Del Mar College celebrates 90th birthday of longtime Sociology adjunct instructor Dr. Willard Rushton as he wraps up teaching career
Longtime educator started career at DMC in 1966 and became tenured full professor through mid-1980s, now serving as Sociology adjunct since 2010
Article by: Richard Guerrero, Jr.
Dr. Willard Rushton has seen a world of change during his years at Del Mar College. He got his start in higher education as a student at the College back when No. 34 – Dwight D. Eisenhower - was in office in the early years of the Cold War. He’s now winding down his long teaching career as the 46th U.S. President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. serves out his remaining days in office.
The College’s Social Sciences Department celebrated Dr. Rushton’s 90th birthday and his career with a party in C302 in the General Academic and Music Building Phase II (GAMBI) on Wednesday, Nov. 13. Faculty and staff gathered to enjoy cupcakes and light snacks while taking the opportunity to wish Dr. Rushton a “Happy Birthday,” along with well wishes as he formally concludes his extensive teaching career in higher education – a career that spans nearly six decades with much of that time spent educating Del Mar College students.
A longtime member of the DMC Sociology faculty, Dr. Rushton began teaching the subject and economics courses in 1966. He then moved upward to serve as Chair of the Sociology Department for seven years. Dr. Rushton left as a tenured full professor in 1985 after teaching thousands of students who took his Introductory Sociology, Sociology of Minority Groups and Social Problems courses.
Dr. Rushton also taught Sociology of Black Americans and Rural Sociology courses at his alma mater, Texas A&M University (TAMU) in College Station, and the Research Methods in Social Work course at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. He returned to DMC and taught truck driving in the Department of Transportation for seven years, retiring in 2010. That same year, he began serving as an Adjunct Sociology Instructor – a role that he has continued to fill through this fall.
Over the years, technology has come to play a key role in the classroom, and Dr. Rushton says he’s had to lean on the Information Technology team to help him keep up with those changes.
“I've had to learn a lot of stuff. The IT folks have been very helpful,” he says.
When asked if his current class knows that they will be the last students he will teach, Dr. Rushton says, “They do. I think they are happy for me.”
The biggest highlight has been the opportunity to be associated with the great folks in the Social Science Department.
His final adjunct assignment is teaching a DMC Dual Enrollment sociology class Mondays and Fridays at the School of Science and Technology off Saratoga Boulevard.
Asked to share a few highlights of his long career with the College, Dr. Rushton responds modestly: “The biggest highlight has been the opportunity to be associated with the great folks in the Social Science Department.”
As previously noted, Dr. Rushton’s connection to the College began during his undergraduate days. After starting his collegiate education at DMC in 1954, he attended TAMU, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics. Afterward, he moved to Columbus, Ohio, where he earned a Master of Science degree in Rural Sociology from The Ohio State University (OSU); and as a doctoral student, he served as the sociologist on a research team whose goal was to identify factors related to effective farm management. Dr. Rushton earned his Ph.D. in Rural Sociology from OSU in 1970.
Back in Texas, Dr. Rushton also served as a research associate for a faculty group at the College of Veterinary Medicine at TAMU that sought to identify factors related to effective clinical teaching as part of a two-year post-doctoral study in adult and extension education.
Beyond the classroom, Dr. Rushton has contributed to several journal articles as well.
So, what’s next for Dr. Rushton now that he is completely done with teaching and is at last ready to focus on leisurely pursuits?
“I have a workshop full of woodworking tools that I plan to start using,” he says with a smile.
Del Mar College empowers students to achieve their dreams. We offer quality programs, individual attention, outstanding instruction through faculty with real-world experience and affordable costs to credit and noncredit students in Corpus Christi and the South Texas Coastal Bend area. Nationally recognized while locally focused, we’re ranked in the top two percent of community colleges in the country granting associate degrees to Hispanic students (Community College Week). Del Mar College focuses on offering our students programs that match current or emerging career opportunities. Whether students are interested in the fine arts, sciences, business, occupational or technical areas, students get the education they need for the future they want at Del Mar College.
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