James E. Martin

James Everett Martin (born June 22, 1933 in Vinemont; died June 3, 2017) was the fourteenth President of Auburn University, serving from 1984 to 1992.

Martin grew up in Greensboro. He came to Auburn on an athletic scholarship and completed a bachelor of science in agricultural management at Auburn in 1954. While there he met his wife, Ann, an Auburn Tigers cheerleader. He went on to earn a master's in agricultural economics at North Carolina State University in Raleigh in 1956. After two years in military service, he returned to college and completed a Ph.D. from Iowa State University in Ames in 1962. He taught at Oklahoma State University and the University of Maryland before accepting the position of Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

Martin moved to Fayetteville, Arkansas to serve as Vice President for the Division of Agriculture at the University of Arkansas in 1975. He was named president of the University in 1980 and became the first president of the combined University of Arkansas System two years later. He returned to his alma mater as Auburn's president in 1984. During his term, Auburn completed a $111 million capital fund-raising campaign.

Marin retired in 1992 following a dispute with faculty over a tenure ruling. Auburn's James E. Martin Aquatics Center is named in his honor. He and his wife, Ann, had three children, and five grandchildren.

Preceded by: Wilford Bailey

President of Auburn University 1984-1992

Succeeded by: William Muse

References

• Martin, Charles (June 5, 2017) "Former Auburn University President Jim Martin dies." Auburn University news release