4 minute read
SHORTS
Cadet earns prestigious Army ROTC award
Just 38 U.S. Army ROTC cadets in the nation earned the coveted Recondo badge this year. Tarleton’s Joshua Bitzkie is one.
A geosciences major from Pipe Creek, Bitzkie claimed the honor at ROTC Advanced Camp at Fort Knox, Ky. To receive the Recondo badge, a cadet must complete the Army physical fitness test and the land navigation written exam, as well as successfully navigating five of six points in the “night into day” land navigation course.
Cadets also must receive a “go” on all confidence course events and first aid and chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear hazard training, qualify as an expert marksman, and complete the 12-mile foot march with a 35-pound rucksack within three hours.
Family creates memorial scholarship to honor nursing student
Jacey Smathers’ family turned its tragedy into a positive for students in the nursing program.
Smathers, a Tarleton nursing student, died from carbon monoxide poisoning early this year. An endowed scholarship in her name was created to help like-minded students. “She loved being a nurse and having the opportunity to help people,” said her mother, Cheryl Baca. “She loved Tarleton so much. She was looking so forward to getting into a hospital setting, doing her clinicals.”
The scholarship will award $500 each year. To contribute to the Jacey Smathers Memorial Endowed Scholarship, go to tarleton.edu/giving.
Regents give final approval for Fort Worth campus
On Oct. 19, The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents approved final construction plans and an almost $41 million budget for the first phase of Tarleton’s planned Fort Worth campus along the Chisholm Trail Parkway.
A formal groundbreaking has been set for 2 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 27. The first phase—a three-story multipurpose education building—will open for classes in fall 2019.
Clinical mental health counseling program honored
Tarleton received the 2017 Outstanding Master’s Counselor Education and Supervision Program Award from the Southern Association for Counselor Education and Supervision. The award recognizes the outstanding pre- and in-service training of Tarleton’s graduate degree program in clinical mental health counseling.
The honor comes on the heels of the program’s recent endorsement by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs. CACREP accreditation is among the highest commendations that an academic program can receive.
Part of Tarleton’s College of Health Sciences and Human Services, the 60-hour master’s degree program prepares students for careers as licensed professional counselors in Texas. Students intern at organizations such as MHMR of Tarrant County, Pecan Valley MHMR, Heart of Texas MHMR, Mesa Springs Hospital and The Family Place.
Tarleton played host for The Texas A&M University System’s 14th Annual Pathways Research Symposium.
Sited at a different A&M System university annually, the symposium is an opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students to present their research findings—across various academic disciplines—in a poster or oral format.
“This is a wonderful opportunity,” said Dr. Credence Baker, associate dean of the College of Graduate Studies and planning committee chair. “In addition to showcasing their own research work, participants have the opportunity to network with other schools, faculty members and students in the A&M System.”
For more information on the 14th Annual TAMUS Pathways Research
Ateam from the Texas Institute for Applied Environmental Research (TIAER) at Tarleton sampled along the Gulf Coast to assess Hurricane Harvey’s impact on the environment.
“While many of Harvey’s environmental impacts will take decades to mitigate, Texans along the coast can be assured that we’re doing what we do best—monitoring the quality of waters and habitats—to help ensure public safety and health,” said Dr. Quenton Dokken, TIAER’s executive director.
The TIAER team will measure hydrocarbon and bacterial contamination levels to assess overall water quality in flooded south Texas communities and stands ready to assist all state agencies responsible for protecting the health of Texans and the natural environment.
Tarleton hosts Pathways Research Symposium
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texan facts
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The percentage of Tarleton transfer students who graduate within four years, topping the state average by 10 points and placing Tarleton among the top Texas public universities.
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Years since the opening of the W.K. Gordon Center for Industrial History of Texas as a Tarleton research facility, combining a museum and special collections library in the ghost town of Thurber.
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Members of the Army ROTC team that brought home first place in the North Texas Regional ROTC Ranger Challenge at Fort Hood, advancing to the 5th Brigade Head-to-Head
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