Nancy J. Bell (1941-2020)

Dr. Nancy J. Bell, a professor of HDFS at Texas Tech for 42 years, from 1974 until her retirement in 2016, died at the beginning of December 2020 (obituary). Of all the ways in which Nancy contributed to our department and to the field, her work with graduate students would almost certainly be the dominant thread. She published extensively with her graduate students on narrative analysis of developmental topics (usually pertaining to adolescence and young adulthood, but not exclusively). Nancy chaired numerous dissertations and frequently hosted receptions for her students when they completed their Ph.D. (she loved to entertain in her home, in general, and invited colleagues over for all sorts of celebrations). A few years ago, the Graduate School at Texas Tech established the Nancy J. Bell Graduate Faculty Excellence in Mentoring Award. It is hard to imagine a more fitting distinction for her!