COVID-19 Testing Update
Before spring semester classes begin, Texas A&M University will require all employees at the Bryan-College Station campus/sites (faculty, staff, part-time employees, student workers, grad assistants) to complete COVID-19 online training and to take a COVID-19 test. Read the email from President Michael Young that was sent to us Dec. 14 and learn more on Texas A&M's COVID-10 website.
NOVEMBER NEWS FROM OUR DEPARTMENTS
DSA Staff Complete First Development/Philanthropy Program
Across the country, student affairs teams are increasingly dependent on fundraising and development initiatives to support students and programming. The TAMU DSA Development/Philanthropy Continuing Education Program was designed to equip department directors and select staff with knowledge and skills needed to participate in fundraising efforts.
The 14-week program, organized and hosted by VPSA Doctoral Assistant Sarah Hamilton, included biweekly Zoom meetings supplemented with additional material to enrich discussion. Content included various fundraising and development topics, including the following: diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education fundraising; shaping strategies for fundraising in student affairs; fundraising event planning; the donor cycle; working with advisory boards; students, and volunteers; collaborating with campus partners and constituents; and meaningful donor communication. These topics also incorporated the division’s six areas of impact: student success, leadership, wellbeing, traditions & service, inclusive excellence, and visual & performing arts.
Congratulations to DSA staff members that completed the philanthropy program! These individuals will be recognized at the spring 2021 DSA Awards Ceremony.
Julie Anderson, Development Relations Coordinator, DSA
Carol Binzer, Director- Administrative & Support Services, Residence Life
Vicki Dobiyanski, Associate Vice President, DSA
Tonya Driver, Director, Multicultural Services
Don Freeman, Assistant Director, Veteran Resource & Support Center
Sarah Hamilton, Doctoral Assistant, VPSA
Monteigne Long, Asst. Director, System Veteran Resource & Support Center
Allie McConnell, Development Support, Student Activities
Darby Roberts, Director, Student Life Studies
Jerry Smith, Director, Don & Ellie Knauss Veteran Resource & Support Center
Sondra White, Director, DSA MarComm
COUNSELING & PSYCHOLOGICAL SERVICES (CAPS)
During the past few years we have expanded our suicide awareness and prevention efforts. With the support of key individuals, we have been able to successfully reach and train thousands of students, faculty and staff to help students who are at risk for suicide.
We are excited to share plans to expand our reach with a new peer-to-peer suicide prevention program launching spring 2021 called Aggies Reaching Aggies.
As part of the university’s first cohort of crowdfunding campaigns, CAPS is raising funds to support this new program. You may help us by donating to our campaign online. We are grateful for gifts of any amount! Even small gifts have a positive ripple effect.
Please also help us spread the word on social media. Share our posts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram from both your personal and department accounts. As of this week we had raised $3,675 of our $7,000 goal, and we see an increase in donations when even one person shares our campaign on social media.
MUSIC ACTIVITIES
As we shifted to online concerts this fall due to COVID-19, we are pleased to share that these performances were enjoyed by over 4,500 viewers. We greatly appreciate The Association of Former Students for its sponsorship and KAMU-TV for technical assistance.
The Choral Activities Winter Concert will be broadcast by KAMU-TV on Christmas morning at 11 a.m. You may also watch the concert on the KAMU YouTube channel and access program details online.
STUDENT HEALTH SERVICES (SHS)
Consider getting a rapid COVID and flu A/B combo test before leaving Aggieland for the holidays! Results are provided within two to four hours post-collection. The cost for students is $80; the cost for faculty/staff is $120. A portion of this test may be covered by health insurance; bring proof of insurance to your appointment. Visit our website to schedule an appointment and select the COVID-19 testing option.
BECKY GATES CHILDREN'S CENTER
The highly anticipated Becky Gates Children’s Center playground renovation will begin early in 2021. The new playground will feature a natural playscape with trees, plants, gardens, art spaces, an outdoor classroom, sand and water spaces, dry creek bed, boardwalk, musical instruments, building spaces, climbing spaces, and an in-ground slide!
Enroll now for the spring semester! The Becky Gates Children’s Center still has spaces available beginning Jan. 4, 2020. Grandchildren of affiliated Texas A&M University grandparents are now eligible to enroll. Email Krista Van De Flier at kvandeflier@bgcc.tamu.edu or call 979.458.5437 for more information.
Our amazing student workers received a Finals Survival Kits (pictured above) to help them BTHO finals last week. The children decorated the bags and our families donated the fun items to go in the bags. They were a huge hit with our students!
VETERAN RESOURCE & SUPPORT CENTER (VRSC)
On Jan. 15, we are hosting a virtual Vet Camp for incoming student veterans from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Interested incoming student veterans may email us at aggievets@tamu.edu to request a registration link.
The Aggie Shields Textbook Lending Library has opened applications for the spring 2021 semester. Students may apply on our website. Applications close Jan. 10 at 11:59 p.m.
The university scholarship application for continuing students and the FAFSA are now open for the 2021-2022 year. Please encourage students to complete both the scholarship application and FAFSA application online so they are eligible for all possible aid from Texas A&M University and the VRSC.
From U.S. Air Force to Texas A&M. Watch this inspiring story about Lance Decker ’20 ’23, a doctoral student veteran and client of our Don & Ellie Knaus Veteran Resource & Support Center.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (DoIT)
We will offer an introductory WordPress training class on Jan. 12, 2021. Visit our website for details and to RSVP.
Thanks to our division stakeholders who helped us close seven successful projects recently, including the EMS data extracts project, during which we securely integrated multiple data elements to enable more effective forecasting, planning, and predictive resource management for Student Health Services while implementing a new database encryption model to ensure secure data storage and transmission
MEMORIAL STUDENT CENTER
Let’s break Instagram again! REGISTER ONLINE for MSC Open House by Jan. 5, 2021 at noon. The event takes place Jan. 25-29, 2021.
MSC SCOLA invites you to save the date for the 33rd Annual Student Conference on Latinx Affairs, a three-day conference in which delegates across the nation discuss issues impacting the Latinx community. This year’s conference theme is Del Pasado al Futuro: Reframing our Masterpiece. Learn more and register today.
Registration is now open for the 66th MSC Student Conference On National Affairs, which takes place Feb. 9-13, 2020. This year’s theme is Sailing Uncertain Waters: Navigating America Through a Changing International Paradigm. The conference will feature keynote speakers and a hands-on policy creation in roundtables led by expert facilitators. Register online today!
UNIVERSITY CENTER & SPECIAL EVENTS (UCEN)
Our Rudder Theatre Complex team constructed a grand poinsettia tree with special lighting effects in The Gardens at Texas A&M University. Visit the tree and walk through The Gardens on West Campus at 556 John Kimbrough Blvd. behind the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences.
Congratulations to Karen Miller, business coordinator II, on her Dec. 18 retirement. Karen has been a member of the UCEN family for 10 years. We wish her well in her upcoming adventures.
UCEN would like to offer a warm welcome to Christine Fernandez, who joins our administrative unit as business coordinator II. Christine will serve in the position Karen Miller fills until her retirement.
Associate Director Jason Muchow presented to campus event planners from several academic areas, campus departments, and system agencies at the Texas A&M Hotel & Conference Center on our department’s abilities to help event planners shift into a virtual event atmosphere.
DISABILITY RESOURCES
Disability Resources proctored 335 final exams via Zoom from Dec. 1-9. Our department has continued to offer this valuable resource to faculty and students thanks to the creativity and collaboration of the Testing Center staff.
Kristie Orr, our director, presented as part of a panel on Nov. 18 to the “Powerhouse 20” (the 20 Education Service Center transition specialists from Texas) about guiding students through the transition to higher education.
Melanie Cobb recently joined our team as an access coordinator. She will work to promote equitable access for students in the College of Education and Human Development.
Sophia Kyle has returned to our team in a short-term, part-time role to assist with accommodations coordination as a result of the rapid increase in student growth. She will support staff through training, documentation review and drop-in questions from students and faculty.
OFFICES OF THE DEAN OF STUDENT LIFE
Health Promotion is elated to announce that Green Dot has been awarded the Outstanding Crime Prevention Program for 2019 by the Central Texas Crime Prevention Association. We are thankful for both past and present facilitators who have continued to make this program a success, and we would not exist without the students, faculty and staff who consistently request Green Dot for their departments, classes or organizations.
Congratulations to Student Affairs Coordinator Libby Daggers (New Student & Family Programs), who was selected as Outstanding Mid-Level Professional by the Association of Higher Education Parent/Family Program Professionals, the premier national association for professionals who work with parents and families of college students. Libby received her award at the organization’s annual conference in November.
Save the Date: January is Stalking Prevention and Awareness Month. Health Promotion will be partnering with campus and community partners to offer virtual prevention education and awareness programming throughout the month. The theme this year is invisibility, since many people believe that issues such as stalking, human trafficking and dating violence don’t happen in their community.
STUDENT LIFE STUDIES
This month's blog provides highlights about using benchmarking as an assessment tool.
We’ve added new reports to our website: DSA MarComm Customer Satisfaction, DoIT Customer Satisfaction, Howdy Week Coordinators and Grad Camp 2020.
MULTICULTURAL SERVICES
The 33rd Southwestern Black Student Leadership Conference is canceled.
Read the full story.
STUDENT ACTIVITIES
Bruce Brown presented at an international summit run by the Canadian based Students On Ice nonprofit organization on “How to Use Adaptive Leadership Approaches to Tackle Challenges.”
Two Fish Camp directors, Kyle Carman and Mike West, were awarded “Best EOI Presentation (Undergraduate Students)” at the Extended Orientation Institute, which was held virtually in November. Their presentation, “Transitioning Freshmen While Transitioning Online,” showcased the successes and challenges Fish Camp endured while moving its program to a virtual format.
Bradley Burroughs served on the virtual 2020 Extended Orientation Institute planning committee, which hosted over 140 participants from over 40 institutions across the country. He has been on the committee since January 2020 and was responsible for the creating the conference schedule, education sessions, and facilitated group discussions for staff members in attendance.
CORPS OF CADETS
As a fourth-generation Aggie, Ross Beazley’s family history with Texas A&M spans 99 years. Aggie graduates in the Beazley family include his great-grandfather, grandfather, father and brother, among others. Learn more about this Class of ’21 cadet’s family legacy.
In 1992, members of the Aggie band mounted a bronze plaque on the west side of the Haney Drill Field to commemorate the renaming of the field to the Colonel Joe T. Haney ’48 Drill Field. Nearly 30 years later, during improvements to Haney Drill Field, contractors discovered memorabilia from the ceremony in the pole supporting the plaque. Read more here.
Corps Brass symbolizes the virtues that all cadets embody: soldier, statesman, and knightly gentleman. This year, the Corps celebrates 60 years of Corps Brass. Read more about Corps Brass, its history and symbolism.
RECREATIONAL SPORTS
Rec Sports has reduced operating hours during the semester break and will be closed Dec. 21-27 and Jan. 1. Visit our website for more details. We wish everyone a safe and wonderful semester break!
As one of the largest employers on campus, we hire students for all positions, and we are recruiting graduate assistants to begin work in August 2021. If you are looking for a part-time job or know someone who is, visit our website regularly to discover a position that is right for you!
Our new Polo Road Rec Center will open in January! You can reach your New Year's fitness resolutions in this new 28,000-square-foot facility, located near the Zachry Engineering Education Complex (across University Drive from Century Square). Visit our website for details.
UNIVERSITY ART GALLERIES (UART)
Take a virtual tour of the Stark and Forsyth Galleries during the holidays! See paintings by renowned artists, photos of the Italian countryside, and beautiful art objects from our collections. In addition to exhibitions, you can peruse our vast collections and explore campus statues and public art works, all online. The galleries will be closed Dec. 12, 2020 through Jan. 20, 2021 for the holiday break. Visit our website for more information.
RESIDENCE LIFE
To continue making sustainability an Aggie tradition, we are launching a new initiative to add to the recycling of durable goods. In partnership with Soles4Souls (Zappos), we are creating a collection infrastructure for gently used shoes from the campus community. Shoes will be distributed to those in need with an opportunity for a local connection. Stay tuned.
We continue to offer a modified version of our annual event, Study Spectacular, for students who remain on campus. While not providing coffee and food this semester, six rooms across our facilities have been available for students to study or take exams 24/7. Our staff is enforcing occupancy/facial covering/physical distancing guidelines, and we are cleaning spaces according to COVID-19 protocols.
Campus housing remains open through Dec. 12 and longer as needed for those graduating. While numbers are dwindling as students complete exams, just under 50% were present through Thanksgiving, according to a text poll. Apartment residents are allowed to remain living on campus, while traditional halls will close following commencement.
Beginning next week, we will make room assignments for spring. We typically have fewer than 225 applications,but already about 400 applications are awaiting spring assignments. We anticipate an increase in this number as most of our applications for the spring tend to be transfer students and most transfers have not yet been offered admissions.
STAFF WELLBEING AND APPRECIATION COMMITTEE
The Division of Student Affairs donated 3,200 pounds of food and $578 in cash for the Food for Families program! Thank you for your generosity!
Would you like to show appreciation for a fellow DSA staff member for helping out or going out of their way to serve others? Consider nominating that staff member for the DSA Thanks and Gig 'Em Award! This is a nice way to show appreciation to others throughout the division. Nominate here!
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
Help us populate our new Division of Student Affairs events calendar using LiveWhale. At the beginning of the spring semester, we want our division events calendar to reflect all of our departments’ events and activities, including those of key student organizations. Email Veronica Gonzalez Hoff to learn more.
We need you to help us keep our Division of Student Affairs COVID-19 guide up to date for the spring semester by emailing your updates and changes to Veronica Gonzalez Hoff.
Need our help with a marketing or communications project? Please think through all aspects of your plan and fill out our project request form before you start.
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