
Francis
Hurley
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Gen Hurley "rescued" me from a really crummy future...
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- Craig McElroy Col, USAF, Ret
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My condolences to your family. ...
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- John Lowe
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With our deepest sympathy to Johanna and family. Dick and...
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- Richard Gowen
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Bobbie and I send our condolences to his entire family. As...
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- Victor Bradford
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My condolences to Joanna and family at this great loss. ...
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- Thomas Keaney
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Alfred Francis Hurley, who was Chancellor of the University of North Texas System from 1982 to 2002 and also President of the University of North Texas until 2000, passed away on June 8th in Dallas. Prior to coming to UNT, he had a distinguished thirty year career in the
U.S. Air Force
, retiring as a Brigadier General. He was 84 years old. Dr. Hurley was a warm and loving father and a devoted husband who shared a love of stories, adventure, and social events with his wife Johanna, an educator who traveled the world as a Pan Am stewardess the year before they married. He was also a great mentor to his children and took great pride in their educational, professional and personal achievements. He was a fitness advocate who ran at least three miles a day. Dr. Hurley considered himself a New Yorker yet he loved his and his wife's adopted state of Texas. He and his wife had celebrated their sixtieth wedding anniversary in January. Dr. Hurley was born October 16, 1928 in Brooklyn, New York to Patrick and Margaret Hurley, both of whom were Irish immigrants. He was the oldest of four children. Survivors include his wife and partner, Johanna Leahy Hurley, his brother William, and the couple's five children, Alfred Jr., Thomas, Mark, Claire and John as well as fourteen grandchildren. His parents, his brother John, and sister Jeanne predeceased him. Growth was the hallmark of Dr. Hurley's tenure which started in 1982 and ended in 2002. The University of North Texas System, which includes UNT and the UNT Health Science Center, rose to educational leadership in the North Texas region. Enrollment at the University increased from less than 19,000 to over 27,000. The University's endowment grew from $850,000 to $45 million, and nearly $200 million was raised across two capital campaigns., Dr. Hurley highlighted the crucial role played by his full time partner and wife Johanna. As a tribute to their accomplishments, the Board of Regents of the UNT System named the administration building, which stands at the center of the campus in Denton, the "Alfred F. and Johanna H. Hurley Administration Building." The citation accompanying the ceremony naming the building pointed to a Dallas Morning News editorial spotlighting Dr. Hurley as an "unsung hero of higher education." In addition to the accomplishments described above, Dr. Hurley's accomplishments with the title of Chancellor Emeritus. Dr. Hurley was the first resident of Denton to chair the North Texas Commission and to join the Dallas Citizens Council. He was Co-Chair of the Coalition of Urban Metropolitan Universities (CUMU) and served, Dr. and question both a leading scholar and a current or retired military officer who had served in combat discuss various topics. At its twenty-third anniversary in 2006, the seminar was endowed by many of its participants and named the Alfred and Johanna Hurley Military History Seminar. Dr. Lyndon Johnson, General seventy, General US and Europe. He and members of his department also often lectured at the U.S. War and Navy War Colleges as well as various Air Force service schools. General Hurley's military decorations included the Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster, Legion of Merit with oak leaf cluster, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Device, and Vietnam Service Medal with two
bronze stars
. General Hurley graduated summa cum laude from St. John's University in 1950 and received its President's medal in 1990. While serving in the Air Force, he received an M.A.. General, American Committee, History of Second World War; Trustee of the Air Force Historical Foundation; Trustee, Falcon Foundation, USAF Academy; and Trustee, Air Force Historical Foundation. Throughout both of his careers, General." Dr. Hurley equally loved his time at UNT and was extraordinarily committed to the school. school's Board of Regents demanded that he accept a pay raise although the institution lacked the funds for a more broadly shared increase in faculty pay. Dr. Hurley's response was to donate the incremental compensation that he received back to UNT to fund scholarships for deserving students. General Hurley will be buried on Friday, June 14th. There will be a Catholic Mass at 10 AM at the Air Force Academy Chapel followed by a military funeral and a reception at Doolittle Hall. There also will be a memorial service in Dallas to celebrate his life at a date to be announced. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to one of the following organizations: The Alzheimer's Disease Center at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Falcon Foundation, or Alfred and Johanna Military History Seminar at UNT.
Published in The Gazette on June 12, 2013
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