Sen. Bill Ratliff. Courtesy photo.

CORY MCCOY, comccoy@tylerpaper.com

 

Bill Ratliff has done much for the state of Texas, but perhaps his most enduring legacy will be the way he modeled how public servants champion their constituents.

Ratliff spent most of his life serving East Texas, and nowhere is that more apparent than at the University of Texas at Tyler. He served with a kind of dignity and integrity that his successors have been eager to match, according to Dr. Robert Sterken, author of “Bill Ratliff: A Profile of Courage and Leadership in American Politics.”

Sterken, a UT Tyler professor, first met Ratliff after being asked to serve on a government relations committee in 2009.

He said Ratliff quickly became a friend and mentor.

“He gave me a lot of time and allowed me to ask a lot of questions,” Sterken said.

What struck Sterken was how profoundly honest and straightforward Ratliff was.

Ratliff came into state politics in a time dominated by Democrats, becoming the first Republican in his district since Reconstruction. The difficulty of the era helped shape Ratliff’s ability to work across the aisle.

“He was respected by people from all points of view because he could be honest about the complexity of policy situations and find solutions in a complicated world,” Sterken said.

Sterken said he decided to write the biography because he wanted to show students they could exist and even thrive in a political world without being vitriolic.

“It took a fierce independence to be representative of people in this area,” he said.

Sterken hopes that devotion to East Texas continues as Ratliff’s generation hands over the reins to their successors.

Ratliff worked with former UT Tyler President Rod Mabry to help shape the college’s transformation into a four-year school. His successor, Sen. Kevin Eltife, continued the tradition. Eltife has now been named to the University of Texas System Board of Regents and his successor, Sen. Bryan Hughes, will need to forge a new era with new UT President Dr. Michael Tidwell.

Sterken is hopeful the lessons in the book will be taken to heart.

“If you ask Bill, his effect on K through 12 educational opportunities is that more students would be ready for college and UT Tyler,” Sterken said. “He has prepared multiple generations of students for university life.”

Sterken said that students could learn much from Ratliff’s dedication to social and personal responsibility. Students have a daily reminder of that devotion with the North and South Bill Ratliff Engineering buildings on campus.

“UT Tyler was built here to create a more informed and productive society,” he said. “Being an engineer made him a different kind of politician, he focused on solving problems and pulling together the pieces.”

Sterken said telling Ratliff’s unique story allowed him to take a different approach than most biographers would have. He used Joseph Campbell’s ‘The Hero’s Journey’ as a framework to weave his tale. The narrative pattern is similar to the archetypes used in mythology and drama.

Sterken said he details a point in Ratliff’s life in which the former Lt. Governor is fundraising and comes up against moral dilemma after moral dilemma, before telling his wife he is withdrawing from a race because he does not like the man he would have to become in order to win.

“It was never about him, it was about his service to others,” Sterken said.

Twitter: @TMT_Cory

 

About Sterken

Dr. Robert Sterken has been teaching since 1991, with the past 16 years spent at UT Tyler. He holds a PhD in International Relations and Economics from Texas Tech University.

Sterken recently spent a year in Myanmar studying the intersection of government and religion. He spent his time researching the culture and interviewing both religious leaders and government officials.

Sterken also taught at Yangon University during his time in Myanmar.

 

 Box:

A reception to honor Ratliff and recognize Sterken’s work, “Bill Ratliff: A Profile of Courage and Leadership in American Politics,” will take place from 4p.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 26 in the UT Tyler Ratliff Library, located on the fourth floor of Ratliff Building South.

–UT Tyler Communications