KINGSVILLE (September 17, 2024) — Texas A&M University-Kingsville is excited to announce the recipients of this year’s Distinguished Alumni and Rising Star Awards. As the university’s most prestigious honor, the Javelina Alumni Association names Distinguished Alumni in recognition of their abundant success professionally and personally, through which they have positively represented and brought honor to their alma mater.
This year’s Distinguished Alumni are Javier Peña, Dr. Tadeo Reyna ’71, ’82; and Presnall Cage ’68. The 2024 Rising Star honoree is Michelle Zapata ’13. Honorees will be recognized at an event on campus in the Memorial Student Union Building Friday, Oct. 18, as part of the Javelina Homecoming Week celebration.
To purchase tickets for the event, please visit our website at https://www.javelinagiving.org/daa
ABOUT THE HONOREES
Javier Peña is a Hebbronville native who, along with his fellow Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) agent Steve Murphy, led the investigation into the Medellín Cartel, the world’s largest cocaine dealer, and its leader, Pablo Escobar. His story formed the framework for the Netflix TV series Narcos. He enrolled at Texas A&I University (now TAMUK) in 1974, where he studied sociology and psychology for two years.
Peña’s law enforcement career began in 1975 when he was hired as a Deputy Sheriff by the Webb County Sheriff’s office in Laredo. Peña transferred to Texas A&I University at Laredo (now Texas A&M International University) and graduated from that institution with honors in 1979 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology.
Peña began working for the DEA in 1984 and received a new posting in Bogota, Colombia, four years later. There, he participated in the successful manhunt for Escobar. Peña continued to serve in various and successful DEA assignments after completing his Colombia assignment, including nine years as a Special Agent in Charge of three major field divisions.
First promoted to the ranks of Senior Executive Service (SES) as the Special Agent in Charge of the San Francisco office in 2004, Peña led the Caribbean DEA office as the Special Agent in Charge from 2008 until 2011. The U.S. Government honored Peña in 2010 with the Presidential Rank Award, awarded to exceptional career SES members.
Dr. Tadeo Reyna was among the earliest instructors of bilingual education in South Texas. Over the course of his career at Texas A&I and Texas A&M-Kingsville, he helped secure and manage grants worth over $4 million from federal and local sources to help fund bilingual teacher training and migrant student programming.
After earning a Doctor of Education degree in Bilingual Education from Texas A&I in 1982, Reyna dedicated himself to the training and preparation of bilingual education professionals, as well as preparing educators to work with migrant students.
Reyna served the university for over 35 years. From 1999-2008, he was Director of the Center for Distance Learning and Continuing Education. After his retirement in early 2010, he returned as a part-time employee to support faculty members with developing grant proposals. As a Principal Investigator, he managed the $600,000 Hispanic Serving Institutions Assisting Communities grant funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to renovate the Douglass Community Youth Center in Kingsville.
Reyna is a life member of the National Association for Migrant Educators. Closer to home, he has served on various municipal boards in support of the Kingsville community.
Presnall Cage was born in Corpus Christi and grew up in Falfurrias. He loved bird hunting on the Cage Ranch and fishing in Baffin Bay. He obtained his pilot’s license at 16 and has been flying ever since. He graduated from Texas A&I with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science and was a charter member and officer of the Sigma Chi Fraternity.
After graduating, Cage was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force. He earned his pilot’s wings in 1969 and served as a forward air controller in Vietnam from 1970 to 1971. He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal with nine oak-leaf clusters for his actions there. He was an instructor training jet pilots from 24 countries in the T-37 at Laredo Air Force Base and Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio.
He returned to Falfurrias to operate the family ranch and raise commercial Herefords and crossbred cattle. He was selected as a director of the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association in 1977 and has served continuously since; recently becoming an honorary director. He is also a former director of the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute Advisory Board.
Cage and his wife, Stephanie, helped start The Learning Tree, a preschool in Falfurrias, in conjunction with several local couples and the First United Methodist Church. The Cages hosted several sporting clays shooting competitions as fundraisers for the school.
Michelle Zapata joined the Dallas Cowboys organization in 2014 and currently serves as Senior Digital Signage Programming Analyst. She has experience with other professional sports organizations as well, like the Houston Astros and Corpus Christi Hooks. Zapata earned her Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology, Sports Business from Texas A&M-Kingsville in 2013.
As an undergraduate student, she was the sole founder of the Sport Business Club. At the time, the student organization created professional development opportunities and workshops for fellow first-generation students.
Zapata has allowed herself to be a tireless resource for students, using her positions in sports organizations to benefit TAMUK students. She is a strong advocate of the Department of Health and Kinesiology and for the Sport Business program. This includes hosting stadium tours, setting up meetings with industry professionals, speaking to undergraduate classes, reviewing resumes, and sharing internship opportunities.
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