Category Archives: News

Step UP! to being a Leader

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College could be a tough time for new students as they make a transition from high-school. At Texas A&M University-Texarkana it is our duty as students and faculty to make sure everyone is in a safe environment. In order to fulfill that goal, the Step-UP! Program was enacted. 

“Step UP! is a prosocial behavior and bystander intervention program that educates students to be proactive in helping others. It received a NASPA Gold award and recently was identified as a ‘Best Practice’ by the NCAA Sports Science Institute of national and international scholars,” according to the organization’s Website. The goals of Step UP! are to raise awareness of helping behaviors, increase students’ motivation to help, developing their skills and confidence when responding to problems or concerns, and to ensure the safety and well-being of self and others.

The Step-UP coordinator will work with the counseling services team to raise awareness on important topics such as sexual assault, drug and alcohol awareness, leadership, goal setting, mental health, and motivation. The counseling services staff at Texas A&M University-Texarkana include: Mr. Corey Robinson, Mrs. Brianna Taylor, and Mrs. Courtney Thomas. The Counseling Services team will be hosting various events and tables at the University to give students the resources they need so that they are educated and prepared if they need to STEP UP in any situation. “It allows our students to be educated and well equipped to manage anything that comes their way. We just want the absolute BEST for our students,” counselor Corey Robinson said.  

Most problematic behaviors on college campuses involve bystanders. The Step UP! program provides a framework explaining the bystander effect, reviews relevant research and teaches skills for intervening successfully using the 5 Decision Making Steps, and the S.E.E. Model (Safe; Early; Effective). Students are encountering multiple situations where bystander intervention would be appropriate including, among other things, alcohol abuse, hazing, eating disorders, sexual assault and discrimination.

In reality, most unfortunate results are preventable. It is our utmost passion to help students learn strategies and techniques to intervene directly or indirectly in both emergency and non-emergency situations. At Texas A&M University-Texarkana, the counseling staff just want the best for their students and they will do whatever it takes to keep them safe.

Check out the video below to get a glimpse of Step UP! in your community:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=DfeYatFeFSM&feature=emb_logo

Riding the Athletics Bus to OK

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Does a two day trip to Oklahoma with over forty of Texas A&M Texarkana’s soccer players sound like a good time? There’s WiFi on the chartered bus. There are plug outlets every other row of seats. There’s even a bathroom in the back, a nice little closet with a toilet that does not flush located right behind the men’s team! If you’ve never been on one of these away-game-trips, buckle up. You’re on one now. 

Walters carries the ball up the field against SCU. Photo by: Suzanna Summerlin

Madison Walters began her journey at TAMUT in August of 2016 at her first preseason training camp for the Women’s Soccer team. Since then, she’s grown as a student athlete and been named team captain. We’ll be following Walters on her last preseason away trip of her career to play against Southwestern Christian University and Oklahoma City University.  

Rise and shine! It’s 5:30 A.M. and it’s time to get moving. Walters is on the chartered bus surrounded by her teammates by 6 A.M. Everyone quickly dozes off to sleep after the team prayer and the 6 hour drive began. “My whole body hurts,” Walters commented during the pit stop the bus took at the halfway point of the journey as she stretched her legs. The bus made a brief stop for lunch before heading to the field so the women’s team could begin to warm up. 

After a 3-1 win against SCU, Walters was exhausted, playing the full 90 minutes. She changed into clean, dry, clothes and sat with her team to watch the TAMUT men’s team win 2-1 in overtime. The bus smelled of sweaty trash as both stinky teams piled onboard to head to the hotel. Walters was dead asleep by 10 P.M. after the teams ate a feast at Golden Corral.

The next morning the hotel lobby was packed with soccer players as they ate breakfast before loading the bus at 10:30 A.M. The teams were eager to play as they arrived to the OCU field around noon. Walters was frustrated after the women lost 2-1 in overtime. She led the team towards the locker rooms to shower off before watching the men’s team battle it out on the field. 

Photo by: Suzanna Summerlin

After two frustrating loses against OCU, the bus loaded up with freshly showered athletes and began the 6 hour trek home. A hectic pit stop at Chick-fil-a was made for dinner– restaurants usually struggle to handle the soccer program and their large appetites. “I want to be home already,” Walters said as she opened up her laptop to begin a Kinesiology test; putting in earphones to drown out the noisey men’s team. The bus arrived safely to campus around 1 A.M. and the bus unloaded quietly as everyone headed their separate ways. 

Just like that, Walters’ last preseason away trip was over. “Next week is going to be brutal,” Walters sighed as she looked over the soccer schedule. The women’s team has a week off from games before conference play starts and they’ll put in work until it’s time to load the bus again.

College Admissions Bribery Scandal

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The recent college admissions bribery scandal continues in the news with the beginning phase of sentencing for the people who have plead guilty. The scandal, given the name Operation Varsity Blues, is the largest college admissions scheme ever prosecuted. In the center of the scandal is William Singer, a businessman who allegedly collected $25 million in bribes from wealthy parents who were trying to get their children into some of the top colleges in the country.

The indictment claims that Singer’s company called the Key was a front to allow briberies of college sports coaches and cheating on standardized tests. Parents would pay non-taxed donations to Singer’s non-profit organization which promoted itself as a college preparation and counseling program. Prosecutors say the scam ran from 2011 to 2019. Larry Davis, Professor of Economics at Texas A&M University-Texarkana said, “Some wealthy people think they can buy their way into things that other people cannot. If you have money to buy things, that is fine, but if you use money for illegal payoffs, that is wrong.”

Fifty people have been charged in this scheme including thirty-three parents, Mr. Singer, and coaches and professionals from multiple universities. Universities including USC, Yale University, Georgetown University, Stanford University, UCLA, University of Texas, and Wake Forest University. No institution has been charged in the case. Mr. Davis stated that, “Texas A&M University-Texarkana has criteria that students must meet to be admitted. High school students must have a certain GPA and if they do not, they can appeal it and then they might have some guidance on remedial courses they can take to be admitted.”  Twenty people have pleaded guilty in this case.

The three most well-known parents indicted in the scandal are Felicity Huffman, Lori Loughlin and her husband, fashion designer; Mossimo Guinnalli. Huffman plead guilty to charges that she paid $15,000 for someone to correct her daughter’s SAT answers. The maximum sentence for her act is 20 years but prosecutors have recommended only four months in prison. She is scheduled to be sentenced on September 13, 2019. Loughlin and her husband, on the other hand, have pleaded not guilty to paying $500,000 in bribes to get their two daughters admitted to University of Southern California as crew recruits. All the university coaches involved are either on leave or fired from their universities.  It is believed that many of the students involved were not aware of the illegal activities taking place to get them admitted. As of now, no students involved have been charged in the scandal.

Wal-Mart Supercenter Has a New Look

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Exciting changes occurred earlier this year at the Wal-Mart Supercenter. The Wal-Mart Corporation specified that every store is to be remodeled every five to seven years, so the store on New Boston Road in Texarkana, TX began remodeling during the last week of May. The store underwent changes in the design and placement of several departments. The remodeling lasted fourteen weeks with a grand reopening on August 30th. The changes made were for the convenience of the customers.

An announcement was made at the beginning of May to hire extra employees to help during the remodeling process. An estimated fifty-five personnel were hired for various jobs, from building and restocking shelves, moving departments, and helping customers find things. Assistant store manager Jeff Epps said, “We hired local people from our community. Some people quit after the first week due to the demand for the work required. Those that stayed until the end were given a job at the store.” He estimated twenty-five people stayed.

There were a lot of changes made. Some departments were expanded, while some were combined with others, making them smaller. Some departments were moved while others stayed in the same place. The biggest change occurred in Sporting Goods, Hardware, and the Tire and Lube Center. The departments were combined with a shared counter in the middle. Housewares and Domestics have combined as well. Another big change occurred in the Pet Department. The live fish tanks have been removed and replaced with tack and feed for livestock. The Pet Department has also been combined with the Chemicals Department. The Electronic Department has expanded with a wider counter. 

Other changes have occurred in the store. New floors have been laid, new lights in the Produce Department have been installed. The Money Order Center has moved to the middle of the registers. The area where the Money Order Center was is now up for rent for businesses to come to the store. The most noticeable change is the huge tower located on the grocery side. This tower is for customers to pick up their online general merchandise orders conveniently using their phones.

Mr. Epps explained how the changes and remodeling affected the department managers the most. Departments being moved and aisles being relocated frustrated the department managers, as they felt lost while trying to help their customers. The overall morale was good among the department managers as they focused on customer service above all else. This helped to ease the frustration among the customers shopping in the newly rearranged departments.

The overall changes appear to be satisfying to both the customers and the employees. The floors and bright lights are especially the favorites among the changes. Less frustration and complaints occurred as customers started to find their way around the newly designed store with help from the employees. Customers will be happy to know a new change in the online grocery pickup is in the future. Customers will be able to extend their orders instead of being limited to how much goods they are allowed to purchase. 

As with any business, there are other future plans in the works for the Texarkana Wal-Mart Supercenter. Customers can be assured their needs will be top priority whatever changes occur in the future.

Bright Lights, Two Cities

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Sparkling lights, thrilling rides, and deep fried Oreos. Texarkana’s annual Four States Fair and Rodeo is back in town September 13-22. Once a year our small city hosts a fair and rodeo for Texarkana and the surrounding areas. 

The fair has a lot of events to offer, like the Demolition Derby, a rodeo, and a place for Future Farmers of America students to show their animals. The rodeo also encourages people from surrounding areas to be involved. For example, Allison Gill is from Fouke, AR and goes to school in Magnolia at Southern Arkansas University. In recent years she has participated in the Miss Four States Fair and Rodeo. Allison enjoys being a part of this for the opportunities it presents to her to get to serve and know Texarkana better.

Many local businesses and restaurants come together to serve and share, giving everyone an opportunity to get to know their town better.

You do not necessarily have to go just to ride a ride, but maybe go to support our community by coming together simply to indulge in tasty treats and stop by the booths put on by local organizations. 

Growing up, my family’s routine was to avoid the fair all week until the very end due to the costs. We would buy tickets for the rodeo and we would gain free entry into the fair once the rodeo was over. If we were really lucky, I could convince a friend to take us during the week.

As for costs, the fair offers multiple chances for cheaper alternatives, such as a weekly pass and family fun day. All details on prices and dates can be found right here.

 

Open Your Ears: Poet Joy Ladin visits Tamut

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** IN CASE OF INCLEMENT WEATHER, REFER TO THE A&M TEXARKANA WEBSITE OR CONTACT CORRINE HINTON AT CHINTON@TAMUT.EDU ** Image result for joy ladin

A&M-Texarkana will be hosing a worship for poets, aspiring authors, and lovers of literature! Both the workshop and reading will take place on Thursday, May 9th. The workshop will be at 5:30-7 p.m. in University Center room 230, followed by a reading from 7:30-9 p.m. in UC 217.

Joy Ladin is an American poet and the David and Ruth Gottesman Chair in English at Stern College for Women at Yeshiva University. She is the first openly transgender professor at an Orthodox Jewish institution. Joy Ladin is an American poet and the David and Ruth Gottesman Chair in English at Stern College for Women at Yeshiva University. She is the first openly transgender professor at an Orthodox Jewish institution.

In 2013, Ladin published a series of poems formed entirely from words and phrases found in popular women’s magazines. These poems, such as “Ready To Know,” link both trans women and cis women’s experiences of gender to the “commodity capitalist engine of the production of femininity.” This work emerged when Ladin gave herself a “writing assignment” to creatively engage with the “how-to” rhetoric of mainstream femininity.

“I am a teacher, widely published essayist and poet, literary scholar, and nationally known speaker on transgender issues” Ladin says. Ladin has given invited talks and readings at many universities and colleges such as Harvard and Smith College. After this Thursday, A&M University of Texarkana can be added to the list.

Twenty Two and Stuck in Texarkana

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For twenty two years I have daily heard the phrase, “There is nothing to do in Texarkana.” This statement could not be further from the truth. Let me tell you why.

I have recently made it my mission to find something to do in Texarkana, and what I have found is golden. Last week my brother and I decided to take a stroll through downtown Texarkana. We saw three new murals done by Texarkana residents, walked through an art gallery, and had the opportunity to tour the Landmark building with the owner himself, another Texarkana native. I realized in this moment the only reason people believe there is nothing to do in Texarkana is because they do not do anything.

Within just this past week I was involved in a dodgeball tournament that raised donations for local charities, I have taken a hike through Bringle Lake, I have played shuffleboard at Hopkins, and I plan on attending the wine festival for a second time this Saturday. This just happens to be one week of Texarkana events, but imagine there is a whole year of events going on. With groups like GoTXK, Greater Texarkana Young Professionals, and so many more, there is an endless amount of things to do in Texarkana. It only takes you going out and doing them.

I had the privilege of living on both sides of the line and I can truly say that Texarkana is actually twice as nice.

Photos by Libby Hernandez

 

Is Technology Becoming a Threat?

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The potential for technology has dramatically improved in recent years. We now have Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality. Video games are becoming more realistic. Robots are becoming more human-like. Driverless or self-driving cars are being tested. The possibilities are endless in the age of technology. However, these new developments make some question whether the benefits truly outweigh the potential for these advances to be used for something more sinister. Peyton Gregory, a mother-to-be, said, “These dangerous aspects of technology are really terrifying for parents when considering the safety of their children.” Lauren Johnson, a local high school student, said that such technologies really freak her out and she would never want to use such technology if it were offered to her.

In recent months we have been introduced to deepfakes, and voice cloning technology. Deepfake technology is used to create fake videos by taking images of a person’s face to create a moving image. Initially it was designed for film production in Hollywood. Although revolutionary, deepfakes are being used to create revenge porn, which started to surface on Reddit in 2017. Many young female actresses such as Selena Gomez, Emma Watson, and Scarlett Johannson have fallen victim to having their faces placed into these inappropriate videos. This form of technology has also plagued the lives of everyday women. Not only does it lead to fake porn and silly memes, but the creation of fake news reports and government videos. This is very dangerous to the safety of the nation, taking into consideration military and governmental use of such technologies. It could become very dangerous and even disastrous. It has the potential to lead the way to another World War if it were used strategically.

Voice cloning technology can use one’s voice to create a computerized voice avatar that is supposed to sound just like their very own and can be used to say anything that is typed into the computer. A program designed by Adobe Voco has this same concept, which was never released to the public because of these scary scenarios. However, an app available to the general public called Lyrebird can be used for those willing to share their voice. Regardless of the revolutionary aspect of these new developments, the potential for them to be used in a negative way still stands a risk if it were to land in the wrong hands.

A Dyslexia Visionary

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Section 504, the American Disabilities Act of 1973, has affected the method by which school districts serve students with disabilities.  Wendy Gandy, District Coordinator of the Section 504 and Dyslexia Program for general education at Granbury ISD in Hood County, Texas, has been credited with re-creating the dyslexia initiative for the district over two different programs.

“Section 504 is like an umbrella which basically includes any condition which impacts a major life activity of a person.  This includes dyslexia, learning disabilities, asthma, celiac disease, cystic fibrosis, high-functioning autism, as well as hearing and vision impairment, for example,” said Gandy.  She further explained these students are “typically classified as general education.  The more severe, such as lower-functioning autism and more mentally challenged students are categorized as special education.  One of the most difficult parts of the job is scheduling services on the campuses.  Every campus schedule is different, so trying to find a time for students to miss other instruction can be challenging. Every aspect of learning is important, and the school day is already packed.”

Gandy applied her master’s degree in education and her previous experience as a diagnostician to work the puzzle of creating a successful, user-friendly program. “When I arrived here five years ago, the section 504 program was already in place, we just tweaked it, but we completely revamped the dyslexia program.  We implemented the changes in my first year and have continued to expand. In the first year, the specific research-based dyslexia program was chosen, 8 certified teachers were hired and received extensive training and approximately 100 students received dyslexia specific services. It has now grown to 15 teachers and approximately 300 students.” she said.

Gandy oversees the quality assurance of the program, ensuring it runs smoothly, maintains its integrity while ensuring Section 504 laws are upheld, as well as supervising, supporting and training the teachers.  In addition, she evaluates and performs diagnostics for students with dyslexia. Asked about her job satisfaction on a scale of one to ten, Gandy said, “Most days, I would give it a nine.”

Mrs. Gandy says she loves the problem-solving aspect of her job and enjoys going to different campuses to train teachers and students.  She said most of her fulfillment comes from observing students overcome limitations as she watches her program continue to blossom.

T-Town’s Unsolved Murders

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Horror films are great, but it’s never fun to find out the film is based on a true story. The people of Texarkana might be interested in learning about a horror film based on an event that took place in their very own hometown. The film, The Town That Dreaded Sundown, premiered in 1976, followed by a sequel. The world premiere was held in Texarkana on Dec. 17, 1976, before it was released in theaters on Dec. 24. These films are loosely based on the horrific moonlight murders of the Phantom Killer.

The attacks occurred in the spring of 1946, from late February to early May. The murderer attacked young and middle-aged couples. The first two victims, Jimmy Hollis and Mary Larey, survived an attack that occurred on February 22, 1946. The second attack occurred four weeks later, ending the lives of Richard Griffin and Polly Ann Moore. Three weeks after that, the Phantom Killer struck again, this time taking the lives of Paul Martin and Betty Jo Booker. Three weeks later, on May 3, 1946, Virgil Starks was shot and killed in his home by the Phantom Killer, and Straks’ wife Katie was left severely wounded.

As in the films, the real Phantom Killer was never identified. However, the prime suspect in the case was Youell Swinney, who was never convicted of the murders. The case remains unsolved, which has left the town of Texarkana in suspense.

For more information on the murders click here or here.