November 2021 News

On Tuesday, Nov. 30, Lamar University and ExxonMobil officially opened the latest Cardinal NEST (Navigating Excellence Success and Triumph) at Amelia Elementary School.

Thousands of colored lights will adorn trees and illuminate campus buildings around Jimmy Simmons Boulevard, Jim Gilligan Way and the Rolfe Christopher Drive entrance to campus. Families are invited to take a slow drive through campus to enjoy the lights and other holiday themed decorations for the entire month of December through the new year.

The LU Office of University Advancement and the family of former LU professor Richard Price, Ph.D., will host a reception on Saturday, Dec. 4 in honor of his 90th birthday. Richard L. “Doc” Price, I, Ph.D., was an associate professor of mathematics at Lamar University since August of 1970. He served as the College of Engineering’s director of Minority Recruitment and Retention and, for more than 30 years, he devoted himself to recruiting, educating and mentoring black students in the College of Engineering.

ExxonMobil US Recruiting presented the Lamar University College of Engineering with a grant check to acknowledge the university’s role in providing a constant source of quality engineering hires for their company. ExxonMobil has consistently hired graduates from LU for all the local sites and beyond.

The Julie Rogers Gift of Life Program was established in 1994 by longtime Lamar University supporter Regina Rogers as a tribute to her late mother, Julie Rogers, a breast cancer survivor. Rogers has teamed up with the LU JoAnne Gay Dishman School of Nursing and Sandra Cesario, program director and tenured professor in the College of Nursing at Texas Woman’s University, to bring ovarian cancer awareness to the Southeast Texas region.

The Texas Legislature has approved $44.9 million in capital construction assistance to support the renovation of the Mary and John Gray Library at Lamar University. This funding, approved in mid-October as part Senate Bill 52, will support the first significant renovation of the library since it was dedicated in 1976.

The Lamar University College of Engineering hosted representatives from Emerson Solutions and Scallon Controls for the dedication of the Emerson Advanced Technology Center on Nov. 4. The event included remarks from industry leaders, a round table discussion between industry and LU faculty, and culminated in the ribbon cutting for the new space located in the Center for Industrialization, Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship on LU’s campus.

The Moot is a competition that involves two student advocates engaging in simulated legal arguments before a hypothetical appellate court reviewing a fictitious case. Three LU teams competed, but based on their preliminary rounds results, the team of Maissa Salibi and Gillean Vandiver was ranked No.11 in the tournament. Novice team Katie Rice and Kaylee Goodspeed was ranked No.15 in the tournament.

The Office of Undergraduate Research at Lamar University thrives on giving undergraduates of all majors opportunities for research and scholarship. In the summer of 2021, sophomore and pre-med biology major Zaid Mohammed was afforded the opportunity to intern at the Institute for Exercise and Environmental Medicine in Dallas.

The Office of Undergraduate Research is set to host the 8th annual Humanities, Arts, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Education and Business Conference on Saturday, Nov. 20 at Landes Auditorium in the Galloway Business building.

Lamar University honored seven staff members for their outstanding performance, leadership and contributions within the institution at the 2021 Distinguished Staff Awards Luncheon on Monday, Nov. 15. 

Department of Theatre and Dance presents Fall and Recovery Faculty Dance Concert

Two Lamar University professors are headed to a national conference in Washington, D.C. to present their research on “Examining an online, self-managed parent training program for interactive storybook: Extension to a Public School Setting.”

The Texas State University System formally installed Jaime R. Taylor as the 16th president of Lamar University at the Presidential Investiture Ceremony on Thursday, Nov. 11. Rich in history and tradition, an investiture is the formal ceremony of conferring the authority and symbols of high office. 

The second World War took place between 1939-1945 and most of the 16 million Americans who served have died[SKR1] . Out of those WWII veterans who served, only 200,000 are still living and only one lives in Southeast Texas –– Patrick S. Aguilar, who served as a sergeant in the U.S. Army Air Corps from 1942-1945.

Dr. Tamerla Chavis graduated from Lamar University with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering in 1983 and at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio with her M.D. in 1987.

In recognition of American Education Week, a celebration of public education and individuals making a difference in students' lives, the LU College of Education and Human Development is set to host an American Education Week Celebration Luncheon on Nov. 16 at 11:30 a.m. in the Setzer Student Center ballroom. The guest speaker for this year’s luncheon is Forbes education writer and author Natalie Wexler.

With over 1,738 total entries among local media representation, Lamar University’s media organizations –– Office of Marketing Communications, LUTV, KVLU and University Press –– combined snagged a total of 19 first place awards, 9 second place awards and 15 third place awards.

Annually, the Press Club of Southeast Texas utilizes funds accrued from donations, contest entry fees and banquet proceeds to provide a Lamar University communication student with the Press Club Memorial Scholarship. This year’s recipient was LU journalism major Tim Cohrs, who believes his scholarship serves as a representation of all the work he’s done over the years in the communication field.

Dishman Elementary School is set to host a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening of the new Cardinal NEST (Navigating Excellence Success and Triumph).

Mary Morgan Moore Department of Music presents inaugural Voice Festival

The Lamar University JoAnne Gay Dishman School of Nursing has been named as one of 2021’s best online Registered Nurse to Master of Science in Nursing degree programs in the nation by EduMed.org. According to EduMed.org, programs were ranked based on affordability, curriculum comprehensiveness and proper accreditation. This lands LU’s School of Nursing in the No.2 spot in the national ranking.

The Lamar University College of Engineering is pleased to announce the dedication of the new Emerson Advanced Technology Center on Thursday, Nov. 4 at 10 a.m. in the Center for Innovation, Commercialization and Entrepreneurship building on the campus of Lamar University. The event will include a roundtable discussion, ribbon-cutting ceremony, speakers, and demonstration of the new equipment available in the Center.

Department of Theatre and Dance presents world premiere of So You Can Look Ahead

Taliah Belcher, a senior accounting and finance double major in the College of Business, recently completed a six-week internship with PricewaterhouseCoopers office in Dallas. The virtual internship, known as the ‘Start Internship’, is centered around mentorship, gaining insight into PwC as a company, and learning about the many different career opportunities offered by the company.