Hillerman, Tony

Tony Hillerman, writer and teacher, was born May 27, 1925 in Sacred Heart, Oklahoma. He grew up in the rural community and attended the only local grade school, a Catholic school for girls. When the United States entered World War II, Hillerman joined the army and served for two years in Europe. He returned to Oklahoma and received a BA from the University of Oklahoma in 1946.

He worked as a newspaper reporter in Texas and Oklahoma until he became UPI's Santa Fe Bureau Manager in 1952. In 1954 he joined the staff of the New Mexicanas a political reporter and later became an editor. He came to the University of New Mexico as a graduate student in English in 1962 and also worked as an assistant to President Popejoy. Hillerman received his MA in 1966 and became a professor of journalism, serving as department chair 1967-74. Taking a leave from teaching, he served as assistant to President Davis, 1975-77. During that period he worked toward the establishment of the Faculty Senate and helped Davis sort out an athletic department scandal, popularly known as lobogate. He retired from teaching in 1986.

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