Professor Spence received a B.S. from the Rice Institute, M.S. from North Texas State University, Ed.D. from Louisiana State University, and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in muscle physiology at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Spence joined the Rice faculty in 1963 and was awarded Professor Emeritus of Kinesiology upon retirement from the full-time faculty in 2003. During his faculty tenure he was also an adjunct professor at Baylor College of Medicine in the departments of Anatomy, Physiology, and Medicine. He was elected a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine. His academic specialties include human anatomy, physiology, and sports medicine. His research has focused in applied physiology.