A thletes E X CEL in the cl a s s r o o m In addition to receiving recognition for their accomplishments in athletics, SMU student-athletes were honored for their academic achievement. Alisha Filmore ’13 (women’s basketball) and Mindaugas Sadaukas ’13 (men’s swimming) were named Mustang Student-Athletes of the Year. Twenty-nine Mustang student-athletes received the Conference USA Commissioner’s Academic Medal, awarded to those who achieve at least a 3.75 cumulative grade point average during the academic year. Additionally, 186 studentathletes were named to the C-USA Commissioner’s Honor Roll for maintaining a 3.0 cumulative grade point average or higher.
Alisha Filmore ’13
Mindaugas Sadaukas ’13
Perkins community events focus on faith and life
As part of its community service mission, Perkins School of Theology hosted several public events in 2012–13 focusing on the intersection of faith and life. The School continued its tradition of hosting two Faith and Business Luncheons each semester, which provide an opportunity for Dallas business executives to explore how faith and business shape and inform one another. Featured speakers included Craig Watkins, Dallas County district attorney; Mike Ullman, chairman and CEO of JCPenney; Jim Sundberg, senior executive vice president of Texas Rangers Baseball; and Anousheh Ansari, the first female private space explorer. The Bolin Family Public Life/Personal Faith Symposium and Lecture, held in February, featured a presentation by Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and contributing editor at TIME (left), and focused on his book American Gospel: God, the Founding Fathers, and the Making of a Nation.
SMU looked forward to becoming a founding member of the American Athletic Conference (AAC), to be formed in July 2013. SMU anticipates that membership in the conference will bring increased national visibility for Mustang teams and a higher profile for the University. Competition kicks off in fall 2013. Beginning with the 2014–15 academic year, the AAC will consist of SMU, the University of Central Florida, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Connecticut, East Carolina University, the University of Houston, the University of Memphis, the University of South Florida, Temple University, Tulane University and the University of Tulsa. The U.S. Naval Academy will join as a football-only member in 2015.
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SMU joins American Athletic Conference
SMU honors distinguished graduates
Four philanthropic, civic and business leaders received SMU’s 2012 Distinguished Alumni Awards (DAA) in a ceremony on the University’s Main Quad in October. The DAA is the highest honor the University bestows upon its graduates. Recipients included (L-R) entrepreneur Paul B. Loyd, Jr. ‘68; philanthropic leader Jeanne Tower Cox ’78; and former University Park Mayor James H. “Blackie” Holmes, III ’57, ’59. Medical physicist Alonso Gutiérrez ’03 received the University’s Emerging Leader Award, which recognizes an outstanding alumnus or alumna who has graduated within the last 15 years. Past DAA recipients also were honored as History Makers as part of SMU’s ongoing centennial commemoration. SMU 2012–13 ANNUAL REPORT
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