SFA University
September 13, 2018 - Two historic milestones are being celebrated this month at Stephen F. Austin State University. In addition to the 95th anniversary since its founding in 1923, the university has marked its first enrollment of more than 13,000 students.
The total enrollment increased more than 4 percent, from 12,614 students in fall 2017 to 13,144 students this fall. An increase in undergraduate students, from 10,985 to 11,398, accounts for a portion of the increase, along with more than 100 additional students in the graduate school, which currently enrolls 1,746.
“It is extremely gratifying to achieve this goal during the academic year when we will celebrate all that the university has accomplished in its 95-year history,” said Dr. Baker Pattillo, SFA president. “I am grateful to everyone across campus who has worked toward the university’s commitment to opening our classrooms to serve more students, as we provide opportunities that transform lives and expand the pipeline of talent that fuels progress in our region and across the country.”
Erma Brecht, who joined the university in June as executive director of enrollment management, said the university’s efforts to establish meaningful and sustained enrollment growth will continue. She said a focus on partnerships with community colleges to offer a seamless transfer process for their students into targeted programs, as well as serving as a dual-credit provider to East Texas high schools, contributed to the current increase in undergraduate enrollment.
“Both of these initiatives align with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s plan to increase the percentage of Texans who hold a certificate or degree,” Brecht said. “SFA is increasing degree completions with high-need populations by serving diverse groups, including nearly 1,200 economically disadvantaged graduates in 2017.”
The coordinating board’s strategic plan 60X30TX (60 by 30 TX) aims that by the year 2030 at least 60 percent of Texans ages 25 to 34 will have a certificate or degree, with at least 550,000 students completing a certificate, associate, bachelor’s or master’s from a Texas institution of higher education.
Enrollment in SFA’s College of Liberal and Applied Arts increased 16.5 percent, from 2,672 to 3,113. Other enrollments numbers include: College of Fine Arts, from 920 in fall 2017 to 962, a 4.6 percent increase; Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture, from 800 to 826, a 3.3 percent increase from fall 2017; Rusche College of Business, from 1,848 to 1,890, a 2.3 percent increase; and in the College of Sciences and Mathematics, from 2,406 in fall 2017 to 2,426, an increase of almost 1 percent. Enrollment in the Perkins College of Education declined slightly, from 3,968 in fall 2017 to 3,927, a decrease of 1 percent.
Enrollment in SFA’s graduate programs increased by more than 100 students, from 1,629 in fall 2017 to 1,746 this fall. Dr. Pauline Sampson, dean of the graduate school, said the increase is a result of the efforts of the deans of each college, as well as faculty members, to be extremely responsive and proactive in recruitment efforts.
“Weekly reports are sent to all program coordinators and deans with information on graduate student applicants,” Sampson said. “This allows coordinators to reach out to students and follow-up with them to assist in finishing the application process. This personal contact means a lot to potential Lumberjacks.”
SFA’s previous all-time high 12th-class day enrollment was 12,999 students registered in fall 2012.
The university will celebrate its 95th anniversary, and its historic enrollment number, during a ceremony at 11 a.m. Tuesday, September 18, in the Student Center Plaza. Sen. Robert Nichols and Nacogdoches Mayor Shelley Brophy will participate in the event. Parking for visitors will be available in the Student Center parking garage.
September 13, 2018 Nacogdoches — Stephen F. Austin State University will celebrate its 95-year history at 11 a.m. Tuesday, September 18, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Plaza. The event will pay homage to a tradition that dates all the way back to SFA's opening day – birthday cake – along with a newer tradition: purple ice cream.
“At the end of the first day of classes 95 years ago, the faculty, staff and students enjoyed cake in celebration of the 50th birthday of SFA's first president, Dr. Alton W. Birdwell,” said Dr. Baker Pattillo, SFA president. “We are inviting members of the SFA and Nacogdoches communities to gather with us and commemorate this anniversary in the same manner.”
State Sen. Robert Nichols is expected to attend, along with other elected officials.
SFA’s History
In the opening years of the 20th century, local citizens set about convincing the Texas Legislature to open a state college in Nacogdoches.
Toward that end, the group created an illustrated pamphlet titled "Twenty-Three Reasons Why Stephen F. Austin State Normal College Ought to be Located in Nacogdoches." Among these revelations – the city offered a delightfully mild climate, cheap electricity and a good sewage system, rare natural beauty, a progressive business spirit, ample entertainment facilities, a high moral tone, and three two-story hotels. The 23rd reason given was that Nacogdoches "links old Texas with the new."
A prime example of this link on the campus today is the newly opened Ed and Gwen Cole STEM Building, a $46.4 million facility that supports the study of physics, engineering, astronomy and computer science, which sits next to the Stone Fort Museum, a replica of the house built by legendary Texas pioneer Gil Y’Barbo.
Nacogdoches was selected as the site of the newly chartered school in 1917, but progress was delayed by World War I. On Sept. 18, 1923, SFA welcomed its first students to class, and the rest, as they say, is history.
A Year of Celebration
The university's 95th anniversary will be celebrated throughout the coming academic year, and planning is underway for a variety of special events and activities, according to Jill Still, SFA vice president for university advancement and chair of the 95th anniversary planning committee.
"There will be many opportunities for students, alumni, faculty and staff, and friends of SFA to join in the celebrations surrounding this important milestone," Still said. "Our 95th anniversary year is an appropriate time to honor SFA's proud traditions and, as we look toward the celebration of our 100th anniversary, the new and exciting initiatives that will help ensure the continued success of our institution for many years to come."
September 12, 2018 – The Music Preparatory Division in the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music will host its annual fall Middle School All-Region Choir Camp from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, September 15, in the Wright Music Building on the SFA campus.
The choir camp is designed to help East Texas area middle school students learn their UIL all-region competition music, according to Pat Barnett, director of the Music Preparatory Division.
Dr. Michael Murphy, director of choral activities at SFA, is the combined conductor for the camp. Clinicians are Charlotte Davis, Music Prep faculty, soprano I; Amanda Sheriff, graduate student, soprano II; Jennifer Weems, NISD choir instructor, alto; Nita Hudson, lecturer of voice and opera, tenor; and Dr. Chris Turner, assistant professor of voice, bass.
Accompanists are Linda Parr, Donna Dear, Nio Ajero, Kaden Harman and Mary Cooper, piano. The Music Preparatory Division's Advisory Board is in charge of arrangements. Nicole Stewart, Lufkin High School choir director, is the overall camp director.
All participants should bring Region 21 All-Region music, pencil, water and a snack. Concessions will be available for purchase during scheduled breaks. The dining hall in the Baker Pattillo Student Center will be open and serving brunch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Cost per student is $20. Registration is accepted by calling (936) 468-1291 or by email at pbarnett@sfasu.edu.
September 11, 2018 Nacogdoches — Stephen F. Austin State University and Houston Community College will kick off the semester and their interior design partnership with an open house showcasing HCC’s Central campus facilities from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. September 19 in the Learning Hub Building, Room 100, on the HCC Central campus.
Students, faculty, staff, interior design alumni and community members are invited to attend the free event.
Sally Ann Swearingen, SFA associate professor of interior design, said the event is a celebration.
“We are excited to celebrate this collaboration and welcome the incoming class to this unique program,” Swearingen said. “The open house will provide a great opportunity to network and familiarize students with the campus.”
The two institutions began a partnership in 2017 that allows HCC students the opportunity to earn their bachelor’s degree in interior design from SFA while remaining at the HCC campus.
Students who have graduated from HCC in interior design and have completed the core course requirements have the opportunity to enroll in the last 42 hours of SFA interior design courses either online or face-to-face on the HCC campus. Also, the partnership allows a fast-track approach with 78 approved HCC course hours that transfer to SFA.
Students who graduate with a bachelor’s degree in interior design at an accredited university such as SFA are allowed to take the first portion of the National Council for Interior Design Qualification exam, which is the industry’s professional certification. After six months of experience, students will be able to take the final portion of the exam, Swearingen said.
For more information, visit sfasu.edu/hms/103.asp or hccs.edu/sfa/.
Event parking will be available at the garage located on La Branch and Alabama streets.
By Kasi Dickerson, senior marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.
September 7, 2018 Nacogdoches — Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host its annual Fabulous Fall Festival Plant Sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. October 6 at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, located at 2900 Raguet St. in historic Nacogdoches.
The sale will feature a variety of hard-to-find, “Texas-tough” plants, including Texas natives, heirlooms, perennials, shrubs and trees, with an emphasis on pollinator-friendly plants, 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 that are hosted monthly at the gardens. SFA Gardens’ educational programs reach more than 15,000 participants annually.
Parking will be available at SFA’s Janice A. Pattillo Early Childhood Research Center, located at 2428 Raguet St. Visitors are encouraged to arrive early and bring a wagon for their plants.
For more information and a list of available plants, call (936) 468-4404, or visit sfagardens.sfasu.edu two weeks before the sale.
September 7, 2018 Nacogdoches — A new initiative involving Stephen F. Austin State University’s Rusche College of Business and corporate leaders will help support student success and provide a link between the academic and corporate worlds.
Through this new launching partnerships program, corporate partners can have a consistent and lasting impact on the Rusche College of Business’ students, programs and facilities.
“The launching partnerships initiative is special because everyone wins,” said Dr. Tim Bisping, dean of the Rusche College of Business. “Employers have new opportunities to get to know our students, and students have the opportunity to network with business professionals. As a whole, the Rusche College of Business wins because all aspects of this program advance our Learn, Launch, Lead mission.”
Building business networks for students is a key goal of the college. This partnership will provide opportunities for corporate partners to visit classes multiple times per year to meet with students, discuss job opportunities and share insight into the business world.
Additionally, the college will host corporate events dedicated to the partner company to give business leaders an avenue to meet with students one-on-one. Corporate partners also will be recognized with special signage within the college’s McGee Business Building.
Dr. Trey Turner, executive director of development, said this initiative aligns with the university’s SFA Envisioned Strategic Plan to provide transformative experiences for students and increase connections.
“The launch of the new corporate partner initiative creates an ideal opportunity to secure new sponsorships from business and industry, as well as increase the visibility of these new corporate partners on campus,” Turner said. “The additional funds and collaboration that stem from these partnerships will create exciting new experiential-learning opportunities for many SFA students.”
To learn more about this endeavor, contact Bisping at (936) 468-3101 or bispingto@sfasu.edu.
By Kasi Dickerson, senior marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.
Since SFA Gardens’ initial kiwifruit harvest in 2014, the expanding plot of golden kiwifruit, located on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus, has produced more than 1,500 pounds of the small, tender-fleshed fruit. The plots, which produced Texas’ first successful kiwifruit harvest, are part of ongoing research led by Dr. David Creech, SFA professor emeritus of agriculture and director of SFA Gardens, to determine this fruit’s potential as a commercial crop in Texas. Pictured from left to right with this year’s kiwifruit harvest are Duke Pittman and Malcolm Turner, SFA Gardens technicians; Elzanne Naude, Samantha Holding, Christopher Vondergroeben and John Dilday, SFA Gardens student workers; and Tim Hartmann, program specialist in horticulture.
September 5, 2018 Nacogdoches — Researchers at SFA Gardens are reaping the sweet rewards of their ongoing investigation into the feasibility of adding kiwifruit to the state’s long list of agricultural commodities.
Since the initial crop produced in 2014 – the state’s first-ever successful kiwifruit harvest – the expanding plot of golden kiwifruit, located on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus, has produced more than 1,500 pounds of the small, tender-fleshed fruit.
“We collected 750 pounds this year,” said Dr. David Creech, SFA professor emeritus of agriculture and director of SFA Gardens. “The harvest came a little early this year, likely due to the intense heat we’ve had.”
While kiwifruit is eaten when tender, Creech explained they are harvested while still firm. To know when the crop is ready for harvest, the sugar content of the fruit is regularly monitored.
“We check the sugar content with a refractometer, which is a hand-held tool,” Creech said. “You cut the fruit in half and place some juice on the tool, and when the sugars hit a brix measurement of 10 to 12 you’re ready to harvest.”
In 2011, Dr. Jay Spiers, associate professor of horticulture at Auburn University and a longtime friend of Creech, provided SFA with the initial 30 vines comprised of three female and three male varieties.
These fruits do not share the appearance of the typical fuzzy-skinned, green-fleshed kiwifruits commonly found at supermarkets. These varieties, known as golden kiwis, have a smooth, edible skin and golden-colored flesh.
According to researchers at Auburn University, the varieties trialed at SFA, including the AU Golden Dragon and AU Golden Sunshine, contain antioxidants that provide higher levels of cellular protection than those found in green-fleshed varieties.
“When we first grew kiwis in 2011, we really didn’t know a thing about them because no one had ever fruited them in Texas,” Creech said. “When we fruited them in 2014 on young vines, some of my agriculture buddies thought it was a fluke, but then we had a big crop in 2015, which opened some eyes.”
Since that initial harvest, Creech’s knowledge of the kiwifruit industry has continued to expand.
This spring, Creech spent two weeks in New Zealand, one of the world’s leading producers of kiwifruit, visiting orchards with a group of interested Texas investors. In 2017, he traveled to Changsha, China, to study the work of Yanoon BioTech Company’s kiwifruit breeding program. Creech also spent a week in California’s kiwifruit growing regions, where the ubiquitous green kiwifruit varieties thrive.
“The golden kiwifruits are grown in California, but success has proven to be difficult due to the low humidity and high sunlight pressures placed upon this thin-skinned fruit,” Creech said. “The higher humidity of the Gulf Coast South, less intense sunlight and wind pressures are favorable to golden kiwifruit culture.”
Creech said that commercial fields can produce up to 50,000 pounds of kiwifruit per acre, which requires substantial infrastructure investment in the form of support systems and trellises for the vines.
“It’s a real high-technology crop,” Creech said. “You have a male and female plant, and it has to be the right male in terms of the time of pollen shed and stigma receptivity.”
Creech said that many farmers in New Zealand are transitioning to all female kiwifruit orchards and implementing artificial pollination using pollen collected from all-male kiwifruit orchards. These cautionary steps are taken because even if the female plants are fertilized, the success and size of the fruit relies on the amount of pollen transferred, and natural pollinators are not always reliable if weather is inclement during the blooming period.
“When you have that kind of investment, you need to ensure good pollination,” Creech said.
In addition to the trial plots at SFA, new plots are being installed in northeast Texas and on the northwest side of Houston to determine if certain areas of the state are more conducive to plant growth.
“It’s a long-term project, like so many new crops,” Creech said. “So far, we’re encouraged, and we do think there is some opportunity. We have a long way to go to fully understand the technology needed to produce the kind of yields and production they get in New Zealand and California.”
For more information regarding this research, contact Creech at (936) 468-4343 or dcreech@sfasu.edu.
September 4, 2018 Nacogdoches — Military veterans, ROTC members and their guests are invited to attend a social for community veterans, sponsored by Stephen F. Austin State University’s Veterans Resource Center, from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, September 12, at Maklemore’s Ale House and Bistro, located at 2304 North St.
Joe Cuellar, a veteran of the U.S. Army and singer/songwriter from Lufkin, will perform a medley of songs, some his original music, from genres ranging from folk to country. There is no cover charge, and free appetizers (until they are gone) will be provided.
“SFA has a large population of students who also are veterans,” John Fontenot, VRC coordinator, said. “Our community’s military men and women have a strong bond — they are like a family. Through this event, we hope to help connect those who have served our country and provide them with an opportunity to network, relax and have fun.”
For more information about the social, contact Fontenot at (936) 468-6494.
September 3, 2018 Nacogdoches — Stephen F. Austin State University has launched a degree program catered toward students passionate about nutrition.
The new bachelor’s degree in food and nutrition serves as a specialized plan for students pursuing a career in nutrition-related fields.
Unlike the dietetics and nutritional sciences degree offered at SFA, this new degree focuses less on clinical nutrition and more on community nutrition.
“Our focus has always been for students to succeed,” said Sarah Drake, clinical instructor in SFA’s School of Human Sciences. “We work with all students to ensure they are in the right program and make them all aware of the options available to them. We believe this new degree will be a great fit for many of our program’s students.”
In addition to core curriculum, the food and nutrition degree includes opportunities for internships and a minor, such as child and family development, communications, or culinary. Courses will be taught online and face-to-face on the SFA campus.
“A trend we have seen in our field is a growing interest in nutrition degrees that are not geared toward becoming registered dietitians; therefore, creating a separate degree better meets these students’ interests,” Drake said.
Through this program, students will learn about food service management theories, nutrition counseling and nutritional education. Career opportunities for students with a nutrition degree include food service management facilities, food banks, pharmaceutical sales, experimental food labs and employment with school districts.
For more information, visit sfasu.edu/hms/101.asp.
August 30, 2018 Nacogdoches — Seventy members of the newly re-established Lumberjack Band Alumni Association, including generations of Lumberjack Marching Band musicians and twirlers, are scheduled to perform during halftime of the SFA versus Tarleton State University football game, and with registration still open, more are expected to join in the festivities.
After initially forming in the 1970s before disbanding about a decade ago, this new group organized last year.
“The first Lumberjack alumni band was created by Jim Hagood in the 1970s,” said Paige Pattillo-Brown, LBAA organizer and former SFA feature twirler. “Unfortunately, that organization ceased to exist more than a decade ago. I drafted the bylaws and created the new Lumberjack Band Alumni Association last year. In 2017, we had 71 members and, this year, 37 more members have joined.”
In 2016, a reunion was held to celebrate the band's 90th anniversary and the Twirl-O-Jacks' 60th anniversary, but an official alumni organization did not exist at that time. Brown, along with Kristen Badders Conklin, assist each year in judging SFA twirling tryouts, and following the 2016 tryouts, the two volunteered to help plan another reunion for 2017. They soon found themselves creating a new organization.
The purpose of the LBAA is centered on financial and other support of current Lumberjack Marching Band members.
“Former band members have always expressed what a wonderful time they had in the band, and we want current students to have an exceptional experience, as well,” Brown said. “We raised more than $2,000 our first year. With that money, we were able to provide small scholarships for the section leaders, give commemorative SFA band blankets to the graduating seniors and feed the entire band pizza during a summer band practice. Our goals are still the same; we just want to give more money each year to assist the current band.”
Former SFA twirler Mary Jo Morris of New Braunfuls also will return for a second year to perform during halftime. The 88-year-old alumna twirled for SFA 70 years ago in 1948 and 1949.
The SFA football game against Tarleton State University will begin at 6 p.m. September 8, at Homer Bryce Stadium.
The second annual LBAA halftime performance will take place as part of the 2018 Lumberjack Marching Band and Twirl-O-Jacks Reunion, which is slated for the same day. Registration and a tentative schedule of events can be found online at sfaalumni.com/event/LMBTOJ18, or call the SFA Alumni Association at (936) 468-3407 for additional information. LBAA annual membership is $45; lifetime membership is $250.
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