The Benny J. Simpson Endowed Scholarship is for junior, senior, or graduate students at Texas Tech University with a 3.0 GPA majoring in the Department of Plant and Soil Science with an emphasis in native plant research. Students interested in applying for this scholarship should apply directly to:

Texas Tech - College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources

This scholarship was established at Texas Tech in 1997 through donations from the Native Plant Society of Texas and member donors to honor the late Benny Simpson, a charter member and former president of NPSOT.

Benny J. Simpson, 1928-1996, graduated from Texas Tech University in 1954. During his 42-year career at Texas A&M Research and Extension Center in Dallas, he devoted a major portion of his time to the study and propagation of native plants, developing the Cloud series of Cenizos (Leucophyllum spp.) and the Storm series of Desert Willows (Chilopsis linearis) for the nursery trade. He also authored a book, A Field Guide to Texas Trees (Gulf Publishing, Houston, Texas, 1988).

For more information on Benny Simpson and his work, visit these websites:

Benny Simpson's Texas Native Trees
Benny Simpson's Texas Native Shrubs