The Award

The award recognizes and rewards an MS (Analytics) student producing the most outstanding capstone project with a focus on a non-profit organization. The Margaret Sheather Memorial Award was established in 2010 in memory of Simon Sheather’s mother. Professor Simon Sheather was a faculty member at Texas A&M from March 2005 until June 2018. During that time he served as the Head of the Department of Statistics from 2005 until 2014 and he was the Founding Academic Director of the MS (Analytics) Program from 2013 until June 2018.

The Margaret Sheather Memorial Award was established in 2010 in memory of Simon Sheather’s mother. Professor Simon Sheather was a faculty member at Texas A&M from March 2005 until June 2018. During that time he served as the Head of the Department of Statistics from 2005 until 2014 and he was the Founding Academic Director of the MS (Analytics) Program from 2013 until June 2018. Simon is currently the Dean of the Gatton College of Business at the University of Kentucky.

Margaret Sheather lived her life helping others. Margaret Sheather’s dedication to her family, friends, colleagues and even those strangers in need in the community was simply extraordinary. Margaret Sheather had a long and distinguished career in the field of nursing where her roles ranged from general nursing to serving as matron of Prestonia Private Hospital for Geriatrics in Melbourne, Australia, where she worked for 26 years.

Margaret was the mother of four sons, all of which, she played an active role in their lives. She encouraged their creativity, helped them discover their strengths, and all the while provided the patience and support needed to ensure their happiness and success. Margaret’s generous nature and giving heart made her an unusually exceptional person. She ran fundraising campaigns for the school her sons attended in order to provide books and supplies needed for the kids, as well as participated in many charitable organizations in the community. Margaret’s positive outlook on life made her the perfect role model for a successful life and career.

From 2010 through 2015 the Margaret Sheather Award focused on students in the MS (Statistics) program at Texas A&M. In 2015, Simon Sheather had the award changed from a general statistics award to an analytics award. From 2015 through 2018 the award was designed to recognize and reward an MS (Analytics) student producing the most outstanding capstone project with a focus on a non-profit organization. In 2019 the scope of the award was broadened to recognize and reward an MS (Analytics) student producing the most outstanding capstone project in any field.

For more information on the award, please contact analytics@tamu.edu