SFA University
April 3, 2020 - Stephen F. Austin State University’s online special education and English as a second language master’s degrees were ranked among the top 25 best value online degrees in their respective categories by Optimal, a resource that helps prospective students make informed, data-driven decisions to improve their collegiate experience and their post-college careers.
In addition, SFA’s educational leadership, secondary education and special education master’s degrees were listed among the top 25 most affordable online degrees in their respective categories.
“The faculty and staff in each of SFA’s online graduate education programs are ready to meet students where they are and work with them to achieve their goals,” said Dr. Judy Abbott, dean of SFA’s James I. Perkins College of Education. “We know our online students often have professional and family obligations, so we try to accommodate those while providing a high-quality education their future students will benefit from.”
Optimal published its 2020 Best Value Colleges rankings at GuidetoOnlineSchools.com for 121 programs. The rankings are based on degree-level and program-specific tuition rates and salary data. The salary figures reflect median midcareer salaries of graduates to show the 10-year return on investment.
For students interested in online accredited degrees with the lowest cost, Optimal released its 2020 Most Affordable Online Colleges rankings at OnlineU.org. These 152 program rankings highlight schools making an effort to provide an economical option for prospective students.
For more information about these online SFA master’s programs, email Belinda Davis, graduate coordinator for the Perkins College of Education, at coegrad@sfasu.edu.
March 31, 2020 - Amid new city and county stay-at-home orders to help slow the spread of COVID-19, Stephen F. Austin State University student teachers are still helping children in the Nacogdoches Independent School District (NISD) learn.
Student teachers in SFA’s Community Responsiveness and Engaged Advocacy in Teacher Education program, or C.R.E.A.T.E., have planned live activity lessons from 2 to 3pm CDT on Mondays and 10 to 11am CDT on Wednesdays via Zoom through May 6.
Students and their families can register for these free Zoom sessions at the following links:
Monday sessions: https://tinyurl.com/vsgfyu5
Wednesday sessions: https://tinyurl.com/yx8ado6w
Suggested materials will be listed for each activity, and recordings of the sessions will be posted on the Supporters of Nacogdoches ISD Facebook group.
“We know that not all NISD students and families can access online activity lessons, but we wanted to do something to give back to the NISD community that has supported and contributed to the training of our C.R.E.A.T.E. student teachers over the past few semesters,” said Dr. Lauren Burrow, an associate professor in SFA’s James I. Perkins College of Education.
The lessons include art activities and science experiments designed for students in kindergarten through fifth grade, and C.R.E.A.T.E. student teachers are working to expand the topics and grade levels.
Though student teachers haven’t been able to practice teach in classrooms because of the pandemic, the online teaching format is providing them with valuable experience.
Paiten Seago, a special education senior from Forney, is one of the student teachers presenting activities during the sessions. After her first online lesson, she said, “Thank you for that opportunity! I really enjoyed it. I realized that this is all for a bigger purpose than me. Seeing students filled my teacher heart up!”
C.R.E.A.T.E. mentor families are showing their appreciation for the student teachers’ efforts through posts on the Facebook group.
"This is so great! Friends, if you’re at home and you’ve hit the wall with your children with home schooling, or you’re looking for some fun structure for your kiddos, this is just what you need to give it a shot in the arm,” said Linda Autrey, a mother of two in a C.R.E.A.T.E. mentor family and director of Advanced Academics for NISD. “Mine had fun doing the activities this morning because there was real interaction from the student teachers and professors.”
The demand for the lessons was already increasing before the city and county of Nacogdoches issued a stay-at-home order, according to Dr. Heather Olson Beal, a professor in the Perkins College of Education who worked with Burrow to launch C.R.E.A.T.E. in 2018.
“Based on the feedback we got during our first week, we really think these lessons are helping families who found themselves thrust into at-home education responsibilities,” Olson Beal said. “Even though the live, interactive sessions offer a chance for students to ask questions directly, we’re also posting the recordings for families with time-related conflicts and for students and educators living in different time zones.”
In addition to local students, teachers and librarians, educators from as far away as Hawaii are viewing the recordings, Burrow said.
Students of all ages are enjoying the online activities, Burrow added.
Linsey Taylor, librarian at Emeline Carpenter Elementary School in Nacogdoches, said, “I have had a great time learning in these classes!”
For more information, join the Facebook group or email burrowle@sfasu.edu.
March 26, 2020 - Among music industry professionals and educators in Texas and throughout the U.S., the name of Darrell Holt is synonymous with jazz excellence.
The late Holt, former associate professor of music at Stephen F. Austin State University, is among the inductees in the inaugural class of the Texas Jazz Educators Association’s Hall of Fame. The announcement was made at last month’s Texas Music Educators Association convention in San Antonio where some of Holt’s former colleagues from SFA, former students and admirers from across the nation heard the news.
Darrell Holt
Dr. Deb Scott, professor of trombone in the SFA School of Music, was among those who spoke during the induction ceremony that honored Holt’s legacy and included the announcement of six additional first-class inductees. Among those were two other people with strong jazz connections to SFA – music alumnus Wayne Dyess, ’70 and ’71, and a former director of the Swingin’ Axes jazz band and former chairman of the SFA music department, Gene Hall.
Scott spoke of how Holt “left a lasting impression on our faculty and students,” she said.
Laura Holt Treadaway, Holt’s widow, expressed great appreciation for the honor and the acknowledgement of Holt’s love of music.
“What a wonderful honor this is for Darrell to be selected, along with these other amazing jazz musicians, to be inducted into the TJEA Hall of Fame,” she said. “Our family is so, so proud for him and so grateful to all those responsible for making his nomination possible. What a wonderful tribute to him, and we know he would have given all the glory to God for this honor and for his talent.”
Holt taught various jazz courses, arranging and music theory at SFA from 1968 to 2000. According to his biography published by Northeastern Music Publications Incorporated, Holt was a nationally recognized jazz instrumental and vocal clinician during most of his life. Holt performed extensive work in recording studios as a conductor, arranger, composer and performer, having produced more than 40 albums. Among his Nashville studio work was for a CD for then young country music artist LeAnn Rimes. As a performer, Holt was an accomplished pianist, vocalist and trumpeter. He worked with such nationally recognized entertainers as Rich Little, Bob Hope and B.J. Thomas. Holt's works have been performed by the San Antonio, Dallas and Nashville symphonies, as well as the Symphony of Southeast Texas and the Kingwood Pops. He received numerous commissions, including a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts. Holt passed away from heart complications in 2000. Donations to an SFA scholarship honoring Holt can be made at https://forms.sfasu.edu/giving/onlinegift.asp?give-to-other=Darrell+Holt+Music+Scholarship.
Dyess graduated with a Bachelor of Music from SFA, where he was selected as music alumnus of the year in 1990 and inducted into the School of Music Wall of Honor. He earned his Master of Music from The Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and Doctor of Education from the University of Houston, having also completed additional graduate work at the University of Texas at Austin. Dyess was also the principal trombonist with the Symphony of Southeast Texas and performed regularly throughout the United States and internationally with several groups, including Keith Brion’s New Sousa Band and the Brass Band of Battle Creek (Michigan). From 1970 to 1974, Dyess was trombone soloist and section leader of the “World’s Finest” United States Navy Band. Dyess joined the music faculty at Lamar University in 1977. He was professor of trombone and director of jazz studies at Lamar University upon his death in 2013.
A saxophonist, arranger and music educator, Hall graduated with an M.A. from North Texas State Teachers College (now the University of North Texas) in Denton, and after playing with a number of bands in Texas and working in radio, began teaching at his alma mater in 1947. He received his doctorate from New York University. Hall's North Texas State dance band was selected as the best in America among college groups by the American Federation of Musicians in 1959. Hall developed a jazz program at Michigan State University, where he had accepted a teaching position. He later served as chairman of the music department at College of the Desert in Palm Desert, California, and at SFA. He was a principal mover in the formation in 1968 of the National Association of Jazz Educators and served as its first president. Hall received the Hall of Fame Award from the International Association of Jazz Educators in 1981. In 1992 he received the Down Beat Achievement Award for Jazz Education. Hall died in Denton in 1993. The Dr. M. E. "Gene" Hall Award, given at the annual North Texas Jazz Festival in Addison, was named in his honor.
Others named to the inaugural class were John Murphy, Leon Breeden, Conrad Johnson and Edward Trongone.
Stephen F. Austin State University Professor of Theatre Angela Bacarisse works on a homemade hat she is constructing for medical professionals who are combating COVID-19 during a medical supply shortage.
March 24, 2020 (Nacogdoches) – Standing outside a window of the School of Theatre costume shop at Stephen F. Austin State University, a Nacogdoches volunteer waited for a faculty member to hand her a package of elastic and cotton fabric. The items will be used to assemble surgical mask coverings to be used by local hospitals.
Inside the shop, located on the bottom floor of SFA’s Griffith Fine Arts Building, Angela Bacarisse, Stephen F. Austin State University theatre professor, and shop supervisor Barbara Blackwell were safely distanced from each other as they sewed more mask coverings, as well as hats.
Their work, along with the work of a small band of local seamstresses they have organized, is part of a grassroots effort in communities across the nation to help support local medical communities in combatting the spread of COVID-19.
“We saw on the internet that everybody is doing this,” Bacarisse said, adding that hospitals in various parts of the country have solicited assistance online and through social media to construct the masks using a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-compliant pattern. “I wondered if there was really a need here, so I reached out to a representative from SFA’s Dewitt School of Nursing, who put me in contact with representatives from local hospitals, and they said ‘yes!’”
Kristine Sutton, chief nursing officer at Nacogdoches Memorial Health, said she was thrilled the costume shop and seamstresses are banding together to make a difference for health care workers on the front lines of a scary and unpredictable situation.
“The staff members are worried about protecting their patients and themselves to the highest degree possible, because they’re in such close proximity to patients and the virus is so contagious,” Sutton said. “We can’t take care of sick people if we’re not healthy. It’s really touching that these community members are using their own skills to be part of our team providing that front line of defense.”
Bacarisse and Blackwell have been joined by faculty and staff from other SFA departments, community members and some costume shop alumni to assemble the items. They are using fabric from home, as well as stockpiled fabric from the costume shop, along with fabric donations from the public. Hospital officials will pick up the finished items.
While a handmade mask does not offer the kind of protection that health care professionals really need, layering the handmade masks with reused surgical masks can provide another layer of protection. Using cotton fabric, the masks are assembled in such a way that N95 masks or respirators can slide inside. The do-it-yourself masks also can serve as a reminder to not touch the face.
“I’ll be honest, when I first heard about the idea of home-sewn masks, I was skeptical because the masks we typically use are medical grade and disposable for infection control reasons,” Sutton said. “But these masks are going to be a great second-line barrier for our staff. We’ll protect our medical grade masks behind the sewn masks, and at the end of the day, we can take them off and throw them in the wash. Our staff will be so relieved to know that they’re guaranteed a clean start at the beginning of their next shift.”
Bacarisse and Blackwell each said they have underlying health issues that put them at greater risk for contracting the virus, and they wanted to do their part to help during the public health crisis.
“We want to support the medical community in any way we can, and we have the skills to do this,” Bacarisse said.
Anyone interested in volunteering to help sew the masks and hats may contact Bacarisse at abacarisse@sfasu.edu.
March 23, 2020 Nacogdoches — To assist in efforts to keep the Nacogdoches community safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, Stephen F. Austin State University has closed the Steen Library, Homer Bryce Stadium and Johnson Coliseum to the public.
Steen Library will remain open during modified hours for faculty, staff and students, according to Jonathan Helmke, director of the library. Faculty, staff and students should consult the library’s website for its latest hours of operation.
Homer Bryce Stadium and Johnson Coliseum will be closed to the public for the foreseeable future, said Ryan Ivey, director of athletics at SFA.
“While we understand and appreciate that members of our community enjoy using the track and stadium on a regular basis, unfortunately, the guidelines from the state, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other agencies require us to close our facilities to ensure the health of Nacogdoches citizens at this time,” Ivey said.
There have been no confirmed cases of the virus on the SFA campus, but university leaders have established several precautions, including canceling on-campus events and classes for the remainder of the semester.
To learn more about SFA’s COVID-19 response, visit sfasu.edu/covid19.
March 20, 2020 - The Stephen F. Austin State University Board of Regents voted Friday during a telephone conference meeting to grant SFA President Dr. Scott Gordon the temporary authority to suspend university policies and take any necessary lawful action to help cope with COVID-19 without obtaining prior board approval.
Brigettee Henderson, chair of the Board of Regents, said the authority will automatically terminate once the university resumes normal operations, unless terminated earlier by the board.
“This global pandemic has already caused significant disruption to the university’s operations,” Henderson said. “The situation requires the university’s swift action to help minimize the impact to SFA’s students, faculty, staff and other stakeholders. Granting this authority will help speed up that response time.”
Henderson also recognized SFA’s administrators, faculty and staff for their diligence in dealing with the national emergency.
“Our campus community is to be commended for all the work they are doing to serve our students,” Henderson said. “The main priority is to keep everyone safe while also ensuring our students complete the necessary coursework to progress in their degree program. It has been no small task to convert classes to an online format, but that has been accomplished.”
The university announced March 19 that courses will continue to be taught in an online or distance format for the remainder of the spring semester, as well as throughout the summer semesters.
“Although we have faced many challenges during the past few weeks, we also have seen the SFA and Nacogdoches communities come together,” Gordon said. “Although our students are not here in Nacogdoches physically, they are foremost on our minds. We will continue to do whatever is possible to ensure their educational needs are met.”
During the meeting, the board also approved a wireless networking upgrade and the guidelines for use of the environmental service fee.
March 19, 2020 - For the first time since 2006, the Stephen F. Austin State University Bass Fishing Club has won the Abu Garcia College Fishing National Championship. The competition was held Feb. 26 through 28 on the Harris Chain of Lakes, part of the Ocklawaha River basin in Central Florida. This is the third national championship victory in the club’s history.
On Feb. 28, marketing sophomore Ethan LeGare of Dallas and marketing junior Hank Harrison of South Padre Island weighed in the biggest bag of the day at 20 pounds, 8 ounces, giving them a total weight of 56 pounds, 5 ounces. They beat the Sam Houston State University team by an ounce.
In addition to the trophy, LeGare and Harrison won a $33,500 prize package, including a new Phoenix 518 Pro bass boat with a 115-horsepower Suzuki outboard.
The SFA team members also qualify as professionals for the 2020 Toyota Series Championship Nov. 5 through 7 on Lake Cumberland in Burnside, Kentucky. The championship awards $235,000 for first place.
LeGare and Harrison caught their fish by targeting grassy flats on points next to spawning pockets in Lake Beauclair, Lake Dora and Lake Eustis.
“The key to winning was adapting to the changing weather conditions and being versatile with our bait selection,” LeGare said.
On the first day of the competition, the SFA team took advantage of the barometric pressure being at its lowest point of the week due to a cold front moving in that night.
“The conditions on days two and three were tougher, but we slowed down our approach to the fish we were catching,” LeGare said. “With the barometric pressure being high on days two and three, slowing down and changing up our baits were key strategies to getting our fish to bite.”
The reservoirs and lakes near SFA helped the team gain the experience they needed to be flexible during the competition. Harrison added that the main reason he chose to attend SFA was to fish.
“I’ve always loved East Texas, but to have Sam Rayburn Reservoir and Toledo Bend Reservoir both within an hour from campus, I was sold,” he said. “Both of these lakes are consistently rated as some of the best in the country, and Sam Rayburn is in the running for the best lake in the world by Bassmaster Magazine.”
Because of these two reservoirs, as well as the numerous small lakes nearby, “There’s no better place to go to school and expand your skills as a fisherman than SFA,” Harrison said.
For more information on the SFA Bass Fishing Club, email Dr. Eric Jones, professor in SFA’s Department of Kinesiology and Health Science and the club’s faculty sponsor, at jonesej@sfasu.edu.
March 16, 2020 Nacogdoches – In response to the actions taken by Stephen F. Austin State University to restrict the possible spread of COVID-19, the College of Fine Arts has canceled all art, music and theatre events through April 5, and tickets already purchased for events scheduled during that time period can be refunded.
On March 12, SFA President Dr. Scott Gordon announced that spring break would be extended an additional two days, and beginning March 18, all SFA classes will be held in an online or other distance-learning format until April 6. Additionally, all on-campus events scheduled through April 5 are cancelled or postponed. Students are asked to remain off campus until in-person classes resume.
Although there are no confirmed cases of the virus on SFA’s campus, several cases have been confirmed in Texas. SFA followed the CDC recommendations for social distancing in making its decision to move to online class formats, according to information on the university website.
The fine arts calendar at http://www.finearts.sfasu.edu indicates the events that have been canceled thus far. But because of the uncertainty of COVID-19 and the evolving circumstances associated with a pandemic, further cancellation of events is possible, according to Dr. A.C. “Buddy” Himes, dean of the College of Fine Arts.
“The College of Fine Arts wants to do its part to keep our campus and community safe,” Himes said. “Some of our fine arts events may be rescheduled, while others simply must be canceled due to time constraints and venue scheduling issues as we near the end of this semester. Please visit the CFA website at http://www.finearts.sfasu.edu for updates to this ever-changing situation.”
Refunds are available on request. Unrefunded purchases become donations to the respective events and programs. For details about advance ticket refunds or the possible rescheduling of certain events, contact the Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
For official information about SFA’s cancellation of on-campus activities, go to http://www.sfasu.edu/life-at-sfa/health-safety/health-clinic/coronavirus.
March 12, 2020 - Stephen F. Austin State University’s Spring Break will be extended by two days to provide time for SFA faculty members to move classes to an online or other distance-education format, until at least April 6.
Classes were scheduled to resume on March 16, but instead will be resuming on March 18 in an online or other distance-education format. Faculty are being asked to utilize March 16 and 17 to prepare for this transition. SFA staff members are expected to report for work as scheduled, and updates regarding campus operations will be announced via the university’s website at www.sfasu.edu/Covid19.
“Given the ongoing global concerns around coronavirus pandemic, we want to do our part to keep our entire campus community safe and to contribute to the management of this growing public health crisis,” said Dr. Scott Gordon, SFA president.
Face-to-face classes may resume on April 6, and the university’s Easter holidays, previously scheduled for April 9, 10 and 13, will not be observed so that lost class time can be recovered.
“We will closely monitor this dynamic situation and, if necessary, could possibly extend the date for resuming in-person classes,” Gordon said. “Students will receive information from their respective colleges and faculty with details regarding how course work will be conducted.”
All on-campus events scheduled through April 5 will be canceled or postponed, and event planners will be contacted by the Baker Pattillo Student Center beginning Monday, March 16. All university-sponsored student and employee travel, both international and domestic, scheduled for March 16 through April 1 will be canceled unless approved by senior university administrators.
Showcase Saturday, SFA’s open house event for prospective students, scheduled for March 28, also will be rescheduled.
To accommodate students whose presence on campus is necessary, limited food service operations will be provided in the East College Dining Hall beginning Sunday, March 15.
Students who live on campus and need to retrieve personal belongings may do so on Sunday, March 15, from noon until 9 p.m. or Monday, March 16, through Friday, March 20, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.
Although there are no confirmed cases on SFA’s campus, several cases have been confirmed in Texas.
“Any student or employee who is ill or who believes they may have been exposed to coronavirus cannot return to campus and should follow CDC guidelines for self-isolation,” Gordon said. “If any student or employee is diagnosed with COVID-19, we ask that they notify the university at www.sfasu.edu/COVIDabsence.”
Although the university’s plans are evolving, May commencement exercises are expected to continue as scheduled.
“We will be updating information on the SFA website, but we ask for patience as we seek to make the best decisions possible,” Gordon said. “Our primary guiding priorities are the wellbeing of the SFA community and allowing our students to complete all course requirements for the spring semester. Every decision is made with these priorities in mind.“
March 6, 2020 - Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host its annual Garden Gala Day Plant Sale from 9am to 2pm Saturday, April 4, at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center in historic Nacogdoches.
The sale will feature a variety of hard-to-find, “Texas-tough” plants, including Texas natives, heirlooms, tropicals, perennials, shrubs and trees, with an emphasis on pollinator friendly selections, as well as exclusive SFA introductions. The featured plants are extensively trialed before being offered to the public and are produced by SFA Gardens staff members and volunteers.
This popular event benefits the SFA Mast Arboretum, PNPC, Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden and Gayla Mize Garden, along with educational programs hosted monthly at the gardens. Educational programs provided at the SFA Gardens reach more than 15,000 participants annually.
Parking will be available at SFA’s Janice A. Pattillo Early Childhood Research Center, and visitors are encouraged to arrive early and bring a wagon for their plants.
For more information and a list of available plants, call (936) 468-4129 or visit sfagardens.org two weeks before the sale.
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