The Gift of Collaboration
Longhorns Terry and Elliott Pew Want to Help the Jackson School Take Research to the Next Level
When Elliott Pew came to the Forty Acres as a young graduate student in 1978, an early experience conducting research helped him realize that he was somewhere special. The research involved interpreting a grid of seismic lines recently shot in the deep- water Gulf of Mexico. The grid stretched from Florida to Mexico to Texas and was shot on a research cruise by the geophysics arm of the University of Texas Marine Science Institute (now the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics).
To interpret the data, Elliott recalls how he and his colleagues would roll long paper records reaching 20 to 30 feet down the hall of the geology building. The view let them see from one end of the Gulf to the other. And the state-of-the-art data brought into view structural and stratigraphic features that had rarely ever been seen before.
“I thought to myself, ‘this is like the coolest thing ever!’ I was hooked,” Elliott said. “I realized at that point that UT is able to give students opportunities for research that other institutions just can’t match.”
Given the hindsight of a four-decade career as a geologist and geological engineer in the energy industry, Elliott’s appreciation of what he gained during his time at UT has only grown. He’s spent years giving back to the Jackson School of Geosciences, serving on the Geology Foundation’s advisory council and making a series of gifts to the school. Of these gifts, none is more important than his latest.
Elliott and his wife Terry are giving $1.45 million to support Jackson School research. Most of it will be used to support collaborative research projects — with $100,000 set aside for the Jackson School’s Rapid Response program, which sends scientists to collect data in the wake of natural disasters before it disappears.
Elliott’s career began as a young geologist generating prospects for the old Tenneco Oil Company in the early 80s. He remembers a siloed work environment where different disciplines worked almost independently. As prospects were generated, geological maps were handed off to the reservoir engineer for further analysis without much give and take between disciplines.
But later, as he rose professionally and the industry became more collaborative, he saw amazing innovations occur where disciplines intersected, such as combining 3D seismic imaging with integrated geological interpretations to improve subsurface assessments, or bringing together horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing to create an energy revolution. Now most organizations routinely work in multidisciplinary teams.
“Collaboration allows you to innovate at the margins of scientific disciplines,” he said. “That’s where the major discoveries are often made. And it’s so much fun when you’re part of a new approach that leads to something of real value.”
That philosophy — one linked to collaborative, interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research — is a major focus of the Jackson School, said Dean Claudia Mora. The Pews’ gift will help power that type of research.
“This is such a tremendously generous and impactful gift that Elliott and Terry are honoring us with,” she said. “The benefits to our students and research will be long- lasting and are probably going to be realized in ways we can’t even imagine.”
Terry is also a proud Longhorn (she and Elliott met as next-door neighbors when they were students). As a former teacher, she said she loves seeing the impact that their gifts can have on the next generation.
“I hope our giving helps inspire future students to achieve their full potential,” she said. “There’s no greater satisfaction than seeing one of your former students succeed!”
The gift itself is an unconventional one. Elliott and Terry are gifting some recently vested, long-term compensation that came with Elliott’s retirement as a corporate director. By giving now, they are taking advantage of current tax laws to maximize the impact for the school.
In addition to their most recent gift, the Pews have supported the Jackson School for years in many other ways. This includes an endowment funding student support for the Jackson School’s Earth and Energy Resources graduate program, which provides just the type of interdisciplinary education that Elliott thinks is key to tackling the complex problems the world is facing. From climate and water issues to finding critical minerals and making the transition to low-carbon energy sources — including reliable hydrocarbon sources coupled with carbon capture and storage technology — geoscientists are needed across the board.
“It’s a profession that touches every aspect of life,” Elliott said.
The Pews have now retired to a 700-acre Hill Country ranch and are continuing their support of the Jackson School from there. They are working with the school to install a monitoring station from the Texas Soil Observation Network (TxSON) on the ranch and hope to have students out for field work (and barbecue) in the near future.
“The doors the University of Texas opened for me just gave me such tremendous opportunity,” Elliott said. “At a time when the geosciences are so incredibly important, we felt that there was a real need for support. We know it’s money well invested in the future.”
The University of Texas at Austin
Web Privacy | Web Accessibility Policy | Adobe Reader