Dr. Lancaster is a new hire at Texas A&M University- Texarkana. This semester he currently teaches English 1301 and English 1302 first-level English classes as well as Integrated Reading and Writing. Dr. Lancaster says “His hope is to position his [students] to succeed” no matter what level of writer they are. He says teaching is about  “…knowing their potential and helping them activate their writing skills to further their writing.”

Dr. Lancaster has taught English to a variety of students ranging from elementary school to higher education learning. He believes no matter what age, with proper help, you can achieve your goal of writing. Stating, “I like to create good writers…no matter what level you start, you can improve.” 

His background is literature, but he says “It’s not just reading and writing, but also speaking and listening.” Which in his eyes falls under the broad umbrella of communication. He said, “Whether we realize it [or not] somebody influenced the way we read and write.” He said he realized that in K-12 our education back then was focused on structured writing for certain standardized testing and “writing according to a form” and how that is so much different from what you learn coming into a University. 

Being a great teacher and mentor over the years has gained Dr. Lancaster not only experience but also the lasting effect he has had on his students. He said when one of his students first reached out to him, “[He was very surprised at the effect a teacher could have on a student.” From then on have had several other students reach out to him. Dr. Lancaster had so many positive things to say about the staff and university but overall he says he is  “very happy to be here” and Texas A&M University- Texarkana is happy to have him.

From the U.S. Army to the media and broadcast industry, Professor Barney Self’s career has been nothing short of dedication and persistence. He advises his students to embrace the “hustle.” Self says, “I remember when I first went into television, the graduating class in Mass Communication at the University of Texas in one semester, not a year, one semester, could fill every single job in television, radio, and film combined. You’ve got to hustle; you’ve got to put your name out there.”

It began with a what looked to be a promising career as a court typist in the US Army, but quickly turned out to be something else. Instead of getting the job that he wanted, Professor Self was thrust into a role that he knew all too well: news broadcasting. “I read the news at the top and bottom of each hour for Armed Forces Radio….I had trained as a clerk typist, that was what I wanted to do, and I got to Fort Polk Louisiana and they said, ‘Oh, you were at your college radio station…well, now you’re a radio broadcaster.’”

  Upon completing his stint in the Army, Professor Self shifted back to civilian life with 12-hour shifts at a television station and while also attending four classes at Tarrant County College. “Five days, four or five days a week. And on weekends, I would transfer videotapes or film to videotapes. I would shoot coaches’ films on 16-millimeter film, which allowed me the opportunity to save some film for other uses. I did any job within the industry that would get me noticed. You can’t [get noticed] until you [hustle] like I did,” says Self.

In an industry marked by volatility, Professor Self says, “I worked in the same job for almost 20 years with the same title for seven different companies. We were taken over so many times. I’ve worked at TNT. I’ve also worked in the telecommunications sector, for both DISH Network and T-Mobile.” He also comments on the varied workplace environments he encountered, “DISH [has] great service [and] great equipment, terrible human beings. T-Mobile, service is okay. Wonderful company, wonderful company to work for.”

Through the highs and lows of his career, Professor Self’s message remains consistent: “Find a goal that you want to do, whatever goal that may be, and then find anything you can do to help you get towards that goal…. [And] get to know people in the industry that you’re working at.”

When asked about teaching another course in the future, Professor Self spoke of his desire to teach a film class, a testament to his love for the art of cinema. nurtured during late nights babysitting satellite feeds at a Dallas television station, KTWS, where he watched old movies while doing his homework. “If it’s a movie that was made before 1985, I’ve probably seen it,” he says. “I love LA,” he said. “If I had it all over again, I should have stayed in Los Angeles. I was up there when I was 17 and thought about going into the film industry.”

Professor Self’s story serves as a testament to the power of resilience and hard work, inspiring a new generation of students to embrace the hustle and forge their own paths towards greatness in the world, regardless of what they choose to do.

New majors, new sports, and new buildings will all come from the guidance of Dr. Ross Alexander. Dr. Ross Alexander is the new President of Texas A&M University-Texarkana. He has an esteemed resume in higher education and doesn’t seem to be slowing down. TAMUT is changing now and for the better as he plans to expand the campus and the enrollment.

Dr. Alexander was looking for relocation and Texas was on the list. He is no stranger to change in scenery as he has attended several universities, as a student, part of faculty, and staff. However, he sees the support that higher education gets in Texas and knows that the A&M system takes care of their schools, so it was a no-brainer.

Dr. Alexander was given a task from Chancellor Sharp: “Grow the University on all fronts.”. The new President intends to do so. He wants to streamline majors with major industry leaders to ensure students get jobs fresh out of college. He wants students to want to come to this university, stay, and graduate from this branch of the A&M system.

The next installations to hit the campus of TAMUT will be a Coed E-sports arena, Dance and cheer teams, men’s and women’s golf, and an athletic complex to bring all sports offered to the campus of TAMUT. Along with new majors in Nursing, STEM, business, social service, and social work. We can expect to see most of this in effect around Fall 2025.

Dr. Joy Hutchinson is the newest addition to Texas A&M-Texarkana’s Counseling program. She joins the faculty as the Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator of Counseling. Counseling wasn’t always in the cards for Dr. Hutchinson, she worked as a Paramedic for ten years in the city of New Orleans. Her time working as an EMT provided valuable insight to a side of first responding that many don’t see. When asked about what shaped her career path, Dr. Hutchinson said, “Listening to my friends and hearing them talk about…when they did see counselors and how the councilors were so ill prepared to work with that population…and losing friends to suicide and substance use.” Joy left her third year of nursing school after creating a survey that showed an overwhelming demand for mental health options among first responders, beginning her journey into the field of counseling. 

After teaching through her doctorate program at the University of Memphis, Dr. Hutchinson finds that she prefers TAMUT’s class sizes. “I like the smaller size, just because of having that personal relationship with [The Students].” She continued, “I’d like us to grow because I’d like to…bring in more faculty. I think it’s important for everybody to get varying perspectives…there’s not one way to offer counseling.” Dr. Hutchinson went on to speak about the offerings of the counseling master’s program. “You’d be able to use your degree that you gained…no other degree is going to bar you from joining our counseling program. Our doctorate degree is the same.” The program also offers supervised local internships to gather real world experience, “In Practicum, we get your feet wet…[The Student] finds local community partners…they do their work there.” 

Today, Dr. Hutchinson teaches and develops the next generation of counselors through her master’s graduate program, utilizing her background in crisis management to better prepare her students for real world scenarios. She offers advice to students working through the new hustle and bustle of college life, “Have a calendar. Time management is really the big key.” She continued, “You get an assignment? Do [it] early. Just be on top of it. Schedule those healthy habits.” Joy wants students to know that her door is always open, “I’m happy to answer any questions…email me, schedule an appointment time. We’re all here to help you succeed.” 

Dr. Joy Hutchinson’s office is located in UC 245, she encourages students to contact her with any questions about the counseling program by emailing her at ehutchinson@tamut.edu. Student Counseling Services is located in UC 420 and is open Monday-Friday from 8am-5pm, to schedule an appointment, contact them by calling (903) 334-6613 or by emailing  counseling.services@ace.tamut.edu.  

Having your house destroyed by a hurricane can change your perspective on life, as it did for Dr. James Worthen, the new Dean of the College of Arts, Science, and Education at Texas A&M University-Texarkana.  “It made me want to serve and give back, so I thought I would be better able to serve as a dean at a place that needs to grow and build,” he said. Dr. Worthen decided that TAMUT was the perfect place to do this.

Prior to his position here, Dr. Worthen was the Associate Dean of the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences at Southeastern Louisiana University for 15 years. Becoming a dean was not necessarily his goal, however, when his home was destroyed in Hurricane Ida in 2021, it changed his perspective and he decided he wanted to focus on helping others through his career.

Dr. Worthen looks forward to helping push TAMUT to new heights and assisting the college with new development. “In many ways it’s sort of new and growing and I thought this would be a great place to help build things,” he said. In addition to assisting TAMUT’s growth, Dr. Worthen also looks forward to helping others on campus. “When you help someone solve a problem or fix something, that’s very satisfying and that is what I like about it,” he said. 

Typically, when he is not spending time with his wife, son, or dog, Dr. Worthen enjoys some activities that he feels you might not expect out of a university dean. “I think this: that people who met me in the real world outside of the university would be surprised at what I do for a living,” he said. Dr. Worthen used to be a musician and played in some bands. His last band, which he left in 2019, was based in Hammond, Louisiana and played at different venues such as the Columbia Theatre and breweries around the area as well as a few places in Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Dr. Worthen also enjoys doing things outdoors, especially hunting. He has been a hunting guide in an operation in Uvalde, Texas in the past. He particularly enjoys bow hunting whitetail deer and hogs.

Vaccines have become essential to modern medicine, offering our society herd immunity and completely eradicating certain diseases. Assistant Professor of Biology Workineh Torben, Ph.D., has made valuable contributions to the development of vaccines, in addition to teaching and advising many students who share an interest in public health.

Dr. Torben began his academic journey with a deep interest in microbiology and immunology. Although he is new to our campus, he is already making a significant impact at the school and is currently working on a grant for TAMUT that will award funds to students who do not have the financial means to attend school.

Throughout his career, he has dedicated his time and expertise to several groundbreaking vaccine-related projects, including an HIV vaccine and a vaccine for Schistosomiasis, a disease caused by parasitic worms that harms people worldwide and is second (in terms of impact) only to malaria. (cdc.gov). Dr. Torben has published as an author/co-author of over 34 international high-impact Scientific articles and is waiting for his new manuscript to be published.

He is also preparing to publish data he has collected regarding the COVID-19 vaccine and is “Very interested to see how COVID-19 injury is affecting people.”

“When you repeat the vaccine in a short period of time, it may not be advisable to do that because when our cells are exposed to the same [COVID-19] antigen again and again, they will make a bad antibody that can affect the cellular immune response which will be very important to control the virus,” says Dr. Workineh Torben. He explains that, like most diseases, continuous exposure causes an increase in antibodies. However, the Covid-19 antibody “IG4” inhibits the cellular immune response.

As the world continues to face new infectious disease challenges, the work of Assistant Professor of Biology Workineh Torben, PhD, remains more crucial than ever. His commitment to Biology contributes to the growth and success of life-saving vaccines and inspires and educates the next generation of scientists.

Works cited:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018, April 11). CDC – Schistosomiasis. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/schistosomiasis/index.html#:~:text=Schistosomiasis%2C%20also%20known%20as%20bilharzia,the%20most%20devastating%20parasitic%20disease.

In recent collaborations among the university and faculty involved with Teagle Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities grant to offer a certificate. The development of the foundation is to have humanities more integrated with various technical programs and tracks at TAMUT to be more integrated with the humanities. The Program of Learning and Community Engagement (PLACE) is an annual program of talks with this year’s Transformative Texts: Personal Responsibility hosted by Dr. Doug Julien and Dr. Michael Perri in the series of events throughout the semester. The PLACE Common Reader Book Club meets every Tuesday throughout the remainder of the semester and more information is on the TAMUT website about upcoming guest keynote speakers and events.

Dr. Doug Julien has been a full-time professor of the English department at Texas A&M University-Texarkana for thirteen years. He obtained his doctoral degree from the University of Minnesota for comparative studies in discourse and society and his passion for world literature, and literary theory with a concentrated fascination with continental philosophy, and critical theory. The inspiration to pursue a career in higher education stems from folks from his life as an undergraduate and graduate student. “I take my students to a place of learning,” said Dr. Julien, encouraging students to connect with their department’s faculty.

The East Texas Writing Project was developed to give local educators around the ArkLaTex area supplemental tools and opportunities to integrate contemporary writing pedagogies into their classrooms to implement a new way of engaging the classroom with the materials. “We have a bunch of new writers making their way into literature,” said Dr. Julien.

With the current trajectory of technological advancements, Dr. Julien shared his thoughts on the usage of artificial intelligence may have potential concerns in education and the workforce. “We should be mindful of not having technology use us,” he said rather than being an assistive tool as time progresses while retrospectively evaluating past innovations just like literature.

            Professor Kevin Ells is an associate professor here at Texas A&M University Texarkana.  He is one of two professors in the mass communications program and will reach his tenth year of being a teacher here as of early 2024. He has had an extensive career teaching not just here but around the world. Originally from Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, Professor Ells earned his Ph.D. in Alexandria, Louisiana, at a branch of the Louisiana State University system, and taught there before coming to Texarkana. He decided to that he was going to stay in the United States after finding his love here. When he completed grad school a second time he had worked at various schools throughout the south and taught in the west Asian country of Azerbaijan. Upon asking why he traveled so much after he graduated school in Canada he said “At that time of the decade [1990’s] it was kinda trendy after university to do a tour Europe, backpack around and hitchhike. I had a sense that lots of people were doing it so I did too.” He still likes to travel but for now he’s enjoying Texarkana.

            While being a full time professor at the university he passionately continues in his research of semiotics and rhetoric. Professor Ells finds that there are terms in his field that are not very well explained even in textbooks so he has been trying to find better ways to explain these terms in a way anyone can understand. He says “…especially in popular books for business, I see something defined and it seems vague in a text book and I can’t explain that in a classroom. I’m explaining a technical term and it’s got to be useful.” He wants solid definitions for words that can be explained to anyone without any real prior knowledge. He has written books on this topic and wants to research it even further.

            When asked what he likes to do when not working or researching nowadays he seemed to find himself fairly boring. He enjoys riding his bike when the weather permits it, spending time with his wife, grandchildren, and elderly dog, and watching Brit Box. When told about his popularity around town he seemed amused. He said “my own sense of myself is that I’m just trying to be competent and giving people what they pay for. I’m always comparing myself to the sharpest scholars I read about… on a good day I think I held myself pretty well today.” Professor Ells seems to have a very humble opinion of himself which makes sense for a man like him.  
      

“Life is influx — life is always changing — and looking for stability is kind of folly,” says 

Dr. Joseph Burzynski of Texas A&M University – Texarkana. 

Growing up, Joseph did not have any big dreams of becoming your typical Astronaut or Policeman but rather developed a passion for fostering the human mind. He has published a couple of articles but does not feel gratitude because “I consider it too attached to my job,” Joseph says. Rather, his proudest moments lie within the achievements of his students. He says, “There is nothing more satisfying than having a student produce something and get it published.”

Joseph Burzynski was born in Buffalo, New York where he later relocated to Bronx, New York to attend Fordham University as an undergraduate student. He remained undeclared in an area of study his first two years to allow himself more fluidity with course scheduling. However, he later transferred back to Buffalo to attend Canisius University where he discovered an aptitude for English-related courses, prompting him to complete his bachelor’s degree in English. 

Joseph is far more than a college professor. He is a husband and father to two-year-old twins and most of his free time is spent maintaining those relationships. He often finds pleasure in grabbing coffee with friends or having a date night with his wife but takes immense pride in the happiness of his children. Joseph describes himself as a frivolous person but earnest, when needed. “I like to see the lighter side of things. I don’t like to dwell in negativity,” he says. However, maintaining a healthy learning environment is one that he does not take lightly. 

Having a mentor or form of guidance is very important to grow as an individual and Joseph Burzynski has done just that to usher the way to success, not only for rising college students but for the success of his own family.

Professor Paul Goodchild is a new assistant professor in the accounting department here on campus. Meeting him was a real treat that allowed some insight on both the life of a professor, along with someone who cares deeply about student concerns and needs. Paul hails from Massachusetts where he grew up and attended UMass. Before deciding on coming to Texas A&M University-Texarkana (TAMUT), he worked at a few other universities like USC-Aiken, Quinnipiac University, and UCM.

Paul has only been working for TAMUT since July and some of his favorite things about the campus is the fact that it is alive and growing. He really enjoys student engagement and hopes that the way things are going, student engagement and attendance can boom and benefit the surrounding community.

Mr. Goodchild is an assistant professor and wants to help the student population with his skills. The Volunteer Income Tax Association or VITA is a program that Paul would like to get started and grow an interest in to help students who do not know how to file taxes. This program works alongside the IRS and allows students to get taxes done or help those in the community file taxes that have an income of $64,000 or lower. If any students or faculty members are interested in joining or learning more, please email him for information. His email can be found in the school directory located here.

But Paul is not all work and no play, he has some interesting hobbies alongside his work life. He is an avid dirt bike rider and enjoys tinkering and repairing any small motors that come with the hobby. This can all be found on a YouTube channel that features all the places he rides and even includes some input on the surrounding area in case one is interested in visiting. His channel can be found here.