WT’s Loftin to Be Inducted in Enactus Hall of Fame

Contact: Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu

CANYON, Texas — A faculty member of West Texas A&M University’s Paul & Virginia Engler College of Business has earned a significant national honor.

Matthew Loftin, WT’s Miller Professor of Entrepreneurship and adviser for the WT Enactus team, has been selected as the Enactus Sam Walton Fellow Hall of Fame Inductee for 2023. He will be recognized on stage at the Enactus Nationals Exposition at the University of Texas at Dallas, which runs April 19 to 21.

This honor recognizes Loftin’s outstanding contributions to the Enactus program, which empowers students to create positive social and economic impact through entrepreneurial action, according to the Enactus website.

According to Enactus, Sam Walton Fellows are Enactus advisers who have done the most to advance the entire Enactus organization during the current academic year and who have made outstanding contributions to Enactus students and the team on their campus, including helping students with career placement.

Loftin, who began teaching at WT in 2021, was a member of Enactus (then known as Students in Free Enterprise) as a WT student.

“As a student on the SIFE team over a decade ago, Matt was a strong team leader and a fierce competitor both in case competitions and in regional/national competitions, so his ability to make a difference for both the WT team and the international organization early in his tenure as a Sam Walton Fellow says a great deal about his dedication to the organization and his ability to create momentum for projects he values,” said Jean Walker, a former WT professor who was Loftin’s SIFE adviser.

Enactus is a network of leaders committed to using business as a catalyst for positive social and environmental impact. Enactus provides experiential learning opportunities to 6,473 students across 223 U.S. colleges and universities.

Recruiting, rewarding and retaining excellent faculty and staff is a key maxim of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic, $125 million One West comprehensive fundraising campaign. To date, the five-year campaign — which publicly launched in September 2021 — has raised more than $120 million.

About West Texas A&M University

WT is located in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. WT, a Hispanic Serving Institution since 2016, boasts an enrollment of about 10,000 and offers 59 undergraduate degree programs and more than 40 graduate degrees, including two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 14 men’s and women’s athletics programs.

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