SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 490
In Memory
of
Steve Murdock
WHEREAS, The State of Texas lost an admired educator and
demographer with the passing of former U.S. Census Bureau
director Steven Harold Murdock on April 7, 2023, at the age of 74;
and
WHEREAS, The son of Lois and Raymond Murdock, Steve Murdock
was born in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, on June 2, 1948; after
graduating from North Dakota State University, he went on to earn
his doctoral degree in demography and sociology from the
University of Kentucky; he taught for a quarter century at Texas
A&M University, where he held a Regents Chair; for a decade, he
held the Lutcher Brown Distinguished Chair in Demography and
Organization Studies at The University of Texas at San Antonio;
in 2007, he joined Rice University as the Allyn and Gladys Cline
Chair in Sociology, and he became the founding director of Rice's
Hobby Center for the Study of Texas; he was the author of dozens
of books and nearly 50 academic journal articles, and he was a
caring mentor to his Ph.D. students; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Murdock originated and institutionalized the
position of Texas state demographer; for more than 25 years, he
guided the Texas State Data Center and Texas Population Estimates
and Projections Program, taking a leadership role in the state's
efforts in the 1980, 1990, and 2000 decennial censuses; he also
made approximately 50 to 60 presentations each year on the
changing size and distribution of the state's population at the
request of groups such as legislators, school superintendents,
and fellow academics; President George W. Bush nominated him as
director of the U.S. Census Bureau in 2007, and his dedication to
public service led him to accept, even though the job would last
only a year until the next administration; he is credited with
being the steady hand that kept the 2010 Census on course during a
period of transition; and
WHEREAS, Among numerous honors, Dr. Murdock received the
Distinguished Alumni Award from North Dakota State University,
the Faculty Distinguished Research Award from Texas A&M, and both
the Distinguished Rural Sociologist and Excellence in Research
Awards from the Rural Sociological Society; in 2005, he was named
one of the 25 Most Influential Texans by Texas Monthly; and
WHEREAS, Although Steve Murdock will be deeply missed, he
left behind a legacy of scholarship and service that will be
remembered and admired for years to come; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 88th
Legislature, hereby pay tribute to the life of Steven Harold
Murdock and extend sincere condolences to the members of his
family: to his wife, Mary Zey; to his stepson, James Collins
Ferrell; to his grandson, George Collins Ferrell; to his sister,
Joann Lonbaken, and her husband, Roger, and his brother, Lee
Murdock, and his wife, June; and to his other relatives and
friends; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this Resolution be
prepared for his family and that when the Texas Senate adjourns
this day, it do so in memory of Steve Murdock.
Eckhardt, Campbell
________________________________
President of the Senate
I hereby certify that the
above Resolution was adopted by
the Senate on April 27, 2023, by a
rising vote.
________________________________
Secretary of the Senate
________________________________
Member, Texas Senate
________________________________
Member, Texas Senate