New award honors ongoing commitment, Tulane spirit of alumnus Dan Hurley

When Daniel “Dan” Hurley (A&S ’51, L *54) came to Tulane it was a match made in heaven. Raised in Brooklyn, New York, Hurley’s life has always been centered on the strong principles instilled in him by his family – namely, attaining a strong education, embodying a strong work ethic, and giving back to country and community. 

At Tulane he was delighted to find himself at a school that valued all three just as much as he did. Since his undergraduate days in the late 1940s, Hurley has worked tirelessly to elevate the university in countless ways over the years. 

The Tulane Alumni Association Emeritus Club Board of Directors was determined to find a special way to honor such a remarkable legacy of service. Hurley had been recognized for his extraordinary “Roll Wave Spirit” in 2015 when he received the Bobby Boudreau Spirit Award. 

Now it was time for the board to find an additional way to recognize his years of dedication and guidance — one that would carry his name forward for generations at the university he so loves. 

The Dan Hurley Emeritus Award was established to serve as a testament to his exceptional spirit, leadership, and involvement in Tulane activities of all kinds. Named the inaugural winner, Hurley was humbled by the honor.

It was his brother, Jack Hurley, who first convinced him to come to New Orleans. A First Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps, Jack had served in the Mariana Island Campaigns and was stationed in Guam during World War II. When he returned, he took a trip to New Orleans, bringing Dan along with him. 

Dan Hurley was enchanted by the city, but always assumed he’d follow in his brother’s footsteps to Harvard or another Ivy League school. Jack suggested he give it two years. It’s been about 77 and counting. 

He met his beloved wife Joycelyn while he was an undergraduate. Though she received her Bachelor of Science degree from St. Mary’s Dominican College, he swiftly recruited her to the Tulane cause. She and Mary Dixon would later be elected as the first women members of the Green Wave Board. “For someone who didn’t go there, she put in a lot of hours,” he recalls fondly. 

When it came time for their sons, Grady (A&S ’76, L *79, L *81) and Timothy (A&S ’80, L *83) to attend college, Hurley wanted to be sure they had as much freedom of choice as he had. He even toured seven schools with Grady. Naturally, Tulane won out anyway. Grady holds three Tulane degrees, Tim two, and grandson Sam (B ’18) even played Green Wave Football while working toward his BSM. 

For decades, Dan Hurley used his Tulane education, his tireless work ethic and his profound commitment to community to bolster the university. Over the years, he’s served as president of the Green Wave Board of Administrators as well as on the Tulane Alumni Association Board of Directors, the Tulane Athletics Advisory Council, the Tulane Athletics Fund Advisory Board, the Alumni Admissions Committee, the Green Wave Club and the Emeritus Club Board of Governors, among others. 

In fact, the Green Wave Club may well owe its existence to Hurley. He recalls legendary Tulane benefactor Ben Weiner calling him one night about doing some fundraising for athletic equipment. Hurley did him one better, recommending Weiner start a fund as a non-profit and even drafting the charter. 

His devotion to Tulane and to Green Wave Athletics has been unflagging. In the early days, Hurley traveled with Green Wave teams when they went on the road, gathering other alumni and fans for social events the night before the games. Closer to home, he was a member of the Sonny Westfeldt Club, which was housed under the old Tulane Stadium, as well as an array of other area support groups that operated under various names over the years. 

The names may have changed, but what did not was Hurley’s overwhelming commitment to strengthening Green Wave pride both far and near. He was a constant resource off the field as well, sitting in on hiring coaches and advisory committees, drafting papers on ways to improve recruiting, and always thinking of new ways to bolster the institution he loves.

He’s thrilled with the many successes the Green Wave has had in recent years, from the Cotton Bowl victory to the achievements of Tulane Sailing to Green Wave Baseball taking home their first American Baseball Championship this spring. “In our league of competition, athletics can be our front porch,” says Hurley. 

Though his association with Tulane athletics has been particularly rich, Hurley’s influence extends across the university. He was a driving force behind bringing back the marching band and provided critical guidance on administrative programs and developing new degrees over the tenure of several university presidents.

“The values you have in life come in part from your education. Those values have a lot to do with who you are and that’s going to be defined by others who associate with you. The fact is, I was associated with a mission that was worthy. In my personal life, I tried to be a good person and I think Tulane helped me along.” — Dan Hurley (A&S ’51, L *54)

Now 93, Hurley’s belief in education, hard work and giving back have transformed the university that he first came to as a teenager. But to his mind, Tulane has given him just as much.