Linda Cornelius (1985) - Texas A&M Athletic Hall of Fame - Texas A&M Athletics

Linda Cornelius

Induction:
1985
Class:
1979

Linda Cornelius, a 1979 Texas A&M graduate, was a four-year letter winner and was the first female track and field All-American, earning All-America honors every year in the pentathlon. She earned a place on the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team but the United States would boycott the Moscow Olympic Games. In 1985, she became the first female inducted into the Texas A&M Athletics Hall of Fame.

Cornelius also received the Texas Amateur Athletic Federation (T.A.A.F.) Presidents Award in 1991, 1993 and 2010 and was inducted into the T.A.A.F. Hall of Fame for Parks and Recreation Administrative and Athletic Achievements in 1997. In 2014, she received the Texas Recreation and Parks Society Presidents Award.

Cornelius worked for the Cities of Highland Village, Boerne, San Antonio and College Station, providing more than 30 years of leadership in the parks & recreation field in Texas, before joining the City of Bryan staff in 2017 as the Parks & Recreation Director. She was named the Director of Parks, Recreation and Facilities in 2020. During her tenure in Bryan, Cornelius was instrumental in leading several high-profile initiatives, including the opening of the City Course at the Phillips Event Center, construction of Edgewater Park, the completion of the Sale Park Depot, construction of the Camelot Park bridge, creation of the Veterans Section of the Bryan City Cemetery, and planning for Travis Bryan Midtown Park and the Legends Event Center. Additionally, she championed the city’s efforts to upgrade and improve neighborhood parks throughout the community in order to provide safe, fun places for families to enjoy.

Cornelius passed away on June 22, 2021 after a courageous battle with cancer.