Wesleyan Magazine, Spring 2023 by Texas Wesleyan Alumni

VISION for MOMENTUM

As President Frederick G. Slabach says goodbye, we look back at his accomplishments

PAGE 14

CINDY FLORES

A deeper look inside the world of esports

PAGE 10

THOMAS BELL

How a family has made TXWES home for generations

PAGE 22

OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF TEXAS WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY SPRING 2023

Cultural Day at Texas Wesleyan

International students showcase their cultural clothing at the Cultural Day event put on by the Student Diversity & Inclusion Programs this March. Students sampled food from around the world, including African, Asian and Latin cuisines, learned about the various cultures of international students, and played cultural games. With Texas Wesleyan students representing 55 different countries, students can gain a deeper insight into other cultures and have more meaningful interactions with others.

RAMS IN FOCUS

HAIL TO THEE, DEAR TEXAS WESLEYAN

We enter a new chapter in our story with a community that is stronger than ever.

Dear Alumni and Friends,

This is my last issue of Wesleyan magazine as president of Texas Wesleyan University. I want to thank those of you who have shared your stories over the years in the pages of this magazine. Your experiences are the narrative of our university community.

We have worked hard the last 12 years to leave Texas Wesleyan in a good place for the future. With its finances secure and more first-year students joining our campus community, I feel confident that while challenges remain, we can be proud of the work we have done together.

While Melany and I will be moving home to Mississippi, our hearts are still very much with Texas Wesleyan and the incredible connections we have made: With students, with our philanthropic community, with faculty and with others who cherish this institution as deeply as we do.

While this issue looks back at some of our shared accomplishments over the past 12 years, it also looks to the future. I am proud to report that the university’s future is bright. Programs like esports continue to draw students with innovative ideas about what makes smaller smarter. We are enriched by our students’ optimism and engagement with their education. And the economic revitalization of our neighborhood continues apace.

Texas Wesleyan is so much more than a campus in southeast Fort Worth – it is a story we are writing together. I anticipate the next chapter will be a good one for Texas Wesleyan University.

FEATURES

10 CINDY FLORES

A closer look at the world of esports – and how video games can help physical therapy

12 LEAP OF FAITH

Stella’s journey from Vietnam to the United States

14 VISION FOR MOMENTUM

A look back at President Frederick G. Slabach’s remarkable decade at Texas Wesleyan

22 THOMAS BELL

How one family built a legacy at Texas Wesleyan

DEPARTMENTS

4 NEWS & EVENTS

11 Things the West Librarians Wish You Knew

The librarians put their heads together to come up with a list of items they wish you knew about the library. Some may surprise you!

Director of West Library Elizabeth A.M. Howard named president-elect of TLA

A commitment to intentional equity, diversity and inclusion is a priority for her term as president

The Adapt-Able Foundation partners with Texas Wesleyan to provide adaptive SCUBA experience

The organization will use the TXWES pool to help people with disabilities learn how to SCUBA dive, while also giving students the opportunity to volunteer

Elizabeth A.M. Howard, director of the Eunice and James L. West Library, was elected the 2023-24 presidentelect of the Texas Library Association.

Howard is a longtime TLA member with many years of volunteer experience. For the association, she has served as a representative at-large (academic) on the TLA executive board, chaired the Disaster Relief Committee, was part of the Texas Book Festival Committee and was on the Program Committee for the 2017 TLA Annual Conference. Howard was elected at a time when libraries and librarians are facing an unprecedented number of intellectual freedom challenges.

“My work with the executive board has emphasized intentional equity, diversity and inclusion,” Howard said. “The coalition of the Texans for the Right to Read helps librarians do the same in their communities. We must help all librarians sustain academic and intellectual freedom. Challenges in school libraries have repercussions across public and academic libraries as well. All library types and areas need spaces to collaborate more effectively. With challenges like COVID-19, censorship and other unforeseen events, librarians are leaving the field unexpectedly, highlighting our need for better succession planning. We must supplement this with more effective recruitment to fill roles that have been vacated. Finally, considering the impact these challenges have had on libraries across Texas, I will focus on rebuilding our confidence and empowering our library workers.”

1. The library is open until midnight – Sunday through Thursday, in case anyone says they couldn’t get to the library. If someone comes to the library after 8 p.m. on those days, they must show a current TXWES ID.

2. The chat feature is available 24/7 – although it could be a librarian from another library who answers the chat. In order to offer this service, called Ask a Librarian!, the library is part of a chat consortium. So if the West reference librarians are not available, a trained librarian will take the call.

3. There’s a research guide for that – there are a wide variety of research guides on the library’s website. There’s one with tips for accessing library databases and a troubleshooting checklist that often takes care of your log in problems.

4. The library does not have the book you want? – then recommend the library buy it! Either fill out the Purchasing Request form on the library’s homepage at westlibrary.txwes.edu or email Marquel Anteola at manteola@txwes.edu. Or request it on Interlibrary Loan, found on the library’s homepage under “Resources.”

5. Are you a published author? – then let the library know. Your book can be added to the collection. Your professional papers can be added to the academic archive. Contact archivist Louis Sherwood ’89 at lsherwood@txwes.edu.

6. Miss June! – many of you know June Johnson as the circulation supervisor. She has now come over to the reference side as the newest teaching librarian.

7. Speaking of teaching librarians – let the reference department know if you would like a teaching librarian to come to your class and demonstrate effective methods to use the library tools. Contact Dennis Miles at dbmiles@txwes.edu or June Johnson at jujohnson@txwes.edu.

8. The Makers Lab is open more hours – so bring those makeit projects in! Reserve a space on the library’s website.

9. You can use other libraries – when you get a TexShare card, you can check out books from area libraries such as Fort Worth public libraries, TCU and TCC.

10. The library has e-books – when you look up books on the library’s homepage, you can find e-books as well. Either look at them as a PDF or download them to your device.

11. Professors, when you make a library assignment – let us know so we can better help your students.

After a long closure due to the quarantine and burst pipes, the library is back. We are excited to see you

If you’ve ever completely submerged yourself in water, you know that feeling of being weightless. It can bring a sense of freedom.

It’s that freedom that Kari-Ann Melendez, president and co-founder of the Adapt-Able Foundation, shares with the disabled community. The organization has been using pools all over North Texas to help bring together adaptive and ablebodied people to experience SCUBA diving. But starting this November, Texas Wesleyan University will officially be its home pool. After being in the Navy and retiring from working for the federal government, Melendez and her partner Dale Davis founded the Adapt-Able Foundation to give people with disabilities a chance to learn how to SCUBA dive in a safe and fun environment.

“We’ve given back our entire careers, and I think it’s in our DNA,” Melendez shared in a newscast.

“This is the best way to do the second phase of our lives – to be able to give back and to work with people with disabilities and let them experience that passion, that excitement and that freedom – the physical freedom of SCUBA diving and the underwater world.”

That passion is now being shared with the TXWES community.

Dr. Pam Rast, program director and kinesiology department chair at Texas Wesleyan, was contacted by Melendez to use TXWES’ pool for the Adapt-Able Foundation. Since the university already offers a minor and certification in SCUBA , the pool is fully equipped for the foundation to use.

“We’re already offering SCUBA to our students, but now with this partnership, we can take it to the next level,” Rast said. “And it gives us a way to continue to show our students the power of diversity and engaging in our community.”

Laura Jeanne, a former Army pilot and SCUBA diver, learned about the foundation through the Department of

Veteran Affairs. Jeanne, a founding member at large, became paraplegic after a horseback riding accident and says that the foundation has allowed her to SCUBA dive again.

“I thought I wouldn’t be able to dive again,” she said. “It’s really freeing. When you’re in the water, you’re not tied to a chair or a prosthetic.”

With the partnership, TXWES students, staff and faculty can volunteer and learn with the Adapt-Able Foundation to get certified as a Dive Buddy – a term for a certified SCUBA diver that partners with a person with disabilities to help them SCUBA dive. Both buddies and the adaptive divers can become certified through the foundation’s programs.

“I was really excited that they wanted to use our pool because I was really impressed by the organization of the foundation,” Rast said. “We have a lot of faculty and students that are interested in adaptive activities and disability sports, and I thought this would be a great opportunity for them to get more exposure to that.”

Jeanne is also excited for the partnership, hoping that the TXWES community will volunteer with the program.

“It will be nice to not have to look for pools,” she said. “We’re going to have a relationship with one place.”

Melendez says that the foundation not only brings joy to the adaptable SCUBA divers, but the volunteers as well – a sentiment that is echoed by Rast.

“When we include everyone and make things more accessible for everyone, all of us benefit,” Rast said. “A lot of our students are athletes or very physically active, so the whole idea of understanding what it’s like to not be able to move the way they want to move is something I’ve tried to introduce them to. It gives them a respect and appreciation for differences.”

4 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU Wesleyan 5 NEWS & EVENTS

again!

Red, white, blue … and gold, alumnus honors TXWES after military deployment

Captain Heath Scott ’11 presents President Slabach with American flag and military patches after returning from deployment

Our “Smaller. Smarter.” tagline is more than just a saying – it’s a connection that keeps our RAMily bonded together. It’s the kind of impact that lasts even after graduation, and what led alumnus Army Reserve Captain Heath Scott ’11, to come back to Texas Wesleyan and present President Slabach with an American flag and military patches.

Scott was deployed with his troops to Kuwait as a part of Operation Inherent Resolve. Although based in Kuwait, he took multiple rotations in Iraq to help fight against attacks on the U.S. and coalition bases that continue today.

It was in Iraq that Scott experienced something that changed his outlook on life. An “incoming alarm” went off, meaning his base was under attack. As he grabbed his body armor and weapon to head to the bunker, he thought of all the things he wanted to do once he returned home.

“This wasn’t my first time to head to a bunker, nor was it my last, but there was something different that night,” Scott said. “I really just zeroed in on things I wanted to do when I got back. Having moments like this in life really helps you put things into perspective.”

On his list, he included reuniting with the people and places he hadn’t been in contact with for a while – and as a graduate and former Student Government Association president, Texas Wesleyan quickly became one of the places he wanted to reconnect with.

Scott wanted to honor the university in the best way he knew how –presenting President Slabach with an American flag that flew over his base in Iraq, along with two of the patches off his uniform – the subdued American flag and his unit patch, the 11th Expeditionary Combat Aviation Brigade (also called the Soldier Sleeve Insignia – Military Operations in Hostile Conditions).

“Soldiers simply call it your ‘combat patch.’ That’s the patch you wear of the unit that you deployed with into hostile conditions. Those patches mean a lot to me,” Scott said.

He credits his time at Texas Wesleyan for some of his military knowledge. As an undergraduate, he became involved in the Model Arab League where he was first introduced to the Middle Eastern governments and learned skills he would later be able to use while deployed.

“It’s hard to put into words the impact Texas Wesleyan has had on my life,” Scott said. “From the people I met to the experiences I’ve had, Texas Wesleyan has always been important.”

From baseball to nonprofits: Lydia Traina’s mission to help Fort Worth families

Traina and her team are taking on the affordable housing crisis in North Texas

Alumna Lydia Traina ’96 is leading a powerful team of women at Trinity Habitat for Humanity. She’s the senior director of development and public relations, which has allowed her and her team to help secure funding and get volunteers to build affordable housing for residents of Fort Worth and the surrounding areas.

“I love it because everybody has a home,” she said. “We’re providing an opportunity, just like any of us would want, for families to have a safe, affordable home.”

And although Traina didn’t start out in the nonprofit world, it’s one that she’s fallen in love with.

“I went and took all these classes [at a conference], and I remember leaving there thinking, I’m going to do this forever,” she said. “I want to be in the nonprofit world forever.”

Traina has worked for a few different nonprofit organizations, including the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation. She says that it was during her time with the foundation that she found her passion in wanting to help nonprofits secure funding for their missions.

“Once I was at the foundation, I just got the bug,” she said. “I love being able to share an opportunity for people to be generous, and I think that’s an exciting opportunity that not everybody can do.”

She was thrilled to take on her current role because she truly believes in the mission of helping her community find secure, affordable housing.

“Just the idea of being a part of changing families’ lives – that’s what brought me here,” she said.

But it isn’t just about having a home. Because families can better afford housing through the Trinity Habitat for Humanity, they can focus their finances on things like education for their children or paying for health care.

“It’s not just about the house, it’s about saving money that they can use for their children’s education, or health or school supplies,” she said. “If we can close that gap for families that are living in those situations, then I’m excited that I get to be a part of that.”

And Traina gives a big part of her and the Trinity Habitat’s success to her team.

“I’m so grateful for each and every one of them and every single person who I have had the opportunity to partner with, because I can’t do this all by myself,” she said. “Working together to exponentially make a change is probably the best part of my career.”

And her career all started with a conversation at 16 with her best friend’s dad about working in public relations for a baseball team.

“It was just so random, and I didn’t even really know what public relations meant,” she laughed. She spent time researching the career and decided to combine her love of sports with public relations. And finding Texas Wesleyan was a key part in helping launch her career, as she fell in love with the idea of being a big part of Texas Wesleyan’s small community.

“I chose Texas Wesleyan because it was close to my house. It was a small private school. And I knew that just like the billboards I see around town, it was ‘Smaller. Smarter.’ – I wanted to be a part of that type of community,” she said. During her time at the university, she worked several jobs, including being a sports editor for the student media group, The Rambler. She even had a class with her mom, who was also attending Texas Wesleyan at the same time. One day, as she was working in the sports department, she saw a fax come into the university about an internship opportunity with the Texas Rangers.

“I could not believe it,” she said. “I applied and got the job.” She interned with the Rangers for about a year before graduating from Texas Wesleyan, and ended up back at the Rangers the following year working in a newly created position that oversaw “non-baseball PR.” She helped with community relations and publicizing The Ballpark in

Arlington and Legends of the Game Baseball Museum (which, at the time, was just recently built).

“I really, really loved [that job],” she said.

However, after getting married, she left the Rangers to find a job that would work better with her growing family’s schedule. Traina was able to secure a job as an executive director for the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation thanks to meeting Bragan HON ’04 during her time at the Rangers.

Bragan was also passionate about his community and education, even donating his art and baseball memorabilia to Texas Wesleyan.

“He was a wonderful, generous person and so very fun to be around,” she said.

She believes in the power of gaining an internship to help launch your career – a mission that Texas Wesleyan also believes in through providing free career services and oneon-one professional mentoring with professors.

“The advice I would give is, for sure, try to get an internship – that is so important,” she said. “I tell every young person, go try out different things and see, because just like in life, until you experience it, you really just don’t know what it’s all about.”

Traina said her career is helping her fulfill her life’s mission – to encourage others to give generously of their time, talent and treasure. And she’s leading the way for other women to take on important roles in our community, just like she has.

“The leadership side of my work is important to me,” she said. “I enjoy pouring into others, helping them grow in their personal and professional lives.”

6 Wesleyan SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU Wesleyan 7 NEWS & EVENTS

Music professor receives 2022 Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award

The award is given to music educators with a passion for teaching students

Dr. Ilka Araújo, chair of the music department and professor of music history, piano and piano pedagogy, recently received the 2022 Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award. The award is a formal recognition of a music educator’s passion, artistry and commitment to students that is awarded to the top educators in their field around the world.

The founder of the Piano Pedagogy award and a booster of the piano program at Texas Wesleyan University, Araújo has had a performing and teaching career that spreads across four continents. Ranging from performing at local piano festivals to international solo, collaborative and concerto competitions, her students have won multiple prizes over the past 20 years. Knowledgeable in the many different schools – Russian, German, French, English and American – Araújo’s magic touch allows every student to explore their natural potential and expand it to previous unimaginable levels simply by giving them individual recipes with the exact dose of technique, style concept, critical thinking, exposure, literature and most importantly, self-confidence. Her pedagogy students also get to explore all the different schools of thought, learn about all different methods available and enrich their literature comprehension with as much hands-on experience as possible.

Her love and passion for teaching, devotion to her students, as well as the belief that there is always a place for everyone when given a chance, have made her one of the most soughtafter piano teachers in the DFW area.

Araújo is humbled, honored and appreciative of Thomas Ragozzino at Steinway Piano Gallery in Fort Worth for nominating her to the New York Steinway factory who awarded her the prize for the second time. She previously received the award in 2017.

Texas Wesleyan and CoAct fight food insecurities with

Fort Worth farmers market

Nonprofit CoAct and Texas Wesleyan team up to bring nutrition to a food desert

According to the USDA, more than 34 million people (about twice the population of New York) in the United States are food insecure – including 1 in 3 college students. That means many people in our communities have limited access or funding to secure food.

Thanks to a partnership between CoAct – a nonprofit social innovation firm in Fort Worth – and Texas Wesleyan University, southeast Fort Worth and the campus community are gaining access to more fresh, locally grown food as part of the Funkytown Mindful Market.

“The premise of it is really just to increase food access to southeast Fort Worth – we do live in a food desert,” said Jesse Herrera, founder and director of CoAct. “There’s not an abundance of healthy food options in this area. We’re cognizant of that with the market. The vendors that we try to bring on board speak to wellness and longevity, and the products they bring in help one in that journey.”

The Funkytown Mindful Market not only provides healthy food, it also offers different activities to promote health and wellness, including cooking classes taught by home chefs, yoga and play areas for children. The market aims to explore and cultivate mindful practices for the diverse communities that represent southeast Fort Worth.

“We have a very diverse community in this area, and the activities here are not always cultural. That becomes important when we try to promote wellness and longevity,” Herrera said. The market started as part of a community wellness program created by Roderick Miles Jr., executive administrator of programs and outreach with Commissioner Roy Charles Brooks’ office. To help support local farmers, CoAct created the Grow Southeast program to help southeast Fort Worth community members get support in growing fresh food in an urban farm to sell in their neighborhoods.

However, the closest farmers market to southeast Fort Worth is on the complete opposite side of the city, making it difficult for the farmers to serve their neighborhoods. That’s when the idea to launch a farmers market in southeast Fort Worth was born.

“A lot of the farmers that we are developing have a desire to serve the communities they reside in,” said Herrera. “However, there are no farmers markets in this community. Funkytown Mindful Market was a way to directly bring the farmers market here to southeast Fort Worth in a trusted location to be

able to showcase these wonderful products that our farmers and vendors are bringing and really keep it true to the community.”

Texas Wesleyan became the ideal location since the campus is in the middle of many southeast Fort Worth neighborhoods and is easily accessible to the community. The campus also has large grassy areas to support the market – and will allow the market to keep expanding as it grows. And by having the market at TXWES, the university and CoAct can work together to reduce food insecurity for college students.

“We definitely want to get students engaged. I think a lot of the products are products that the students really appreciate,” Herrera said. “We want to be a resource [for TXWES students]. We know that food insecurity exists. And I think it speaks to where Texas Wesleyan is trying to go – not to just be in the community, but part of it.”

“We’re excited to be partnering with CoAct to host the Funkytown Mindful Market on our Texas Wesleyan campus,” said Texas Wesleyan University President Frederick G. Slabach. “It provides both our students and southeast Fort Worth neighbors the opportunity to receive fresh, nutritious food and engage in wellness activities, which is vital for the strength and well-being of our overall community.”

Herrera said that he is excited for the market to continue to grow. He’s traveled to different parts of the country to study how other cities offer their farmers markets and hopes that his research will help the Funkytown Mindful Market become an even bigger success.

“The thing that excites me about this has been being able to bring these locally grown, unique products to the market and to the community and being able to showcase the community itself,” he said. “It’s very easy for us to skip over the champions that are within our walls.”

Check out the next Funkytown farmers market by viewing the schedule online. You can also become a vendor or volunteer with the market by visiting CoAct’s website at coactntx.org

@txwescheer

Our RAMily did awesome this week at NCA moving from 4th place to 2nd. We are so proud of you ladies! #txwescheer #ramily #goldenstandard #wcl2f #ramsup #redemption #febe #ASO

@txwesmariachioroazul Some very happy mariachi players indeed! Just a little sneak peak of our brand new Oro Azul trajes!! Guess you have to come and hear us play to see the whole thing! #txwesmariachioroazul #rammusiclife #ramsup

@txwesadmissions

Some of our admissions team at the 7th Annual Rammys! Several of our members were nominated for their dedication to diversity and supporting students. #ramsup #txwes #ramily

8 Wesleyan SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU Wesleyan 9 NEWS & EVENTS

SOCIAL CHATTER

Women in Esports:

Cindy Flores researches using video games in physical therapy

Cindy’s combining her love of esports with her exercise science major to establish physical rehab practices using video games for children and people with disabilities.

We all know that confidence is key – and that’s exactly what Cindy Flores, senior exercise science major, emanates when talking about her passion for helping others.

Cindy has loved playing video games her whole life, saying that it allows her to decompress and help de-stress from her busy schedule. But as a young woman headed into the esports and medical field, she’s faced barriers she hopes to break down for the next generation of women and people with disabilities.

“I love video games. I made it practically my personality at one point,” she laughed.

As a freshman in high school, Cindy had surgery to remove a brain tumor. For about a year after, she became discouraged, feeling that people would look at her differently or that she wouldn’t be able to do as much as she’d like since the tumor had disabled her.

However, with the love and support of her mom and boyfriend, she fought to become more confident than ever

before. It was during her sophomore year that she had a pivotal moment that made her want to fight to help others gain confidence.

“That surgery was my second chance at life, and I was not going to take that for granted,” she said. “I don’t care about money or being famous – I care about making people feel better about themselves and making my parents proud.”

Cindy has turned her confidence into motivation to help others find their passions and voice. She said that her boyfriend, John, was able to connect her to the world of esports, which helped her gain the courage she needed – and now she wants to pass that on to others in need.

“I want to do something more with my talent of communicating and being very outspoken and use that in a sense of good with esports,” she said. “It can help people break out of their shell.”

Cindy and John decided to attend Texas Wesleyan when they got connected with the university’s director of Esports & Gaming, Eugene Frier.

“Speaking to Eugene was probably one of the best decisions I ever made because one of the determining factors of coming to Texas Wesleyan was the esports program,” she said. “I really enjoy it. I felt like, just because I’m a girl, why shouldn’t I expose myself to it more in a competitive setting, in a collegiate setting or even as a career?”

Cindy had thought about working for Discord, a chat app geared toward gamers that allows them to chat and coordinate play, but then decided to go into the medical field to help others going through physical therapy. She chose to major in exercise science, which led to her having a conversation about becoming an occupational therapist for esports athletes with Dr. Pam Rast, professor of Exercise & Sports Studies.

“If that is my key to get into the esports industry, I’ll take it,” she said.

“I really encourage women to look into these opportunities because they will be able to find something. Don’t be discouraged because it is a maledominated field.”

esports program that helps raise money for the community – the latest of which raised over $700 for Cook Children’s Medical Center.

Cindy also competes in gaming competitions – and at the collegiate level, only 8.2% of esports players are women, according to a study done by the National Association of Collegiate Esports. But Cindy feels that Texas Wesleyan’s esports program is great at being inclusive for everyone.

“It’s really nice to know that I’m this beacon of hope for women in the community – if I can compete, you can compete,” she said.

“Anyone can do it; and as a woman in esports who’s also disabled, I feel like I’m the perfect candidate to tell women, ‘You are welcome in this space, and you will be safe. Do something you love and don’t be afraid to make it known.’

With that career in mind, Cindy was able to incorporate esports into different projects in her exercise science classes. Her senior capstone project focuses on incorporating virtual reality games in physical rehab, and she completed another project on esports athletes with disabilities, which was presented at University College Day on April 19.

“I think including video games to track children’s progress and motivate them to do therapy is great and we should do it more,” she said. “I’m doing this to be able to create that diversity in medicine, esports, our community – everything. It makes me really happy that I was able to do these projects and tie esports into it.”

Cindy is a member of Texas Wesleyan’s Esports & Gaming program and Anime Club, where she does community outreach and helps with content and event planning. She’s also volunteered with Extra Life, an event put on by the Texas Weleyan

“Eugene listens to all of us. I feel like we’re taking the steps to be more inclusive for everyone, not just women – anyone who may be identifying as nonbinary, transgender or have a disability … everyone. I hope that other collegiate esports programs are able to see we matter too.”

Cindy attributes all her success to her mom – no matter if it’s acing a class, excelling in esports or taking on roles in the numerous other organizations she’s involved in, including the Latinx Student Association and Student Diversity & Inclusion Programs. Cindy said her mom inspires her because she remains confident, despite having gone through so much in her life and currently getting treatment for lupus.

“I think where I stem my confidence from is seeing [my mom] have confidence in her own body even though she’s sick,” she said.

“I look up to her a lot. Any sort of accomplishment I have, I owe to my mother. I’m doing it all for her.”

10 Wesleyan SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU Wesleyan 11 MOVERS & SHAKERS

When Thanh Tôn Nũ’ dreamed of studying overseas, she envisioned Canada. Growing up watching her parents build a tourism business in Vietnam, she was eager to explore other countries and cultures. Her dad even visited Canada to see the culture and make sure it was a good fit for his daughter.

Taking a

faith: Stella's journey from Vietnam to the United States

“I just had to have faith. The United States is livelier and it fit my personality more. So, I came here, and I didn’t even know how many states were here,” she laughed. “I didn’t know anything about America because I was supposed to study in Canada.”

Wanting to pick a new name for herself, Thanh decided to go by Stella in the United States. And after a long, tiresome 23-hour flight, 16-year-old Stella stepped off the plane and into Chicago with the clothes and items she brought with her and a very basic knowledge of English – and she couldn’t find her host family. She had no way to call them, so she quickly found a place to connect to the internet to get in touch with her mom, who then tried to call the host family with no luck. Stella was stranded.

“It was bad,” she said. “I didn’t know who I was staying with. I didn’t have their picture. I was frustrated and crying.”

However, she soon discovered another student coming in from Thailand was joining the host family and was delayed. The family just didn’t realize Stella had arrived early.

In her first year in the United States, she struggled to adjust to the cultural differences. Her American high school didn’t have much diversity, which left her feeling lost and alone. That prompted her parents to offer to bring her back home.

Stella went from being the shy girl in the back of the classroom to the “fashionista” who got involved in everything. And if you’ve ever met Stella, that’s exactly the girl she is on Texas Wesleyan’s campus.

She didn’t have a lot of time to apply to colleges and worked with an agency in Vietnam to help her get into American universities. She had thought about going to the University of Arkansas, but they had a stipulation that she take more English classes, which left her feeling frustrated since she had already been in America for a few years.

“I’m super proud and super passionate about what I am doing, not only for my community, but for Texas Wesleyan,” she said. “I want to show people what Asian culture looks like. And I think [my team] is doing a great job. Without teamwork, without their support, we wouldn’t be where we are right now. I’m really happy because I got great officers, friends and community.”

Stella has won several awards not only for her academics, but for her work in the community. And she was recently named “The Heart of Texas Wesleyan” during The Rammy’s, Texas Wesleyan’s annual award ceremony for student community achievement.

“My parents are very proud,” she smiled. “Every summer I visit back home, I give them my awards and certificates. My dad’s a very busy man, but he took a day out of his life to go buy frames and stick them on the wall. That was like gold.”

“I was going to go to Canada to study abroad and applied to a school,” she said. “Canada is so pretty. I never thought about going to the United States at all. Not even the slightest because the interview process is so hard.”

But the universe had different plans for Thanh. After winning a competition at school for an exchange student scholarship, she was told she was headed for the United States.

“There were times when it felt so dark, and I wasn’t sure if I could do this,” she said. “I wanted to [go back home], but I have this pride in me – a pride I carry for my family.”

It was that pride that encouraged Stella to make some changes that made a big impact on her life and become the young, independent woman she is today.

“There are not a lot of people that can make it [to the United States]. I already made it here, so I can’t give up. And after one year, I did a complete 360-degree change,” she said.

The agency then recommended Texas Wesleyan because of the scholarships and experiences that other exchange students had with the school. And even though her first semester was in spring 2021 when COVID-19 had shut down much of the world, she was able to find her path when things started to get better.

“I came here by faith,” she said. “And I ended up really liking it here at Texas Wesleyan. I got into a job that required me to go to a lot of events, and I just got myself out there. I loved it.”

She works for both the Student Diversity & Inclusion Programs and the Office of Marketing & Communications, while also being the president of the Asian Student Association and International Student Organization.

As she reflects back on her experiences, Stella is most proud of who she has become. Now in her junior year double majoring in marketing and finance, Stella has several internship prospects that may help her land a job in the United States after graduation.

“I think before I came to the United States, I was always that little girl that’s behind my parents back. I never knew who I was,” she said. “But now I get to be who I want to be. And I’m really grateful because my parents support me no matter what. I just love the fact that they accept me, no matter who I am, because I am not the same Vietnamese girl anymore.”

Stella loves being in Fort Worth because the city isn’t too big or small and feels homey. She hopes to stay in Fort Worth to work in marketing, social media and event planning after graduating from Texas Wesleyan – and maybe even open her own coffee shop to offer unique cultural experiences.

12 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 13 MOVERS & SHAKERS

leap of

VISION for MOMENTUM

Outgoing Texas Wesleyan President Frederick G. Slabach led the university through some of its greatest accomplishments and toughest challenges for more than a decade. How did he do it? By sharing the spotlight with the university’s community.

Texas Wesleyan has come a long way in a decade. Its football team – which was still on its 75-yearlong hiatus in 2013 – is making itself known as a serious competitor with a co-conference championship win less than five years after the program began. It’s hard not to look at the new buildings on campus and not think of the word transformation. Programs, like the university’s online MBA, are thriving.

Texas Wesleyan’s legendary President Law Sone famously tossed the keys of the university to the creditors during the Great Depression and dared them to foreclose on the struggling institution –they balked and Sone led the university through many of its biggest accomplishments. He would leave the university in perhaps its strongest position to date, save for maybe its current position.

President Frederick G. Slabach – who is leaving his post after 12 years to accept a new charge as dean of the University of Mississippi School of Law – skipped Sone’s dramatic flair, but he made a compelling case to the philanthropic community across Dallas-Fort Worth and Texas in a way that radically reshaped the campus footprint and helped grow student and academic life on campus. The university’s score on one federal higher education financial scorecard was 0.6 in 2011. It stayed at 3.0 – the maximum score – for years –

thanks to the focused approach Slabach and his executive staff took toward the university’s finances, which were historically prone to market fluctuations. Instead, they focused on building programs based on community needs.

Leadership gifts from large donors like Karen Cramer HON ’22 and Nick and Lou Martin HON ’03 showed confidence in the university’s stability, and Fort Worth’s philanthropic community took a second look at the institution. The university raised $15 million, its best, in 2021.

The centerpiece of those efforts is known as the Rosedale Renaissance, a $6.7-million, four-part project that created a new front door for the campus at the Canafax Clock Tower. Across the street on East Rosedale, the UMC Central Texas Conference Service Center brought new jobs to the community and deepened the school’s relationship with the United Methodist Church. Behind it, the renovated Polytechnic Firehouse houses the Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio. Governmental organizations made more than $32 million in street improvements in addition to Texas Wesleyan’s own $1.8 million investment – a vision made real.

One investment built on another: With an open front door the university embarked on its $20.25 million “Heart of Campus” campaign that built the 44,000-square-foot Martin University Center,

TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 15 14 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 COVER

the new nexus of activity for Texas Wesleyan’s growing student life programs. More than $50 million went into campus investments during Slabach’s term.

Another key catalyst for that renewed energy was the reintroduction of football in 2017.

That move brought more than 100 new students to campus in the form of players, but it also launched a band and reformed dance and cheer teams that wove a complex tapestry of student life together in new ways. The university launched a successful esports program not long after that appealed to the modern Texas Wesleyan student.

The university plans to launch a $16.5 million investment in a stadium that will connect the dots between Texas Wesleyan’s buzzing student life and the community that has supported its rise. That means new lights and a track that will serve its community as well as the university’s teams.

in October 2016, President Slabach delivered an address called “The Relevance of Our Mission” that would echo far beyond that academic year and into the turbulent years that lay ahead.

“Shall we despair? Shall we lose hope? Shall we allow people who seek to divide us by religion and ethnicity go unchallenged? Or shall we engage in efforts to create and foster opportunities for positive knowledge and engagement. In spite of all the history and in spite of all the current fearmongering, I have hope.”

That vision was articulated from Slabach’s earliest days as president, as early as his inauguration in 2012.

Academic Convocation kicks off the academic year at Texas Wesleyan and is full of the sort of pomp and circumstance that can be found only in higher education. It’s the event where faculty assemble and receive the charge to guide and educate students. But

“Fred Slabach has a clear vision for this university’s future based on what is best for students, including relatively small classes, a regular dialogue between undergraduates and faculty, a commitment to lifelong learning, and an emphasis on critical thinking,” Madeleine Albright, former secretary of state and keynote speaker, said. “This emphasis is needed because you don’t have to be an expert in foreign policy to know that our globe has suffered a great deal in the past, from wishful and simplistic thinkers, not to mention those who fail to think at all.”

But that hope and vision would be tested and stretched thin at times in the following years – the 2020 pandemic raged alongside social unrest even as the California nonprofit Educate to Career named Texas Wesleyan one of the best universities for its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic – thanks to a pre-pandemic effort to develop virtual learning policies and processes.

New undergraduate and graduate programs – including the popular online MBA – expanded the university’s reach deeper into online education in a way that also directly impacted its community. Its online MBA students, for instance, usually reside within 90 miles of the institution. The university also continued to grow its health professions programs, including expanding its already-strong presence in nurse anesthesia.

2011

Former Texas Wesleyan Law School

Dean and Harry Truman Scholarship CEO Frederick G. Slabach is selected as Texas Wesleyan’s president.

2012

January – Frederick G. Slabach is inaugurated as the 20 th president of Texas Wesleyan. The celebration features a keynote address by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright.

2013

August – Texas Wesleyan and Texas A&M University agree to terms for the Texas Wesleyan School of Law to become the Texas A&M School of Law.

September – Texas Wesleyan’s new “Smaller. Smarter.” brand debuts across the Dallas-Fort Worth area in the form of billboards, t-shirts and commercials.

2014

May – The School of Business Administration announces it has received AACSB accreditation, something earned by less than 5% of the world’s business schools. Also in May, the Smaller. Smarter. Promise Scholarship takes off. The scholarship offers free tuition to qualifying transfer students.

2015

February – The university’s “Smaller. Smarter.” ad campaign wins big at the Fort Worth Addy awards. The TV commercials, made in tandem with Firehouse agency, win two gold awards and one silver award at the event.

2016

February – Texas Wesleyan celebrates 125 years with a year of events culminating in a star-studded annual gala to celebrate the university past, present and future.

Octobe r – President Slabach delivers “The Relevance of Our Mission” speech at Academic Convocation.

16 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU Wesleyan 17 COVER

“The relevance of our mission”

2017

Texas Wesleyan’s football team – announced in 2016 – kicks off their first season and is featured in the popular web series “Titletown, TX.”

Texas Wesleyan’s online MBA degree debuts to a strong start. The program can be finished in as little as a year and is 100% online.

2018

Texas Wesleyan launches its Esports & Gaming program. The forward-thinking group kicks off a new interest in technology and STEM among students on campus.

Graduate programs were especially important to Slabach’s vision for critical thinking and analytical reasoning. A first-generation college graduate himself and the child of hardworking Mississippi parents, he often said that his father’s generation needed a high school diploma, his generation needed a college degree, and the next will require a graduate degree or professional certification. The driving force behind these efforts was a vision for Texas Wesleyan as a hub for critical thinking and analytical reasoning in Fort Worth. That human-centered approach is evident in many ways – including a panel on the Ukraine conflict led by Christopher Ohan, associate professor of history, and Michelle Payne, associate professor of political science, in Spring 2022 that Slabach participated in as a guest.

Tragedy often hit much too close to home, including the 2019 killing of Atatiana Jefferson just 2 miles from campus, an event still felt in the southeast Fort Worth community –and across the nation. The George Floyd protests during summer 2020 began new conversations about equity and inclusion among Texas Wesleyan’s diverse campus community.

The university is designated as both a Hispanic-serving institution and a minority-serving institution. As these discussions continue to deepen, they bring students – and communities –closer together in a place where they can feel safe to ask difficult questions – and expect real answers.

Flashback to 2013

When President Frederick G. Slabach and Texas A&M System Chancellor John Sharp announced in a joint press conference the strategic partnership preceding the purchase of the Texas Wesleyan University School of Law (it would be renamed Texas A&M University School of Law). “The transaction we celebrate today is a win-win-win scenario for Texas A&M University, the City of Fort Worth and Texas Wesleyan University,” Slabach said.

For Texas Wesleyan the wins were immediate. The university received $73.2 million over a five-year period that included both the law school and the downtown real estate. The infusion allowed Texas Wesleyan to revitalize its operations and refocus its vision on its home neighborhood in southeast Fort Worth. It also allowed

the university to establish its niche in the Dallas-Fort Worth education community – educating students that stay in their communities to thrive and lead at home, at work and beyond –with its “Smaller. Smarter.” campaign.

Those wins are even more evident a decade later, as Fort Worth looks to define its future in the 21st century.

Looking back brings one of Slabach’s favorite quotes, attributed to Harry S. Truman, into sharp focus –“It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.”

“President Fred Slabach has been an incredible leader not only for Texas Wesleyan University but for all of Fort Worth,” said Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker. “Under his leadership, Slabach led the economic revitalization of the campus and the Rosedale Renaissance in east Fort Worth. His tenure as president is both impressive and transformative for the university, and we are indebted to his leadership. David and I wish Fred and his wife, Melany, all the best in their return to Mississippi. He left TXWES and Fort Worth better than he found them and, for that, I am incredibly grateful.”

There is one word that stands out in there – transformative

2019

President Slabach wins the prestigious CASE District IV Leadership award. It is the highest honor bestowed by the organization, recognizing an outstanding leader in the district, which includes Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.

2020

2021

The Martin University Center opens in the heart of campus. It serves as a capstone on the wildly successful Rosedale Renaissance project that defined much of the university’s decade.

COVID-19 rocks the world – and Texas Wesleyan’s campus is not immune to the deadly virus. Its safety-first strategy earns the university recognition for its response from Educate to Career, a California-based education nonprofit.

The university announces it is fundraising to build a new multipurpose football stadium. Longtime trustee and friend Karen Cramer HON ’22 pledges a leadership gift of more than $5 million to the project.

18 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 19 COVER

Sharing the Vision

President Slabach valued student life and even received a firsthand look at it when he lived in a residence hall on campus during his earliest days as president. A gifted orator, he was an early adopter of video as a tool to increase communication across campus.

That started with the 2020 Vision video series that included increased administrative transparency with town halls that increased input and addressed issues, concerns and rumors on campus. He also “popped in” on faculty members to recognize them for their hard work in the “Faculty PopIns with Fred” series.

That transparency extended to increase communication about financial aid and scholarships through multiple video series, increased partnerships across the local and higher ed communities, a term as Independent Colleges and Universities of Texas (ICUT) chair, new articulation agreements with Tarrant County College, a scholarship partnership with the Ben Hogan Foundation, and a marquee social event with the Business Hall of Fame.

The result of all this momentum was a campus community that got moving. That included bringing the health focused BlueZones program to campus, rolling town halls with the mayor, and a new and renewed sense of optimism about the future of Texas Wesleyan. Slabach promoted good things that brought the Texas Wesleyan community together.

The biggest vehicle for that message was the university’s award-winning brand campaign “Smaller. Smarter.”

The decade long advertising campaign demystified higher ed and attracted a type of student all its own – bright, community-focused, and ready to get to work on those goals right away.

Fall 2022 enrollment was 2,653 –the largest in a decade.

Slabach led the campus community through many new and major firsts. A new front door that physically

reoriented campus. A new era of athletics and student life. A new, $20.25 million, 44,000-square-foot student center. A platform for growth in the ENGAGE 2025 plan.

That last one is very important – ENGAGE 2025 is rooted in the values and vision of the university as a place where motivated students can get ready for leadership in professional careers and their communities – work that connects the entire education community together.

In an email to the campus community, Slabach expressed pride in the work of the faculty and staff in fulfilling the university’s mission in higher education, writing that “the work we are doing together here at Texas Wesleyan has been the pinnacle of my professional life. I am grateful to be a part of this community and its continued momentum. Because of you, the university’s future is bright.”

2022

President Slabach awards the inaugural Diversity & Inclusion award to Angela Dampeer, associate vice president of human resources. The award highlights the university’s commitment to civic responsibility.

2023

President Slabach announces his departure as he leaves to become dean at the University of Mississippi School of Law.

20 Wesleyan SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 21 COVER

“Shall we despair?

Shall we lose hope?

Shall we allow people who seek to divide us by religion and ethnicity go unchallenged?

Or shall we engage in efforts to create and foster opportunities for positive knowledge and engagement. In spite of all the history and in spite of all the current fearmongering, I have hope.”

Bell Labs

One person with one goal can make some of the biggest impacts on our lives. It’s people like Victoria Bell who not only made a difference for her children, but left a legacy of hardworking, compassionate people who have touched Texas Wesleyan in different ways.

Victoria is the mother of Thomas Bell, Ph.D., professor of business administration at Texas Wesleyan. But she’s also the mother to five other children, several of whom graduated from the university.

After her husband passed away, Victoria became the sole provider for the family. She had previously been a stay-at-home mother, raising her children and taking care of their home.

“When he passed, it turned our whole world upside down,” Dr. Bell said.

Victoria found a job as a housekeeper at Texas Wesleyan –where she worked for 28 years and retired. This allowed her to give the younger children an opportunity to receive a higher education at the university, which was right down the street from their Stop Six neighborhood. The family was excited because they always thought that Texas Wesleyan would be a good school to attend.

“Going to college was never really an option, it was expected,” Dr. Bell said. “Being able to provide us the opportunity to take advantage of that perk that she had, it was a godsend.”

But the legacy doesn’t end with her own kids. Her grandchildren also have degrees from Texas Wesleyan, and her great grandson is also considering attending the university.

“I would say, in my extended family, there are 15 to 18 degrees from Texas Wesleyan,” Dr. Bell said. “I can’t say I have a degree from Texas Wesleyan, but I do have the good fortune of being a part of Texas Wesleyan.

“My mother often jokes about the fact that she doesn’t have a degree, but really she’s got 12 degrees because of the family,” he said.

When reflecting on his parents, he recounted that they didn’t have the same opportunities that he had. It was their hard work and motivation to provide more for their kids that helped the Bell children become successful.

“They instilled in us the dream to see something bigger for our own lives, realizing that just because this is where you are, doesn’t mean this is where you have to be,” he said. “If you’re willing to apply yourself, develop a work ethic – the sky’s the limit.”

Bell took classes at Texas Wesleyan but then transferred to Prairie View A&M University to study electrical engineering. He worked in engineering and was beginning to get into management when his major professor told him he should consider teaching.

“I never really thought much about it because it wasn’t on my radar,” he said. However, after his professor found an opportunity for him to teach a weekend program at TXWES, his mother also urged him to come to the university.

“You do what your mother says,” he laughed. “I haven’t had

one day of regret ever since. I’m just having the time of my life.”

Bell started working at Texas Wesleyan in 1995 as a weekend professor but was soon offered a full-time position. He and his mother worked together at the university for a few years before she retired.

“It was neat, because I would see her on campus, and I would get a chance to hang out with her,” he said. “When she retired, I felt like I lost my best friend.”

Through a program at Texas Wesleyan that helped master’sprepared professors get their doctorate, he was able to get a doctoral degree and gain tenure. And despite being offered a position at a historically black college and university (HBCU), Bell chose to stay at Texas Wesleyan.

“I couldn’t, at this point, imagine being anywhere else,” he said. “I did feel a sense of obligation, but you got to bloom where you’re planted. And I just felt like this is where I need to be.”

Bell touched on how he was contacted by his alma mater, an HBCU, because it needed more black professors – a trend seen in academia still to this day.

“When I’m reminded that I’m a [minority] professor, that’s not something I think about,” he said. “I don’t feel it, I don’t see it. I just see my peers, my co-workers. I don’t feel any special or feel any different. I’m doing what I enjoy doing with people that I enjoy working around and with.”

It’s something that he also understands touches the lives of his students. He understands that seeing someone that you can relate to can help bring inspiration to others.

“I don’t dismiss or discount the role that I play when I step into the classroom,” he said. “I have students that look at me, certainly as a professor, but also because of what I represent as a black male. I’m just representing me – and trying to be the best person I can be when I step into the classroom.”

What stands out most about Bell is the smile he has on his face when he talks about the opportunity that his mother and Texas Wesleyan provided him, something that he knows sheds light on who he is today.

“This is a great place. I tell my wife I’m not going to work; I’m going to school. This is my home away from home,” he said. “My siblings and I are proud of my mom, glad that she provided us with the love and support that she did – and if not for her, I’m sure I wouldn’t be here now.”

22 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 23 FEATURE

The Bell family has 15 members who’ve graduated from Texas Wesleyan, and it all started from a job in housekeeping.

“If you’re willing to apply yourself, develop a work ethic – the sky’s the limit.”

–Thomas Bell, Ph.D.

Katie Baugh named new women’s soccer coach

Jaelynn Williams jumps to new heights – breaking school records in track and field

Jaelynn Williams is leaving a legacy everywhere she goes. From high school to college, she has set and broken records at every level of her track career.

Jaelynn Williams is in her first season as a track and field athlete for the Lady Rams and is already leaving her mark at Texas Wesleyan University. In the first meet of the 2022-23 season, she ran a 7.91 to set a program record in the 60-meter dash. Fast forward to the NAIA/JUCO meet at Pittsburg State where she ran a 7.73, breaking the record she set just a few months prior.

The fastest time to date in the 60m was set in the 2017 season with a time of 8.04 – making Williams the first woman to break 8 seconds in school history.

Williams said it felt awesome to break a school record but that it made it even better that it was a record she set herself.

“It was really cool,” Williams said. “But I know I have more work to do. How do I get that time even lower?”

Williams transferred to TXWES this year from the University of Louisville and hit the ground running (pun very intended). She said that she’s been training hard with her teammates to prepare for this season, and the key to her success is not giving up, even on those hard days.

“It’s definitely hard work. Me and my teammates put in work every day and do 110%, whatever we got,” Williams said. “And it’s starting to show on all levels.”

As the powerhouse that she is, Williams has secured her name in the

TXWES record book for not one, not two, but three events!

The 4x400 is a relay event where four athletes each run a full lap around the track, passing a baton to the next person signaling the start of a new lap. This was an event Williams was unfamiliar with going into this season – an event she never thought she would participate in, let alone break a record in. Alongside her teammates, Williams broke the school record with a time of 4:04.27.

Williams said the best part of this moment was being able to do it with her teammates.

“I was happy because I did it with my team,” Williams said. “And I know all the hard work they put in on and off the track, and it’s finally paying off.”

The 200m is another event that Williams has continued to see success in – she set a new personal record on top of breaking a program record for fastest time with a 25.81. The last time this record was broken was in the 2017 season with a time of 26.24.

She said that she was shocked but happy to hear that she broke another record. “It was kind of funny, because the way this track is set up, I was kind of confused on how I was supposed to run a 200,” she laughed. “But I did it.”

Her next big goal? Nationals.

“I definitely want to break another record in the long jump,” she said, talking about how the team is gearing up for the outdoor season. “Being conference champions for outdoor is definitely a goal as well.”

She credits the success she’s had this season and the three records broken to her hard work and the dedication from coaches Randy Dalzell and Darvis “Doc” Patton.

“They’re both good motivators and both know what they’re doing. They produce good energy, which is something that I definitely need,” Williams said.

And even as she continues to shine on the track, she also works just as hard in the classroom. Williams mentioned that being a student-athlete can be difficult at times, but knowing how to balance the different areas of her life has helped her be successful both on the track and in the classroom.

“It’s tough. It’s very tough. Trying to find that balance between your athletic life, your academic life and your social life is definitely tough,” she said.

“I also got to watch what I’m doing. I’m representing myself. But I’m just trying to set an example, especially for freshmen. We got to do this together, because we’re only as strong as our weakest links.”

Texas Wesleyan University Athletics is excited to name Katie Baugh as the new coach of the women’s soccer program.

Baugh had an impressive playing career at Texas Wesleyan, including 52 starts, an SAC Commissioner’s award and a game-winning goal against. Bacone College. Following her time as a player, she has spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach for the Lady Rams.

Baugh says although this was not her first career goal, she is thankful to be in this position.

“It’s very exciting,” she said. “You always have the idea that you could end up coaching, but I never thought this would be the path I ended up taking. My original plan was to go into athletic training, but after Coach Gibbs presented me with the opportunity to coach alongside him, I decided to go for it.”

As a former player, Baugh shared the difficulties of going from a player to an assistant coach to now head coach of a place she knows all too well.

“Transitioning from a player to a coach was hard at first,” she shared. “I had to coach former teammates, and it was a big adjustment for me at the start of my career. I had to find a balance and look at the game from the point of view of a coach rather than a player.

“It was a real learning experience, but it definitely prepared me to take on the role of head coach,” she said.

Baugh spoke highly of former head coach Josh Gibbs, who recently moved into a different role on campus. As it stands, Gibbs is the winningest coach in women’s soccer history at Texas Wesleyan. The two-time Red River Athletic Conference Coach of the Year and 2018 SAC regular season champion has left behind a history of success for the new head coach.

“He built this program,” she said. “His legacy speaks for itself, but one of the things he told me was to build this program in my eyes rather than trying to fill his shoes. He told me to make it my own and not think about it being his program.

“This program is mine now, and I look to continue the history of success,” Baugh said.

Baugh is excited for the season to start.

Gold Line Dancers compete in American Dance Collegiate Competition

Texas Wesleyan University’s Gold Line Dancers had a fantastic showing at the American Dance Collegiate Competition on Saturday, March 25. The team, comprised of 16 members, competed with Team Hip Hop and Team Open Performance, a style consisting of jazz, pom and hip hop, in a two-minute segment. American Dance (@danceADTS) places Texas Wesleyan in the DIII category, with over 26 collegiate teams attending. The contest is Texas Wesleyan’s fifth appearance in the competition since the team began in 2017, only missing the 2020 COVID year.

Here is how they placed:

• College Division DII/III Soloists – Winner: Mariaya Lewis

• All Divisions College Duet – Winner: Mariaya Lewis and Kiley Redd

• All Divisions Academic Champions – 3rd Place: Team GPA 3.331

• College Division DIII Team Hip Hop: 1st Runner Up

• College Division DIII Team Open Performance: 1st Runner Up

• College Division DIII Overall: 3rd Runner Up

The team is under the direction of coach Emily Snow. Team Hip Hop was choreographed by alumni Gold Line Dancer Ashton Williams. Current Dallas Cowboys cheerleader Kally B choreographed Team Open Performance.

“If I could, I’d start the season tomorrow,” Snow said. “This past season was a bit of a struggle, but it was a learning experience nevertheless. I am looking forward to the players getting back to playing and just having fun. I have a group of players that want to play for me and believe that I can do this, and it is the greatest feeling in the world.”

24 Wesleyan SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 25 SPORTS REPORT

lose a feeling of connection. Hospital staff would walk around with a picture of them on their protective equipment so patients would know what they looked like.

Alumna Eddye Gallagher inducted into TIPA Hall of Fame

Alumnus Victor Test awarded the AMA Medal of Valor

Test credits the medal to the hard work of his staff during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Victor J. Test ’86, M.D., was awarded the American Medical Association Medal of Honor for his work on behalf of patients and his community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But for Test, the medal isn’t just his –it’s for his entire team. It signifies all the hard work and dedication his staff did during the pandemic.

And his motivation comes from one veteran patient whose picture resides on his desk, Colonel Fox. Fox had been awarded the medal of honor in Vietnam.

“He said he was proud to have it and wear it for all the other marines who deserved it and didn’t get it,” Test said. “But when people pat me on the back, I try to remember what he told me.”

It was Fox that made the impression on Test of how to honor his entire team.

“I think about Colonel Fox every day. I just loved that man,” he said. “He changed my life.”

Remembering how Fox wore his medal for every other marine, Test wanted to take the advice and display his medal for everyone on his team.

“I think it’s important to remember that for every person that gets recognized, there’s an iceberg of people around them that did their job, did it well, put it on the line for someone else and nobody noticed,” Test said. “[My team] couldn’t have done it without each other.”

The medal was awarded to Test for his work with patients and the community at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Lubbock. Test and

his staff collected protective equipment and developed protocols to prepare for the pandemic before their first case in March 2020.

“We had the opportunity to take the information from Italy, China, New York and Washington and develop our protocols in advance,” Test said. “In terms of manpower, we knew there was going to be an issue. I essentially took all our older faculty’s clinical rotations in the ICU and did them – I did that to protect my division, because I knew they were going to be super stressed.”

Test then shared the protocols with surrounding hospitals, knowing that many facilities in the area weren’t accustomed to providing the level of care that would be needed during the pandemic. The hospital also shared equipment and face shields made from 3D printing with the other county hospitals.

During the time when the ICU was not allowing any visitors, Test and his staff called family members every night to give updates.

“It was a lot of work. We had to do daily updates on the patients,” he said. “It was really stressful. When you work in that kind of circumstance, and you know you’re going to lose a significant number of patients, it’s hard.”

He humbly added that, “I really don’t think what I was doing was all that extraordinary – we did what we had to do.”

Talking with patients while wearing masks made many patients and staff

“In the end, there’s no substitution for regular human interaction,” he said. Test also worked to take care of his staff, calling yoga studios and counseling providers around Lubbock to provide online classes for them.

“We were really lucky because we didn’t lose any pulmonary critical care doctors,” Test said. “We didn’t lose any from illness or burn out – not to say we didn’t suffer from it. We kept the core of our nurses, too. In the end, I was trying to protect my [staff].”

But becoming a doctor was not something Test ever thought he would do.

As an undergraduate at Texas Wesleyan, Test studied biology with no initial plans to even become a doctor. He came to the university to major in history with the prospect of also becoming a tennis or basketball coach.

“If you had asked me my sophomore year, I probably wouldn’t have said I would become a doctor,” he laughed.

After taking science classes and having friends who were looking to go into the medical field, he felt inspired to also major in biology, which eventually led him to medical school.

“Every science class I took, the professors challenged me, inspired me and gave me confidence that I could do more. It made me wonder what I could do – could I achieve more than I thought I could,” Test said. “That’s really unique in education.”

He mentioned his tennis coach, Doc, many professors and fellow students that consistently motivated him to do more. He credits Texas Wesleyan with helping him find the confidence to become a doctor.

“I loved every minute I was at Texas Wesleyan, and I still do,” he said. He encourages students who are looking to go into the medical field to love people, be hard workers and be dedicated to helping not just the patients, but fellow medical staff.

Eddye Gallagher ’69 sat on a bus, library books stacked on her lap, with her sister Sandra on their way home from the downtown Fort Worth public library. Eddye was eager to get home, not too far from Texas Wesleyan University’s campus, and lay on the living room floor cracking open those books. The rides every other week to and from the library with her sister were a cherished memory for Gallagher. It was what led her to read about famous people like Nellie Bly – the pen name for the American journalist Elizabeth Cochran Seaman known for her recordbreaking, around-the-world trip in 72 days and launching new trends in investigative journalism.

“I’d get my big stack of books to bring home. Then she’d [Sandra] get so mad because before the first week was over, I’d be finished and wanting to go back,” Gallagher laughed.

Discovering Nellie Bly during those library trips with Sandra and reading the papers that her parents subscribed to led Gallagher to think about becoming a writer. And while Gallagher hadn’t thought about going to college, she was encouraged to attend by her high school English and journalism teacher Dorothy Estes.

“Dorothy Estes took me aside and she said, ‘You cannot go through your life being smarter than your boss. You’re going to college,’” Gallagher said. Estes got an application to Texas Wesleyan for Gallagher to fill out, which worked well for Gallagher since the campus was within walking distance.

Gallagher received the induction for her hard work and dedication to collegiate journalism during her 47-year career as an adviser for Tarrant County College’s student newspaper.

Gallagher was offered several jobs in public relations through the connections she made with both Estes and staff at Texas Wesleyan University. After graduating, she decided to get her master’s in journalism from the University of North Texas. During her graduate studies, she was offered a job as a professor and an adviser for the student newspaper for Tarrant County College. Three years later, she had a fulltime contract with TCC.

Gallagher said that Estes not only introduced her to several people that would help her throughout her career, but also helped her negotiate her contract with TCC. Estes also had Gallagher meet with the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association, the oldest state collegiate association in the nation.

“Dorothy was a loving woman,” Gallagher said. “She helped me make friends and got me in with all [the journalism] people. It was really nice.”

Throughout her 47-year career at TCC, Gallagher worked as a student newspaper adviser and taught English classes. Even when the college decided to move the newspaper to one campus, not needing multiple advisers, Gallagher stayed to continue teaching English. However, she was able to start working with the college newspaper again and even built online classes so that students from multiple different campuses could participate without having to drive across town.

Her work led her to be named TIPA Adviser of the Year in 2005, College Media Association’s National Distinguished Two-Year Newspaper Adviser of the Year in 2015 and be inducted into the Distinguished Hall of Honor from the Texas Community College Journalism Association in 2017.

“I loved so much of it,” she said.

“Tarrant County College is such a good place, and I loved the students. I loved taking the students to conferences. I loved watching them when they come back from a session and get excited about something that they’d learn. I loved it all.”

Her students have gone on to work for National Public Radio in Washington D.C., The Washington Post, and even become editors for papers in other states.

“They’re scattered around just doing things, and I love it when I get to hear from them,” she said. “It’s fun to watch [them grow].”

Gallagher also served in TIPA as secretary, vice president and president. And this year, she was inducted into the TIPA Hall of Fame for her “dedication to educate, inspire and improve the lives of community college journalism students.”

And when asked how she feels about being inducted, she smiled and said, “Amazing. It was a shock.”

Now retired, Gallagher reflects on all the people who touched her life and career in many ways.

“What really mattered the most to me was that I was in a group of people that I respect and who impacted my life,” she said. “And it all started with Dorothy Estes.”

And her love for written words, which led to a career she was so passionate about with help from Estes, all began with those trips to the library with Sandra.

“She just died last year,” she said. “It’s been rough.”

When sharing Sandra’s obituary on Facebook, Gallagher wrote, “I lost my best friend […] she had my back from day one.”

26 Wesleyan SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 27 ALUMNI

Jeri Simons Chipman '97 named director of alumni relations

Wesleyan Wine Walk is a hit

Patrons visited the Bernice Coulter Templeton Art Studio, The Rosedale student apartments, Graduate Programs of Nurse Anesthesia and West Library

The Wesleyan Wine Walk is quickly becoming one of the most popular events during Texas Wesleyan’s annual Alumni Reunion. This fun event, which was held April 23, gives TXWES alumni and friends the chance to walk around campus and visit various sites. Each stop provides insight into schools and programs and includes wine and food pairings. All participants also receive a Texas Wesleyan wine glass!

Jeri Chipman ’97 has been named director of alumni relations at Texas Wesleyan University. She has worked in the university advancement department for more than three years, serving as alumni events coordinator and assistant director of annual giving. Prior to her work at Texas Wesleyan, Jeri’s professional experience was in marketing and communications, with a brief stint teaching high school English. The daughter of longtime music professor Stephen Simons, Jeri grew up at Texas Wesleyan, even briefly living on campus in faculty housing. She and her family attended Polytechnic United Methodist Church, and she attended William James Middle School, which is adjacent to campus. Jeri graduated from Texas Wesleyan with a degree in English and was a member of Alpha Chi, Sigma Tau Delta, student ambassadors and participated in the Model Arab League under the direction of professor Ibrahim Salih. Jeri’s long connection to, and love for, Texas Wesleyan will be central to her work engaging and connecting alumni to the university to support its mission.

28 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU Wesleyan 29 ALUMNI

TXWES Giving Days March 2023

were a success

Great things are happening at Texas Wesleyan – increasing freshman admissions, thriving and expanding programs and facilities, and continuing advancements in and around our community. And it isn’t possible without the generous support of our alumni and friends.

As cliché as it sounds, it’s really true – every gift counts. So, we want to say “THANK YOU” to everyone who participated in TXWES Giving Days on March 8 and 9! We had over 145 alumni, current students, friends of the university and faculty/staff participate in this event, culminating in $56,748 being raised! This important initiative provides funding to the areas of most immediate need to support our students and programs.

Missed giving days? Your gift can still positively impact Texas Wesleyan and our students at any time. Give at txwes.edu/alumni

STAY UP TO DATE WITH ALUMNI

Have you updated your information with our office?

Call 817-531-6548 or email us at alumni@ txwes.edu to stay up to date on all alumni news and events.

@txwesalumni

1960s

Roy Bowen ’67 published his book, Let Me Tell You A Story, and held a local booksigning this past October.

1970s

Kerry Getter ’77 announced his retirement during a board meeting with Balcones Resources. Getter founded Balcones in 1994 and served as CEO until his announcement. Throughout his career, Getter spent nearly four decades in the recycling industry and revolutionizing singlestream recycling in the state of Texas.

Willie R. Hargis ’78 recently published his book, Going Postal

1980s

Rex Renan Williams III ’80, DDS, and his son wrote and published Letters Home: A Journey Into Recovery released this past March on Amazon and Kindle.

1990s

Jan Pettigrew Wilde ’94 is in her seventh year of retail and currently the senior team lead at Rally House in Southlake, Texas.

Bob Mills ’95 received his master’s in management and leadership from Liberty University in 2018 and was just reelected the York County treasurer in Maine and was reelected to the Biddeford City Council. Bob and his wife, Heather, are the proud parents of six boys.

Jeri Simons Chipman ’97 was recently named director of alumni relations at Texas Wesleyan University.

2000s

Darrell Bartell ’00 has three books published with Rising Phoenix Press, including Ten-Five: You’re Going Home, Marine! ; Barry and the Vampire in the Rosedale Encounter; and The Corona Monologues: Auditioning monologues based on the COVID-19 pandemic

Nick Davis JD ’08 graduated in May with his master’s in public service and administration from the Bush School of Government & Public Service.

2010s

Paul Packard DNAP ’12 was inducted as a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology during the AANA’s recent Annual Congress in Chicago earlier this year.

Melondy Doddy-Muñoz ’12 was selected to lead The Ladder Alliance in March.

Kristin Henderson DNAP ’18 was inducted as a Fellow of the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology during the AANA’s recent Annual Congress in Chicago earlier this year.

Jerry Chism (1953-2023)

Jerry Chism was born on Aug. 12, 1953, at Saint Joseph's Hospital in Fort Worth. He was adopted at birth by Leroy and Louise Chism of Colleyville who preceded him in death. He grew up in North Richland Hills and Colleyville where he graduated from Grapevine High School in 1971. Soon after graduating high school, he met the love of his life, Elizabeth, and they married in 1976. Jerry attended Tarrant County Junior College and later transferred to Texas Wesleyan University, where he graduated with a bachelor's in religious studies. He then attended Southern Methodist University and earned a Master of Divinity.

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.

GOT NEWS?

SHARE IT.

VISIT TXWES.EDU/ALUMNI

EMAIL ALUMNI@TXWES.EDU

CALL 817-531-6548

After completing seminary, Jerry became an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church. In the 1970s Jerry was a youth pastor at William C. Martin United Methodist in Bedford and Saginaw United Methodist Church. Jerry's first appointment as senior pastor was at St. John's UMC on University Drive in Fort Worth. In 1982 Jerry was appointed senior pastor of Benbrook UMC.

In 1983 Jerry and Liz had their first and only child, Daniel Chism, who they always loved and adored. In 1985 the Central Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church asked him to launch a new congregation in the growing suburbs of southwest Arlington. Jerry was the founding minister at St. John the Apostle UMC in Arlington and oversaw construction of the church.

While at St. John the Apostle, Jerry earned his first doctorate from Saint Paul School of Theology in Kansas City, Missouri, focusing on ministering to children.

In 1993 Jerry became senior pastor at St. Luke United Methodist Church in Haltom City, where he served for nine years. While at Saint Luke, Jerry earned his second doctorate from Oxford University in England through the Graduate Theological Seminary Foundation. Around that time, he began his 20-year tenure on the board of trustees at Texas Wesleyan University. It was also around that time that he began to serve as a trustee for the Harris Methodist system of hospitals.

In 2002, Jerry was appointed senior pastor at Arlington Heights UMC in Fort Worth. Jerry joined the faculty of Brite Divinity School at Texas Christian University where he taught Methodist doctrine and polity for nearly a decade. Eventually, he was appointed to William C. Martin UMC in Bedford, which would be the final church where he would serve as senior pastor. In 2015, Jerry received his third and final doctorate from Oxford through the Graduate Theological Seminary Foundation. His thirst for knowledge and love of the academic setting lasted until the final days of his life. Jerry retired from full-time ministry in 2017.

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Don Boulware ’64

Patricia Castillo ’97 MBA ’08

Branigan Contreras ’15

Teri Flores ’97

Jennifer Harrison ’20

Jen Hilton ’02

Mark Husband ’95

Terri Kane MHS ’99 DNAP ’15 GPNA Representative

Kathryn Keaton ’04

Jill Kersh ’92

Margi Kluck ’79

Veronica Martinez ’81 Secretary

Julie Dugan McCurley ’06 Treasurer

Eric Montoya ’07 M.Ed. ’15 President

Xavier Sanders ’09

Karen Surita ’01 Vice President

Jorge Vivar ’76

Immediate Past President

Brandon Weaver ’00 MBA ’00

Dan Whitsell ’73

Ram Club Representative

Vernon Wright ’93

OFFICE OF ALUMNI RELATIONS STAFF

Jeri Chipman ’97 Director of Alumni Relations

Reagan Cooper Assistant Director of Alumni Relations

30 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 TXWES.EDU | Wesleyan 31 ALUMNI

CLASS NOTES

TO HONOR A RAM IN WESLEYAN MAGAZINE please email alumni@txwes.edu. REMEMBRANCES

The History of the Faye C. Goostree Women’s Symposium at TXWES

The symposium started over 40 years ago to help inspire young women to take on leadership roles in their communities.

DONORS AND FRIENDS. Thank you.

There are a few two-word phrases that are important to us here at Texas Wesleyan: GO RAMS! SMALLER. SMARTER. We have one more for our donors and friends: THANK YOU.

The annual Faye C. Goostree Women’s Symposium first started in October 1982. The inaugural symposium lasted over six hours and included three sessions with different women leaders from around Fort Worth and concluded with a formal dinner. The theme was “Women in Leadership Roles.”

Faye C. Goostree endowed Texas Wesleyan with the women’s symposium. She was a longtime leader and community advocate in Fort Worth, serving in many roles, such as a board member of the United Way of Metropolitan Tarrant County and member of the United Methodist Women. She also initiated Fort Worth’s Meals on Wheels program.

Goostree was passionate about her church and helping young women become community leaders. Her own philosophy led her life’s work, saying “Everyone has something to give and responsibility to develop and share it with others.”

Now in its 41st year, the symposium strives to fulfill the legacy of Mrs. Goostree by providing an opportunity for women to learn from female leaders who have impacted

their communities. It is held annually in March, Women’s History Month, and includes a luncheon. It continues to be a platform for women to discuss their experiences and challenges. The symposium is a great opportunity for the Fort Worth community to come together to learn, discuss and celebrate the progress of gender equality.

Texas Wesleyan invites all members of campus and the Fort Worth community to attend, including students and faculty of neighboring Polytechnic Heights High School and the Young Women’s Leadership Academy.

Each year, the Goostree Symposium Committee meets to plan the event and lunch. The 2023 symposium was on March 2 with former Texas Sen. Wendy Davis as the keynote speaker. Previous speakers have included Kay Granger ’65 HON ’92, congresswoman; Dr. Sally Knox, breast cancer surgeon and author; Julie Murphy ’10, author; Beverly Powell, state senator; and Opal Lee, community activist and educator.

“Faye C. Goostree inspired a lot of women who at that time weren’t taking roles that women are now,” said Elizabeth A.M. Howard, Eunice & James L. West Library director and chair of the Goostree Symposium Committee.

“I think that’s important that we still have the symposium today because we still need to inspire everybody.”

Thank you for giving back to our students. Thank you for believing in both our students’ dreams and the power of a TXWES education to make them come true. Thank you for being a part of tangible life change.

We are so grateful for donors and alumni like you. No matter what adversity our students face, knowing you are behind them encourages and inspires. We hope you choose to continue your support into this academic year to help even more Rams start and finish their education. TXWES.EDU/MYGIFT

32 Wesleyan | SPRING 2023 LAST WORD

1201 Wesleyan Street Fort Worth, Texas 76105-1536

Wesleyan Magazine, Spring 2023

VISION for MOMENTUM

Cultural Day at Texas Wesleyan

HAIL TO THEE, DEAR TEXAS WESLEYAN

Dear Alumni and Friends,

FEATURES

DEPARTMENTS

11 Things the West Librarians Wish You Knew

Director of West Library Elizabeth A.M. Howard named president-elect of TLA

The Adapt-Able Foundation partners with Texas Wesleyan to provide adaptive SCUBA experience

Red, white, blue … and gold, alumnus honors TXWES after military deployment

From baseball to nonprofits: Lydia Traina’s mission to help Fort Worth families

Music professor receives 2022 Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award

Texas Wesleyan and CoAct fight food insecurities with

Fort Worth farmers market

Women in Esports:

Cindy Flores researches using video games in physical therapy

Taking a

faith: Stella's journey from Vietnam to the United States

VISION for MOMENTUM

Flashback to 2013

Sharing the Vision

Bell Labs

Katie Baugh named new women’s soccer coach

Jaelynn Williams jumps to new heights – breaking school records in track and field

Gold Line Dancers compete in American Dance Collegiate Competition

Alumna Eddye Gallagher inducted into TIPA Hall of Fame

Alumnus Victor Test awarded the AMA Medal of Valor

Jeri Simons Chipman '97 named director of alumni relations

Wesleyan Wine Walk is a hit

TXWES Giving Days March 2023

were a success

STAY UP TO DATE WITH ALUMNI

1960s

1970s

1980s

1990s

2000s

2010s

Jerry Chism (1953-2023)

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS

OFFICE OF ALUMNI RELATIONS STAFF

The History of the Faye C. Goostree Women’s Symposium at TXWES

DONORS AND FRIENDS. Thank you.

#THROWBACK

Articles inside

The History of the Faye C. Goostree Women’s Symposium at TXWES

TXWES Giving Days March 2023

Bell Labs

VISION for MOMENTUM

Taking a faith: Stella's journey from Vietnam to the United States

Women in Esports: Cindy Flores researches using video games in physical therapy

Texas Wesleyan and CoAct fight food insecurities with

Music professor receives 2022 Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award

From baseball to nonprofits: Lydia Traina’s mission to help Fort Worth families

Red, white, blue … and gold, alumnus honors TXWES after military deployment

VISION for MOMENTUM