alumna and the first woman to serve as president of Texas Woman’s University.

Dr. Blagg Huey was a native of Wills Point, Texas. She eared a bachelor’s degree in English and music and a master’s degree in English literature at what was then called the Texas State College for Women, now Texas Woman’s University. She then taught English at the college from 1943 to 1945. Dr. Blagg Huey served as assistant director of the Bureau of Public Administration at the University of Mississippi. She proceeded to earn a master’s degree in public administration at the University of Kentucky and a Ph.D. in political science at Duke University.

In 1947, Dr. Blagg Huey joined the faculty at what is now the University of North Texas. She taught there until 1971, when she was named dean of the Graduate School at Texas Woman’s University. Dr. Blagg Huey was named president of the university in 1976 and served in that role until her retirement in 1986. Upon her retirement, the university’s library was named in her honor.