NEWS & EVENTS

Chic. Smart. Tough. Energetic. Perfectionist. Unstoppable.

John C. Goff, founder and chairman of Crescent Real Estate, Goff Capital, Canyon Ranch and Contango Oil & Gas said those words are how people would describe Elaine B. Agather, managing director of the Central U.S. for J.P. Morgan Private Bank and Fort Worth’s 2021 Business Executive of the Year. Agather was honored at the 51st Fort Worth Business Hall of Fame reception, held Nov. 16, 2021, at Dickies Arena.

Goff helped introduce Agather who he described as “my friend for many years, my partner and my banker.”

“It’s hard to live in North Texas and not know Elaine and her involvement and impact on our broader community,” Goff said. “No one can outwork Elaine. No one. She’s ever-present.”

Agather was also recognized for her commitment to the next generation of business leaders: a commitment that Texas Wesleyan University President Frederick G. Slabach described after she spoke with students during an on-campus visit in October at the Nick and Lou Martin University Center.

“In addition to her genuine and approachable nature, she offered our students wise and real-world advice as to how they should prepare for life after college,” Slabach said.

Part of Agather’s visit included lunch with university friends. Her schedule ran a few minutes behind because she was spending time connecting with each student who wanted to speak with her, a line that stretched all the way to the door of Paul and Judy Andrews Hall.

“Elaine had her priorities straight, giving intentional, individualized attention to every single student upon whom she had obviously made a memorable impact,” said Slabach.

After being officially honored, Agather took the stage and recognized the Business Hall of Fame’s mission of informing, supporting and educating youth, saying in part that “the importance of education is something that never changes. It is freedom. It is opportunity. It is empowerment. It gives us choices. It’s a job and it changes lives. It sure changed my life.”

This year’s Business Hall of Fame raised a record $500,000 toward funding the Thomas H. Law Scholarship, ensuring that future outstanding undergraduate business students are recognized for excelling in the classroom.

Agather also described how she thought moving to Fort Worth would be a temporary career move but ended up falling in love with the city and its people. Here, she learned how to be a leader and a great banker.

“They also taught me that to be a great business leader, you have a responsibility to the community. You need to care about it, and you need to give back.”

She ended the night by challenging the audience to train, teach and pass on their knowledge to the business leaders that will follow in their footsteps.

“Let’s all continue to brace the next generation of leaders by passing on what we have learned over the years. Leaders do not grow in isolation. It’s all about educating that next generation and helping open the gates for them. And if we do it right, they will be better than we were.”

The Graduate Programs of Nurse Anesthesia celebrated the opening of its new Simulation Center with a ribboncutting ceremony attended by university community members, donors, Fort Worth community leaders and GPNA professionals on Oct. 29, 2021.

After the ribbon-cutting, guests were treated to tours of the new facility, which features three expanded simulated operating rooms, a simulation control room and renovations to both the student lounge area and restroom facilities.

“We’re here to celebrate this wonderful new space and to express our excitement about our ability to continue to provide critically needed nurse anesthetists for the health care profession,” Texas Wesleyan University President Frederick G. Slabach said.

Texas Wesleyan Board of Trustees Chairman Glenn Lewis ’81 and GPNA Program Director Terri Kane MHS ’99, DNAP ’15, also spoke at the event.

“From this building each year,” Lewis said, “we launch the careers of 100 certified registered nurse anesthetists, right here from Polytechnic Heights.”

Fundraising for the effort began in May 2019. When COVID-19 hit in March 2020, half of the $2 million for the project had been raised, leaving the remainder to be raised during the pandemic. The final dollar came in the door in July 2021, two months after construction started.

“This renovation has had such an incredible impact not only on our current students but also on our future students,” said Kane. “The ability to simulate critical thinking and physical skills in our Simulation Center improves patient care, safety and student confidence in transitioning from the classroom to the OR.”

Because classes are scheduled August through May, construction had to be contained to only the summer months. It was a tight deadline, but GPNA faculty and staff were allowed to move back in a week before classes started in August.

“The changes that have occurred here are just awesome,” Roderick Reinke, retired GPNA professor and program director as well as the namesake of the Roderick Reinke Ph.D. GPNA Lecture Hall, said. “Almost to the point that I would like to be back here working and teaching the nurse anesthesia students again. It was the highlight of my professional career and the folks here have done a wonderful job of providing a top-notch facility.”

In August, assistant professor of Texas Wesleyan’s Graduate Programs of Nurse Anesthesia Dr. Jose Castillo was awarded the Ira P. Gunn Award by the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology. The award demonstrates outstanding professional advocacy and is usually given to an individual who exemplifies the values and perseverance of the past president of AANA, whom the award is named after.

Castillo sees the accomplishment as inspirational, not only for the lasting impact that it leaves on GPNA, but also for the students who are enrolled and invested in the program.

As a certified registered nurse anesthetist himself, Castillo understands the importance of helping students achieve their goal to become certified in nurse anesthesia.

“We are helping all our students realize their dream and at the same time, we are providing this capable, competent, proficient certified registered nurse anesthetist or nurse anesthesiologist to the communities that really need them,” he said.

Castillo is also the president of the Florida Association of Nurse Anesthesiology and said that a lot of the work that got him to win the award was thanks to his team in Florida and their push for legislation as an independent practice.

Associate program director and assistant professor Dr. Tito Tubog recounted some of the highlights of Castillo’s efforts that made him noteworthy of being nominated for the award.

“Dr. Castillo worked with the Florida Department of Health to identify a lead CRNA in each Florida county to determine the needs of the community,” Tubog said. “When there were issues with the need for ventilators for people with severe COVID who were struggling to breathe, he coordinated a lot of that stuff.”

Tubog said the Texas Wesleyan GPNA is very honored that Castillo got the award, because it is a national award, and anesthesia providers look at previous awardees in the U.S.

“I just want the community to know that we have somebody who is on our campus that has obtained a national award that talks about legal battles with the practice that we have and the rights to practice,” Tubog said.

Program director and associate professor Dr. Terri Kane said the award reinforces Castillo’s students and colleagues in their charge to use their skills for the greater good. “This award is about advocacy and reaching out. It’s about helping the public. That’s one of the things we should be called to as nurses and nurse anesthetists, but it’s also something that we should be called to just as human beings, that we try to help other people,” Kane said.

Trustee and longtime benefactor Lou Martin HON ’03 has committed $265,000 to upgrade the lighting and sound systems in Nicholas Martin Hall, the university’s performance hall named after Lou’s husband of 43 years, Nicholas Martin HON ’03, who died in 2021. Martin Hall is the university’s main event space, hosting concerts, convocations, guest lectures and other university-wide presentations. Originally built in 1909 as part of Polytechnic United Methodist Church, Martin Hall was renamed in 20012002 after the Martins provided the lead gift in the Fine Arts Building Restoration project.

“Musicians from all over the world are often fascinated by the acoustic capacity of Martin Hall,” Ilka Araujo, associate professor of music and chair of the music department, said. “Lou Martin’s generous gift will allow our music program to continue offering first-rate performances and to better connect with the community, including attracting future Rams.”

Nick and Lou Martin have one of the most generous legacies in the history of Texas Wesleyan. Their leadership and philanthropy have made possible the Baker-Martin House, Martin Field, Nicholas Martin Hall, Lou’s Place and the Martin University Center, among other projects.

“Lou Martin is the epitome of university leadership,” President Frederick G. Slabach said. “She attends every campus event she can, gives of her time and her resources, and has poured a significant part of her life into this institution. Without Lou, this university would not be what it is today.”

Lou’s service on the Board of Trustees follows a family legacy. Her grandfather, James B. Baker, served on the board from 1895 to 1912, and her father, Edward L. Baker, served from 1945 to 1969. Thanks to Lou, both of their portraits hang in the Martin University Center.

On Thursday, Oct. 28, Texas Wesleyan hosted the Goostree Symposium’s speaker for 2021, Ms. Opal Lee, at the Martin University Center Ballroom.

Lee is famous for having walked from her home, at the age of 90, in Fort Worth to the White House in Washington, D.C. to ask President Barack Obama to make Juneteenth a national holiday.

The grandmother of Juneteenth, Black rights activist leader and board member of the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation will soon earn yet another achievement with the installment of the National Juneteenth Museum in her hometown of Fort Worth. However, Ms. Opal Lee said her biggest achievement was having four beautiful children.

In June 2021, Lee stood alongside President Joe Biden as he signed the law and was given the pen he used to sign it with. “Have you ever heard of the Holy Grail?” she said. “I was just delighted. I was humble. But I don’t really know how to express it, I was just really awed.”

At the end of her speech, Lee participated in a questionand-answer session with Stacia Campbell, associate professor of English. Then Lee was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters. ‘Dr. Lee’ was shocked. “Oh wow! I don’t know what to say! And I know you don’t want me dancing up here,” Lee joked.

Julian Schlesinger, field representative for Congressman Marc Veasey ’95, said the event was wonderful, and it was the first time he had ever heard her life story in real life.

“I do think a lot of people need to know who Ms. Opal Lee is and what she is standing for and what she has done over the past several decades,” Schlesinger said. “She has done a lot. I’m just ready to see where all of this will go in the future.”

As we launch our new Engage 2025 Strategic Plan, which highlights the importance of enhancing diversity, inclusion and civic responsibility, we also begin the annual Diversity and Inclusion Award. This award symbolizes our appreciation for a faculty or staff member who shows a commitment to underrepresented communities through service, programming, scholarship or research.

“Angela has been integral to creating and supporting a campus with a focus on fairness, celebrating diversity, supporting inclusion and encouraging others to do the same along the way,” Texas Wesleyan University President Frederick G. Slabach said. “Not only has she completed her doctoral dissertation titled ‘African American Male Undergraduate Students’ Perception of Campus Racial Climate at a Predominately White Private Religiously Affiliated Higher Education Institution,’ but Angela was also a champion of the creation of the Texas Wesleyan Diversity and Inclusion Council and, through the council, has been able to facilitate critical conversations on our campus around race, power and privilege.”

Dampeer accepted the award with a challenge.

“I challenge myself and each of us standing in this room today to be the light,” Dampeer, associate vice president of human resources, said. “Shine bright in your specific area and in collective collaboration for the world to see that Texas Wesleyan University is committed, in work and deed, to enriching all of our students, with their myriad diverse backgrounds, to impact the world for the greater good.”

Texas Wesleyan is keeping up with its (blue and) gold standard of marketing excellence.

TXWES earned six awards — four gold and two silver — in the ninth annual Education Digital Marketing Awards.

The MBA Commercial — “Darnel,” along with the redesign of the Student Life and Campus Living webpages earned silver awards.

“Texas Wesleyan’s Smaller. Smarter. campus is unlike any other. Our marketing campaign tells the story of big scholarships, intentionally small classes and oneon-one attention that continues to resonate with more students year after year, as evidenced by this fall’s first-year class, our largest since 1997,” Alan Liebrecht, vice president of enrollment, marketing and communications, said. “Our talented team has created memorable ads that make TXWES stand out in the minds of not just the award selection committee, but of our most important judges — the students who choose us as the home for their education.”

Two Texas Wesleyan School of Education faculty members have gained statewide praise for their service to education.

Professor of education Patsy Robles-Goodwin and associate professor of education Elizabeth Ward were recognized at the Consortium of State Organizations for Texas Teacher Education Fall Teacher Education Conference awards dinner on Oct. 10 in San Marcos.

Robles-Goodwin was nominated for the Exemplary Faculty Practices Award for her work with teachers of English language learners. Ward was presented with the Ben E. Coody Distinguished Service Award from the Texas Association of Teacher Educators for her service to the association and her impact on state educational policy.

“Both Robles-Goodwin and Ward are not only key leaders at the university, but critical leaders in their fields and in Texas,” Carlos Martinez, dean of the School of Education, said. “They have made, and continue to make, major contributions to policy that impact public school students all over the state. They are excellent instructors who are dedicated to the development of effective and committed teachers.”

A Texas Wesleyan alumna is in the middle of the fight against COVID-19 misinformation and will be getting some help thanks to a prestigious honor.

Ana Aleksandric ’20, a TXWES computer science graduate and current doctoral student and researcher at the University of Texas at Arlington, is just one of two recipients of the Technology Informatics Guiding Education Reform (TIGER) Scholars Informatics Internship. The one-year position will help enhance her knowledge of health informatics and related skills.

“Health informatics is becoming even more important now because of the pandemic,” Aleksandric said in UTA’s announcement of the achievement. “Collecting data only from hospitals is not enough to understand what is happening at the community level.”

In her research, Aleksandric has been examining where COVID-19 vaccination misinformation and disinformation are likely to occur. As a TIGER intern, she hopes to build on that research by providing information that will increase COVID-19 vaccination rates in the U.S. and help people find accurate healthrelated resources.

“When we put this data together, it allows public health advocates to gain the knowledge needed to intervene against misinformation and assist the public in making fully informed health care decisions,” Aleksandric said.

“As her former professor at Texas Wesleyan, I am so proud of Ana’s achievements at UTA as a doctoral student. Ana was one of the best students in our computer science program. She always exceeded expectations with her quality work,” Yukong Zhang, professor of computer science, said.

In fall 2021, the university had its largest first-year enrollment since 1997 as it welcomed 382 first-year students, an increase of 53% from 2020.

This increase was in stark contrast to the reported 4.9% drop in the nation’s undergraduate enrollment in U.S. colleges and universities reported by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center in June 2021. While nationwide trends generally show college enrollment declining, Texas Wesleyan’s small community approach and individual attention from professors may be exactly what this new generation of college students wants, and even expects, from their institution of higher learning.

“While Texas Wesleyan’s campus may have seen significant changes in the past 10 years, with more than $50 million in capital improvements to the campus and surrounding neighborhood, its focus on individual attention has stayed steadfast,” President Frederick G. Slabach said. “It has always been this intentionally small school’s philosophy that one-onone attention develops the critical thinking, analytical reasoning and creative problem-solving skills needed to create successful leaders. Leaders that can navigate the difficult problems of our future.”

In 2019, Texas Wesleyan adjusted its scholarship program to a simple structure with big rewards. A designated Hispanic-serving institution with predominantly first-generation college students, Texas Wesleyan increased its merit awards to bring more opportunities for underrepresented students to afford a private school education with personal attention.

“University enrollment is determined by a multitude of factors,” Alan Liebrecht, vice president for enrollment, marketing and communications, said. “After joining Texas Wesleyan in December 2020, I could see that this small school was doing so many things right, starting with giving a quality education to a high-need population. The Texas Wesleyan community works every day to deliver a “Smaller. Smarter.” experience, and l think prospective students see the value of being a name, not a number, and the effect that can have on their future.”

President Frederick G. Slabach welcomed the attendees of the 2021 Brick Dedication Ceremony and Memorial Honor Roll to the donor brick walkway in front of the Eunice and James L. West Library on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021.

The event, hosted by the Texas Wesleyan Office of Advancement, represented current student reflections by Kennedy Cedillo, which was followed by alumni reflections from current Alumni Association Board President Eric Montoya ’07 M.Ed. ’15.

The event continued with the 2021 memorial honor roll, a new element beginning in 2019. The names of all recently deceased Texas Wesleyan students, faculty, staff, alumni, leadership and friends were read by Quentin McGown ’79 JD ’00 and Cedillo, followed by a moment of silence and the ringing of the memorial golden bell, provided by Meadowbrook-Poly United Methodist Church. As each name was read, family and friends stood in their memory until the memorial bell had been rung. Dr. Gladys Childs, university chaplain, dean of Freshman Success and associate professor of religion, concluded the event with a memorial prayer, and President Slabach closed the event with a short speech.

Douglas Spellman, supervisor of the mailroom and copier center, started at Wesleyan in 1983 and retired January 2022. “It’s the family and the people here that make this university what it is,” Spellman said.

Spellman lost his mother, Dorothy Spelmon, in July 2021. He said that a few TXWES colleagues had purchased a memorial brick to be placed at the ceremony in her name. His only request was that his own brick be placed next to hers. Donor bricks are a part of the university’s annual giving program and are offered to donors with total giving to the university within a year that reaches a certain threshold.

“To be a permanent part of the university is indeed a great honor. My grandkids and my great grandkids and relatives – they can come and find both of our names right there together and that is an honor and a privilege,” Spellman said.

Jorge Vivar ’76 is now a donor, but his past with Texas Wesleyan makes him want to give back. When he finally moved to Dallas-Fort Worth from Peru, his plans changed from going to study at the University of Lima for medicine to coming to Texas Wesleyan and looking into opportunities with business and travel.

“I came here and had to learn English and the courses were difficult,” he said. “But I like business, traveling and languages. So, I pursued a career in international trade. I got a degree in management and business administration in 1976. Texas Wesleyan has been very important.”

Since graduating, Vivar has worked in international commerce and trade, working with distributors, flying overseas, and developing the program so that international countries can be successful. He had been president of the Alumni Association for the past two years.

“So, [having previously been president] has given me the opportunity to not only come back, but also to give back to this magnificent institution that we love so much,” Vivar said. “That’s why I continue to participate and help as much as I can as a member of the Alumni Association.” SOCIAL CHATTER

So glad to see @potus at this year’s #congressionalbaseballgame. I’m counting on my awesome new #goodluckcharm for the next many years to come! Let’s gooooo!

Look at some of our Reps. at the Destress before the Test event, getting ready for finals! Good luck on exams Rams!

Thanks for an amazing Homecoming Weekend, RAMily! #txwes