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SHSU Update For Week Of April 20
- Health Fair To Target Huntsville, TWC Students
- Museum Event To Remember 1965 Integration
- Broadcast Students To Wrap Up Season Of ‘City Spotlight’
- Exhibit To Showcase Art ‘Not Often Displayed’ In Galleries
- Musical Theatre To Stage 1960s Rock Musical ‘HAIR’
- Satellite Gallery To Display ‘Familiar’ Artwork
- Concerts To Feature Faculty, Student Groups
- Brass Choir To Bring Sounds Of Russia To Concert Hall
- Program Allows Middle School-ers To Experience ‘College Life’
- Students Participate In Federal Reserve Conference
- Inaugural Art Song Competition Winners Announced
- Today@Sam Seeks Summer Calendar Info
- Submit Update Items Here
Health Fair To Target Huntsville, TWC Students
Bearkats in Huntsville and The Woodlands can learn about getting healthy in a variety of ways during the Student Health Fair on April 23 and April 30.
The event, sponsored by the SHSU Student Health Center, will bring organizations to SHSU on Wednesday (April 23), from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Lowman Student Center Mall Area, and to SHSU—The Woodlands Center on April 30, from 4-6 p.m., for discussions on various areas of health.
“The health fair is the chance for students to get timely, relevant health information in a fun, casual atmosphere,” said Lisa Clarkson, SHC program coordinator. “These organizations will focus on everything from nutrition, to sexual health, to cancer prevention and bone marrow donation, and indoor and outdoor recreation.”
Participants are asked to swipe their Bearkat OneCards at the SHC table to receive a passport before attending the various organization tables for the opportunity to win prizes.
Those who visit at least 12 tables and listen to the health information will receive either a free "We Mustache You to Be Healthy" or "Student Health Center—Vegas" T-shirt.
Among the organizations scheduled to attend the main campus event are the SHSU Student Money Management Center, UTMB WIC, Eta Sigma Gamma Honors Health Fraternity, I Go Pink/Kroger, Lesbian Health Initiative, Huntsville Memorial Hospital, the SHSU Crime Victim Student Association, and the Academic Health Plan, among others.
Those slated to attend the TWC event include SHSU Students with Disabilities, The Breast Cancer Charities of America, Lone Star Family Clinic, Twee's Nails and Spa massage therapy, Villa Sport, Legends Sports Complex, the Women Infant Children food program, Texas Department of State Health Services: Adult Immunization program, and the Montgomery County Women's Center, among others.
In the event of inclement weather, the main campus event will be moved to the LSC Ballroom.
For more information, contact Clarkson at 936.294.4347.
Museum Event To Remember 1965 Integration
Next year will mark the 50th anniversary of racial integration in Huntsville, which was accomplished after a sit-in at the famous Café Raven on the courthouse square.
Local libraries contain no oral history archives of that important time, so the Sam Houston Memorial Museum will host an evening for senior citizens to share what they remember.
The oral history event will take place on Thursday (April 24) at 7 p.m. in the Katy and E. Don Walker Sr. Walker Education Center Auditorium.
Texas historian and Gen. Sam Houston biographer James L. Haley, who is writing an article about desegregation in Huntsville, will moderate the discussion.
“Unlike much of the South, Huntsville had no riots,” Haley said. “There were a few arrests, but no violence. That was remarkable. However, local media chose not to cover the sit-in, because they did not want to give it publicity.”
Because of the blackout, there is a gap in the historical record.
“We know that there are many senior citizens still with us who have sharp memories, and it is important to get them together, jog each other’s recollections, and see what they remember,” he said.
The event will be open to the public.
Especially invited are senior citizens who have memories to share of integration in 1965.
For more information, contact Haley at jim@jameslhaley.com.
Broadcast Students To Wrap Up Season Of ‘City Spotlight’
New episodes of the student-produced television show “City Spotlight” will continue to air on KSHU-TV Channel 7 on Mondays at 4 p.m. until May.
“City Spotlight,” created by Sam Houston State University broadcast production students and hosted by Warner Endowed Chair of Journalism Peter Roussel, focuses on people, places, and events in Huntsville and on the SHSU campus.
With the help of Priority One, the one-campus publish relations firm staffed by students, “City Spotlight” has had a variety of guests this semester, according to Tracy Dylan Chappell, Priority One member.
Recent guests on the show have included NAACP fashion show director Corey Chenier, associate professor of film Tom Garrett, director of university events Charlene McWilliams, director of Alumni Relations Charles Vienne, Huntsville ISD superintendent Steve Johnson, Huntsville-Walker County Chamber of Commerce president Carol Smith, SHSU men’s basketball head coach Jason Hooten, and Global Center for Journalism and Democracy executive director Kelli Arena.
The guest for the April 22 show will be Brian McColpin, SHSU spirit programs coordinator, and the guest for the final new show of the spring, on April 29, will be announced at a later date.
Repeat airings of “City Spotlight” can be viewed at 4 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays.
Exhibit To Showcase Art ‘Not Often Displayed’ In Galleries
Graduating seniors who are focusing their studies on graphic design will showcase the culmination of their work at Sam Houston State University in an exhibition Monday through Thursday (April 21-24) in the Gaddis Geeslin Gallery.
A reception for the Graphic Design Senior Exhibition will be on Thursday, from 6-8 p.m. in the gallery.
The show will include a range of graphic design work including posters, package design, corporate identity, epub and web design, illustration, and more.
“As part of the Senior Studio in Graphic Design class, students develop a body of work suitable for a designer's portfolio,” said Tony Watkins, associate professor of graphic design. “This process includes the creation of new work as well as the refinement of existing work.
“The show is a forum for the community, professionals, family, and friends to see our students’ work, as well as meet with the designers personally during the show's reception,” he said.
Senior designers who will be presenting their work include Frederick Corbin, Lauren Fenn, Daniel Freeman, Jerry Garner, Dakota Hickman, Caitlyn Kaczmarek, Cynthia Mangum, Mary Maule, Isaac Moen, Marlyn Montoya, Jesse Ovard, Clayton Preston, Lee Price, Ryan Rivera, Melissa Sanders, Mayra Vacaflor, Joshua Wetzel, Kaelyn Williams, and Justin Zetzsche.
“This is a great opportunity to see what SHSU graphic design students are doing and to see the kind of work that doesn't often find itself displayed in an art gallery,” Watkins said.
The reception and exhibition are open to the public.
For more information, call the SHSU art department at 936.294.4311.
Musical Theatre To Stage 1960s Rock Musical ‘HAIR’
The Sam Houston State University Department of Theatre and Musical Theatre will present the revolutionary rock musical that ignited a generation with its production of “HAIR” Wednesday through Saturday (April 23-26).
“HAIR” will include 8 p.m. performances each day, with a 2 p.m. Saturday matinee performance, in the University Theatre Center’s Erica Starr Theatre.
Conceived in the 1960s by actors James Rado and Gerome Ragni, the watershed musical remains timely and popular because of its countercultural commentary on love, war, politics and youth rebellion, according to production director Penny Hasekoester, chair of the theatre and musical theatre department.
“The story of one group's struggle to live out their ideals amid a chaotic world, ‘HAIR’ not only defined a generation, but also the future of the rock musical genre,” she said.
Described by the “New York Times” as “the ultimate rock musical” “HAIR” opened on Broadway in 1968 and has since staged numerous productions around the world.
The score includes songs that have become icons in the world of Broadway rock, from the title song "Hair" to favorites "Aquarius," "Good Morning Starshine" and "Let the Sunshine In."
Rado and Ragni have described the inspiration for the musical as a combination of characters they met in the streets, people they knew and their own imaginations.
“There was so much excitement in the streets and the parks and the hippie areas, and we thought if we could transmit this excitement to the stage it would be wonderful,” Rado said.
The cast for SHSU’s production of “HAIR” includes Thomas Williams, Brandon Whitley, Audrey Wilson, Caleb White, Andrew Carson, Sarah Farmer, Gabby Greer, Trace Rustin Pool, Clilton Adams, Taylor Ammons, Grant Brown, Enrique Cavazos, Seth Cunningham, Megan Jankovic, Bryan Okoro, Trent O'Neal, Catherine Pope, Joseph Redd, Ryan Smith, Peter Ton, Maci Bass, Michael Stewart, Maryann Williams, Nick Cuellar, Katelyn Johnson, and Shanae'a Moore.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased online at shsu.edu/boxoffice or by phone at 936.294.1339.
Satellite Gallery To Display ‘Familiar’ Artwork
Three senior art students will present works that deal with addiction, false memories and household standards, exploring “familiar” issues in an exhibit that will be on display Monday through Saturday (April 21-26) in the Satellite Gallery.
“Family Portraits: Impolite Dinner Conversation” will feature the work of Kailey Shea Smith, Luke Ikard and Laura Pregeant, who, through their work, share residual traits from their past that affect who they are in the present as well as how they process and filter information, according to the artists.
Familiar places in the home, wayward siblings, and the attempt to recall lost memories are all experiences that have shaped and molded the three artists, according to Pregeant.
“Through reconstructing these intimate topics, we hope to remove the social stigma of ‘polite dinner conversation’ and create an honest discussion about family relations and the source and impact of our formative years,” she said.
Ikard pulls from personal memories to create mechanical, rigid devices made of wood, found objects and video as a way to process his past and decipher a reality that may be partially fabricated by his own imagination.
His works are viewed as prosthetic memories and are presented as inventions to help him figure out his own past and separate truth from any possible falsehood that he may have fabricated, he said.
Pregeant creates sculptural installations that re-contextualize domestic objects and her own experiences with them in conjunction with emotions or sentiments that tie her to these objects in the first place.
“I create unnatural combinations of household items, using dinner settings, a mattress, fan, and cabinets to address specific topics relating to an emotional tie to these materials though my family and upbringing,” she said.
Smith’s sculptural work employs porcelain and iconic drug use imagery to discuss the struggle that she and her family deal with as a result of her brother's addiction to heroin.
“I utilize plants as a metaphor for our persistent and discouraging efforts to care for my brother through his self destructive habits,” Smith said.
A reception for the exhibit will be on April 22, from 5-7 p.m., with artists’ talks at 5:30 p.m. in the Satellite Gallery, at 1216 University Ave., in the Huntsville downtown square.
The SG is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Concerts To Feature Faculty, Student Groups
Sam Houston State University faculty and student musicians will begin and end the week by showcasing the old and the new during two recitals.
On Monday (April 21), faculty who compose the Kolonneh Chamber Players will present their spring concert at 7:30 p.m. in the Gaertner Performing Arts Center Recital Hall.
The concert will feature two “wonderful” compositions— a quintet for clarinet and strings by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and a newer work by Bolivian composer Gustavo Navarre, according to Javier Pinell, associate professor of violin and Kolonneh Chamber Players member.
Mozart’s “Quintet in for Clarinet and Strings, K. 581” is Mozart’s only masterwork completed clarinet quintet and is one of the earliest and best-known works written especially for the instrument, Pinell said.
Navarre’s “String Quartet” will be performed in preparation for the group’s professional recording in may as part of a comprehensive project that has also included the compilation and transcription of his surviving works. Nearly all of his oeuvre was lost in a fire in the 1990s.
Navarre was a major, classically trained Bolivian composer and a pioneer among the musicians of his generation. His compositional style has been described as neo-Romantic with Bolivian elements and nationalism.
“The Kolonneh String Quartet has gone on a concert tour of Bolivia this past summer performing Navarre’s music for Bolivian audiences,” Pinell said.
The Kolonneh Chamber Players also include Naomi Gjevre, violin; Dawson White, viola; Daniel Saenz, cello; and Patricia Card, clarinet.
On Sunday (April 27) the student-run Evergreen Quartet will perform works created for the clarinet and bass clarinet at 5:30 p.m. in the GPAC Recital Hall.
The program will include works from 18th- to 20th-century composers, including Dominico Scarlatti’s “Sonata K. 96,” Claude Debussy’s “The Maid with the Flaxen Hair,” Alfred Uhl’s “Divertimento,” and Zen Confrey’s “Dizzy Fingers.”
The Evergreen Quartet comprises Cori Reebenacker, Emma Simmons, Cristina Barrera, and Lauren Hansen.
“I would encourage people to come out to this because this ensemble is student-run; it showcases some of this talent that we have in the School of Music,” Reebenacker said.
Admission to both performances is free.
For more information, call the School of Music at 936.294.1360.
Brass Choir To Bring Sounds Of Russia To Concert Hall
The SHSU Old Main Brass Choir will “glorify the sound of brass through Russian tonality” by highlighting pieces by native Russian composers, during a recital on Friday (April 25).
"Russians and Brass Festival," which will be presented at 7:30 p.m. in the Gaertner Performing Arts Center Concert Hall, will feature Sergei Prokofiev’s “March Op. 99,” Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “March Slav,” Pavel Chesnokov’s “Salvation is Created” and Alexander Borodin’s “Polovtsian Dances.”
“These pieces are all special in their own way and will make for a pretty exciting evening of music,” said Joseph Vranas, Old Main Brass Choir music director. “It's not terribly long, and you're sure to leave with a smile on your face.
“Also, because we are a student ensemble, it's a great venue to appreciate, experience, and realize the opportunities students can make for themselves at Sam Houston,” he said.
The Old Main Brass Choir was founded in 1957 by late professor Fisher Tull, who arranged and wrote a lot of the music performed.
The group slowly disappeared after Tull’s death, but was revived five or six years ago by undergraduate students under its current name to connect with the SHSU heritage.
Today, the ensemble comprises 21 student members, all of whom audition for a place in the ensemble at the beginning of every semester. Because of this, several of the students will be performing their first concert with the group during this recital, Vranas said.
The choir includes seven trumpets, four horns, three euphoniums, five trombones, and two tubas, sometimes accompanied by student percussionists.
“What makes this performance unique is merely that fact that no professional, no faculty member, no one but undergraduate students made this happen,” Vranas said. “The music you will hear is based on sheer devotion from future professional musicians and teachers (under the guidance of faculty advisers and mentors).
The organization is devoted to improving every skill needed to make music, with the benefit of forming friendships and bonds that can last through your entire career,” he said. “Quite often students improve drastically in understanding music on a level other than performance, which in turn, makes them better musicians as a whole.”
Admission is free.
For more information, call the School of Music at 936.294.1360.
Program Allows Middle School-ers To Experience ‘College Life’
Forty-nine students from Spring ISD’s Wells Middle School had the opportunity to tour campus, “take” classes and eat lunch at the Old Main Market on April 11 during a visit hosted by the Sam Houston State University ELITE Program.
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| Wells Middle School students pose for a picture in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Building after spending the day with SHSU students in the ELITE program. |
For the experience, middle school students were paired with an ELITE member, who took the children to one of their classes to show the student first-hand what college classes are like.
The mentors also served as tour guides and had lunch with the young students at Old Main Market.
“The students were very enthusiastic about their visit at SHSU,” said Barbara Eckenfels, executive director for special programs and ELITE Program coordinator. “Many told us that they wanted to attend SHSU after high school.”
Among the professors who hosted the Wells students in their classes were Ray Renteria, Rick Bello, Mitzi Mahoney, Juana Sanchez Jimenez, Tamara Waggener, Frank Fair, Jesse Herring, Jerry Dowling, and Rick Norman.
The middle schoolers were also given backpacks, courtesy of the SHSU Visitor Center.
This is the second year that Wells Middle School students have visited campus. Last spring, sixth graders were also paired with ELITE students in conjunction with a “teen leadership” program created by associate professor of management Juliana Lilly to teach leadership and business practices in the school in an effort to help students better manage their behavior.
A second group of Wells students will visit campus on April 25.
Students Participate In Federal Reserve Conference
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| College of Business Administration students participated in the annual Economics Scholar Program Conference for Undergraduate Research on March 28 at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. —Submitted photo |
Eight economics students from the Sam Houston State University College of Business Administration shared their work and thoughts on world economics issues during the eighth annual Economics Scholar Program Conference for Undergraduate Research on March 28.
The conference, held at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, brought together undergraduate students from across the country.
Among SHSU’s participants, Sahabia Ahmed and Stephen Sears presented their papers on “Information and Communications Technology and Immigration from Africa” and “Effects of Gender and Race on Occupational Wages,” respectively. These papers were based on their honors theses, under the supervision of Hiranya K. Nath, professor of economics, the faculty sponsor who accompanied the students to the conference.
Ryan Johnson and Somkene Tassie participated as discussants, and Seok Im, William Love, Cristina Tizado Molina, and Maria Valtierra participated as session chairs.
The conference was organized jointly by Austin College and Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
“This is a great opportunity for the undergraduate students to get exposed to the kind of research activities their peers carry out in other schools,” Nath said. “This is particularly helpful for students who want to pursue graduate studies.”
This is the fourth year in a row that SHSU students have participated in the ESP conference.
Inaugural Art Song Competition Winners Announced
Senior vocal performance major Ardeen Pierre and graduate student Mihai Vatca were named the winners of the Sam Houston State University School of Music first Art Song Competition.
The on-stage showcase, held April 13, featured 18 student singer/pianist teams competing for cash prizes.
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| Mihai Vatca and Ardeen Pierre's performance of Mozart's �Smanie implacabili,� Berlioz�s �Le Spectre de la Rose� and Bolcom�s �Amor� earned the duo first place in SHSU's first Art Song Competition. —Submitted photo |
“The Art Song Competition was created to promote student singer and collaborative pianist achievement in the performance of song literature and to promote degree studies at SHSU that encompass vocal and collaborative piano arts,” said Ronald E. Shields, College of Fine Arts and Mass Communication dean. Shields and wife Renee Thompson served as founding sponsors of the competition.
Pierre and Vatca, who each received a $1,000 prize, wowed the audience with Mozart’s “Smanie implacabili,” Berlioz’s “Le Spectre de la Rose” and Bolcom’s “Amor.”
The $750 cash prizes for second place went to vocalist Nick Szoeke and pianist Catalin Iacob, and the $500 awards for third place were presented to vocalist Amber Jamison and pianist Catalin Iacob.
The final round of the competition, a formal evening concert presented at the Gaertner Performing Arts Center, featured seven finalist teams.
Winners were selected by a panel of esteemed judges, including Ellen Scholl, adjunct associate professor of voice/opera at Bowling Green State University; Christopher Scholl, associate professor and coordinator of voice/opera area ensembles at Bowling Green State University; and Grant Loehnig, head of music staff at the Wolf Trap Opera Company and music director of the Opera Studio.
Ellen Scholl is a two-time winner of the Metropolitan Opera district competition who sang professionally for 15 years in Europe.
Christopher Scholl, whose operatic repertoire in music spans the baroque to the 20th century and Broadway, sang professionally for more than 20 years in Europe.
Loehnig also serves on the faculty of Rice University’s Shepherd School of Music as artist teacher of opera studies.
He has worked with major companies in the United States including Houston Grand Opera, Utah Opera, Seattle Opera, and American Opera Projects.
Today@Sam Seeks Summer Calendar Info
The university Communications Office is now collecting information on campus events for its summer and fall calendar pages.
Departmental calendars or events can be sent to today@sam.edu or jenniferg@shsu.edu or faxed to 294.1834. Please include the date, location and time of the event, as well as a brief description and a contact person.
Information collected for the Today@Sam calendar pages, at shsu.edu/calendars, is used by various media outlets, as well as the Communications Office for news stories and releases.
All information, including story ideas and update items for Today@Sam, should be sent a minimum of a week in advance of the event in order to make necessary contacts and write a story.
To see a full list of the Today@Sam submission guidelines, or to access submission forms for news or feature stories, calendar submissions, or hometown releases, visit shsu.edu/guidelines.html.
For more information, call 936.294.1836.
Submit Update Items Here
In order to assist members of the Sam Houston State University community in publicizing events, the SHSU Communications Office (Today@Sam) is now requesting that students, faculty and staff submit information about events, accomplishments or ideas for feature stories online.
Submission criteria and guidelines, including deadlines, have now been placed online, at shsu.edu/guidelines.html. This information is also accessible through the “Submissions” link in the right-hand navigation on Today@Sam.
From there, those submitting ideas can access forms that will allow them to provide detailed information about their idea, as well as attach event calendars, vitas/resumes or photos, depending on the type of submission.
Ideas submitted to the SHSU Communications Office are directly utilized in several ways: as news stories, “slider” or SHSU home page stories, hometown releases, and on the Today@Sam calendar.
If your submission qualifies for distribution, we will either contact you for more detailed information, or we will edit the information using SHSU/journalistic style and forward the final release to the appropriate media.
All information is verified before release, so please provide complete, accurate and timely information. Please type all responses in appropriate upper and lower cases.
For more information, contact the Communications Office at 936.294.1836 or today@sam.edu.
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This page maintained by SHSU's Communications Office
Associate Director: Julia May
Manager: Jennifer Gauntt
Located in the 115 Administration Building
Telephone: 936.294.1836; Fax: 936.294.1834
Please send comments, corrections, news tips to Today@Sam.edu.
