From left: Naveen Jindal MBA’92; James R. Huffines; John Ryals MS’80, PhD’82; Lauri Hudgins-Boudreaux BA’93; Gorden Cheng BS’03; Archie Nettles Jr. BS’11, MPA’18; Allison A. Lawrence MBA’13; Daniel J. Healy BA’00; and Aziz Sancar, MD, PhD’77.

The University of Texas at Dallas celebrated some of its most illustrious alumni and supporters on a night punctuated with music and Comet camaraderie and highlighted by the presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award to Naveen Jindal MBA’92.

Jindal, one of UTD’s foremost philanthropists, is a global leader in industry, a statesman in his home country of India, an advocate for human rights and an accomplished sportsman. In 2011 the Naveen Jindal School of Management was named in his honor after he and two other alumni made significant gifts to the school and its honors program.

Naveen Jindal MBA’92 is the second recipient of UT Dallas’ Lifetime Achievement Award.

“It is an incredible privilege to be recognized by the institution that played such an important role in my life,” said Jindal, who was presented with the honor at the 2023 UT Dallas Awards Gala by Nobel laureate Aziz Sancar, MD, PhD’77, the award’s first recipient.

“I came to Dallas full of dreams and aspirations, and I saw and learned so much here. The seeds for many of the achievements for which I am being recognized were planted here during my days as a student,” Jindal said.

After graduating from UT Dallas, Jindal returned to India to help lead O.P. Jindal Group, a multibillion-dollar family conglomerate that operates businesses in the mining, power and steel manufacturing sectors. Today, he is chairman of Jindal Steel & Power, as well as founding chancellor of O.P. Jindal Global University.

As a UT Dallas student and president of Student Government, Jindal discovered a passion for politics that launched his career in public service. He served two terms in the Parliament of India and helped pass India’s National Food Security Act, which subsidized food distribution for nearly two-thirds of the country’s population. He also won the right for all Indians to display their national flag any day of the year, an act that had been denied until 2004.

More Awards Gala Coverage

See additional photos and videos from the event at utdallas.edu/gala.

“There is no one more deserving of this honor than Naveen,” said Kyle Edgington PhD’13, vice president for development and alumni relations at UTD. “As a generous and remarkably talented alumnus, his story should inspire all of us at UT Dallas to strive for excellence.”

Jindal said receiving the award has renewed his commitment to make a difference in the world.

“For me, this award is not just a recognition of my past accomplishments, but a call to action for the future,” he said. “There is still so much work to be done, and I believe that we all have a responsibility to use our talents and resources to make the world a better place.”

Gifford K. Johnson Community Leadership Award

James R. Huffines received the Gifford K. Johnson Community Leadership Award, the only UTD honor bestowed to nongraduates. It recognizes individuals who have elevated the University’s efforts to increase the accessibility of higher education, promote research and provide the North Texas region with a talented workforce.

Huffines, a commercial banker and longtime civil servant, was co-chair of UT Dallas’ first capital campaign and served for more than seven years on the UT System Board of Regents, nearly five years as chairman.

He currently serves on the boards of directors for The Greenbrier Companies and Susser Bank and on the executive committee for Southwestern Medical Foundation’s Board of Trustees.

“It’s a huge honor to receive the Johnson Award. My passion is to move higher education, and particularly this university, forward in a way that serves as a beacon for others to follow. I think the progress over the last two decades [at UT Dallas] has proved that correct, and that makes me very proud,” said Huffines, who was presented the award by UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken.

Milliken said: “James has made an indelible impact on higher education in our state. He understood that a key to making Texas a 21st-century economic powerhouse was strategic, big investment in the infrastructure and talent needed to advance UT System’s leadership in science, technology and health care. He has always been a strong advocate for UT Dallas.”

Green and Orange Award

Archie Nettles Jr. BS’11, MPA’18, a development officer at the George W. Bush Presidential Center, received the 2023 Green and Orange Award for his service to UT Dallas.

Nettles, a veteran of the U.S. Army and Army Reserve, previously worked at UTD in a variety of roles, serving as a veteran liaison, an admissions counselor and assistant director of development for the Jindal School. He also was the University’s first Texas Instruments Founders Leadership Fellow.

“I was always striving to find myself in a position to serve others,” he said. “UTD was instrumental, because if you were excited about serving, the opportunities were there. I came into UTD not knowing a soul, but I left here with more than I could ever imagine.”

Distinguished Alumni Awards

Five other alumni were honored for their achievements in fields ranging from biotechnology and information security to manufacturing, financial management and the performing arts. Each honoree was recognized at the gala with a video chronicling their work and achievements. View each video by clicking on the awardee’s name below.

The gala included musical performances by Cheng, an award-winning competition pianist who played on a Steinway piano from the Jonsson Performance Hall — the same one he played as an undergraduate — and Indian-American YouTube star Vidya Vox, who sang a bilingual set of original songs that combined traditional Indian folk music with modern pop arrangements. Information technology and systems senior Nate Mills also performed on cello.

Gorden Cheng BS’03 concluded the Awards Gala with a special performance on the Steinway piano he played as an undergraduate at UT Dallas.