Distinguished Professorship Established in Honor of Hasan Jameel

In 35 years of teaching paper science and engineering students at NC State’s College of Natural Resources, Hassan Jameel had one goal in mind: to teach his charges how to succeed in work – and life.

As Jameel pivots his focus to research while wrapping up an exceptional career that has created some of the top leaders in the pulp and paper industry, he has real proof that his love of teaching and of his students made a difference.

One of those students, Hal Lawton ‘96 and his wife Joanne, has endowed the Dr. Hasan Jameel Distinguished Professorship to support the activities of a professor in the Paper Science and Engineering program with a demonstrated interest in the leadership, professional development and personal growth of undergraduate students.

The honor, Jameel said, is an unexpected and treasured gift. “I’m incredibly humbled that somebody would do this. You know, all I have ever wanted from my students is a simple thank you. This gesture is beyond what I could have imagined.”

Lawton, president and chief executive office of the Tractor Supply Company and a current member of NC State’s Board of Visitors, said the professorship doesn’t begin to thank Jameel for what he did to prepare his younger self for success – in his work, and in navigating the real world that followed graduation.

“I grew up in modest means in a rural part of northeast Tennessee and received a scholarship that enabled me to have a double major in chemical engineering and paper and pulp science and technology. They took a risk on me. That and Dr. Jameel’s support had a material impact on my life,” Lawton said.

Lawton has never forgotten his mentor, sending notes every now and again to thank him for all he did for him at NC State. Jameel has saved every one of those notes. And he has not forgotten a detail of Lawton’s tenure in his class.

“I can tell you where he sat in my classroom. He came to class in his tie-dye shirt, and he was an incredibly smart guy,” Jameel said. “He was very interesting to talk to and you could tell he could relate to the need to learn about life and how to deal with different kinds of people. He wanted to succeed, and I wanted to help him do that.”

Lawton would go on to earn his MBA from the University of Virginia. He has held executive positions at Macy’s, eBay and The Home Depot. He and his wife endowed the professorship as part of the 2024 Day of Giving.

Ask any of Jameel’s students what they remember from their work with him, and many will recall lunches and dinners at his home, a leadership book club he hosted from time to time and his clear dedication to his students’ success. 

Jameel was inspired in his own work by his father, a former dean of the medical school in Bangladesh; his mother, the first female gynecologist in Bangladesh; his Ph.D. advisor; and his NC State colleague Hou-Min Chang, now a professor emeritus.

In 2021, Jameel was honored with the UNC Board of Governors Award for Excellence in Teaching. Created by the board in 1993, the award recognizes and encourages the extraordinary teaching contributions of faculty across the UNC System.

Jameel stepped down from full time teaching in 2022 and will continue to mentor graduate students and work on research into renewable resources that will help the paper and pulp industry and help create a more sustainable society for all. 

Asked what he hopes for the teachers who hold this professorship in the future, Jameel said “focusing on the whole student and teaching them not only how to think but to do” would be his dream.

This story was written by Beth Grace for the NC State College of Natural Resources.