Fall 2023 Wesleyan Magazine

O F F I C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N O F T E X A S W E S L E YA N U N I V E R S I T Y

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A New Era Begins Dr. Emily W. Messer joins Texas Wesleyan as its 21st president PAGE 16

DR. ZHANG How a computer science professor connects with students over table tennis

NOELANI VILLIARIMO How a first-generation student followed her dreams to TXWES

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RAMS IN FOCUS

President Emily W. Messer Meets Students During Move-In Day Amid the excitement of new student move-in day at Texas Wesleyan University, President Emily W. Messer paid a surprise visit to the residence halls. With a welcoming smile, she mingled with the new students and their families, embodying the university’s commitment to creating a close-knit community.

The day typically starts early in the morning, with families and students arriving at the university’s residence halls to check in, grab snacks, meet their resident assistants and start moving into their rooms. Volunteers and university staff were on hand to assist with unloading and moving belongings into the residence halls.

FROM OUR PRESIDENT

EMBRACING A BRIGHT FUTURE A Message from President Emily W. Messer

Dear Alumni and Friends, It is with great excitement that I welcome you to the latest edition of the Wesleyan, marking my first letter to you as president of Texas Wesleyan University.

I’m Dr. Emily W. Messer, and I am truly honored to serve as your new university president. You are probably reading this as we approach the end of the 2023 fall semester, and I’m eager to share with you the stories, achievements and inspiring moments that make our Texas Wesleyan community so special.

Texas Wesleyan has a long and storied history, and our commitment to providing a top-tier education remains stronger than ever. Our university’s values of engaging in education, leadership and community continue to guide us as we navigate the evolving landscape of higher education.

Within the pages of this magazine, you’ll discover the incredible contributions of our alumni, the dedication of our faculty and staff, and the aspirations of our students. These stories reflect the profound impact of Texas Wesleyan’s “Smaller. Smarter.” experiences and the innovative spirit that defines us.

As we look ahead, I want to express my deepest gratitude to all of you — our alumni, donors and friends of the university. Your steadfast support has made a significant difference, enabling us to offer scholarships, improve our facilities and create experiences that shape the lives of our students.

I encourage you to explore the magazine and stay connected with us through our events and initiatives. Your involvement is crucial to our continued success, and I’m excited to work alongside you to build an even brighter future for Texas Wesleyan.

Thank you for being an important part of our RAMily.

Together, we will uphold our tradition of excellence and provide an environment where students can flourish.

O F F I C I A L P U B L I C AT I O N O F T E X A S W E S L E YA N U N I V E R S I T Y

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ON THE COVER

Dr. Emily W. Messer President Texas Wesleyan University

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Dr. Emily W. Messer begins her term as president of Texas Wesleyan University.

Read more on page 16.

A New Era Begins Dr. Emily W. Messer joins Texas Wesleyan as its 21st president PAGE 16

DR. ZHANG How a computer science professor connects with students over table tennis

NOELANI VILLIARIMO How a first-generation student followed her dreams to TXWES

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FEATURES 1 2 DR. ZHANG

A computer science professor connects with students using table tennis

1 4 KEYS TO MUSICAL SUCCESS

Keith Critcher inspires and mentors students through his love of piano

1 6 FOLLOWING HER DREAMS

Dr. Emily W. Messer’s journey from firstgeneration student to university president

DEPARTMENTS 4 NEWS & EVENTS

Latest news and social media

2 2 SPORTS REPORT

The latest news and updates from Texas Wesleyan athletics

2 6 ALUMNI

Class notes, events and more

3 2 LAST WORD

How the President’s Picnic became a tradition at Texas Wesleyan

PRESIDENT Dr. Emily W. Messer EDITOR Darren White MBA ’16 DESIGN Shelly Jackman D. White & Company

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PHOTOGRAPHY Cody Adams Ryan Stankard Thanh (Stella) Ton

TEXAS WESLEYAN STAFF Brian Builta, interim vice president of advancement OFFICE OF ADVANCEMENT AND ALUMNI RELATIONS 817-531-4404 817-531-7560 FAX txwes.edu/alumni CONTACT US wesleyan@txwes.edu 817-531-5817

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Valerie Spears ’15 Ryan Stankard

FIRST GEN RESILIENCE One student’s powerful story of resilience, family and education

COPY EDITOR Janna Franzwa Canard

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Blending Biology and Computer Science: Texas Wesleyan Empowers Young Scientists Through the Project SEED grant, Texas Wesleyan University is providing high school students from North Texas with summer internships in biology. The program aims to empower these young scientists by offering hands-on experiences, DNA sequencing projects and the opportunity to contribute to research.

Thanks to the Project SEED grant from the American Chemical Society, two North Texas high school students are completing summer internships in biology at Texas Wesleyan University. The project aims to help “provide sustained STEM research, learning and growth opportunities for high school students with diverse identities and socioeconomic backgrounds so they can be empowered to advance and enrich the chemical science enterprise,” according to their website.

The grant gives the students a $4,000 stipend over the 8- to 10week summer internship, and students can also apply to receive a scholarship up to $5,000 for their first year of college.

There are only six institutions in Texas with summer programs, and Texas Wesleyan is the only one in Dallas-Fort Worth. Dr. Bruce Benz, professor of biology, is using his project with Tandy Hills Nature Center to provide hands-on experiences for the two North Texas teens, Rona Ismael, a senior at Plano East Senior High School, and Katherine Le, a junior at Saginaw High School.

Le wants to work in programming, like computer science, to help with scientific data and research.

“I do computer science at my school, and I think it’s really cool,” she said. “Dr. Benz was talking to us about how there’s a growing number of data analysts in the chemistry and biology field. So, I’m thinking of incorporating that into it, too.”

Ismael wants to work in neuroscience, researching neurodegenerative diseases. She was inspired to explore the field after one of her teacher’s husbands was diagnosed with a rare neurodegenerative disease.

“My teacher had to quit her job and go home to take care of him and figure out what to do,” she said. “That got me into being more interested in neurodegenerative diseases. She said there wasn’t a lot of research on it. I think it’s really bad how we don’t have enough research. No one should feel helpless because we’re not researching.”

Over the beginning of the summer, the interns worked on building their skills by sequencing their own DNA. This process allows them to see the building blocks of their DNA, which tells 4

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them about the genetic information in a particular DNA segment. Scientists can then use that info to see if gene changes can lead to diseases.

But it doesn’t stop with humans — plants also contain DNA. And for the past 15 years, Dr. Benz has been working closely with Tandy Hills Nature Center and the City of Fort Worth to help map invasive plants in the nature center using DNA sequencing.

“There are a bunch of databases that have nothing but sequences,” Dr. Benz said. “Any living organism has DNA. All of them have unique sequences, but some of the sequences are more related to each other. And so, these DNA can help identify the group, it can also help identify how individual plant bacteria are different.”

Ismael and Le are learning how to use the different tools in Texas Wesleyan’s laboratories, preparing them to take on their majors and careers — but by using the tools for their own DNA, they are also learning the building blocks of how to sequence the plant DNA to help Dr. Benz.

“The problem is that DNA is hard to get out of plants and the DNA in the soil is very fragmentary,” Dr. Benz said. And that’s why he started Ismael and Le on work that teaches them “to understand how science is done.”

He’s also taken the students to Tandy Hills to grab soil samples to extract the DNA and figure out to what extent the invasive plant species has taken over.

“Some are going to be easy; some are not going to be so easy. [On a trip to Tandy Hills], we went and collected all the plants that are invasive, and we froze the samples using liquid nitrogen in the field,” he said. “We then brought them back to Texas Wesleyan and stuck them in a negative 80-degree freezer. The extraction alone takes days because it has to be done with large sequences of DNA from each of these invasive plants.”

After they’ve collected the data needed, Dr. Benz will be able to identify areas in the park to target the invasive species. He hopes to provide the City of Fort Worth with a map of places where they can extract plants and places to leave intact.

“I think they’re having fun and learning things that they didn’t think they needed to know,” Dr. Benz smiled as he talked about the students. “Plus, one of many employment opportunities for computer science is biology related.”

Nurse Anesthetist Professor to be Inducted into the American Academy of Nursing Dr. Paul Austin’s dedication to advancing the nursing field, particularly working with and researching military nursing, has earned him a spot as a fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.

When you think of nurses, you may think of them working in hospitals or doctors’ offices. But Paul N. Austin, Ph.D., CRNA, director of evidence-based education and doctor of nurse anesthesia program curriculum at Texas Wesleyan, has helped train military nurses working in hostile environments for over 30 years.

Dr. Austin has worked in nursing since graduating with his R.N. from St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center School of Nursing in Ogdensburg, New York, in 1978. From there, he went to State University of New York: College of Technology Utica to receive his BSN and entered into the Air Force. He received more schooling through military programs, earning a B.S. in a Navy nurse anesthesia program, a master’s at the University at Buffalo and eventually getting his Ph.D. at the University of Cincinnati College of Nursing.

He even served as the program director at the Greg Patterson Air Force Base, which used Texas Wesleyan as their academic affiliate at the time. He retired from the Air Force after 24 years of service, which included a number of clinical, education and administrative positions.

Dr. Austin says he loves that the nursing field is very broad and open to many possibilities of what someone can study. He has several years of research in the field, including studying transport ventilators for military use and machine ventilators used in critical care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Nursing offers the opportunity for someone to work in a real wide variety of settings and find the area that they like,” he said.

“When I started my Ph.D. program, I really didn’t have a lot of great ideas to pursue for research. I ended up doing research on transport ventilators that transport critically ill and wounded military causalities to transport by aircraft.”

His contributions and impact on advancing the public’s health has led Dr. Austin to be inducted as a fellow of the American Academy of Nursing, which is a significant milestone in a nurse’s career. The academy has fellows from over 40 countries who contribute by engaging with leaders to improve health care policies.

“It’s a very humbling experience,” he said. “You never feel like you’re good enough, or around long enough or done enough things, but I was encouraged by a number of colleagues in the academy to apply.”

Dr. Austin was selected after a competitive and rigorous application process that included reviewing nearly 400 applications in which 253 professionals were invited to be inducted as 2023 fellows.

“The Academy continues to convene and celebrate nurses who make extraordinary contributions to improve health through the generation, synthesis and dissemination of nursing knowledge,” said president of the academy Kenneth R. White, Ph.D., R.N., AGACNP, ACHPN, FACHE, FAAN, in a press release.

“This year’s group of inductees truly represents today’s thought leaders and the diversity of our profession’s policy leaders, practitioners, educators and innovators.

“One of my biggest accomplishments is teaching and touching the lives of those nurse anesthetists, and hopefully ensuring their competence and ability to care for all of their patients.”

Each fellow of the academy is changing the future of health and health care through their support to advance equity, promote inclusion and lift up the next generation of nurses, advancing the academy’s vision of healthy lives for all people.”

And while this achievement is a great honor for Dr. Austin, he remains humble in knowing his impact on helping other nurses in the field, especially those in the military. Many of the nurse anesthetists in the armed forces care for patients in very hostile and foreign environments and work to provide comfort in care, despite their surroundings.

“One of my biggest accomplishments is teaching and touching the lives of those nurse anesthetists, and hopefully ensuring their competence and ability to care for all of their patients,” he said.

Dr. Austin continues to work at Texas Wesleyan, helping build educational practices for future nurse anesthetists and mentoring students. He said the support he and the program receive at the university is helping the program continue to thrive.

And now as an inductee into the academy, he will continue to mentor and sponsor other deserving nurses to apply to become a fellow.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Texas Wesleyan Receives $1.45M Robert Noyce Scholarship Grant Texas Wesleyan University is pleased to announce a five-year grant of $1,450,000 from the National Science Foundation in support of the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program.

The funded project, titled An Inclusive Approach to Recruit and Prepare STEM Teachers for Urban Schools: A Noyce Track 1 Project, is a Fort Worth-based educational partnership that seeks to change the landscape of STEM teacher recruitment, preparation and retention in urban public schools. This collaborative effort is a partnership among Texas Wesleyan University, Tarrant County College District, Fort Worth Independent School District and the Leadership Academy Network.

“We’ve been working toward this for three years,” said Dr. Elizabeth Ward, associate professor of education at Texas Wesleyan and the principal investigator (PI) on the grant.

“I’m excited to work with our partners to increase the number of highly qualified STEM teachers working with K-12 students in FWISD and the LAN.” The main goal of the Noyce project over the next five years is to graduate 20 highly qualified math, science or computer science teachers who gain certification and work in high-need schools in Fort Worth ISD. The program offers scholarships up to $23,400 per year to juniors and seniors.

“For our STEM majors, this gives them another major career track in addition to working in a lab or for a company,” said Dr. Ricardo E. Rodriguez, co-PI on the grant and dean of the Texas Wesleyan School of Arts and Sciences. “This is also a natural area for us, since we offer chemistry camps in the summer for elementary students and mathematics/preengineering camps for junior high students. We have a solid pipeline of students for this program.”

The partnership with Tarrant County College District is intended to allow high school graduates to attend either TCCD or Texas Wesleyan during their first two years to receive early experiences in STEM classrooms to see if teaching might be a career of interest. If so, they can then apply for the scholarship for their third and fourth years at Texas Wesleyan.

“For our teacher education program, this partnership just makes sense,” said co-PI Dr. Shereah Taylor-Love, dean of behavioral and social sciences at Tarrant County College District. “Most of our students who enter the program will essentially have their third and fourth years of college paid for.”

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Because of the need for more secondary STEM teachers in Fort Worth ISD, the program will create a positive feedback loop by recruiting graduates from the school district, training them for four years, and then placing them back in the district as highly trained STEM teachers. For each year a student receives the Noyce Scholarship, they must agree to serve two years in a high-need school district.

“This is a perfect partnership for Fort Worth ISD,” said David Saenz, chief innovation officer at Fort Worth ISD. “STEM teacher positions are always hard to fill, so having a steady pipeline of teachers each year who have agreed to serve two years for each year they received the scholarship fills a big need for us.”

The program is designed to be a win for each partner involved. TCCD’s teacher education program will have a focused outcome through Texas Wesleyan; Fort Worth ISD will have a steady pipeline of STEM teachers; and Texas Wesleyan STEM majors will have revamped teaching options in science, math and computer science.

“This is an obvious fit for our mathematics with secondary certification degree,” said Dr. Luis Aguirre, co-PI and Texas Wesleyan assistant professor of mathematics. “My hope is that we can recruit more than four new Noyce Scholars every year.”

Ultimately, the broad impact of the program will be the creation of an ecosystem of STEM education awareness, enriched STEM opportunities for P-12 students, and a systematic process for the recruitment, development, induction and retention of diverse, highly qualified STEM teachers.

“Growing our STEM programs at Texas Wesleyan is something that we must do,” said Dr. Hector Quintanilla, Texas Wesleyan provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “And the best way to grow is with partnerships that benefit everyone involved, most importantly, the students.”

Texas Wesleyan Food Pantry Gets Fridge, Fresh Produce Texas Wesleyan University’s Food Pantry has received a refrigerator donation from Texas Health Resources and Tarrant County, allowing it to expand its offerings to include fresh fruits and vegetables.

In a heartwarming gesture of community support, Texas Wesleyan University’s Food Pantry recently received a valuable donation of a refrigerator from Texas Health Resources and Tarrant County. This significant contribution has ushered in a new era for the pantry, allowing it to store fresh fruits and vegetables, and enhancing its mission to combat food insecurity on campus.

The TXWES Food Pantry has been a symbol of hope and support for students facing food insecurity since fall 2017. Established to address the growing concern of hunger on campus, the pantry has evolved into a vital resource for students striving to make ends meet while pursuing their education.

“Part of the reason we started the Food Pantry was because somebody told me students were living in their cars. If they can see that students are hungry in class, the faculty will go out of the way to help,” said Dr. Alison Simons, associate professor of sociology at Texas Wesleyan University and coordinator of the TXWES Food Pantry.

“The Polytechnic United Methodist Church agreed to start the pantry in their kitchen. The church members helped us out; they cooked bread and provided extra snacks.”

In its early days, the pantry primarily provided nonperishable food items, such as canned goods, granola bars and pasta, to students in need. While these items are essential, there was a growing desire to offer fresh options to promote the overall well-being of the student body.

“The number of students served varies depending on the month, but we’re consistently feeding 50-75 students weekly,” Dr. Simons said. “We’re really pushing the food pantry this semester. Students shouldn’t have to worry about food.”

North Texas Healthy Communities, a division of Texas Health Resources, has been tackling the issue of hunger by establishing the “Good For You Pantry” program in 2019. This initiative establishes food pantries in various locations throughout the community, offering fresh and healthy food options to individuals and families in need.

North Texas Healthy Communities connects with local food banks, local growers and farmers markets — like the Funkytown Mindful Market held once a month on Texas Wesleyan’s campus — to deliver fresh, accessible food options at a free or reduced price to those living in underserved neighborhoods.

The Tarrant County Commissioners Court was awarded funding through the American Rescue Plan Act, which is having a direct and daily impact on the lives of Tarrant County residents. The ARPA has helped fund several projects, including the Good For You Pantry program.

The program was discovered by a student volunteer, who reached out to North Texas Healthy Communities to see if they would be interested in partnering with Texas Wesleyan’s pantry. After a few months of planning, the pantry was renovated over the summer with fresh paint and new flooring, with the refrigerator coming just before the start of school. This is the first collegiate partnership for the Good For You Pantry.

“We received our first delivery of fresh produce from the Good For You Pantry on the first day of class – providing some grab-and-go fruit and veggie options for students to walk around with,” Dr. Simons said. “We’ll have so much more fresh produce, thanks to North Texas Healthy Communities and Tarrant County ARPA funds!”

For more information about the pantry or to donate items, including school supplies, toiletries and gently used clothing, visit txwes.edu/foodpantry.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Texas Wesleyan Receives $2.1M Grant from the U.S. Department of Education The Title III grant will enhance the university’s QEP and strategic plan

Texas Wesleyan University is pleased to announce a five-year grant of $2,121,205 from the U.S. Department of Education’s Title III Strengthening Institutions Program.

The funded project, titled The Wesleyan Experience, is a comprehensive student-centered program designed to strengthen and improve Texas Wesleyan’s academic quality, institutional management and fiscal responsibility.

This university-wide initiative will create a signature experience wedded to community enrichment and career readiness. Courses and activities will span all four years of the college experience.

“We were able to write this grant in such a way that it mirrors our Quality Enhancement Plan,” said Steven Daniell, associate provost of academic affairs and principal investigator of the Title III grant. “The four goals of the grant align perfectly with the four components of the QEP, which strive to connect students to campus, engage them in on- and off-campus activities, develop them as leaders, and help them gain access to employment of graduate school post-graduation.”

The four goals of The Wesleyan Experience are: 1. Retain first-year students by providing proven retention programs for high-risk students while engaging them with campus and student life.

2. Build leadership skills and engagement by embedding service learning into strategic General Education Curriculum courses.

3. Prepare students for career success through undergraduate research.

4. Prepare students for career success through internships and experiential learning.

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“Having a Title III grant to reinforce and support our QEP and university’s strategic plan is a well-timed blessing,” said Hector Quintanilla, Texas Wesleyan provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “This triple layering of strategy, curricular enhancement and funding should help us make a noticeable, positive difference in retention and graduation rates.”

The academic focus of The Wesleyan Experience in Years 3 and 4 is strategically aligned to degrees that lend themselves well to research and internships and are also in areas where jobs are in demand: biology/chemistry; computer science/ computer information systems; criminal justice/sociology; political science/history; supply chain/business analytics.

“Texas Wesleyan has a deep commitment to student success through quality teaching,” said Alistair Maeer, associate professor of history and co-director of The Wesleyan Experience. “The curricular enhancements of campus and community engagement, undergraduate research, and a more strategic internship process shows a strong university-wide commitment to addressing the greatest student-learning needs at the institution.”

The Wesleyan Experience is designed to help address three main challenges: Texas Wesleyan is located in a historically depressed neighborhood; the university enrolls high numbers of underserved students, particularly Pell-eligible students, first-generation students and underrepresented minorities; and since the pandemic more than half of incoming first-year students are not prepared for college-level work.

“We are making a difference with the student population we serve,” said President Emily W. Messer. “This Title III grant, along with previous strategic planning and fundraising for retention initiatives, will assist the university in transforming the lives of our students through the gift of higher education.”

Texas Wesleyan Graduate Nursing Program Welcomes Largest Class in History The DNP-FNP program is focused on developing nurse practitioners who provide relationship-centered, wholeperson health care to individuals and families.

The Texas Wesleyan University School of Health Professions graduate nursing program welcomed the largest cohort in the program’s history this fall with 25 Doctor of Nursing Practice and Family Nurse Practitioner students. This is the sixth cohort for the program.

“We have been working hard since the conception of this program to get our name out and gain traction in enrollment,” said Dr. Denise De La Rosa, interim director of graduate nursing programs. “We are finally feeling like we are making progress with increased admissions and folks in the community recognizing who we are and the quality of our students.”

The class was welcomed to campus on Aug. 18, 2023, at orientation. It was an information-packed day with presentations on library services, the campus food bank, student engagement and the alumni association, as well as resources available to help students with financial aid and registering for courses. It was a great opportunity for new students and faculty to meet face-to-face.

The Doctor of Nursing Practice – Family Nurse Practitioner program entered its first cohort in the spring of 2018 with 12 students and has seen a steady increase in community recognition and enrollment.

“We hope to continue to grow our program and our alumni community and be recognized as one of the leading graduate nursing programs in the state and country,” De La Rosa said.

Texas Wesleyan’s Doctor of Nursing Practice – Family Nurse Practitioner program is focused on developing nurse practitioners who provide relationship-centered, whole-person health care to individuals and families. In addition, the program is designed to prepare students with strategies for self-care to improve their own health and resilience as well as business literacy to develop and manage a successful practice.

When asked what’s made the program successful, De La Rosa responded, “High quality faculty who are dedicated to the personal and professional growth of the students, a unique blend of a holistic approach to patient care, a focus on building strong, resilient practitioners, education on business literacy and a commitment to serving rural and underserved populations.

[We are] ‘doing the most where needed the most.’”

Interested in an FNP or DNP degree? Go to txwes.edu/msn-fnp or txwes.edu/dnp to learn more.

The Doctor of Nursing Practice – Family Nurse Practitioner program at Texas Wesleyan University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

Music Department Students and Faculty Compete at the 2023 Texoma NATS Competition Professor David Bogaev, along with Professor Keith Critcher, will be traveling to New York for the National Finals.

Adrenaline ran high as the Texas Wesleyan music students and faculty prepared for the 2023 Texoma NATS competion.

Daily coaching by their professors Keith Critcher, Arielle Collier and David Bogaev were a must for this prestigious competition. On the day of competition, excitement and nerves were brewing as all students performed their best for their auditions in each category.

Classical First Year Treble............................................ Sima Mwesiga & Bria Brown Classical Second Year Tenor/Bass................................ Patricio Izaguirre Classical Second Year Treble........................................ Gabrielle Little Classical Fourth/Fifth Year Treble & Hall Johnson........ Elyssa Williams Classical Fourth/Fifth Year Tenor/Bass........................ Darion Chilton .................................................................................... & Abraham Hernandez Classical Adult Treble................................................... Alex Veloz Classical Adult Tenor/Bass........................................... Professor David Bogaev

The participation of this year’s competition would not have happened without the hard work and dedication of Professor Keith Critcher. His astounding care and passion for the success of our music students goes above and beyond. He coached each individual student in preparation while also accompanying them for their audition. He even went as far as to coordinate housing accommodations for the students and dinner reservations while competing in Denton. Professor Critcher carries a heavy load of our department’s success and we honestly couldn’t do it without him.

Everyone gave it their all as they auditioned and many were extremely close to making it to semifinals, and each of them expressed their gain of valued education about singing, their peers, and performing/auditioning at this year’s competition.

Special congratulations to our students below: Semifinalist in Classical Fourth/Fifth Year Treble & Hall Johnson...................................... Elyssa Williams First Place in Classical Second Year Tenor/Bass.......... Patricio Izaguirre First Place in Classical Adult Tenor/Bass..................... Professor David Bogaev

Professor Bogaev, along with Professor Critcher, will be traveling to New York City, New York, representing the Texoma Region for National Finals. Congratulations to all who were involved in this year’s Texoma NATS competition.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Enhancing the Game Day Experience Learn about the impact of the Sid Richardson Gym Improvement Project.

The Sid Richardson Gymnasium has been a place of excitement and athletic excellence at Texas Wesleyan University, witnessing countless victories and moments of athletic success since 1970. In 2008, new lighting, air conditioning units and a sound system were installed, along with new bleachers and chair-back seating, new scorer’s tables and a new floor.

Now, thanks to the generosity of dedicated alumni and supporters, the Sid Richardson Gym is undergoing another transformative improvement that will elevate the game day experience for everyone who enters its doors.

One of the main improvements of the project focuses on enhancing the gym’s acoustics. The addition of baffles and updates to the sound system will create a more immersive and vibrant atmosphere during basketball and volleyball games, table tennis events and more. Fans will feel the energy in the air as cheers and applause reverberate throughout the gym — amplifying the excitement of every event.

While the acoustic improvements are a major part of the project, the true standout feature is the installation of state-of-the-art video scoreboards. These high-tech displays will not only bring an electrifying atmosphere to games and events but will revolutionize the gym’s visual experience and provide a valuable platform for promoting athletic sponsorships. The impact of these video scoreboards will extend far beyond the gym’s walls by allowing the university to spotlight its athletes and deliver a more immersive and engaging experience for fans.

Another visual enhancement centers on revitalizing the gym’s aesthetics with striking visual branding updates. The gym’s walls will come to life with vibrant graphics showcasing our talented student-athletes and offer a visually compelling backdrop for fans and players alike.

None of this would have been possible without the unwavering support of dedicated donors who understand the importance of investing in the university’s athletic facilities. Close to $386,000 was generously donated.

“These upgrades will dramatically improve the game day experience for fans while providing our student-athletes an environment conducive to their continued success,” said President Emily W. Messer.

“We can’t thank our generous donors enough, not only for their philanthropic generosity but also for the time they take each year to attend games and help us support our students.”

The contributions from the late Jan E. Fersing, Jon and Jennifer Reneau, Gregory J. Phillips, Sarah M. Croft, Ann B. Arnold, Ann Burge and First Construction, LLC, exemplify the Texas Wesleyan spirit of community and dedication to excellence. Through their generosity, the Sid Richardson Gym will continue to be a place where lifelong memories are made and champions are born.

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Texas Wesleyan Launches 100% Online Master’s in Computer Science Technology is growing fast. Stay ahead of the game with your master’s in computer science — and get it even faster with our new 100% online degree.

We probably don’t need to tell you how much the computer science field has blown up. With selfdriving cars and artificial intelligence being some of the most popular topics of 2023, almost everyone knows that the era of technology isn’t slowing down any time soon.

In fact, the demand for computer and math occupations is the fourth-fastest growing major occupational group for 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

That’s why Texas Wesleyan University is now enrolling for its new 100% online Master of Computer Science degree, with the first class starting January 2024. Following the similar “Smaller. Smarter. Faster.” model of Texas Wesleyan’s MBA, the computer science degree will have six starts per year with accelerated courses that allow students to finish their degree in as little as 18 months.

Our degree is designed to help you get the advanced foundations you need to find jobs in several different computer science careers — including software and web development, systems architecture and cyber security. You’ll get more indepth information on machine learning, computer architecture, software engineering, computer security and more.

Those skills can help you land jobs that are among the highest in wages. The National Association of Colleges and Employers even touted computer science as the highest paying master’s degree with an average salary of $102,000, according to a survey done in 2021. And people with a master’s degree can earn around $30,000 more a year than those with just a bachelor’s degree in similar fields. Talk about a great return on your investment.

Ready to get started? See our admissions requirements or connect with an admissions counselor and take the next step in booting up your career. Go to txwes.edu/mcs to learn more.

S O C I A L C H AT T E R

The TXWES Undergraduate Enrollment Trend Continues to Rise for Third Straight Year

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Community partnerships, funding for programs, and efforts of faculty and staff are continuing to make prospective students say yes to TXWES. Monday, Aug. 21, marked the first day of the 133rd academic year at Texas Wesleyan — and with it, records were broken with the largest class in over two decades.

This year, 2,677 students said yes to TXWES with 740 new students enrolled from 16 different states and 27 different countries. This is the third consecutive year of growth with a 60% increase in undergraduate student enrollment from fall 2020.

“I am so excited to see the campus so vibrant with students and activities,” said Dr. Emily W. Messer, Texas Wesleyan University president. “Our ‘Smaller. Smarter.’ brand resonates with many of these students and allows our faculty and staff to create unique ways to enrich the students’ experiences. I look forward to seeing them thrive as they continue their journey at Texas Wesleyan.”

Thanks to community partnerships like Tarrant To & Through (T3), Texas Wesleyan has been able to make connections with prospective students from local junior colleges and high schools that allow students easier access to obtain their bachelor’s degree and become successful after graduation.

In fact, 36% of new freshmen are in the T3 program.

“This is a great success for the university,” said Alan Liebrecht, vice president of enrollment, marketing and communications. “Our numbers are a reflection of how excited prospective students get when they see great efforts and support by faculty, staff and current students.”

Creating “Smaller. Smarter.” experiences are helping continue to set Texas Wesleyan apart from other universities, even going beyond the classroom with things like building the Karen Cramer Stadium, having a mariachi band and a beach volleyball team, just to name a few.

Texas Wesleyan has also been working on building programs that cater to the next generation of students and employers. The $1.45 million Robert Noyce Scholarship grant is helping the university provide scholarships to students interested in STEM teaching in Fort Worth ISD, while the Rainwater Charitable Foundation has given the university a $1 million grant to help focus on retention efforts. The faculty have also undergone training to help improve teaching efforts thanks to a grant from the Morris Foundation.

txwes.studentactivities So many memories … what a GREAT second camp #ramcamp2023

txwesalumni We had a real Ram at the football game today! #txwes #txwesalumni

texaswesleyan The world is your classroom — literally. Dr. Sharon Carano’s outdoor education and camp class teaches students how to live in and explore the great outdoors, from outdoor cooking classes to discovering caves.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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It’s ‘Racket’ Science: Dr. Zhang's love of table tennis helps engage students From the click-clacks of a table tennis ball ricocheting off the paddle and onto the table, to the click-clacking of the computer keyboard developing programming, Dr. Yukong Zhang is sharing his love for both table tennis and computer science with his students.

Get to know more about Dr. Zhang Dr. Zhang also loves photography and traveling.

He was even the photographer for the 2022 U.S. National Table Tennis Championships. instagram.com/yzhangtxwes

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Dr. Yukong Zhang, professor of computer science, plays competitive table tennis at Texas Wesleyan, often competing against his own students.

His office even displays several trophies he’s won over the years.

“I play seriously with my students, and sometimes they are better than me,” he laughed.

Zhang also often clicks the shutter button on his camera as a photographer for the sport. He’s been invited to several tournaments throughout the state to take photos, which he says he loves because he gets to watch the players up close.

“I have the opportunity to get closer, and I love watching table tennis,” he said. “Not everyone gets to do that.”

By teaching at Texas Wesleyan, he’s been able to get more involved in table tennis and interact with students outside the classroom — but he didn’t play table tennis until about 10 years ago and originally didn’t have plans to even become a professor.

“I never thought I was going to be a professor,” he said. “If you spend many, many years in school, and every day doing homework, it gets kind of hard.

Sometimes you want a break.”

Zhang grew up in the Inner Mongolia province of China, which is in the north along the MongolianChina border. He graduated from

Wuhan University with his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering. At the time, China had stricter governance over education and the workforce, and he was placed into a job working at a government research institution.

It was there that he learned about computation and simulation, which piqued his interest. He decided to study computer science when he came to the United States for his graduate degrees, wanting to come to the U.S. to gain access to more advanced technologies.

“In the old days, technology in the United States was better than China,” he said. “I think everyone wanted to try and study overseas.”

He mentioned that at the time, many people also looked into coming to the U.S. because they could better afford the education with the scholarships or assistantships they received from American universities.

After finishing his Ph.D. in Louisiana, he worked for an IT consulting firm in Houston before he and his wife eventually moved to Dallas.

It was at this time he was persuaded by a friend from his Ph.D. program to look into becoming a professor.

“I said, ‘okay, I’m going to try it.’

And once I got here, I really enjoyed it,” he said. “I can interact with the students and see them making progress,

especially with graduation. I see them grow up, and they have found a job. I feel pretty proud.”

Zhang says he loves being able to watch his students grow and help students that may be a little afraid of trying to major in computer science because of the math requirements.

“There’s a lot in programming and mathematics, but because our program’s pretty small, the students can work closely with us. And then gradually, they get better and better,” he said.

He says he also uses table tennis to recruit students for computer science majors.

“Currently, we have a table tennis player in my class that switched from business to computer science.

And I say part of the reason is because of me,” he laughed.

STUDY COMPUTER SCIENCE

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Texas Wesleyan table tennis has won 75 national championships since the program started in 2002. Coach Jasna Rather is a member of the United States National Team since 2000 and has made four trips to the Olympic Games (two with the U.S. and two with the former Yugoslavia Olympic Team). In 1988, she took home the bronze medal for Yugoslavia in Seoul, South Korea.

txwes.edu/mcsc

ramsports.net/sports/tt

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Professor Keith Critcher helps give students “the keys” to musical success Discover how Professor Keith Critcher's piano prowess and mentorship compose a unique harmony, inspiring Texas Wesleyan’s students.

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Seated gracefully at the piano, Keith Critcher’s fingers to do. And this is what I want to make a difference out there glide effortlessly over the keys as he plays alongside a student in the world and in my career,’” he said. who is singing masterfully. With closed eyes and a furrowed During his career, Critcher has been a musician and a brow, Critcher conveys a profound connection to the music, music director in churches and has also been the musical his body swaying in harmony with the rhythm. The room director for multiple musical theater productions in DFW. resonates with the rich, emotive tones while He’s been to Edinburgh, Scotland, as his foot taps softly on the pedal, controlling part of the Fringe Festival and also went the sustain and adding depth to the music. to Vancouver to perform with a baritone As the final notes linger, his mastery leaves soloist for the National College Music the room in hushed awe, a testament to the Society Convention.

What the students power of his skill and the intimate dialogue “My favorite thing about playing is just experience here is a he shares with the piano. the joy of making the sounds and the music family. And it’s just such Critcher has been delighting the campus and making what’s printed on the page, with his artistry at various events since a bunch of black notes, come to life,” he an encouraging part of 2005. From graduation ceremonies to the said. “I think one of the most stunning your whole life.

President’s Concert and more, Critcher things that I got to do was with the Dallas spends endless hours tickling the ivories Summer Musicals playing with a Broadway alongside students and faculty, bringing the cast, and it was a production where instead campus to life through music. of an orchestra in the pit, they had two Beyond being the university’s pianos. I was one of the pianists for that collaborative pianist, he is also a professor of music, area vocal production. It was memorable.” coordinator, and instructor of chamber piano music and music He encourages his students by having them think about and worship. He says that watching the students grow in their being a professional musician like being a professional athlete musical talents and into their careers is the most rewarding — it takes practice, dedication and a willingness to learn and part of the job. not be afraid of making mistakes.

“It’s just amazing to see the journey in just four years,” “Whatever level we are, we constantly try to improve he said. “During their time here, you work with them, ourselves — no one reaches perfection. What we really see them grow from freshmen to seniors. But then years are looking for in a student is dedication, that they apply later, these students are out there being music educators or themselves. I think part of developing a student’s skill is not professional singers. That is absolutely the joy and reward just the technique — it’s the joy, it’s the love of the music,” he of working here.” said. “I’m there to encourage them, to show them the passion, Like many musicians, Critcher grew up loving and playing the love for what they’re doing and what they’re taking off the music. He began playing piano at a very early age and started page and bring into reality.” formal lessons in third grade. His mother would make up Critcher says he loves teaching and playing at Texas notes for him to play while he practiced.

Wesleyan because the smaller class sizes allow him to devote “Growing up in the mountains of North Carolina, it was more time and attention to each student. maybe not the coolest thing in the ’60s and ’70s for a guy to “I truly believe in Texas Wesleyan’s model of ‘Smaller. be playing piano,” he laughed. “I actually played sports along Smarter.’” he said. “I’ve been in larger universities with the way too.” hundreds of music majors. But when you have a small group However, he decided to persist in his music throughout of students that you can concentrate on, there’s no question high school, then went on to get both his bachelor’s and they get your immediate attention.” master’s degrees in music. He described the feeling of Critcher is not just a pianist and educator but a having a family while getting his music degree and says charismatic mentor whose warmth and love for music that it is the same kind of feeling he wants students at inspires new generations. His journey, from the mountains Texas Wesleyan to share. to international stages, and ultimately to Texas Wesleyan, “What the students experience here is a family. And it’s just embodies the spirit of the RAMily – a close-knit such an encouraging part of your whole life. You begin to see community where music, passion and mentorship converge a whole new vision of ‘This is what I love, this is what I love in perfect harmony.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Dr. Messer Follows Her Dreams of Becoming a University President From first-generation college student to university president, Dr. Emily W. Messer is ready to make waves at Texas Wesleyan University.

Emily W. Messer began at Jacksonville State University as a first-generation college student to pursue a degree in secondary education, wanting to teach Spanish and English. As she began getting more involved on campus as a student, she decided to focus on studying higher education.

“I was a part of the Student Government Association, an orientation leader and in a sorority.

I thought ‘I like this college thing,’” she said. “I decided my junior year that I wanted to work in higher education.”

She graduated with her bachelor’s in English with a plan to get her master’s degree in an area that would help her land her dream job. She was so determined that she even dressed up as a university president during a fraternity-sorority mixer that encouraged people to dress for the job they wanted in the future, where she also met her husband, Chris.

Fast forward a few years, and Chris and Emily now have two daughters, Madelyn and Camille. The entire Messer family has moved to Fort Worth as Dr. Messer starts her presidency at Texas Wesleyan.

But this isn’t her “first rodeo” in Fort Worth.

Dr. Messer did an internship in 2006 at Southern Methodist University in the Office of New Student Programs, during which she visited the Fort Worth Stockyards — even sitting on a longhorn.

She completed the internship while also working on her master’s degree in public administration in education at JSU, where she also worked as a graduate assistant in the student life office.

Starting in 2007, she worked at Shorter University in Rome, Georgia, going from director of student life to assistant dean of students to vice president of enrollment management. As she moved her way up, she also completed her doctorate in higher education administration from the University of Alabama. In 2018 she left Shorter University to further advance her career and returned to Jacksonville State as the vice president for advancement and enrollment management.

And now? She’s achieved her dreams of becoming a university president when Texas Wesleyan welcomed her as its 21st president in July 2023.

“I’m excited about the opportunity and was drawn to an institution like Texas Wesleyan,” she said. “I was a first-generation college student, so I can put myself in the students’ shoes. At a university like Texas Wesleyan, it’s a life-changing opportunity for all students, especially those that are firstgeneration. So being able to serve as the president is quite an honor.”

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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“Everything just seemed to be a fit for me. ... I felt invigorated — like this was my calling.”

Left to right: Dr. Messer presides over the coin flip at a Texas Wesleyan football game. Dr. Messer greets a student on campus. Dr. Messer addresses faculty, staff and students at Academic Convocation.

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How Dr. Messer plans to continue making Texas Wesleyan a leader in higher education Dr. Messer was able to meet with her predecessor, Frederick G. Slabach, to get advice and learn more about the university.

“One of the most exciting things for me is getting out there and meeting people in the community,” she said. “There have been outstanding leaders at Texas Wesleyan. Former President Slabach raved about the Fort Worth community and the support they have for the university.”

She mentioned how impressed she was driving down Rosedale Street, seeing all the work Slabach had done with the Rosedale Renaissance — something that impacted not only Texas Wesleyan, but the Polytechnic Heights neighborhood as well.

“The foundation has been built, and I look forward to coming in and building on those relationships and establishing new relationships to continue to cultivate that partnership,” she said. “There are many entities involved that are passionate about this university that there is a bright future ahead.”

But she’s looking internally, too. With vast experience in student life, Dr. Messer understands the importance of what makes up a university — the students.

“I’m really focused on student success,” she said.

“And the opportunities are endless — as long as you have a vision, and you work toward that vision.”

Part of that vision is to continue working on opportunities for students through charitable donations, including the Karen Cramer Stadium, providing scholarships to students and focusing on student retention.

Why Dr. Messer chose Texas Wesleyan Beyond wanting to help first-generation college students like herself, Dr. Messer felt that Texas Wesleyan would be a great fit for her due to her experience aligning with what the university was looking for in its next president.

“Everything just seemed to be a fit for me,” she said, talking about visiting the campus and meeting with the search committee. “At the end of it, I felt invigorated — like this was my calling.”

Dr. Messer reflected on her accomplishments at other universities, including historic enrollment and fundraising at JSU. “It wasn’t only me, we had a great team,” she said. “It was more than strategies, it was creating the culture on campus, which was from the very top to the very bottom. It was a culture of student service and focusing on recruiting students and retaining students.

“And it was everyone’s responsibility on our entire campus. So, when I say ‘team,’ it wasn’t only the enrollment team, it was the entire campus.”

It’s that same feeling she wants to create on Texas Wesleyan’s campus — that we’re all a team.

“It’s getting out there and doing the work and being the leader of that team,” Dr. Messer said.

“I want to go somewhere where I can make a difference. I made a difference at JSU and at Shorter University, and I hope in my future path, that I’ll be able to make a difference at Texas Wesleyan.”

She even said Chris has many of the TXWES athletic events on his calendar.

“We’re all in,” she smiled. “We’re excited.”

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Resilience, Family & the American Dream: Life as a firstgeneration student Noelani's inspirational journey, supported by her unwavering family, showcases the power of resilience and determination as she joins her sisters in becoming first-generation college graduates.

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In times of adversity, your family can become a pillar of strength, offering unwavering support, lending a listening ear and extending a helping hand. They are the ones who teach us the invaluable lessons of resilience and perseverance.

It’s in the face of life’s challenges that we realize how deeply meaningful and irreplaceable these bonds are.

For senior computer science major Noelani Villiarimo, her family means the world to her. Generations before her faced several hardships, but the family has worked hard through it all to propel her and her sisters to become first-generation college students.

Her grandmother became a widow and struggled to find jobs as a single mom to afford to feed her 11 children in Mexico City, often skipping meals herself so that her children would have enough to eat. And after a gas explosion, the family had to flee the city and rebuild their lives.

“She did everything to support and take care of her kids.

She is my hero,” Noelani said. “She’s experienced so much.

We come from a very poor background and the American dream is so real for us.”

Noelani’s mother left Mexico and landed in Hawaii to start her own family. And her father has worked his entire life as an entrepreneur in order to provide for the family and encourage the girls to get an education.

“I love my parents. My dad is my mentor. He is always the first person to give to anyone in need,” she said. “They have sacrificed so much, and they see the American dream within us.”

The family lived in Lahaina on Maui, a tight-knit community where everyone knows each other. She even said it was normal to call people in the stores “auntie” even if they weren’t related to you. However, the universities on the island didn’t quite fit the family’s needs, so she and her sisters left Hawaii to attend school in the continental United States.

“In my family, we’re all close. They’re the type of people that want you to go to college, but [if the college] doesn’t have a class that works for you, then you all [go to another one] together,” she said. “We moved here alone in Texas, not knowing anyone here. Their sacrifices and support have really made me the person I am.”

Noelani first joined her sisters at Texas Wesleyan University as a pre-medical student but decided to transfer to the University of Texas at Arlington to major in architecture.

However, after a few semesters, she felt like the environment

at UTA wasn’t quite right for her. She came back to Texas Wesleyan, changing her major to computer science.

“I’m a first-generation student, which is a big deal, especially with changing majors. That was really scary. It was hard because every single time I changed, even though I was doing well academically, emotionally I wasn’t,” she said. “I felt like a failure, or that I might be just like a college dropout.”

But Noelani started to thrive at Texas Wesleyan as she started working closely with the professors here.

“I love my professors here,” she said. “I get to have these close relationships with these professors. I feel like they’re the type that just want you to be the best in your field. I think that really makes me more motivated to do well.”

Noelani states that computer science is a lot like architecture — both use creativity, math and technology to help build user-friendly environments, just one does it for buildings and the other does it for computer software.

She is also the treasurer of the Dimensions Club — an organization for students in math, computer science and physics to get connected and meet professionals in the area. She says it is important for students in these majors to get involved since a lot of projects in the field are individual work.

After graduating, Noelani is looking to pursue a master’s degree in either mathematics or computer science. She wants to work with computer graphics and biotechnology.

Her sisters have both graduated from Texas Wesleyan, and a few of their cousins are currently enrolled at the university as well. Noelani is expected to graduate in spring 2024, making her part of the first generation of her family to graduate with a bachelor’s degree.

“Sometimes it becomes a lot of pressure [to be a firstgeneration student], but you also get motivated,” Noelani said. “I need to do well, make my parents proud and see that all their sacrifices weren’t taken in vain or for granted.”

“I feel like [the professors] are the type that just want you to be the best in your field. I think that really makes me more motivated to do well.”

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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SPORTS REPORT

Rams Athletics Bring Home a School-Record 5 Sac Titles There’s never been a better time to be a Texas Wesleyan Ram! Over the 2022-23 academic year, the Rams men’s and women’s teams dominated the Sooner Athletic Conference, bringing home five team titles (women’s wrestling, women’s basketball, football, baseball and men’s track and field), as well as four individual titles in women’s wrestling and men’s track and field. The five SAC titles are a school record for the most titles in a single season. Here’s how the teams did it.

Women’s Wrestling

Jasmine Sands claimed the 109-pound championship and Mea Mohler claimed the 136-pound title. Between Basham’s, Sands’ and Mohler’s titles, and aided

by Camille Fournier’s strong secondplace finish in the 116-pound class, the Lady Rams, under the direction of SAC Coach of the Year Jose Lazo, handily claimed their second-straight SAC title.

Defensive Player of the Year, and senior Makayla Coy was awarded the SAC Sportsmanship award after a season that saw her reach 1,000 career points.

In addition to their individual awards, Amos, Coy and sophomore Zarria Carter all found themselves named to the All-SAC postseason teams.

Football

Women’s Basketball

Women’s wrestler Lexie Basham represented the Rams both at home and abroad. After taking home both the SAC and NAIA Championships in the 130-pound class, Basham donned the red, white and blue for the U23 World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain.

After a strong showing, the junior reached the semifinals before falling to the eventual champion.

Basham’s back-to-back NAIA titles are the first and second individual titles in Texas Wesleyan school history.

“Lexie has been a fantastic representative of our university on the national stage,” said Texas Wesleyan athletic director Ricky Dotson. “She is the unquestioned leader of our team, and her back-to-back national championships are a source of pride for our entire campus community. We are so happy that she is part of our Ram family, and I know her best is still in front of her.”

In addition to Basham’s SAC title, two other Lady Rams brought home the hardware in their weight classes.

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The women’s basketball team, under the leadership of the 2022 head coach Brenita Jackson, rewrote the record books on their campaign, culminating in the Rams’ first SAC women’s basketball title since the 1989-90 season. In their season, the Lady Rams set new school records for SAC wins with 19 and set a new program record with 17 consecutive wins. At the end of the season, senior Kertisa Amos was named both SAC Player of the Year and SAC

On the men’s side, the Rams football team found themselves at the top of the SAC tables in just their fifth season of play, claiming their first SAC Championship in school history and the first conference championship since 1941. Propelled by AP AllAmerican Ernie Ceasar III and SAC Athlete of the Year Jaysen Price, coach Joe Prud’homme’s Rams set a new benchmark in wins, finishing 7-2 in conference play. Prud’homme also was named SAC Co-Coach of the Year — his first nod as the Rams coach. Finally, eight Rams saw themselves named to the All-SAC First Team, and an additional three were named to the All-SAC Second Team.

Men’s Track and Field Most recently, the men’s track and field team, led by 2023 SAC Coach of the Year Randy Dalzell, dominated their way to a SAC Championship, winning the 22-event team competition by over 51 points. The Rams had a strong showing at the event, with 14 athletes claiming podium positions in their events, and Jamarrion Reed claiming the SAC Championship in the high jump.

“Our men’s team put together a great overall team scoring performance to win their first SAC Championship,” said head coach Randy Dalzell. “Everyone contributed, and it was a total team effort. The spirit and heart of the team really showed throughout the two days, and this group of guys has set a high standard for future teams to follow.”

Baseball

Finally, the Rams baseball team, under the leadership of head coach Bobby Garza, claimed the regularseason SAC title and earned the No. 1 seed in the SAC Tournament.

After finishing the regular season 3512, including 15-6 in the conference, the Rams defeated Mid-America Christian University to clinch the top spot in the tournament.

The five SAC titles are the most conference championships brought back to Fort Worth in Texas Wesleyan Athletics history.

“I am beyond proud of our studentathletes and their coaches for their accomplishments,” said Dotson. “I look forward to continuing this success well into the future.”

Setting the Course for Victory: Get to know TXWES’ new beach volleyball team Three bright stars and their coach hope to turn Texas Wesleyan’s newest athletic team into a big win for the university by attracting more fans, recruiting players and making it to the championship game.

The rhythmic thud of palms meeting the ball, the soft swish of sand under feet and the roaring cheers that follow an incredible dig — it’s all about to start at Texas Wesleyan as the beach volleyball team gears up for its first year.

The brand-new team is being led by coach Jorge Rodriguez, the former assistant beach volleyball coach at Stephen F. Austin University. He has almost 20 years of experience in coaching volleyball.

“I’m excited about starting my own program because I’ve been doing this for such a long time now, but I always came into an already established program,” he said. “It’s been such a process, so I’m excited to finally start practicing on the new court and having the beach volleyball gear. That part makes me super happy.”

He has his eyes set on getting a national championship within the first few years of starting the program.

“It’s a lot of recruitment. You have to find the right players that really want to compete and succeed in this sport — and that’s tricky,” he said. “All I need are my courts and my players, nothing fancy to win a national championship.”

His first goal for the team is to get a full roster of 16 players. Three juniors have already been recruited — biology major Emily White and psychology majors Holland Hancock and Leyna Michel. The three girls transferred to Texas Wesleyan for beach volleyball.

“We already have [another] three committed for next year, so it’s looking good,” he said.

The Differences of Beach vs. Indoor Volleyball All of the girls have played both indoor and beach volleyball, but say they really enjoy the challenge of beach volleyball. Each sport provides unique challenges to the game, with indoor volleyball having a team of six on a hard floor court while beach volleyball is played in pairs on a sand court.

“For me, indoor volleyball just isn’t my passion anymore,” said White. “I stopped playing for a year and focused on my education but felt this hole in my life. I took a chance and emailed coach Rodriguez, and I’m super excited to get started. I think the coach has a lot of things lined up and has already stepped forward. I think we’re going to have a really good team, too.”

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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SPORTS REPORT

“I feel like it’s a more fluid sport,” said Hancock. “It looks better and feels better. I think once the team gets more established, it’s going to be very popular.”

“When I played indoor, I was a libero, a defensive player. I wasn’t able to hit because I was so small,” Michel said. “In beach volleyball, you cover more ground as a defensive player. You can do it all — and that’s what I like, I like to be a universal player.”

With only two players during each game, beach volleyball takes a lot more trust, connection and coordination between the two players — something Rodriguez said will take time to build during their first year playing together.

“It’s really important to have that connection and feeling with your partner,” Rodriguez said. “The environment and the feeling of beach volleyball is different — when you get on the court, it’s just you and your partner. You have to do whatever you can to help each other out.”

The girls will rotate in practice to discover who partners together well.

However, it’s important for them all to learn how to work with each player in case they need to swap partners from unforeseeable things, like injury.

The team also talked about how the coaching is very different, as coaches cannot talk to players while they are playing the game. Players need to know the right moments to call a timeout to be able to talk to coaches.

“You have to sit back, set it up and teach them how to be self-sufficient,” Rodriguez said.

The Transfer Experience The girls also said that coming to Texas Wesleyan has been a fun experience so far, stating that they can already tell their professors care a lot about their futures.

“I came from a smaller university, and it’s just completely different here.

You could tell that the professors care for your success,” White said. She is studying to go into dental school after she graduates from Texas Wesleyan.

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Hancock said she is focusing on social work, wanting to help children in the community. She said her mother’s teaching career sparked an interest in wanting to work with children.

I like, because it actually feels like a school environment,” she said. “They’re not too big and not too small. And the professor of my fundamentals of psychology class said he was going to help us figure out where we want to go [in our careers]. So that will be nice.”

Going Beyond Being a Student-Athlete

“The professors here, they’re outgoing. And they seem to care about not only your academics, but your wellbeing and everything that makes you, you,” Hancock said.

Michel is still trying to discover what kind of psychology work she wants to go into but said that she hopes to start deciding in her fundamentals of psychology class. She transferred from Ranger College.

“The classes here are a little bit bigger [than Ranger College], which

Coach Rodriguez emphasized the importance of having a great college experience overall for his players, stating that the sport should enhance their time in school.

“My time in college was the best time of my life,” he said. “I feel everybody should have the same experience. Volleyball is the best part of our life in some way, but it’s not our life.”

Rodriguez encourages his players to take time to decompress, hang out with friends and family, and experience college life beyond practice, games and classes.

“The person should be first and the athlete should come after,” he said.

The girls all decompress in different ways. White volunteers as a volleyball coach for young girls in the community and loves to read historical fiction and dark romance. Hancock says she loves binging on true crime shows and podcasts and spending time with her family, while Michel says she loves to shop, especially at Nike, Pink and American Eagle and loves dogs.

“We know that if we are going to practice, we’re practicing for that time,” White said. “It’s two to three hours of your life. You go all out, work hard and then you live life. That’s just how it is to be a student-athlete.”

The team’s first game will be scheduled in the spring.

Check ramsports.net for game announcements and come support our Rams!

Construction Continues on Karen Cramer Stadium After breaking ground on the Karen Cramer Stadium in May 2022, the project is beginning to transform the landscape of Texas Wesleyan University’s campus. The stadium, named for Texas Wesleyan board member and generous contributor Karen Cramer, kicked off a plan to revitalize athletic facilities and enhance the student experience.

Construction crews have already made considerable progress in making the stadium a reality. Utilities were rerouted, the site was graded and prepared, and retaining walls were added to stabilize the space. This past July and August, crews installed the state-of-the-art lighting system and field turf system.

However, there’s plenty more to complete. The next steps are the installation of the NCAA-certified track and the construction of the field house.

The NCAA-certified track is set to be installed at the conclusion of the 2023 football season. By delaying the construction of the track, the field was able to serve as a practice space for the football team, women’s soccer team and men’s soccer team — allowing them to practice closer to campus, rather than having to travel to an offcampus facility.

“We are already seeing an enhancement in convenience and overall quality of training for our student-athletes with practices being held on the new field,” said athletic director Ricky Dotson. “We’re committed to supporting multisport use of the facility and reinforcing our university’s presence in Fort Worth’s athletic landscape.”

The next major step will be the construction of the field house, with Moritz Dealerships making the lead gift. A few options have

been presented for a two-story multipurpose building that will include a primary football locker room; other flex locker spaces that can be adjusted from one large room into smaller rooms for soccer, track and field, and cross country; training room space; a weight room; a video-viewing room; and athletic staff offices.

The construction of the stadium and field house is a major part of the Engage. Inspire. Invest. A Comprehensive Campaign, which is part of the university’s Engage 2025 Strategic Plan. Other improvements under the campaign include upgrades to the Sid Richardson Gymnasium, Nicholas Martin Hall and other oncampus facilities.

“The alignment of our Engage.

Inspire. Invest. campaign, with the university’s Engage 2025 Strategic Plan, focuses on enhancing student, alumni and community engagement,” said Brian Builta, interim vice president of advancement. “The success of this campaign will not only benefit our athletic programs but will also strengthen our commitment to providing a top-tier education and vibrant campus life.”

The Karen Cramer Stadium project continues to symbolize pride and progress for the entire Texas Wesleyan community and southeast Fort Worth.

“Karen Cramer Stadium embodies our commitment to progress, both in athletics and community engagement,” said President Emily W. Messer. “This project is particularly exciting for me, as it provides an opportunity to take this vision and propel it to the next level, ensuring an even brighter future for Texas Wesleyan and enhancing student life and comradery on campus.”

Stay tuned for more exciting updates as we embark on the next phase of this transformative journey.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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Alumna Mary-Margaret Soknich ’10 uses the power of music to create community Alumna Mary-Margaret Soknich ’10, a dedicated music teacher, showcases the remarkable ability of music to foster community, both in her role as an educator and her personal journey.

Music is not only a sound — it’s a way to evoke and express emotion. It helps with memory, language and attention and even has the power to heal. It’s an important aspect of history and culture, as the story of music begins with the story of human existence.

For alumna Mary-Margaret Soknich (Meyer) ’10, music unfolded as more than an art form; it emerged as a pathway to both family and a fulfilling career.

Soknich grew up listening to music with her parents, as they both were involved in playing music at church and often sang their favorite tunes around the house.

“It’s hard for me to remember a time when I wasn’t interested in music,” she said. “When I was 4, I came home from my aunt’s wedding and started playing the bridal march on this tiny toy piano.

My mom was shocked — I never had piano lessons.”

She began taking piano lessons at the age of 5 and eventually took up the flute and French horn when she joined high school marching band.

“I always told people I didn’t want to be a musician when I grew up,” she laughed. “I wanted to be an author or an English teacher. But then high school happened, and I made all-state band.

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That made me decide I want to [be in music] forever.”

Then, during Soknich’s junior year of high school, a tragic event unfolded in her life — her mother passed away.

“I was kind of just coasting through senior year,” she said. “Going to band was the only thing that kept me going during that time of grief. It was a source of constant joy and inspiration, and my friends in band really helped me to stay afloat.”

The loss of her mother also added an unexpected delay in her college plans. However, fate intervened when a professor spoke to her class about Texas Wesleyan. Soknich decided to audition for two colleges, but it was her audition at TXWES that left an indelible impression.

“When I walked out of my audition with Texas Wesleyan, I just knew it was the place,” she smiled. “I really wanted to do composition, music education and be in band and choir — and they said I could do it all.

“If I went to a bigger school, I would have had a cookie cutter degree and would get lost in the mix. With Texas Wesleyan being smaller, I could get a professor’s attention to try a new idea or help solve a problem.”

Soknich participated in voice, piano, conducting, arranging and French horn lessons. She also joined Texas Wesleyan’s band and choir, and even tacked on performances with the Fort Worth Chorale, the Greater Fort Worth Community Band and jazz band.

“Anything they offered, I wanted to try,” she laughed. “I think that really made me a master of none of them but helped me have a well-rounded experience. Being in all of that prepared me to teach.”

After graduating from Texas Wesleyan with her bachelor’s in music education, Soknich went back to her high school alma mater, Nolan Catholic High School, as a piano accompanist and eventually became the director of music.

“It was really meaningful to go back, because when I was in band, I always said I just wanted to spend all day in the musical hall and get paid for it,” she said.

Soknich’s journey had come full circle when she stood before her own classroom, paying forward the gift of music she had received as a teenager seeking solace in her high school band room. She watched her program flourish, witnessing her students win contests and grow not only as musicians but as individuals.

Her impact extended beyond the notes on sheet music, touching the hearts and souls of her students as she provides them with the same experience she had after her mother passed away — a family to fall back on during hard times.

“I don’t think it was until I started college that I realized why I wanted to be a high school music teacher,” she said. “I chose this career because music has always been a part of my life, but I also recognized how my high school band class offered me a refuge during the hardest time in my life. My ‘why’ as a teacher is to offer that refuge and community to the next generation of students — and make amazing music, too!”

After a few years of teaching, Soknich got her Master of Music Education from the University of North Texas.

And after nine years at Nolan, she was offered a job at I.M. Terrell Academy for STEM and VPA in Fort Worth ISD. “I.M. Terrell is a really unique school because it’s a school of choice — we have specialized programs in visual performing arts and STEM. So not only is our academy offering a college preparatory education, but it’s also focusing on a higher level of artistic training,” she said.

Soknich said she’s been able to connect with the Fort Worth Opera to have opera singers work with her students. The University of North Texas has graduate students help students in their vocal jazz band. And Soknich is also having her students perform alongside the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra at their holiday concert in Bass Hall later this year.

However, music is more than just her career — it’s her passion. Soknich is the associate conductor of the Voices of Fort Worth, is the small-school region coordinator for the Texas Music Educators Association, and has performed for several churches.

Despite her success, Soknich never forgot her roots at Texas Wesleyan. The university’s music department remained a cherished part of her life.

“Everybody in Texas Wesleyan’s music department is like family to me, even if they’ve retired or moved on. I feel like I can call upon them for anything I need,” she said. “And I still feel like Martin Hall is my home. Even after all these years, it really feels like I never left.”

Soknich has come a long way from the little girl who played the bridal march on a toy piano. Through her career as an educator and her passion as a musician, she has woven her own unique melody into the lives of students and musicians in Fort Worth, reminding us that music does more than delight your ears — it creates community.

Alumna Sandra Maria Garcia ’02, MBA ’09 fights for education equality Through her own experiences, Sandra Maria Garcia ’02, MBA ’09 learned the value that education has in others’ lives. Now, she’s sharing that impact with her community to help young students get a college education.

Education has the power to transform lives, but the determination to succeed can be an even stronger force, capable of altering the course of an entire family and extending its influence in the community.

And it can all start with just one person making the decision to persevere — no matter the circumstances.

Alumna Sandra Maria Garcia ’02, MBA ’09 has worked hard to improve not only her and her family’s lives, but also inspire students in our community to pursue higher education.

Garcia was the first-born child of her family who lived in a small village in Mexico. She remembers her dad working in Fort Worth while her mom stayed in Mexico to raise her and her siblings.

“Unless you planted crops, you wouldn’t have anything to eat,” she said.

“There were lean times when there was no work, even in construction. I remember being hungry.”

One of her brothers started getting sick, and in search of assistance for his family, her father decided to move everyone to Fort Worth. They were able to take her brother to the hospital, where it turned out he had a kidney infection and could have lost his life.

Garcia’s mother pushed her children to get an education, but the family faced issues being undocumented immigrants. The children were taken in by a church where they were taught English. However, Garcia was able to pick it up faster than her other siblings, which gave her the role of secretary for her dad as he worked.

“The first thing my mom wanted us to do was get registered in school, but we were told no,” she said. “There were a lot of families singled out. We started school a year later than normal. All my siblings had to take ESL (English as a second language) classes in a special school, so they were isolated.”

Garcia became one of the first undocumented students in Fort Worth ISD after the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. couldn’t deny students a free public education based on their immigration status.

In high school, her class had over 600 students, making it hard for Garcia to get college counseling. She applied to the University of Southern California and Texas Christian University, getting accepted to both. But due to her father being in an accident, she decided to go to TCU to stay close to home.

“I didn’t get a lot of financial aid, even though I was in the top 10,” she said.

“There wasn’t a lot of opportunities like there are now. So, I worked three jobs and tried to keep a good GPA. It was hard.

“But nobody told me not to do all that. No one was around to see — it was just me. My parents didn’t know anything about college. I had to navigate all that by myself.”

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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But something didn’t feel quite right to Garcia, and with juggling the jobs, school and helping her family, she decided to leave TCU after one year for Tarrant County College. She attended TCC for another year before ultimately ending up at Texas Wesleyan University.

At TXWES, she took night and evening classes so that she could continue working to help support her family. She also attended PTA meetings and school open houses for her younger siblings. She wanted to make sure they did well in school and graduated.

Twelve years after starting college, she graduated from Texas Wesleyan with her bachelor’s degree in international business.

“We were told that the only way for us to get ahead was to get an education,” she said. “It took me forever to finish my degree.

But it doesn’t matter how long it takes — as long as that piece of paper is on your wall, people can’t hold it against you.”

It was that same mindset that helped Garcia also obtain a master’s degree in management from Texas Wesleyan University, despite hearing from others that she didn’t need to do it. The degree helped her land a promotion — which is what she had her eyes on when looking to further her education.

Seeing the effect that getting a higher education had on her life, she also started working with nonprofits like MANA, a national Latina organization, and the Hispanic Women’s Network of Texas Latinas in Progress program.

She served on several boards that work to promote equity, public education and college readiness and has been involved with the Foundation for the Young Women’s Leadership Academy, Texas Wesleyan University President’s Advisory Board and Juntos Se Puede.

Through her work, she’s helped several Latina students and their families understand the value of education and become a mentor to them as they went to college.

“I always made it a mission, especially for my community, [to help others see it’s] important to get an education,” she said.

In Mexico, even though there is free tuition at public schools, parents are often responsible for paying enrollment fees, classroom supplies and more. Garcia says this puts a barrier on lower-income families to send their children to school.

“I think it was a blessing that we ended up here [in the United States] for public school. People may say that public school isn’t the best — but that’s often what many can only afford. And I’m a proponent of taking advantage of every opportunity that you get.”

Her work in the community hasn’t gone unnoticed. She was recently honored with the Heroes for Children award by the Texas Education Agency. The award is “designed to recognize excellence in advocacy for education and to highlight the many outstanding volunteers whose efforts represent significant contributions to public school education in Texas,” according to the TEA’s website.

“I really didn’t think anything big about the award. I do what I do because I like it. I have a passion for education and going

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to school boards fighting injustice and fighting for equity,” she said. “I never [needed] an award for it. I just felt like it’s something I should do.”

When she reflects on how education made such an impact on her life, she says it wasn’t always an easy task, but one she wanted to do for her family.

“I always felt that I had a purpose, especially being the oldest. I was trying to set the bar. I may not have been perfect, I may have made mistakes, but I always tell my brothers they can’t say I didn’t set the bar,” she said.

Now, Garcia’s thinking about setting that bar even higher as she starts to look into getting her Ph.D. to teach at the collegiate level — even as she continues to help Hispanic and Latino families understand the importance of their children’s education.

“I think the advantages are so much better now, but there are needles we still need to move,” Garcia said. “More education of the parents of how to be involved [in their students’ education] and help promoting education.”

Want to work in bilingual education? Check out our bilingual education degree and meet Dr. Patsy RoblesGoodwin, a professor who is also working on education equity by designing programs for Spanish-speaking parents to get involved in their children’s school.

Wesleyan Rangers Day This June, more than 250 alumni, students, faculty, staff and friends came out to the ballpark to cheer on the Texas Rangers and enjoy some TXWES fellowship! With all-you-can-eat hotdogs, air conditioning and a big win for the home team, it was a perfect Sunday afternoon.

Members of the Gold Line Dancers team and campus resident assistants were among the students in attendance.

Make sure to keep up with future alumni events by updating your email address at alumni@txwes.edu and following @txwesalumni on social media.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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R A M S AT WO R K

AWA R D - W I N N I N G R A M S

R A M I LY U P DAT E S

1980s

1970s

2000s

Christine Rollins ’87 completed the coursework and earned the GRI designation from the Texas Association of Realtors.

Additionally, she passed the Enrolled Agent exam and received her certification authorizing her to practice before the IRS on March 31, 2023.

Quentin McGown ’79 won the 2023 Tiny Batts Award for Service from Leadership Fort Worth.

1980s Julie Hatch Fairley ’89 was honored as May’s Woman of the Month in Fort Worth Woman.

1990s Laure O’Neal ’91 is proud to announce she joined Tarrant County College Foundation as executive director on March 20, 2023.

Dan Nowlan ’97 has been named director of Research & Development and Regulatory Affairs for Berryman Products, Inc. Melissa Oden ’97 was recently reinstalled as president of the Texas Public Health Association.

2010s Amber Calhoun ’11 gained the appointment of vice president at Street Realty in its Brokerage Services Division.

Rick Herring ’89 has won Neighbor of the Year from the CarterRiverside Neighborhood Association.

1990s Paige (Martin) McEachern ’91 a 31-year veteran educator was chosen as Huffman ISD Region IV Elementary Principal of the Year.

2000s

Jeanette Martinez ’12 made history becoming the first Latina to serve on Fort Worth's City Council.

Melondy Doddy-Muñoz ’12 was selected as part of Fort Worth Business Press 40 under 40.

Peyton Prudhomme ’18 has been named the director of operations for Grand Canyon University men’s basketball team.

RAMS IN RETIREMENT

C R E AT I V E R A M S

1980s Lu Nell Barnett Johnson ’82 has written a book inspired by a cat she met during her travel in Germany.

1990s Meredith Lucio ’93 directed and produced the audio play Bad People.

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Shay (Dial) Gipson ’05 married Gerald Gipson on November 11, 2022, in Fort Worth, Texas.

1960s Charlotte (Wood) Cowser ’69 retired after 53 years in the classroom. Her career spanned nine years in FWISD, 27 years in Aledo ISD, and 17 years at All Saints’ Episcopal School. She and her husband, Charles L. Cowser ’70 will be enjoying retirement together in Weatherford.

1990s Doug Akins MBA ’99 joined Texas Wesleyan School of Law in 1994 and has now retired from Texas A&M School of Law as financial aid administrator.

2010s Alumni couple Lisa Huynh ’14, MBA ’15 and Richard Vyhane ’13, MBA ’18 welcomed a baby boy in August of 2022.

GOT NEWS? SHARE IT. We want to know what you’ve been up to since graduation. Class notes are published twice a year.

Don't forget to email your updates on new jobs, awards, marriages and baby announcements to alumni@txwes.edu.

S TAY U P T O DAT E WITH ALUMNI Have you up date d your information with our of f ice?

C all 817- 5 31- 6 5 4 8 or email us at alumni@ t x we s.e du to s t ay up to date on all alumni new s and event s.

Fo l l ow u s o n Fa ce b o o k a n d I n s t a g ra m @ t x we s a l u m n i

REMEMBRANCES

Naomi Coontz ’54.......................6/23/2023 Jerrell N. Newton ’54....................2/4/2023 Sylvia Weatherby ’54....................3/2/2023

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS Don Boulware ’64 Patricia Castillo ’97, MBA ’08

Charlene Nichols ’55.................. 2/17/2023

Branigan Contreras ’15

Alan J. Segars ’57.......................5/21/2023

Teri Flores ’97

Valerie A. Coffee ’58.....................3/5/2023

Jennifer Harrison ’20

Carolyn Linton ’59........................6/6/2023 Relton W. Bennett ’60................6/23/2023 Hugh S. Rixford ’62......................2/4/2023

Jen Hilton ’02 Mark Husband ’95 Terri Kane MHS ’99, DNAP ’15 GPNA Representative

James D. Abel ’63......................6/11/2023

Kathryn Keaton ’04

Joyce B. Bardin ’69......................5/8/2023

Jill Kersh ’92 Secretary

Stan E. Carr ’69..........................3/12/2023

Margi Kluck ’79

Janice J. James ’70......................3/4/2023

René Lawson ’81

Judy A. Richmond ’70..................2/5/2023

Veronica Martinez ’81

Gerald M. Halyard ’72.................5/19/2023

Julie McCurley ’06 Treasurer

Karyn L. Granger ’73....................3/2/2023 Philip L. Gaynor ’74.....................5/11/2023 Thomas E. Hamilton ’74.............4/18/2023 Viktoria Kent ’74...........................3/4/2023 Anthony W. Newman ’74..............6/7/2023 Robert H. Dotson ’75....................3/8/2023 Celia H. De La Cruz ’76................5/6/2023 Ronald J. Wilson ’77................... 5/17/2023 Thomas W. Richardson ’79.........4/10/2023 Loretta M. Santos ’79...................5/1/2023

Eric Montoya ’07, M.Ed. ’15 Immediate Past President Nikkina Robinson ’10 Christine Rollins ’87 Xavier Sanders ’09 Karen Surita ’01 President Lorena Vargas ’07 Jorge Vivar ’76 Dan Whitsell ’73 Ram Club Representative Vernon Wright ’93 Vice President

David G. Dodson ’80..................5/18/2023 Mary Arredondo ’90.....................3/5/2023 Loretta A. Pawlus ’96...................3/1/2023 Gregory M. Guttman ’04.............4/24/2023

OFFICE OF ALUMNI RELATIONS STAFF Jeri Chipman ’97 Director of Alumni Relations Stephanie Diersen Assistant Director of Alumni Relations

TO HONOR A RAM IN WESLEYAN MAGAZINE

please email alumni@txwes.edu.

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan

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How the President’s Picnic Became a Tradition at Texas Wesleyan Over 30 years ago, the first picnic invited Texas Wesleyan faculty and staff to a fun, on-campus event. Now, it’s bringing together the campus and surrounding community.

1992

In August 1992, then Texas Wesleyan University President Jake B. Schrum invited faculty, staff and their families to a picnic in the Brown-Lupton Campus Center, using the pool and gym for a fun way to bring together the campus community. President Schrum decided to keep the picnic going during his presidency and, in 1997, the event was officially named the President’s Picnic and has been used ever since.

The President’s Picnic is not unique to Texas Wesleyan — many colleges and universities traditionally hold the event in August to welcome the campus community to a new academic year. However, in recent years, Texas Wesleyan has expanded its picnic to include Ramboree. This allows students to learn more about on- and off-campus organizations and groups they can join, showcasing groups like the Student Government Association, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County, Hatton Sumners Scholars and more.

This year, Dr. Emily W. Messer hosted her first President’s Picnic alongside Ramboree, providing free food to over 400 students, faculty and staff. There was also music and games that electrified the space. The event was packed as the campus community came together to make new friends, signed up to participate in various organizations, and had some fun to kick off the academic year.

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2009

2023

2023

To our donors and friends,

YOU ARE TXWES.

Every person who invests in TXWES is a part of our legacy. Whether you’re an alumnus, student, parent, friend, donor, faculty or staff – we all contribute to the special lifechanging work here at TXWES.

THANK YOU FOR MAKING US TXWES.

SUPPORT THE WESLEYAN FUND TODAY.

GO.TXWESGIVES.ORG/YEAREND

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DON’T LET THIS BE YOUR LAST PRINTED ISSUE! Moving forward, Wesleyan magazine will be mailed only to active alumni and donors.

Want to make sure you are on the list? Send us a message at alumni@txwes.edu.

Fear not, a digital version of each issue is always available online.