Jon L. and Beverly A. Thompson FLMNH Chair

Jon L. and Beverly A. Thompson created this endowment in 2007 to support a chair with a research interest in invertebrate paleontology and stratigraphy in the Florida Museum of Natural History.

Both Jon and Beverly are University of Florida alumni. Beverly earned a master’s degree in education in 1962, and Jon earned his bachelor’s degree in Geology in 1961 and his master’s degree in the same subject in 1962. In the same year, he joined Exxon Company USA (EUSA) as a geologist in New Orleans.

Later, Jon would accept positions that took him across the United States as well as overseas. In the next 30 years, he would work throughout the southwestern United States, Alaska, California and London. In 1986, with the formation of Exxon Company, International, to manage Exxon’s oil and gas business outside North America, Jon was named exploration department manager.

In 1991, after a series of promotions, Jon became the president of Exxon Exploration Company and was responsible for oil and gas exploration worldwide. When the company merged with Mobil in 1999, he became vice president of ExxonMobil Corporation, and also continued as the president of exploration at the new ExxonMobil Exploration Company.

Jon served as the alumni organizer for the 50th anniversary celebration of the Department of Geological Sciences. He was named an outstanding alumnus in 2003 by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and in 2005, he received a UF Distinguished Alumnus Award.

Jon retired on May 31, 2004 after more than 41 years of service. He and Beverly reside in Sanibel, Florida.