Heritage Magazine - Community Collaboration

Community Collaborations The Bearkat Impact

A Message from the President

Today, community engagement is increasingly recognized as an important component of higher education, so it should come as no surprise that community engagement is promoted as a major theme throughout Sam Houston State University. Our efforts reflect one of the university’s core values, and faculty, staff and students are committed to making a positive impact on the Huntsville community, Walker and Montgomery Counties and the State of Texas.

Our university’s approach to community engagement focuses on combining academic and community-based knowledge. Many of our most successful programs engage both faculty and students with communities or organizations to address a specific area of need. The goal of these programs is to not only educate our students but empower them to build organizational leadership skills in ways that will also enhance their effectiveness beyond their college journey. Students also experience the personal satisfaction that comes with helping to build and lift communities, putting into practice our university motto, “The measure of a Life is its Service.”

Since 2010, Sam Houston State has held the Carnegie Foundation’s Community Engagement Classification, a distinction for higher education institutions that are committed to community engagement and whose work represents best practices in the field. Only a handful of higher education institutions have earned this designation.

I know first-hand that community engagement can lead to improved outcomes for students, communities and organizations. Throughout these pages, you’ll read about transformative student learning – experiences outside of the walls of a classroom that build on the learning that occurs there. You can be proud of our students. I am.

Alisa White President, Sam Houston State University

Duke Austin, Chairman

• Houston

Garry Crain, First Vice Chairman

• San Marcos

Alan L. Tinsley, Second Vice Chairman

Charlie Amato

Sheila Faske

Sam Houston University Foundation Board of Trustees

Robert E. Hutson, President • Katy

Russell S. Molina, Vice President

• Houston

• San Antonio

• Rose City

Dionicio (Don) Flores

Stephen Lee

• El Paso

• Beaumont

William F. Scott

• Nederland

Gabriel Webb, Student Regent

Brian McCall, Chancellor

• Madisonville

• The Hills

• Austin

Ferne S. Frosch, Treasurer

C. Joel Michael II, Secretary

E. Brooke Beierle

Mia D. Gradney

John M. Hoyt, Jr

• Huntsville

• Friendswood

• Stafford

• Richmond

• Waco

Charles W. Jones III

• Dahlonega, GA

Christopher L. Tritico, Sr. • Houston

Chief Marketing Officer

Jeff Harris Interim Associate Vice President for Marketing & Communications

Stephanie Knific Editor

Emily Binetti

Writers

Emily Binetti Campbell Atkins

Mikah Boyd

Sarah Burchett

Art Direction and Design

Amy Bass-Wilson

Photography

Justin Calhoun

Every effort has been made to ensure the information contained in this issue is accurate. We apologize for any errors or omissions and ask that you bring them to our attention.

Please report any corrections to:

Office of Communications Box 2105 Huntsville, TX 77341- 2105 936.294.4406 heritage@shsu.edu

On the cover: Alumna Michelle Spencer (’91) serves as chief executive officer of the Boys & Girls Club of Walker County.

Community Collaborations

By Ken Hendrickson Associate Provost for Community Engagement, Dean of The Graduate and Professional School

University community engagement is foundational to excellence in teaching, learning and research, and critical to enhancing economic, social and cultural well-being. It is integral to SHSU’s vision as a leader in student success, innovative highimpact teaching and research.

Effective community engagement fosters creativity and builds a more just and equitable state and nation. The Carnegie Foundation describes community engagement activity to be: reciprocal collaborations with local, regional, national and global communities for the purpose of a mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources. College-community partnerships … prepare educated, engaged citizens; strengthen democratic values and civic responsibility; address critical societal issues; and contribute to the public good by effecting positive change in the civic and cultural life of our communities.

Sam Houston State has tremendous assets in the realm of community engagement and public service. Thanks to the dedication of our community engaged faculty scholars, the university enjoys Carnegie Foundation Community Engagement classification status, a prestigious and nationally recognized distinction awarded to only 351

Photo by Enrique Paz

American universities (out of nearly 4,000) and only nine in Texas. Sam Houston State is the only Texas State University System member institution to earn this recognition and sits among the top eight percent of all higher education institutions in the United States. The university offers more than 500 Academic Community Engagement (ACE) courses each year across many disciplines.

For example, professor Len Ring of the College of Criminal Justice brought her expertise to bear in an assessment of domestic violence courts in Montgomery County, helping demonstrate what worked best in those courts and how they improve public safety. In another instance, professor Benita Brooks developed the Huntsville Immersion Partnership in which students from the College of Education worked with children in the Boys and Girls Club of Huntsville to promote

literacy and to include the children in identifying and pursuing their own personal academic interests. Through classes linked to such community engagement, faculty and students collaborate with communities to develop research initiatives and address community needs, while students complete their degrees.

Sam Houston State University has a tradition of promoting faculty and staff initiative in the realm of service. By organizing this energy and integrating community engagement into teaching and research, SHSU has emerged as a leader in the field. The challenges of the immediate future are real, but the opportunities will prove boundless as we partner with our communities to tackle them together. In the heart of the 21st century, SHSU is uniquely positioned to create an engagement footprint in Texas and beyond.H

Photo by Mikol Kindle Jr

Ken Hendrickson

… a distinction awarded to only

351 American universities (out of nearly 4,000) and only nine in Texas.

Community Engaged Everyday Definitions

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources through intentional collaboration between SHSU and our community partners.

ACADEMIC COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT (ACE): a formal designation given to courses using a teaching method that combines academic instruction with community engagement, requiring students to use what they learn in the classroom to collaborate with community partners.

COMMUNITY ENGAGED SCHOLARSHIP: a collaborative process for research or creative activity that has the explicit goal of contributing to the public good.

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT: students, faculty and staff participating in opportunities related to current events and governance activities.

PUBLIC SERVICE: includes community outreach and volunteerism in which university entities (colleges, departments, faculty, staff and students) provide expertise, resources and support to or for communities and the general public. Note that community service is sometimes NOT voluntary, but a mandatory sentence, and we therefore avoid using the term “community service.”

COMMUNITY OUTREACH: a type of public service where the university as an institution or its members (students, faculty, staff) design and provide programs, initiatives, special events, resources or expertise for community use or participation.

COMMUNITY VOLUNTEERISM: a type of public service in which community entities identify community needs and develop programs or initiatives that university students, faculty or staff choose to participate in or otherwise support.H

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Available at: shsu.edu/heritage

Engaged Community

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS IN EDUCATION

FacultyCommunity

The Center for Community Engagement (CCE) promotes research and other scholarly activities produced in collaboration with community partners with the explicit goal of contributing to the public good. While many forms of research may directly or indirectly benefit the public in some way—Community Engaged Scholarship (CES) involves working with a community partner to design a project, collect and analyze information, then implement and disseminate findings to relevant audiences and create solutions to public issues.

To encourage faculty participation, the CCE has developed a Community Engaged Scholars cohort program. Throughout the semester, the cohort members learn more about CES, share research ideas, discuss ways to develop meaningful partnerships and explore ways to make this work more visible. The first cohort will finish this spring, with the second cohort starting in the fall.

“I am very excited to be a member of the inaugural cohort. As a scholar in the criminal law and justice field, engaging with the community through research and service is extremely important to me, especially as it relates to system reform and social justice. The opportunity to

receive mentorship and guidance is invaluable,” Professor Miltonette Craig said.

Faculty member and community-engaged scholar, Phillip Mulvey, believes cohort participation has provided valuable networking resources.

“The program has allowed me to think about my research in new and creative ways and opened me up to an entire network of individuals at the university and in the local community who are invested in many of the same initiatives that I am,” Mulvey said. “Being new to Texas, this has jump-started my network building by introducing me to a variety of community agencies.”H

Left to right: Miltonette Craig, Yan Zhang, Kristin Bennett, Meredith Billings, Philip Mulvey

or most students, leaving high school life behind and transitioning into a new future is challenging. This major milestone can be even more daunting for students with disabilities.

FUTURE PATHWAYS TO SUCCESS F

The Student-Centered Transitions Network (SCTN) creates new pathways to a successful adult life for students with disabilities. The statewide program is led by the Eleanor and Charles Garrett Center on Transition and Disability Studies at Sam Houston State University in collaboration with the Texas Education Agency (TEA). The key goal is to provide needed services to prepare students for post-secondary education or employment.

SHSU

Reese Horn is a senior at Lake Creek High School

Through grant funding, the TEA awarded the Garrett Center the state leadership role for the network, which is responsible for working with the state’s 20 regional Education Service Centers to provide resources, training and support to the 1,260 school districts and charter schools in the state.

“As part of the network, the Garrett Center established an advisory committee consisting of national and state experts. Because the services are for students with disabilities, it is important to include the students’ voices, however, one student cannot speak for the state,” said Vickie Mitchell, who serves as the network’s project director and professor of education at SHSU.

Mitchell created a plan to use the state’s Education Service Centers as the vehicle to secure the voice of students and created the concept of the Regional Student Advisory Committees. Transition specialists at each education service center in Texas work with their school districts to establish and hold student advisory committee meetings.

“The Garrett Center grant staff work with the service centers to develop meeting materials, train teachers who facilitate the student advisory committees and collect student feedback to submit to the TEA,” Mitchell said.

Educator Sheila Daniels serves as a transition specialist at Montgomery ISD. Her work includes managing the Regional Student Advisory Committee for the district. She regularly meets with a group of 10 Lake Creek High School students selected to participate as committee members.

“Students in specialized learning are, for the most part, left out of typical advisory groups or school committees, so for them to be invited to be a part of this committee and provide meaningful input is very empowering,” Daniels said. “The group discusses specific topics like continued learning beyond high school and they provide feedback on services from a student’s perspective.”

Reese Horn, a senior at Lake Creek High School, is a member of the student committee. He plans to attend SHSU next fall and then pursue law school to become an attorney.

“I’m hoping my input can improve things like the Texas Transition website and accessibility to resources available to students like me who need information about life after high school,” Horn said. H

GROWING STRONG COMMUNITY ROOTS

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS IN EDUCATION

When you enter the Boys & Girls Club of Walker County, a metal tree sculpture with multiple branches and budding leaves greets visitors. For Michelle Spencer, chief executive officer of the organization, the tree represents the positive growth children experience there and the growth of a nonprofit organization now celebrating 20 years of serving the community.

Like trees, the Boys & Girls Club of Walker County has established deep roots in the community to thrive, including numerous partnerships with Sam Houston State University. Many of those meaningful connections are because of Spencer, who has spent 17 years as CEO, leading a mission to help area youth with a place to learn and grow while having fun.

GROWING COMMUNITY

A Forth Worth native and 1991 graduate of SHSU, Spencer didn’t anticipate building a career in Huntsville, but when a top job opening with the Boys & Girls Club led to a coincidental connection at a SHSU Alumni Association event, she realized fate was sending her a signal, and she jumped on the opportunity.

“When I started the job, it was just me, the only full-time employee with a few part-time people,” Spencer said. “We were in one elementary school providing an after-school program. We weren’t even open during the summer. How can you be a Boys & Girls Club if you’re not open when kids need you? I realized big changes were vital, and I couldn’t do it all myself.”

Looking for support, Spencer discovered SHSU’s Center for Community Engagement, where she was invited to join the center’s advisory board. Comprised of leaders from over 20 local organizations and companies, board members work with the center to identify areas of need and act as co-educators by hosting student interns and volunteers.

“I got involved because I was trying to figure out how I could grow my relationship with SHSU to benefit their students and also my organization,” Spencer said. “When you are getting a degree in a specialized field, you don’t always have the chance for real world experience. I wanted to offer a way for students to try out what they were learning.”

What started as a collaboration in SHSU’s Department of Kinesiology, where students directed fitness activities with children at the club, has now evolved into numerous partnerships across campus with the club. In fact, Spencer can recall her team working with at least 15 different SHSU departments in just the last 2 years, along with various student organizations.

One alliance resulted in the Huntsville Immersion Partnership, an after-school program connecting children at the Boys & Girls Club with tutors studying to be teachers. The initiative was established by SHSU professor Benita Brooks in the College of Education, who was the recipient of the 2022 David Payne Academic Community Engagement Award.

“Most of my students already knew the content, but needed help learning how to build relationships. Once I showed them how to do that, we took

what we did in the classroom and applied it at the Boys & Girls Club,” Brooks said. “I knew the children there had gifts buried inside them and we needed to help them realize those gifts.”

For some Bearkat students, the opportunity to volunteer at the Boys & Girls Club allows them to share their interests and talents with others.

“When student volunteers plan to partner with us for an extended period, we try to connect with their passion, and it’s been fantastic,” Spencer said. “If you are passionate about art, we’re going to place you in the art department, for example. One previous student was really into a style of dance called stepping, and he developed a step team with some of our kids. They ended up traveling everywhere to perform, and the Boys & Girls Club of America asked us to

bring them to San Antonio to perform at their conference.”

Spencer believes the connections created with the university have been mutually beneficial, giving SHSU students opportunities to grow their skills while providing area youth possibilities to grow through new experiences.

“We have been able to develop programs and activities that our kids might not have ever had a chance to be a part of or would even think that they would be interested in,” Spencer said. “The SHSU golf team is getting ready to start teaching golf here soon. Imagine how many of our kids have never been exposed to golf.”

Although student volunteers may not realize it, their presence and interactions at the club also foster opportunities for children to consider what their future could look like.

“It can be a game changer for our kids to meet these students. When they realize ‘you look just like me and you’re in college’ it changes the way they think. It’s creating a new mindset that says, ‘I’m deserving of this and I, too, can do this.’ That’s a beautiful and powerful experience,” Spencer said.

With great relationships comes great impact. Through Spencer’s hard work and strong community roots, the Boys & Girls Club of Walker County moved into a brand-new facility in Huntsville in 2019, allowing them to expand their services to more area children.

“Starting out, we had a $180,000 budget. Right now, our budget is $1.2 million, but that wouldn’t have been possible without our continuous partnership with Sam Houston State,” Spencer said.H

Building Health Awareness

Nursing students at Sam Houston State University gain a great education, experience in the field and connect with communities to build health awareness and collect important information. These efforts are made possible thanks to an Academic Community Engagement (ACE) course led by Linda James. In her class, students engage with community partners such as Huntsville ISD, SHSU charter schools, juvenile detention centers, community centers, the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas, Good Shepherd Mission, the Salvation Army in Conroe, as well as other organizations and school districts.

Through these partnerships, students learn how to create healthcare profiles for individuals and entire communities based on census data, research, surveys and interviews they conduct in schools, nursing homes or community centers. The information gathered is then provided to organizations that can help provide more resources to the area.

“By working with partners to provide education on certain topics, students are learning the process of how to assess a community just like they would a patient,” James said.

According to James, incorporating volunteerism and service into her

classes was due in part to the example set by faculty members, who introduced James to the ACE program in her early days at SHSU. Since then, she began forming partnerships around the state and beyond, including one with Universidad de Iberoamerica in Costa Rica.

“For me, it fits into my philosophy of teaching,” James said. “I’ve always volunteered since I was a kid, it’s just something that I have found satisfying throughout my

volunteer with other organizations such as the Montgomery County Food Bank. The food bank honored the SHSU School of Nursing in 2022 with its Volunteer Service Award due to their commitment to service through their courses and personal time.

According to James, they received the recognition for their work in understanding food insecurity and sharing what they learned on how people can ensure they are getting the nutrients they need without creating excess food waste on top of their volunteerism.

James’ efforts in building a new generation of community engaged Bearkats has not gone unnoticed. In 2020, she received the David Payne Community Engagement Award, in recognition of her work teaching students the value of community engagement through partnerships with the community. She attributes her success back to her driven students and peers who have supported her along the way.

life. It’s nice to see people benefit from a skill you can bring, or even time you can provide, and see their enjoyment and satisfaction in engaging.”

Many of the students’ efforts are focused on traditional nursing and health data collection, but they also

“The credit goes to the work of the students. I guide them, give them ideas and teach them but I still feel that it’s their award because, without their commitment and desire to do the best they can, I can’t do it by myself,” James said.

Looking ahead, James hopes to expand her partnership with UNIBE University so both schools can exchange students with ease and provide greater opportunities and assistance beyond borders.H

“By working with partners to provide education on certain topics, students are learning the process of how to assess a community just like they would a patient,” James said.

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS IN HEALTH

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS IN HEALTH

Learning

to DO Medicine

Student doctors at Sam Houston State University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine have a passion for not just practicing medicine but teaching it as well. One such student did that by establishing the “You Can D.O. Medicine” camp, which is going on its second year of showing high school students that pursing medicine is within their reach.

While in class last year, Darian Dozier’s professor asked for outreach ideas utilizing recently awarded grant funding. Dozier is an avid blogger with the goal of turning her blog into a nonprofit for assisting prospective medical students. With this in mind, she proposed a summer camp for local high school students to learn about osteopathic medicine.

“One of the things I hope to be able to do in the future is create a summer program for early intervention, especially for underserved areas and students who normally don’t get those opportunities,” Dozier said.

After Dozier’s professor accepted her proposal, she got to work and recruited other student doctors like Parisa Jesudasen, a first-year medical student at the time. With Jesudasen as her assistant director and group of six excited classmates serving as counselors, Dozier organized a successful camp. Now, Jesudasen will lead the 2023 session, held over four days of spring break.

“It was incredible and so enriching because this was my first year of medical school and, through this camp, I was able to take all the knowledge I learned and share it with others,” Jesudasen said. “I think that’s such a unique experience and something that I love to do. It was amazing to be able to impact members of my community.”

The camp has expanded its reach to more schools, including the students of Conroe High School, and Oak Ridge High school.

“At the end of the day, the COM wants to bring in students from these areas because that early exposure can be a motivator,” Dozier said. “I hope it’s a catalyst for these students to pursue something they might not have considered before.”

New to the camp this year, students will practice and learn about diagnostic ultrasound from members of the COM’s ultrasound club, in addition to hands-on medical skills. Further, it will incorporate lessons on what a medical student’s journey looks like from application to residency and how to be mindful about mental health throughout that journey.

Dozier and Jesudasen look forward to seeing how the camp will continue to grow in size and scope, allowing more young people to discover the possibilities of a medical career.

SHSU’s COM opened in 2020 and will graduate its first cohort in 2024.H

FOCUSED A CITY PARTNERSHIP

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS WITH CITIES & COUNTIES

Sam Houston State University Academic Community Engagement (ACE) courses aim to connect Bearkats to their community through scholarly instruction and realworld experience. Mass Communications professor Martin Gaston, who teaches Multi-Camera Field Production, knows the importance of these connections for his students, SHSU and the City of Huntsville.

“Communities are better served when the colleges within them open their doors,” Gaston said. “I am excited about the opportunity to be able to do that and help lead the way through ACE. I find that community bridge building is paramount to the success of a university as a whole.”

After joining SHSU’s Mass Communications Department in 2021, Gaston developed a relationship with Tim Johnson at KSAM 107 and KHVL, who has previously worked with mass communications students at his radio stations.

“Tim called and said Huntsville’s mayor needed someone to film the annual State of the City address,” Gaston said. “He put me in touch with the City of Huntsville and I explained to them I could do it, but I’d rather use students.”

This idea paved the way for a partnership between SHSU mass communications students and the entire City of Huntsville that would ultimately go far beyond the city address.

“We thought we were just working with the mayor’s office but, when we walked into that building, we were introduced to the entirety of the city,” Gaston said. “All of the municipal departments were there and expressed interest in working with

us. That is when this really blew up and became what it is now.”

Renée Gravois, associate professor of marketing for SHSU’s College of Business Administration, filled Gaston in on the university’s ACE program and scheduled a meeting to discuss a partnership. According to Gaston, it was a match made in heaven. Along with Gravois and the ACE staff, he credits Mass Communications Department Chair Wojciech Lorenc for establishing the course through a certification process.

“Now that we have that all in place, the spring semester is where we really start working with individual city departments,” Gaston said.

Through the course, students learn techniques and approaches to multicamera directing and production to train in various remote production contexts, including sports, dance, music and special events coverage.

While official plans are still being hashed out between Gaston and the city, preliminary ideas include student produced media content for departments, live coverage of city council and other regular meetings and possibly developing a Huntsville tourism video.

“We have an opportunity to carry these students through the whole process. It’s the full cycle of the production life from meeting with your client, working with your client, shooting and producing for your client and mastering the actual content,” Gaston said. “Whether it is a municipal environment or the private sector, you need visual content to succeed. This is a win-win for the university and the community.”H

Bat SHSUgoes to

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS WITH CITIES & COUNTIES

When a local issue is brought to the table, collective conversations can often generate ideas and solutions. One example addresses the community concern of Huntsville’s massive bat colony, an issue that continues to grow in attention, even recently making national headlines.

Thanks to the efforts of the Sam Houston State University Gibson D. Lewis Center for Business and Economic Development, along with student volunteers, the university is supporting the City of Huntsville through a unique research project.

“We are working with the city to investigate the economic impact and potential of the 1-million Mexican free-tailed bats living in the abandoned warehouse next to the Walls Unit just north of campus,” said Christian Raschke, director of the center and associate professor of economics. “In order to determine the existing economic impact of the visitors coming to see the bats, it is important to establish where the visitors are coming from. Out of town visitors contribute to our local economy by spending money for food and lodging in our community during their visit.”

To gather information on who is coming to Huntsville to see the bats, the center launched a survey initiative with senior economics major, Makenzie Hesse, serving as the lead student on the effort.

“I created the survey and then recruited a group of 22 student volunteers through the Smith-Hutson Scholars program and the Elliott T. Bowers Honors College. As a member of both campus groups, I know of their generosity,” Hesse said. “I went with the volunteers to the warehouse every night for a week, gave them a brief training and we administered the survey to visitors. I also collected and ran analysis on the data.”

Hesse, who is also a student assistant for the center, was so intrigued by the project she decided to also devote a thesis paper to the topic.

“When the city approached the center with the idea of doing this survey, I knew I had to make it happen,” Hesse said. “With my background in both biology and economics, I wanted to give

In order to determine the existing economic impact of the visitors coming to see the bats, it is important to establish where the visitors are coming from. Out of town visitors contribute to our local economy by spending money for food and lodging in our community during their visit.

back to Huntsville by conducting this survey and writing a paper where all of the complex information can be found in one place.”

In addition to providing the data collected, Hesse’s thesis also covers details like the history of the warehouse colony, a description of the bat roost and building, biological facts and proposed tourism ideas based on other bat colonies. For her research work, she was selected to represent SHSU at the Texas Undergraduate Research Day at the Texas State Capitol. Only one student project is selected from each participating Texas university.

“The effort has been a great success. We engaged with over 120 visitors and the leader of a local bat conservation non-profit group,” Raschke said. “A report discussing the results of the survey is being prepared to be shared with the city as part of the larger project investigating the economic impact and economic potential of the bats.”H

POWERING A COMMUNITY NEED

Aneed for students to gain hands-on experience while supporting a community need can often be the perfect formula for an Academic Community Engagement course at Sam Houston State University. This was the realization College of Science & Engineering Technology professors Reg Pecen and Keith Coogler had for a solar powered canopy system at the City of Huntsville Aquatic Center that they and their students would design and build.

City management welcomed the collaboration. During hot summer days, residents needed shaded rest areas while they enjoyed water activities. The residents also needed easy access to electric outlets for charging their smartphones and other devices away from the sun.

With the city providing all the necessary material and parts, including solar PV panels, Engineering Technology students created sustainable charging stations for the center. Of course, with most real-life experiences, there were a few hitches along the way.

“Students faced difficulties on welding, precise joint cuttings and drilling of the metal frame. Permanent installation of the

stations, placing grounding rods through the concrete base, were also challenges they experienced,” Pecen said.

The project included two separate designs of charging stations in different locations of the center.

“Students chose a common spot with maximum solar radiation exposure to place one of the stations in an open area of the center’s courtyard,” Pecen said. “They decided that location would be ideal since parents can comfortably sit under the shade, charge their small electronics devices and watch their kids in the water. The second location was selected at the southwest corner of the aquatic center.”

The stations provide zero emission sustainable charging as well as lighting for aquatic center staff and visitors.

“Introduction of renewable energy applications to engineering technology curriculum at SHSU has positively impacted students, faculty and the Huntsville community, indicating a promising outreach effort,” Pecen said. “The City of Huntsville paid all the cost and SHSU faculty and students provided service and opportunity for engaging in sustainable community work.”H

COMMUNITY ENGAGED: ONE PROFESSOR’S STORY

One evening, as Bill Wells watched the news, a segment aired about the Houston Police Department’s backlog of unprocessed rape kits. As a professor and researcher within the Sam Houston State University College of Criminal Justice, he was interested and concerned. Wells immediately contacted his connection at HPD, offering his expertise and help.

This simple act eventually led to a mutually beneficial partnership to create a system that would clear the case backlog and prevent it from reoccurring.

“The problem had already been identified. Then you dig deeper, and you analyze the problem, understand all the moving parts, and then you lay out a path forward for responding to that problem based on what you learned,” Wells said. “We talked about all the data we would need to examine. We interviewed every sexual assault investigator, all the crime lab’s people that worked in DNA and a host of different stakeholders.”

Together, they worked to identify a solution to the problem while Wells assisted HPD in writing and securing a grant to fund the project. As a result of their work, HPD implemented systematic reforms, completed the testing of over 6,500 previously unsubmitted rape kits and reviewed the associated criminal cases.

The project was, in fact, so successful that it influenced a national model for solving similar issues in other jurisdictions.H

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS WITH CITIES & COUNTIES

LEARNING THROUGH REAL LIFE EXPERIENCE

For students at Sam Houston State University, community engagement is more than volunteerism, but a way of learning. The Center for Community Engagement works with professors who wish to incorporate community engagement into their classes.

Brandon Strubberg, assistant professor of technical communication and graduate coordinator, has worked with the CCE since starting his role at SHSU in 2018. Inspired by his mentor, a fellow ACE course instructor, Strubberg decided to provide his students with a way to turn their assignments into work experience.

With a background working with outside business clients to produce technical documents from his time as a doctoral student, Strubberg understood the benefit.

“I felt like I learned more in that class from working with an external client than I had in any of my other classes before that,” Strubberg said. “When I got here and saw how much support there is for community engagement at the university and how much faculty are encouraged to do it, it was a no-brainer.”

The undergraduate technical writing course Strubberg teaches is required by numerous degree plans, including criminal justice. With many students in his class majoring outside of English or language studies, he decided to select partnerships connected

to their areas of interest to better their overall learning.

“I have some classes where 90 percent of the students are CJ majors and I want them to get as much out of this English class as they can,” Strubberg said. “I want to show them how the skills that we’re going to work on in this class can actually be applicable to their potential careers.”

Part of this initiative included partnering with the Houston Police Department to develop key organizational documents for their Geographic Information Systems Unit in its fledgling months. His students were able to write the standard operating procedures and a report on the unit’s successes and services.

The graduate students were later granted access to the system’s applications and produced instructional documents for officers who were new to the system. In 2020, their work was recognized by the HPD Chief of Police for their collaborative efforts.

“Collaborative partnerships create greater transparency on what police agencies are doing,” HPD Lieutenant Fredrick Croft said. “One of my favorite aspects of doing these projects is being able to act as a resource for the students in the classes, answering questions they may have about HPD or law enforcement. In the future, I’d like to see the partnership expanded to other units in our department and other educational departments at SHSU.”H

SHSU COMMUNITY PARTNERS WITH CITIES & COUNTIES

THE IMPACT OF CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

The Center for Law, Engagement, And Politics (LEAP) at Sam Houston State University is designed to enrich students’ academic experience through various educational opportunities, including internships, volunteerism, guest lectures and educational field trips.

Partnering with cities, LEAP’s City Fellows program places students in paid internships.

“Through the City of Huntsville and area non-profits, we partner to offer a citizenship preparatory course for local immigrants,” Mike Yawn, LEAP program director, said. “LEAP students are also often found working with the Huntsville Main Street program, the Wynne Home Arts Center and Huntsville Parks and Recreation. These interns help host big public events such as Christmas on the Square, Scare on the Square, the community Easter egg hunt and the city’s Fourth of July activities.”

With an emphasis on meaningful public service, LEAP students also regularly volunteer for the city. Most service involves hands-on activities that include initiating and implementing projects.

“The LEAP Ambassadors do hundreds of volunteer hours a year, often helping the interns run events with the city. They’ve also done a lot of standalone projects, such as beautification projects for the Wynne Home and downtown area,” Yawn said.

Ambassadors are expected to not only perform public services while enhancing and developing their skills, but also learn the principles, processes and structures of public organizations.

For many students, the experience is a trajectory for a future career in civic service. LEAP alumni have gone on to secure city jobs in economic development, city management and governmental affairs. LEAP alumni are also currently working for major law firms, or attending the top law schools and graduate schools, and in diverse jobs in the non-profit field, business fields and in all levels of government.

For Zachary Goodlander (’14, ’16), joining the LEAP program provided a network of like-minded students, practitioners in the field and connections to crucial internship opportunities. After earning a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s in public administration at SHSU, he now serves as assistant city manager for the City of Fulshear, Texas.

“In many ways it was LEAP which laid the foundation for my whole career,” Goodlander said. “Through LEAP I was able to intern with the City of Huntsville, and now ten years later I’m the assistant city manager of a dynamic city of over 30,000. I’ll always be thankful for the LEAP program in not only the opportunities it provided me, but also for its promotion of the value and responsibility of public service.”H

SANCHEZ Ileana

Service through Empowerment

Ileana Sanchez has a desire “to live in a world as it should be.” While she admits this world is likely unattainable in her lifetime, the Sam Houston State University graduate and community organizer remains optimistic.

Sanchez has made it her business to empower those whose voices have often been overlooked because of the color of their skin.

She took this to the next level in her higher education journey when deciding to minor in community leadership at SHSU, a program that provides students with knowledge, skills and dispositions to be agents of change in their communities. She credits sociology professor Lee Miller, the minor’s adviser, for choosing this path.

“At SHSU, many of our students are eager to contribute to making life better for others, but Ileana stood out as being particularly aware of social issues and is strongly committed to enacting positive social change,” Miller said. “She uses her talents and education to make a difference on her way to becoming a leader in her community. I can’t wait to see what else she accomplishes.”

In high school, Sanchez participated in Teen ACTS Catholic youth retreats and, as a junior, became the organization’s youngest director at the time. Through her Catholic studies, she was introduced to Saint Óscar Romero.

Romero served as Auxiliary Bishop in El Salvador from 1977 until his assassination while performing mass in 1980. He was a vocal critic of

the violent activities involved in El Salvador’s civil war.

“He was assassinated for speaking against the government as well as the Catholic Church, even though he was archbishop. Romero and individuals like Dorothy Day inspired me to get involved in the social justice movement,” Sanchez said. “These people were political. Being American is political, being a woman is political, being a Hispanic woman is political.”

about capitalism, neoliberalism, the inequity of the market and how it was impacting People of Color the most. I just kind of got angry,” Sanchez said.

These experiences led her to community organizing. After graduating from SHSU in spring of 2021, she moved to Dallas to work for Dallas Area Interfaith, where she strove to organize schools and build leaders to inspire systematic change.

Today, she proudly serves as a youth organizer for Mi Familia Vota,

Sanchez began to view her service through a social justice-oriented lens, which offered a new perspective on how to orchestrate change most effectively.

“You can be a non-profit and do great work, but if you are not actively in the fight and involved in policy, you won’t really be changing anything,” Sanchez said.

She continued to broaden her horizons through her curriculum at SHSU with sociology classes that gave her a better understanding of humanity as a whole. She also learned the inner workings of a local government through an internship with the City of Huntsville.

“While working for the city and taking sociology classes, it all came together perfectly. I was learning

a national civic engagement nonprofit organization that unites Latino, immigrant and allied communities to promote social and economic justice through citizenship workshops, voter registration and voter participation.

Sanchez plans to pursue her master’s degree in geography at the University of Illinois next fall. While she does not have the future completely mapped out, she knows she would like to remain in the fight for those who need her assistance in order to make the world appear a bit more as it should.

“If we create leaders in our communities and give people the opportunities to strengthen those skills, then those leaders who are created can build more leaders, which creates accountability,” Sanchez said.H

“… Being American is political, being a woman is political, being a Hispanic woman is political.”

DILLARD Kayla

Giving Back Through Cultural Connections

If you were to tell Kayla Dillard to describe what community means to her, she may ask you to be more specific.

The 2022 Sam Houston State University graduate and current Miss Texas Latina knows the importance of representation in more ways than one and what it means to those communities close to her heart.

“With this crown and sash on, people look up to you,” Dillard said. “You have this platform and opportunity to reach so many people. I can walk into a room and spot that little kid whose eyes just light up and see how major that connection is to them.”

As the first Black Latina winner of the Miss Texas Latina beauty pageant, Dillard takes pride in representing two different cultures while serving the community at various events.

“Little girls will see me, and they’ve never really seen anyone who looks like them wearing a crown before,” Dillard said. “That’s so huge for them and really special to me.”

Along with her cultural identity, Dillard represents the communities of Rosenberg, her hometown, and Huntsville, where she forged lifelong friendships and began to foster her passion for serving others, particularly youth.

Dillard worked with local children at the Huntsville Family YMCA during

her time at SHSU and continues to do so. She started out as a summer camp counselor and worked her way up to site director.

“I love kids and was originally an education major at Sam, but realized teaching wasn’t the best fit for me,” Dillard said. “I spoke with my adviser and came across sociology.”

This led her to professor Lee Miller and an Academic Community Engagement (ACE) course, Introduction to Community Leadership. Students here learn the definitions, types and theories of community. Topics include how to conduct a basic community needs assessment, strengthen communication skills and explore resource mobilization strategies through applied community experiences.

“The class brought us to Huntsville’s Hornet Success Academy, a program for students at risk of not succeeding in a traditional high school setting, and we were able to mentor those students,” Dillard said. “I realized this is what I love, this is what I want to do every single day.”

Dillard also credits the ACE course and Miller’s curriculum with leading her to the Miss Texas Latina organization. While she was originally skeptical of competing in a beauty pageant, this particular competition spoke to her personally.

“It was about the Latina aspect for

me because, growing up mixed, I didn’t feel like I was really Latina and I didn’t know how to navigate that sort of thing. Joining this organization really helped me ask more questions and connect with my culture,” Dillard said.

It also allows her to connect with different youth and families alike in many different communities across Texas. Through events, from gala benefits supporting foster families to resource hubs for parents of children with disabilities, Dillard volunteers her time to bring joy and serve attendees in any way she can.

After her tenure ends as Miss Texas Latina, she admitted she has a desire to compete in pageants again, as long as the organization coincides with her values. In any case, she plans to continue her life of service as she builds her career in the YMCA organization.

“I would love to continue working for the organization because I think we do really important work,” Dillard said. “I love hands-on work and I love nonprofit work.”

She also continues to feel a strong connection to the Huntsville community.

“It holds such a big place in my heart,” Dillard said. “I really want to focus on pouring back into those communities that poured so much into me and made me who I am.”H

“I really want to focus on pouring back into those communities that poured so much into me and made me who I am.”

FRANK Amanda

Community Leadership Through Graduate Fellowship

The newly established Templeton Graduate Fellows Experience was created to honor Arleigh B. Templeton, a graduate and former president of Sam Houston State University. Templeton led the university during its transformation from Sam Houston Normal College to Sam Houston State University, established key programs and oversaw the construction of numerous campus buildings. Recipients of the endowment use their leadership abilities to complete a project that benefits the community.

The first recipient, Amanda Frank, graduated in 2022 with a Master of Science in Homeland Security. Upon receiving the endowment as a student, Frank created a plan to establish a community emergency response team (or CERT) for SHSU.

“Once I got the go ahead on the fellowship, I took a fully

immersive approach and surrounded myself with the different trainings and people and started making connections,” Frank said. “When I started digging into the research and figuring out where I wanted to go with the project, I set myself on a path for my entire future.”

Frank was inspired to pursue the establishment of a campus CERT after witnessing firsthand how a lack of community support can lead to the deterioration of a neighborhood and leave residents hanging. Frank also found inspiration through her professional work in disaster recovery, a role she served in while working on the project as a graduate student and holds to this day.

“Shortly after Hurricane Harvey, I realized a real lack of support in some of the areas around me,” Frank said. “At the time I lived in Greenspoint. It’s pretty rough in certain parts and there’s a big lack of

community support there. I started looking into it, asking around, and people started talking about community emergency response, I had never heard of it before.”

Through her research and training in emergency response, Frank developed a plan to help the university mobilize students to assist in emergency response, serve in first aid tents at events or provide community assistance in other ways.

“When a lot of people think of disaster, they think natural disaster, like hurricanes and wildfires,” Frank said. “People don’t think about the water main break that floods the whole street because the sewage is backed up. That’s what people overlook when they think of emergency response and, crazy enough, those are things that everyday people can stop without having to wait for help.”H

“… I started looking into it, asking around, and people started talking about community emergency response, I had never heard of it before.”

of service

Each year, students are invited to take part in an MLK Day service project. This year, SHSU students served at Huntsville State Park, the Boys & Girls Club of Walker County and the Good Shepherd Mission.

Photos by Tega Okperuvwe and Enrique Paz.

Donald Stephen Hartgrove ’71, ’72, retired from his position as Harris County agency manager with Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Company after 46 years of service. Hartgrove is a Life Member of the SHSU Alumni Association.

Kenny Rodgers ’72, authored “Special Crimes: Memoirs of a D.A. Investigator,” offering behind-thescenes insight into the take down of some of the most notorious criminals in the Lone Star State during the 1970s and 80s.

Rob Boone ’92, associate vice president of Columbia College Global, was recently elected to serve as vice president of the National Association of Institutions for Military Education Services. A retired Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army, after a 26-year military career, Boone worked at the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans’ Hospital as a training specialist. He then served the Federal Emergency Management Agency as an emergency management specialist and was deployed to numerous disasters across the nation.

Ashley Greene ’97, celebrated five years with national 501c3 charity, Gift of Adoption Fund, as board member recruiter. Greene has on-boarded over 250 business

Shamika Kelley ’22 (PhD) Ritu Raju ’05 (MA)

and community leaders into state chapters across the U.S. Greene is a Life Member of the SHSU Alumni Association.

T.J. Tijerina ’03, ’17, has been named chairman of the American Heart Association’s Gulf Coast Board of Directors. Tijerina also serves as president and chief executive officer for First Community Credit Union. Tijerina is a Life Member of the SHSU Alumni Association.

Ritu Raju ’05 (MA), has been named president of Gateway Technical College. Raju was previously vice president of academic affairs at Tarrant County College’s northeast campus in Texas.

Vanessa Ramirez ’09, has joined the City of Mansfield as its newest assistant city manager. She most recently served as the deputy director of Public Works and Utilities for the city of Odessa.

Dustin Cosper ’10, was named head of commercial real estate at Texas Capital Bank. Cosper joined Texas Capital Bank in 2013 as vice president of real estate. He most recently held an SVP role for the bank. Previously, he served as vice president, senior workout officer for Texas Community Bank in Houston.

Daniel Owens ’11, recently graduated from Texas A&M’s Bush School of Government with an executive master of public service & administration. He was elected to the Austin EMS Association

board of directors, representing the interests of Austin’s 911 paramedics.

Shamika Kelley ’22 (PhD), has joined New Orleans Police Department as a crime lab director. She previously worked as a forensic DNA analyst and supervisor for the Houston Forensic Science Center, where she provided forensic DNA analysis, expert testimony and backlog reduction initiatives.H

Her one-woman show at the Museum of the Southwest in Midland, Texas opens April 27 and runs through July 2

Rob Boone ’92

T.J. Tijerina ’03, ’17

Daryl Howard ’70, of Austin, has built an art career creating traditional Japanese woodblock prints for almost 50 years. Her onewoman show at the Museum of the Southwest in Midland, Texas opens April 27 and runs through July 2.

You

REMEMBERING PETER ROUSSEL

The Bearkat community of Sam Houston State University is mourning the loss of Peter Roussel, who served as distinguished Philip G. Warner Chair of Journalism in the department of Mass Communication.

Well known for his remarkable career in both the corporate and political fields, Roussel’s first tour of duty in the White House was from 1974-76, as staff assistant to President Gerald R. Ford. From 1981-87, he served in the White House under President Ronald Reagan as special assistant and deputy press secretary. Prior to that, he was press secretary to President George H.W. Bush when Bush served as U.S. congressman and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

Roussel’s career as an advertising and public relations expert also led to becoming executive vice president and managing partner of Neumann Roussel Public

Relations from 1996 to 2003.

Roussel joined the faculty of Sam Houston State University in the fall of 2009, where his impressive background enhanced his years of dedicated teaching. Through his classes in writing for public relations, advertising and the press and the presidency, students gained real-world insight and enjoyed many stories from Roussel’s White House years.

“Peter was an immensely popular instructor. His students praised his vitality, skills and strengths as a communicator in the classroom,” said Ronald E. Shields, dean of SHSU College of Arts & Media. “His classes made history come alive through his anecdotes and insider knowledge.”

Nationally and internationally, Roussel will be remembered for his four decades in politics and, especially, his time at the White House, but for many

belong here! Stay connected to the people and the place that changed your life forever.

Bearkats, he will be remembered as a great colleague and professor, according to Mike Yawn, SHSU faculty member and director of the Center for Law, Engagement, And Politics (LEAP).

“There’s no doubt that Peter’s profile in the industry, his technical skills, and his professional network helped enhance SHSU’s profile. But he didn’t rest on his reputation: he spent much effort motivating students in the classroom; he was the go-to moderator for high-profile speakers on campus; and he used his expansive professional network to help students, colleagues, and SHSU,” Yawn said. “At least for me personally, his legacy at Sam was the impact he had on students and colleagues. He demonstrated exemplary dedication to the students and the institution in a way that serves as a professional model for all of us.”

In 2016, Roussel’s seriocomic novel,

“Ruffled Flourishes,” debuted as a play at SHSU through his collaboration with theatre and music faculty, staff and students. The satirical story offers a comical glimpse into Roussel’s experiences with the press corps in the White House. A musical adaptation was staged in 2022. Recognizing his distinctive professional accomplishments, personal integrity and service, Roussel was honored with a Legacy Award by the SHSU College of Arts & Media in 2019.H

IN MEMORIAM†

A farewell to...

Lillian Marie (Pistler) Hintz ‘47

Dorothy Virginia (Miller) McDonald ‘48

Lloyd James Kersh ‘50

June Carrol (McRae) Metcalf ‘50

Wayne Lindy Rainwater ‘50, ‘60

Durwood Earle Wylie ‘51

Norman Roger Davis ‘52

Carolyn Faye (Kidd) Griffin ‘52

Barbara Elin (Broyles) Forbus ‘53

Lewis Dale Nowlin ‘53

Janet Jo Walters Jacobs Guillot ‘54

Bettye Jean (Hogue) Bond ‘55

Lila Frances (Clanton) Cross ‘55, ‘71

Charles Frank Denman ‘55

Bobby Ray Doughtie ‘56

Ruth Marie (Drew) Fowl ‘56

Lavelle (Foster) Foote ‘57

Rufus D. Hopper, Jr. ‘57, ‘63

Terry Richard Davis ‘58

Thomas Edward Freeman ‘58

Milton Tipton Graves ‘58

Lieb Wallace Koehl, Jr. ‘58

Dorris Deal (Allee) Northcutt ‘58

Patsy (Walker)

Tegeler ‘58, ‘64

Artice G. Allen ‘59, ‘75

Joann Neason (Neason) Berglund ‘59

Robert C. Griffin ‘59

James Anderson Hanna, Jr. ‘59

Clara Ruth (Thomas) Martin ‘59

Edward Pace McDonald III ‘59

Freida Gay (Chandler)

Oliver ‘59

Joseph Gordon

Van Deaver ‘59

Mitchell Hugh Butler ‘60

Florence Marie (Beaulieu)

Dinhobl ‘60

Carolyn K. (Pell) Fields ‘60

Billy Newell Hanson ‘60

Morris Andrew Matthews, Jr. ‘60, ‘62

Joseph Huard

Shelton ‘60, ‘67

Jerome Bernard Borski ‘62

Sandra Marie Green ‘62

Billy M. Henderson ‘62

Jerry Clark Mabry ‘62

Guinn Hugh “Hootie”

Murray ‘62

Margo Dale (Oliver)

Stansel ‘62

Joe Bryan Bickley ‘63, ‘64

Peggy L. Borchers ‘63, ‘75

Norman David Gruenzner ‘63

Joe “Bud” Haney ‘63

Albert George Mills ‘63, ‘64

Peggy Ann (Long)

Reeves ‘63

Joe Earl Schmid, Jr. ‘63, ‘64

Jane Ann (Carmichael)

Bickham ‘64

Jean Arden Eversmeyer ‘64

John V. King ‘64, ‘70

Stephen Newton Montgomery ‘64

Kenneth Ray Wiginton ‘64

Cary Lynn Douglas ‘65

Phyllis Ann (Hill)

Froelich ‘65 ‘71

James Lee Kackley ‘65

John Thomas Lockey ‘65

James D. McLeod ‘65

Joseph Leon Runnels ‘65

Frederic Wayne Traugott ‘65 ‘68

Jerry Ray Bell ‘66

Peggy Oraleen (Sessions) Gesford ‘66

Michael J. Hajovsky ‘66

Donald O. Huebner ‘66

Truman Wayne Goodwin ‘67 ‘74

Monte Edward Jochens ‘67

Betty Ruth Roberts ‘67

Jeffrey Richard Moore ‘68

William S. Morian, Sr. ‘68

Y’Vonne Gale (Simmons) Nilson ‘68

Carolyn Sue (Choate) Chase ‘69

Larry Don Collins ‘69

Raymond Lee Kilgo, Sr. ‘69

Edward Dale Lusk ‘69

Lynda Ann (Vaughn) Porsch ‘69

Charles B. Teas ‘69

Gary Keith Thaemar ‘69

Robert Gary Wilson ‘69 ‘70

Lynda (Amason) Woolverton ‘69

Harold James Fife ‘70

Ralph Fulenwider ‘70

Kenneth M. Ives ‘70

Raymond Marion Neuse ‘70 ‘79

Thomas Donald Hensley ‘71

Kay Natalie Horgan ‘71 ‘74

Turner Lou Shell ‘71

Danny Louie Vara ‘71

Jack F. Wood ‘71

Jodie Leroy Anthis ‘72

Sherry Gayle (Grayless) Drews ‘72

Roberta Charlene (Wehe) Foerster ‘72

Dorothy (Parker) Graham ‘72

Bunny Gail (Beago) Grimes ‘72

Thomas Maurice Grisham ‘72

Charles Dwaine Kirksey ‘72

Delores Ann (Gerdes) Marshall ‘72 ‘74

Ida Nell Reid ‘72

Bobby Dale Storm ‘72 ‘73

Daniel Franklin Wagner ‘72 ‘74

Rex M. White ‘72

Kenneth Wayne Cashiola ‘73

Peter J. Degroot III ‘73

William Michael Kalbow ‘73

Thomas Emery Martin ‘73

Jim L. Mathews ‘73

Larry Wayne Patton ‘73

Walter Hawkes Reid ‘73

Donald Clyde Cook, Jr. ‘74

Leon Bruce Fuller ‘74

Jimmy H. McMillan ‘74

Patrick L. Miller ‘74

Garrett Evan Withers ‘74

Ella Chase Brunt ‘75

Armon Noel Husband ‘75

Shelley Jean Nelson ‘75

Paula Jean (Wiggs) Schoppe ‘75, ‘75

Catherine Elizabeth (Farrell) Wilson ‘75

Harold Glynn Midkiff ‘76

Ramona Gail Raines ‘76

Judith A. (Yandell) Day ‘77

James W. Goldsmith ‘77

Thomas P. Saxton, Jr. ‘77

Nellie Joe (Standley) Yarotsky ‘77

Vincent Chukwuemeka Agu ‘78

Vicki Ann (Mueller) Boriack ‘78

La Rue Grant ‘78

Steve N. Khatibi ‘78

Jeffrey Allan Mosshart ‘78

Ted Byron Dodd ‘79

Mitchell Allen Bayes ‘80

Martha Vargas ‘80

Frank S. Craft ‘81

Reta Marie (Owen) Flores ‘81

Lyda Feeney Salmons ‘81

Lucinda Ann (Thomas) Jahn ‘82

Carolyn Kay Pate ‘82

Virginia Louise (Caples) Leboeuf ‘83, ‘85

Mr. James A. Seifert ‘83

Christine M. Mahaffy ‘84, ‘88

Charles R. Venglarik ‘84

Patricia Rios Pearce ‘85

Scott Edward Culp ‘86

Doyle G. Boulware ‘88

Charles Eugene Scherbel, Jr. ‘88

Pamela Kay (Ebrite) Parkinson ‘89

Richard Lee Simmons ‘89

Manuel Evaristo Herrera, Jr. ‘90

Mark Wesley Russell ‘91

George Curry Wilson ‘91

Michael A. Code ‘92

Benjamin F. Davis ‘93

Brenda Sue Riley ‘93, ‘19

Keven Dwayne Dowell ‘94

Allan Lane Sapp ‘95

Zhengchong Allen Yang ‘95

Lola Grace Blalock ‘97

James David Hallbeck ‘97 ‘03

Neil Anthony Garvis ‘00

Lisa Gaye (Watters) Neely ‘02

Keely Beth (Wagner) Brower ‘08

Adam Ryan Marin ‘11

Ralph Purry ‘11

Perry Whitley Edwards ‘18

Russell Clagett ‘21

Sam Houston State University

Box 2537

Huntsville, TX 77341-2537

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