SFA University

November 2, 2016 - Dr. Leslie Cecil, chair of the Stephen F. Austin State University Department of Anthropology, Geography and Sociology, speaks Tuesday with high school students during College Day, an all-day event hosted by SFA’s College of Liberal and Applied Arts.

Throughout the day, students from school districts across East Texas were introduced to the college’s programs and educational opportunities, ate lunch with representatives from various offices, including financial aid and admissions, and were given a guided tour of the campus.

The Stone Fort Wind Quintet at Stephen F. Austin State University features faculty members, from left, Charles Gavin, French horn; Christopher Ayer, clarinet; Kerry Hughes, oboe; Christina Guenther, flute; and Lee Goodhew, bassoonNovember 1, 2016 - The Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine Arts and School of Music will present the Stone Fort Wind Quintet performing a concert titled “Invitation to the Dance” at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Music selections for the program were based on the form of the Baroque instrumental dance suite, according to Charles Gavin, SFA professor of horn and chamber music and quintet member.

“It is actually very intriguing to contrast and compare how three modern composers adapt their music to the dance suite,” Gavin said. “Also included on the program will be a setting of the tango for woodwind quintet.”

Selections include “Cumberland Suite” by American composer Eric Ewazen, a contemporary American composer who has likely succeeded Aaron Copland as the “voice” of American music, Gavin said. The suite is a four-movement work featuring the allemande, courante, sarabande and gigue, all of which come from the Baroque dance suite.

Another work programmed is also by an American composer, Lee Hoiby. His works stem from a Romantic style and are “quite melodic and lyrical,” Gavin said. This includes a setting of the waltz.

A composition by another American composer, Michael Kibbe, is titled “Pink Flamingoes,” and it features his “somewhat humorous setting of the traditional tango,” Gavin explained.
Concluding the concert will be Shout Chorus for Wind Quintet by Kenji Bunch.

“This one piece has no ties to the dance,” Gavin said, “but it will present a wild and exciting finish to the concert.”

New faculty members Lee Goodhew, bassoon, and Kerry Hughes, oboe, will perform their first concert with the quintet. Other members include Christina Guenther, flute, and Christopher Ayer, clarinet.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

Stephen F. Austin State University interior design students will host their fifth annual “Silent Night Auction” from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 1 and 2 at the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau downtown. Auction items include holiday-themed home décor, high-quality wreaths, signage, gift baskets, art and ornaments. Some items are not holiday-themed.October 28, 2016 - Stephen F. Austin State University interior design students will host their fifth annual “Silent Night Auction” from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 1 and 2 at the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau downtown.

SFA’s American Society of Interior Design and International Interior Design Association student chapters joined forces to orchestrate the fundraiser, which is open to the SFA and Nacogdoches communities.
 
SFA design students and faculty members created the auction items, which include holiday-themed home décor, high-quality wreaths, signage, gift baskets, art and ornaments. Some items are not holiday-themed.
 
Funds raised will help send SFA students to the ASID and IIDA Career Days, as well as on an educational trip to Shreveport, Louisiana, to meet with designers and go behind-the-scenes at a casino. During career days, professionals give lectures on the industry, communication techniques and what to expect on the job. Students also have the opportunity to participate in mock interviews and have their portfolios reviewed.
 
“The field trip and career days give students an opportunity to network and gain exposure in real time. All of the career days have tours to interior design and architectural firms and to construction sites,” said Sally Ann Swearingen, associate professor in SFA’s School of Human Sciences.
 
For more information, contact Swearingen at sswearingen@sfasu.edu.

Dr. Yalma Vargas, research fellow from the National Council of Science and Technology at the University of Guadalajara, Mexico, will be the guest speaker for the SFA Gardens’ monthly Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series slated for 7 p.m. Nov. 10 in the Brundrett Conservation Education Building at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center.October 26, 2016 - Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host the monthly Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series at 7 p.m. Nov. 10 in the Brundrett Conservation Education Building at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, located at 2900 Raguet St. Dr. Yalma Vargas will present “Sugar Maples from USA to Guatemala: Phylogeographic Patterns and Taxonomic Novelties.”
 
Vargas is a research fellow from the National Council of Science and Technology based at the University of Guadalajara, Mexico. Her research interests include phylogeography, molecular systematics, and plant ecology and conservation.
 
After earning her Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Guadalajara, Vargas moved to the U.S. to pursue a master’s degree in ecology from Louisiana State University. While working on her graduate degree, she concentrated on the ecology and conservation of cloud forests with sugar maples in Mexico and Central America. Later, her doctoral research integrated the evolutionary history of sugar maple populations along the Eastern U.S. and Central America.
 
As part of her graduate research, Vargas wrote a natural area proposal and management plan to protect one of the sugar maple populations in Western Mexico, which resulted in a legal decree under the state park category.
 
After graduating with her doctoral degree, Vargas served as assistant curator in the LSU herbarium and as a research associate in the university’s School of Renewable Natural Resources conservation genetics lab. She began her research fellow position in 2014, and her most recently funded project will test different hypotheses of plant demographic change in relation to quaternary geological events. She will use the genome of white oak populations along their distribution in Mexico and Central America.
 
The Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series is held the second Thursday of each month and includes a rare-plant raffle after the program. The lecture is free and open to the public, but donations to the Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series fund are always appreciated.
 
Parking is available at the nearby Raguet Elementary School, 2428 Raguet St., with continual shuttle service to the Brundrett Conservation Education Building.
 
For more information, call (936) 468-1832 or email sfagardens@sfasu.edu.

October 27, 2016 – The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre will present the student-directed, one-act play “Why Do We Laugh?” by Stephen Gregg at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 4, and at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, in the Downstage Theatre on the SFA campus.

Directed by Houston junior Jason Trevino, “Why Do We Laugh?” is “an endearing one-act play about a lifelong love story and what it means to grow old together,” according to Trevino.

“Eight actors play two characters at four different times in the characters’ lives in this fast-paced comedy,” he said.
The cast features McAllen senior Pedro Dominguez as Andrew, age 5; Porter freshman Delaney Brittingham as Meredith, age 6; Wataugh freshman Nathan Young as Andrew, age 15; Plano junior Cecily Maucieri as Meredith, age 16; Kempton Park, South Africa, senior Hanro Janse van Rensburg as Andrew, age 44; Baytown senior Chelsea Denard as Meredith, age 45; Angleton senior Bobby Britton as Andrew, age 66; and Lufkin senior Amy Miller-Martin as Meredith, age 67.

The production staff includes Maddie Collins, Sunnyvale sophomore, stage manager; Travis Brasher, Wichita Falls junior, scenic designer; Alexa Wicks, Mathis senior, and Danika Pettyjohn, Fort Worth senior, co-costume designers; Brittany Tennis, Hutto junior, lighting designer; Bruce Moran, Lake Jackson senior, sound designer; Brooke McPherson, Leander senior, makeup designer; and Victoria Medrano, Edinburg junior, properties designer.

Stephanie Murphy is faculty production advisor.

Trevino is a Bachelor of Fine Arts candidate with an emphasis in acting and directing. Although he hopes to work as a professional actor and director, his end goal is to work in higher education.

Tickets are $4. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit theatre.sfasu.edu. The Downstage Theatre is located in the Griffith Fine Arts Building, 2222 Alumni Drive.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will be the guest speaker for Stephen F. Austin State University’s Rusche College of Business’ inaugural Nelson Rusche Distinguished Lecture Series, which is scheduled to premiere at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom on the university’s campus.October 24, 2016 NACOGDOCHES, Texas — Stephen F. Austin State University’s Rusche College of Business will host its inaugural Nelson Rusche Distinguished Lecture Series at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, November 3, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom on the university’s campus. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush will serve as guest speaker.

“We are so pleased to launch the Nelson Rusche Distinguished Lecture Series by featuring as our speaker such a notable and accomplished businessman and politician,” said Dr. Tim Bisping, dean of SFA’s Rusche College of Business.

Through a question-and-answer format, Bush will discuss various topics focusing on leadership and business issues.

“Mr. Bush’s business acumen combined with his extensive policy experience should yield a unique perspective attendees will find both interesting and useful,” Bisping said. “His substantial and varied leadership background will be especially beneficial to SFA students as they work toward achieving their academic and professional goals.”

Prior to the speaker series, the university will host the SFA Leadership Summit from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3, in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Theater on the SFA campus. This free event will feature a panel discussion with seven successful alumni about leadership principles and business and corporate issues.

Summit panelists include Greg Arnold, chairman and CEO of the Truman Arnold Companies; Chris Bagley, president and chief operating officer for BancorpSouth; Terry Bonno, senior vice president of marketing and contracts for Transocean; Michael Calbert, chairman of the board for Dollar General Corporation; Stacie Shirley, executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer of Tuesday Morning Corporation; Steve Stagner, executive chairman and chairman of the board for Mattress Firm; and Michael Taff, executive vice president and CFO for Chicago Bridge & Iron Company.

Bush was elected the 43rd governor of Florida in November 1998 and re-elected in 2002 to become the state’s first two-term Republican governor. He is the son of former U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush and the brother of the 43rd President of the United States George W. Bush.

Born in Midland, Texas, Bush grew up in Houston. In 1973, he graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a degree in Latin American Studies. Bush moved to Florida in 1981, where he started a small real estate development company, which grew to become the largest, full-service commercial real estate company in South Florida.

In 1987 and 1988, Bush held his first government post, serving as Florida’s secretary of commerce under Bob Martinez, Florida’s 40th governor. As secretary of commerce, Bush promoted Florida’s business climate to the world.

Later, Bush founded the nonprofit Foundation for Florida’s Future, which joined forces with the Urban League of Greater Miami to establish one of the state’s first charter schools. He also co-authored “Profiles in Character,” a book about 14 of Florida’s civic heroes — people making a difference without making news. Additionally, he co-authored “Immigration Wars: Forging an American Solution.”

As governor, Bush focused on reforming education. Under his governance, Florida students made the greatest gains in achievement, and Florida became one of a handful of states to narrow the achievement gap. In addition, Bush cut taxes every year, and Florida led the nation in job growth seven out of eight years.

After serving as governor, Bush led his own successful consulting business, Jeb Bush and Associates. His clients ranged from small technology start-ups to well-known Fortune 500 companies. He also served as the chairman of the Foundation for Excellence in Education, a national foundation focused on education reform, and he was the co-chairman of the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy and chair of the National Consortium Center.

He authored “Reply All,” in October 2015, which tells the story of his governorship through email exchanges with his staff members, the media and the Floridians he served.

Bush ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2015. He currently lives in Miami with his wife Columba. The couple has three children and four grandchildren.

The popular Chikawa Aztec Dancers will return to Nacogdoches for the fourth annual Día de los Muertos Fiesta Saturday night, Nov. 5, in downtown Nacogdoches. Photo courtesy of Bill NieberdingOctober 20, 2016 - This year’s Día de los Muertos Fiesta will once again feature the popular Chikawa Aztec Dancers returning to perform at the fourth annual celebration slated for 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, in downtown Nacogdoches in and around The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House.

Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead observance, is considered a cheerful celebration of life, honoring the souls of the deceased. Día de los Muertos is a Mexican term derived from the Roman Catholic All Saints’ and All Souls’ days, traditionally observed Nov. 1 and 2. An array of activities, ranging from decorating graves to creating home altars, typically highlight the celebration that can last for days.

For the past three years, hundreds of East Texas residents have attended the Nacogdoches festival, and this year’s event will provide the perfect addition to a fun-filled weekend, according to Lisa Steed, events coordinator for Stephen F. Austin State University art galleries.

“This year’s Day of the Dead celebration is on the night of SFA’s homecoming,” Steed said. “We want everyone to come downtown after the game and join us for fun, food and great entertainment.”

Among the entertainers will be the fascinating Chikawa Aztec Dancers, the Martinez Mariachi Duo, Charlie Jones & Friends and musicians Juan Carlos and Jenna Ureña. Based in Conroe, the Chikawa Aztec Dancers with their colorful costumes are always a crowd pleaser, Steed said. This year’s fiesta T-shirt will feature an image of an Aztec dancer.

“We will also have the traditional Day of the Dead procession, and anyone can participate,” she said. “Costumes are highly encouraged, especially Day of the Dead themed costumes.”

The community altar returns this year in the window of Cole Art Center where remembrances or a photo of a loved one who has passed on can be included.

The fiesta is organized by SFA Art Galleries, and a fundraiser for the gallery will feature original art and Day of the Dead vintage items. The Día de los Muertos Fiesta has become an event that brings diverse segments of the East Texas community together to celebrate life and art, Steed said.

“This event has become inclusive of all minority communities, not just those considered ‘art people,’” she said.

Children attending a previous Día de los Muertos Fiesta paint sugar skulls. This year’s event is from 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, in downtown Nacogdoches. Photo courtesy of Bill NieberdingSteed said a favorite memory of hers from last year’s event occurred when she observed three Hispanic young men who were studying and discussing a piece of art in the hallway of Cole Art Center. They were talking about their different perceptions of what the work was about, when one of them pointed out the written description mounted on the wall beside the piece.

“Seeing those kids ‘find’ art for the first time is what we have wanted to do with this event and with the gallery,” she said.

Vendor booth spaces are still available. Among the vendors already committed to participating are SFA Art Metals, SFA Art Alliance, Friends of the Visual Arts, The Old Stone Fort, Nacogdoches Public Library with free children’s activities, SFA School of Theatre with face painting, and several food vendors, including Casa Morales and Birdie’s Bakery, and more.

Those interested in reserving booth spaces may email sfaartgalleries@sfasu.edu to receive a reservation form, which are also available at the Nacogdoches Public Library and The Cole Art Center.

Sponsors are also being solicited for the event. Confirmed sponsors include SFA Sound Recording Technology, R&K Distributors, the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau and Friends of the Visual Arts.

For more information, call (936) 468-6557.

October 18, 2016 - The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Art will host two exhibitions – a showcase of alumni art work and an exhibition of artist books from the Booklyn Gallery – Oct. 27 through Jan. 14 in The Cole Art Center at The Old Opera House in downtown Nacogdoches.

A reception for the double opening with artists in attendance is scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29, at Cole Art Center. The exhibitions are a presentation of the Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine arts and School of Art.
The mixed media “SFA Alumni Showcase” will be the first of its kind in several decades and will feature a variety of paintings, sculpture and other work, according to Gary Parker, retired SFA School of Art instructor and the curator of the show.

“I left it up to the individual artist to curate their own section,” Parker said. “I gave each artist a certain amount of wall space and all the floor space they wanted, but most will be traditional work.”

Parker has been an advocate of an alumni exhibition for many years. After his retirement, Parker was asked by the School of Art to turn his idea into a show that he would curate.

“I’m glad we’re doing this, and I hope it becomes a biennial event,” Parker said. “I think there are enough SFA art alums out there who are doing good things that we could feature them in this way for years to come.

“I want current students to be aware that there is a future for them in art, if they go get it,” he said. “They need to understand there is life after graduation, and that they can pursue an art career and be successful at it. If you have examples in front of you from previous students who have succeeded, it’s encouraging.”

Artists who now reside in New York, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Texas have work in the show. Participating artists include Celia Eberle, Greg Elliott, Rachel Gardner, Mike Lanagan, Emily Sloan, Matthew Sontheimer, Sara Sosnowy, Mary Jo Vath and Holly Wilson.

Keeping up with alumni across the country who have had thriving art careers is important for not only recruiting purposes, but also for documenting SFA’s history of generating successful artists, Parker said.

“That’s what current students need to see,” he said. “Not only does this give validity to SFA itself, but it gives students a certain amount of hope for the future.”

“Artist Books from the Booklyn Gallery: High Performance Printmaking,” the second exhibition, addresses the evolution of printmaking in the 21st century. The exhibition proposes that printmaking in the 21st century “will thrive as a social practice moving beyond the pop, decorative and empty abstraction that defines the commodity-driven ‘fine’ print world, and continuing to further the goals of socially engaged and experimental printmakers ranging from Goya to Judy Watson and beyond,” states Marshall Weber, curator of the exhibition.

“I propose that there is room for an urgent, attentive, attached, and ‘awoke’ printmaking practice,” Weber said, “… a practice that engages with the world both passionately and compassionately and has commitments to aesthetic integrity and social and ecological justice. In these artists’ work, aspects of public and private performance, of choreography and gesture, are a crucial conceptual and/or material part of the printmaking process.”

The Booklyn Gallery is an artist-run, nonprofit artist and bookmakers’ organization headquartered in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York.

Exhibitions are sponsored in part by the SFA Friends of the Visual Arts and Nacogdoches Junior Forum. Admission is free.

The Cole Art Center is located at 329 E. Main St. Gallery hours are 12:30 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. For more information, call (936) 468-1131.

October 12, 2016 -  Future college students will have the opportunity to experience a taste of campus life during a free, action-packed open-house Saturday, Nov. 12, at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches.

Prospective students will have the opportunity to visit with university faculty and staff members, tour the campus and residence halls, and preview academic programs during the SFA Showcase Saturday event.

"There is no better time than Showcase Saturday to visit the beautiful SFA campus and witness firsthand what it's like to be a Lumberjack," said Jessica Maynard, assistant director of SFA's Office of Admissions.

"Guests are encouraged to visit one-on-one with our faculty members to learn more about our quality, personalized academic programs, and our staff members will be available to answer questions about everything from admission requirements to financial aid to residence life,” Maynard added.

SFA is a comprehensive, residential university located in the heart of Texas Forest Country. Approximately 13,000 students attend SFA, which is within a few hours' drive of Texas' major metropolitan areas.

Showcase Saturday event registration will begin at 11:45 a.m. on the first floor of the Baker Pattillo Student Center and will remain open until 12:45 p.m. Each person who registers will receive an information packet. The opening program begins at 12:45 p.m. and will provide an overview of the day's events.

Guests will then be able to visit with representatives of the academic departments until 4 p.m. at the Academic Fair in the Student Recreation Center. A Student Services Fair will be held from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. on the first floor of the Baker Pattillo Student Center. 

Campus and residence hall tours will begin at 1:30 p.m. and continue until 5 p.m. Campus tours will take students on a guided walk of the SFA campus, while the self-guided residence hall tours will showcase several halls on both the north and south ends of campus. 

Admissions counselors will be available to discuss admission procedures and requirements from 1:30 to 5 p.m. in the Rusk Building, Room 206, and at several freshman and transfer admissions sessions held throughout the day.

Financial aid information sessions will be held at 2:30, 3:15 and 4 p.m. in the Baker Pattillo Student Center's Twilight Ballroom. Residence Life information sessions will be held at 2:30, 3:15 and 4 p.m. in the Baker Pattillo Student Center's movie theater on the second floor. 

Participating prospective students will receive a free SFA T-shirt after completing an evaluation form in the tent located in the courtyard area of the Rusk Building.

For more information about SFA's Showcase Saturday, contact the SFA Office of Admissions at (936) 468-2504 or email admissions@sfasu.edu.

October 11, 2016 - Vendor booth spaces are still available for the fourth annual Día de los Muertos Fiesta slated for 5 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, in downtown Nacogdoches in and around The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House.

Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead observance, is considered a cheerful celebration of life, honoring the souls of the deceased. Día de los Muertos is a Mexican term derived from the Roman Catholic All Saints’ and All Souls’ days, traditionally observed Nov. 1 and 2. An array of activities, ranging from decorating graves to creating home altars, typically highlight the celebration that can last for days.

The popular Chikawa Aztec Dancers, Martinez Mariachi Duo and musicians Juan Carlos and Jenna Ureña will return to entertain crowds at the Nacogdoches celebration, which grows in popularity each year, according to Lisa Steed, events coordinator for Stephen F. Austin State University art galleries.

A fundraiser for the gallery will feature original art and Day of the Dead vintage items.

Those interested in reserving booth spaces may email sfaartgalleries@sfasu.edu to receive a reservation form, which are also available at the Nacogdoches Public Library and The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House.

Among the vendors already committed to participating are SFA Art Metals, SFA Art Alliance, Friends of the Visual Arts, The Old Stone Fort, Nacogdoches Public Library with free children’s activities, SFA School of Theatre with face painting, and several food vendors, including Casa Morales and Birdie’s Bakery, and more.

Sponsors are also being solicited for the event. Confirmed sponsors include SFA Sound Recording Technology, R&K Distributors, the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau and Friends of the Visual Arts.

For more information about sponsorship opportunities or booth reservations, call (936) 468-6557.

Pages