Professor of Political Science Alisa Gaunder and co-author Dr. Sarah Wiliarty published “Leadership in Crisis: Comparing Prime Minister Abe’s and Chancellor Merkel’s Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic” in the interdisciplinary journal Contemporary Japan on December 22. This article argues that Merkel was more effective in managing the first stage of the Covid-19 crisis compared to Abe due to new institutions created to coordinate between the local and national level as well as the execution of a policymaking narrative that focused on science and solidarity. Abe’s approach was hampered due to long-established structural inefficiencies in the bureaucracy as well as a policymaking narrative that called for cooperation and self-restraint without responding to public concerns. This comparison adds to our understanding of the impact of leaders on public policymaking in times of uncertainty as well as to the important relationship between leaders and institutions.

Director of Technology Support and Services Daryl Tschoepe and Mail Clerk Rita Alonzo assisted with renovating the Transformation Room at Cactus Ranch Elementary School in Round Rock, TX. Daryl contributed computer items, including sound equipment, and Rita volunteered to decorate the room to look like outer space by helping make satellites and stars. Transformation Room volunteers renovate a classroom at Cactus Ranch Elementary School to different themes throughout the year to help students get interested in a variety of subjects, including geography, other countries, Texas, and even space.

Lord Chair and Professor of Computer Science Barbara Anthony and co-authors Ananya Das of Middlebury College and Christine Chung, Charles Lincoln, Krishh Tipnis, and Kate Vento, all of Connecticut College, had their paper accepted to PRIMA 2025: Principles and Practice of Multi-Agent Systems. Students Charles and Kate presented the paper on “Metric Distortion of STV on the Line and the Impact of Voter Turnout” at the conference in Modena, Italy. The paper, available here, analyzes the ranked choice voting mechanism Single Transferable Vote, provides theoretical results on metric distortion, or how much worse an elected candidate is than the socially optimal choice, and considers how distortion is impacted by voter turnout. It also studies the impact of voter turnout on the 2021 New York City Democratic Primary Election, which used ranked choice voting.

Assistant Professor of History Bryan Kauma recently published a book chapter titled “‘Agriculture is a scam!’: Agrotechnologies and the Agrarian Fallacy Among African Grain Farmers in Colonial Zimbabwe, the 1920s to 1970s” in Environment, Technology, and Development. The chapter explores the experiences of grain farmers and demonstrates the socio-environmental impacts that fertilizers and hybrid seeds had on African agriculture and food (in)security during the colonial years in Zimbabwe. This chapter is also available Open Access here.

Assistant Professor of Political Science Alex Goodwin and his co-author Ronald Goodwin had their book chapter “Comparing American Presidencies: Leadership in the First Hundred Days of Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden” published in an edited volume titled America in Crisis: Presidential Power, Populism, and the Global Struggle for Truth published by Springer International Press.

Professor of English Michael Saenger was interviewed for a story in the Times of Israel on academic boycotts and the harm they cause to Jews and to university communities as a whole. Saenger has been a leading advocate for academic freedom and antidiscrimination. The story can be read here.

Professor of Spanish Katy Ross had her second book, Narrating Infertility in Spain, published on December 9. More information is available here.

Professor of Sociology Maria Lowe, along with sociology graduates ThuyMi Phung ’23 and Katherine (Kat) Holcomb ’22, have published a mixed methods paper titled “White Grievance as a Predictor of American Attitudes Toward Critical Race Theory” in the journal Sociological Forum. This article is based on a faculty-student collaborative research project and can be accessed here.

Associate Professor of Spanish Abby Dings and co-author Tammy Jandrey Hertel of the University of Virginia presented a talk titled “The Use of Open Educational Resources in Medical Spanish Courses” at the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) Annual Convention and World Languages Expo held November 20–23 in New Orleans. The practice-oriented presentation aimed to showcase available open educational resources (OER) for Spanish for healthcare professions and guided attendees through materials addressing cultural practices and perspectives surrounding childbirth.

Associate Professor of German Erika Berroth shared her research at the AATG/ACTFL conference in New Orleans on November 21. Her presentation, “Advocacy and Leadership through Universal Design for Learning: UDL and Transparency in Learning and Teaching: TILT,” contributed to the panel “Single Faculty German Programs – Best Practices.” This well-attended session focused on German language programs in higher education, bringing together experienced single faculty instructors to discuss the challenges they face and the strategies they use to sustain and support their programs. German educators from Rice University, Belmont University, and Midwestern State University joined Berroth in sharing their best practices.

Assistant Professor of Economics Dinushka Paranavitana presented two papers at the 95th Annual Meeting of the Southern Economic Association on November 22–24 in Tampa. She presented her papers titled “The Price of Hate: The Effect of Title IX Exemptions on College Enrollment” and “Chiropractor Scope of Practice Laws” at two different sessions at the conference. She was also the discussant for a graduate student session, and provided feedback for an Economics PhD student on the job market this year.

Professor of Religion and Culture and Environmental Studies Laura Hobgood presented on the panel “Beyond Personhood: New Ways to Imagine Our Solidarity with Animals” at the American Academy of Religion (AAR) Annual Meeting in Boston. The Animals and Religion Group was founded by Dr. Hobgood and several colleagues in 2000 and has now been active in the AAR for 25 years.

Professor of Spanish Katy Ross led a workshop on AI in the L2 classroom at PAMLA, the Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association, in San Francisco on November 23.

Duncan Chair and Professor of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura was invited by the Mathematical Association of America SIGMAA – Undergraduate Research group to co-present a webinar with Dr. Elizabeth Reid at Marist University on designing manageable and meaningful undergraduate projects. She talked about her students’ innovative ideas for application projects in Linear Algebra and Geometry and how some of these have led to continued research beyond the semester, presentations at regional and national conferences, and in one case, an award-winning publication.

Professor of Anthropology Melissa Johnson organized a double panel for the American Anthropological Association in New Orleans on November 22, along with Dr. Patrick Gallagher of the University of Texas–San Antonio. The sessions were titled “Predatory Politics: The Wily Animal-Human Relationships of Hunting and Fishing” Part 1–Sea and Part 2–Land. Dr. Johnson presented “Tigah Camp: Unruly Multispecies assemblages, Race and Gender in a Belizean Trophy Jaguar Hunting Camp” in Part 2–Land.

Assistant Professor of Education Marilyn Nicol and her colleague Bethanie Pletcher of Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi released the premiere episode of their podcast Ms. Behaving in Literacy. The episode featured an introduction to the concept and purpose of the podcast, to explore politics of literacy education policies and research through the lens of humor. The co-hosts also interviewed attendees of the Association of Literacy Education and Research annual conference in Oklahoma City, who shared their favorite experiences at the conference. The podcast can be seen here. The next episode will feature highlights from the most recent publication of the academic journal Literacy Research and Instruction.

Associate Professor of Psychology Carin Perilloux, along with psychology graduate Madeline Bollinger ’24, psychology graduate and Coordinator of the Professor John Score Learning Commons Laurel Mulkey ’24, and biology graduate Vy Nguyen ’23, have published a paper titled “Hooked on a feeling: Psychological and physiological responses to ASMR triggers” in the journal Technology, Mind, and Behavior. This article is based on three years worth of SCOPE projects and is published with open access here.

Assistant Professor of Anthropology Naomi Reed presented her paper “A Healing African Diasporic Deconstruction of Ashkenormativity” at the American Anthropology Association Conference in New Orleans on November 20. The presentation was on the panel she also chaired, titled “Canonical Hauntings of the Body: On Harm and Healing—Knowledge Production and the Politics of Belonging.” Dr. Reed’s paper explores how the dismissal of whiteness by white presenting Ashkenazi Jewish Americans harms Jews of color and erases their experiences within the Jewish Diaspora. Through a critical inversion of the haunting paternalistic relationship between Jewish anthropologists and Blackness, she asks what Jewish Americans can learn from African Diaspora scholarship. She suggests that Jewish identity should be reconceptualized through African Diasporic notions of identity and race as a means to deconstruct Ashkenormativity and to fuel a healing critical recognition of Jewish diversity. Anthropology graduate Zacharia Arifi ’24 presented a paper on this same panel, titled “Bourdieu Awal and Me: Unraveling a Canon of Franco-Kabyle Ethnolography,” where they mediate the history of French ethnography with ethnographic fieldwork to posit how a legacy of disciplinal practice haunts ethnic identification among the French Kabyle. Particularly, they define how its corpus has codified and perpetuated hegemonic knowledge of belonging that supplant the diaspora’s autonomy in self-conceptualization. They consider, then, how its communities negotiate what it means to be Kabyle through living encounters with discursive expression. Professor of Anthropology Melissa Johnson served as the discussant for this panel. The conference program can be found here.

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse had the essay, “An Ode to the Domestics, the Minors of Apartheid, My Grandmother Among Them,” published on the Caribbean Philosophical Association’s blog, Caliban’s Readings. It can be read here. The piece is a philosophical and personal meditation on Black women who worked as domestics under Apartheid, with a special focus on ka’Nobuhlaluse’s maternal grandmother. It explores how bureaucracy, racial capitalism, and patriarchal law rendered these women “minors,” even as their labour sustained families, homes, and the nation. Drawing on Black feminist and Africana philosophy, as well as autobiographical writing, ka’Nobuhlaluse thinks through archives not only as formal institutions but as living, intergenerational memory carried in bodies, stories, and ordinary objects. ka’Nobuhlaluse wrote this essay while teaching an FYS on Apartheid.

Chemistry and biochemistry majors Kaiden Salaz ’26, Alex Dow ’26, Ian Becher ’26, Saki’a Rivers ’26, Maddie Bridges ’26, and Kayla Moody ’26 presented posters and Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey gave an invited talk at the American Chemical Society Southeast/Southwest Regional Meeting in Orlando, FL in October. Student presentations resulted from research done with Massey, Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer, and Assistant Professor of Chemistry Chelsea Massaro, who also attended the conference.

Assistant Professor of Biology Sunny Scobell gave an invited seminar to the Department of Biology at Texas State University, titled “The physiological regulation and evolution of male pregnancy,” on November 14.

Assistant Professor of Biology Sunny Scobell gave an invited seminar to the Biology Department at Trinity University, titled “The mysterious male brood pouch: Structure and function of male pregnancy in seahorses and pipefish,” on November 10.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Amanda Hernandez presented a virtual book talk to women and gender studies students at California State University, Northridge on November 18. The focus of her talk was on feminist interview methodologies and the chapter “Wife – Mother – Girl Boss” from her 2024 book Intersectional Identities of Christian Women in the United States: Faith, Race, and Feminism.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Adriana Ponce was selected to participate in “Beyond Colonial Constraints: Cuir Feminist Praxis as Rupture and Healing across the Archipelago” at the NWSA annual conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico from November 12–16. The pre-conference opportunity was rooted in Boriken archipelago feminism to explore how gender and sexual minorities disrupt coloniality and embrace joy.

At the recent annual meeting of the Associated Colleges of the South’s student affairs leaders, Southwestern received the 2025 Student Retention and Persistence Laurels, given to a member institution demonstrating a significant program or service in support of student retention and persistence. The award recognized an initiative launched in Fall 2023 to provide students with documented financial need funding support for first-semester dues required to join a sorority or fraternity.

Associate Professor of Communication Studies Lamiyah Bahrainwala (LB) published the article “Muscular Anti-Muslim Sentiment” in the journal Women’s Studies in Communication. The article examines the overlaps between muscular Hinduism and muscular Zionism and how they function together transnationally. You can read more here.

Assistant Professor of Feminist Studies Meagan Solomon attended the 2025 National Women’s Studies Association (NWSA) Conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico (Borikén) from November 13–16. She presented on a roundtable titled “Archiving Malflora: Latina/e Lesbian Memory Work as Decolonial Praxis,” along with four other members of Malflora Collective, her collaborative PEH project focused on preserving Latina/e lesbian histories. The roundtable focused on creative strategies for archiving community stories through zine-making, podcasting, and digital archival practices, while also contending with the fraught nature of online platforms.

Education majors Tiffany Ashcraft ’27, Emma Bethke ’27 (in absentia), Jonas Eaton ’26, Sydney Jackson ’27, Elisa Keese ’27, Ava Knez ’27, Catherine Matthews ’27, and Abigail Shuvalov ’27 presented at CAST (the Texas Science Teachers Conference) in Dallas with Professor of Education Michael Kamen and Assistant Professor of Education Alexandrea Melgoza. The session, “Hands-on Science Activities Presented by Preservice Teachers,” organized by Dr. Kamen, also included presentations by preservice teachers from The University of Houston–Downtown and The University of North Texas–Dallas.

Staff Instructor in Spanish Noelia Cigarroa-Cooke and Associate Professor of Spanish Abby Dings presented a talk, titled “Establishing Community Partnerships for Spanish for Healthcare Professions: Laying the Groundwork for Equitable, Experiential Learning,” at the 2025 NAMS/MOLA (National Association of Medical Spanish/Medical Organization for Latino Advancement) conference in San Antonio from November 6–7.

Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and holder of the Garey Endowed Chair in Chemistry Maha Zewail-Foote presented at the UNESCO Regional Centre for Quality in Education’s International Forum on World Quality Day. Her presentation, “Thinking Differently about Quality: Curiosity, Connection, and the Future of Learning,” explored how mentorship, inclusivity, and human-centered teaching can advance educational quality and innovation. Addressing an international audience of education leaders and policymakers, Dr. Zewail-Foote reflected on the power of curiosity and compassion in shaping the future of global education and advancing equitable, high-quality learning experiences.

Associate Professor of Computer Science Jacob Schrum attended the Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment (AIIDE) conference with SURF research student Olivia Kilday ’28 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada from November 12–14, to present their peer-reviewed research paper, “Text-to-Level Diffusion Models With Various Text Encoders for Super Mario Bros.” Computer science majors Emilio Salas ’26, Bess Hagan ’25, and Reid Williams ’26 were also co-authors on the paper, and the oral presentation was given by Olivia. The research details the creation of software models that create levels for the original Super Mario Bros. based on text descriptions. The AIIDE conference is a prestigious conference with an acceptance rate under 25%, which is sponsored by the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI).

Computer science and theatre double major Aidan Balakrishnan ’26, computer science and mathematics double major Tanner Klein ’26, and computer science major Matthew Volkin ’26 participated in the Association of Computing Machinery’s South Central USA Regional Programming Contest on November 8, solving seven out of 13 problems. Their team, the pi-rates, placed 4th among the 20 teams in the South Central USA Division. They participated in the competition at the University of Texas at Austin site, but were in competition with teams at other sites throughout the South Central USA Region. Teams in the Mid-Atlantic USA Region and Southeast USA Region competed on the same day, and across the entire conference, the pi-rates placed 17th out of 94 teams. The team was coached by Associate Professor of Computer Science Jacob Schrum.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone presented on Charles S. Belford, an early local builder, for the Preservation Georgetown Fall Lecture series.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone presented on Distinctive Collections and materials related to Georgetown that are held in the collection to the Rotary Club.

Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby co-authored “Dynamic Regulation of Granular Hydrogels Through Guest-Host Interactions to Spatiotemporally Guide Cellular Migration” in the journal Advanced Science (IF = 14.1), along with several postdoctoral scholars and graduate students in the Burdick Lab at the University of Colorado–Boulder. The manuscript represents work undertaken during his pre-tenure sabbatical and demonstrates that printing granular hydrogels in particulate suspension paths can create a dynamic environment that can regulate cell migration. The work can be found, open access, at this link.

Assistant Professor of English Sonia Del Hierro presented a paper titled “Aesthetics in the flesh: Las Brown Berets and Chicana Resistencia” at the 11th Annual El Mundo Zurdo conference, hosted by Trinity University in San Antonio from November 6–8. This year’s theme was “Hope Sin Fronteras: Reclaiming Fluidity, Empowering Communities, and Enacting Resistance.”

Assistant Professor of Education Marilyn Nicol and her colleague Bethanie Pletcher of Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi published their article, titled “A collaborative and comprehensive model of professional support for implementing interactive writing in preschool,” in the Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education. The research report explored professional support and instructional coaching for the implementation of writing instruction in early elementary. The abstract can be read here.

Assistant Professor of Education Marilyn Nicol attended the annual national conference of the Association for Literacy Education and Research, where she presented preliminary findings from her current research study, titled “Teaching with Multicultural Literature during Troubled Times: A Community Engaged Learning Project.” She also hosted the inaugural fireside chat for the Teacher Education and Professional Learning special interest group with her colleague Bethanie Pletcher of Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. They discussed their publication, titled “Reclaiming the Pen: An Exploration of Interactive Writing in the Primary Grades.”

Visiting Assistant Professor of Art History Rachel Daphne Weiss published “Delineations: Jan Hackaert’s Graphic Geognosy” in Art History. It can be read here.

Professor of Anthropology Melissa Johnson and her Summer 2025 SURF students presented their findings at the 13th Race, Ethnicity and Place conference in Albuquerque, NM from November 5–7. Their panel was titled “Race, Gender, Slavery and Freedom in Everyday Life on the British coast of Central America, 1750-1830.” Dr. Johnson and three students presented their papers: anthropology and feminist studies double major Dina Gaxiola ’28 presented “The Case of Jane Trapp: Race, Gender, Slavery and Freedom in Early British Central America,” psychology and sociology double major Sophia Hernandez ’28 presented “From Enslavement to Influence; Gendered Agency, Racial Boundaries, and the Story of Ariadne Broaster,” Dr. Johnson presented “Living across lines of freedom in the early history of Belize: The origins of the Bonner family,” and biology and environmental studies double major Shae Whitney ’28 presented “Maria Middleton – Slave, Criminal, Transported Convict: Understanding Gender, Race and Freedom across the British Colonial World.” The students may have been the only undergraduates presenting papers at this conference. The papers were well received, with one audience member sharing that this was the most interesting panel they had attended.

Professor Emerita of English Helene Meyers published “Wrestling with Jewish Shame: a Review of Sarah Hurwitz’s As a Jew” in The Revealer. It can be read here.

Associate Professor of Music Jason Hoogerhyde’s new work for alto saxophone, Hollow, received its premiere performance at the College Music Society’s National Annual Conference in Spokane, WA, on October 31. The work explores the wide range of the instrument, motivically employing large melodic intervals across that range.

Associate Professor of Theatre Kerry Bechtel designed the costumes for A Charlie Brown Christmas at Zach Theater in downtown Austin. This musical is based upon the classic Peanuts family favorite and is a wonderful holiday event for the whole family. The production runs from November 7 through the end of the year. Tickets can be obtained here.

Theatre alumna Olivia Rose McCain ’22 was awarded a 2025 B. Iden Payne Award for Outstanding Hair and Makeup Design for her work on MotherTree at the VORTEX Repertory in Austin. Olivia is an actor, designer, and entrepreneur with a successful podcast called Gals & Goblins.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello ’99 was a mezzo-soprano soloist in Mozart’s beloved “Requiem KV 626,” presented by the Texas Bach Festival, under the direction of Dr. Barry Scott Williamson, on June 29 at First United Methodist Church in Georgetown. Ms. Altobello performed the iconic quartet “Recordare” alongside soprano Jenny Houghton, tenor Dr. Jeffrey Jones-Regona, and baritone Dr. Tim O’Brien. The entire work can be heard here.

Professor of Communication Studies Bob Bednar presented an invited lecture titled “Remembering Jessie Daniel Ames: A Legacy of Social Activism Connecting Southwestern and Georgetown,” as part of the Preservation Georgetown Lecture Series, on October 15.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Adriana Ponce published her critical literature review on U.S. stepfamilies in the Journal of Sociology Compass. The article, “A Literature Review of U.S. Stepfamilies: Directions Toward an Intersectional, Feminist Understanding of Lived Experiences Centered on Social Justice Praxis,” is part of a special issue centering on intersectionality, titled “Beyond Boundaries: Reviewing the Multifaceted Dimensions of Intersectionality,” and identifies a glaring gap and directions for new knowledge creation centered on community engagement. The article can be read here.

Professor of English Michael Saenger was interviewed by J Life: Heart of New Jersey, on the topic of rising antisemitism in academic environments. The interview can be read here.

Assistant Professor of Feminist Studies Meagan Solomon published a peer-reviewed article, titled “Tejano Drag Kings: Reclaiming Space, Place, and Culture Through Performance,” in WSQ: Women’s Studies Quarterly, a top feminist studies journal. This article theorizes Tejano drag king performance as a critical source of resistance to state repression and cisheteronormative cultural standards. While drag kings in general, and Latino drag kings in particular, remain marginalized subjects in popular drag discourse, this article spotlights the work of Tejano drag kings and theorizes how their embodied performance and parody of masculinity serves as a vessel for feminist worldmaking. The article can be accessed here.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Amanda Hernandez served as an invited panelist on an “Author Meets Critics” panel at the Sociology for the Scientific Study of Religion annual meeting in Minneapolis on October 31. The book, “Faith & The Fragility of Justice: Responses to Gender-Based Violence in South Africa,” by Meredith Whitnah is an exploration of non-governmental organization responses to gender-based violence in post-apartheid South Africa. Amanda’s comments focused on the author’s call to use intersectional frameworks in the sociological study of religion and the use of creative and innovative methodologies to do this work.

As part of his Publicly Engaged Humanities project, Professor of English Michael Saenger was interviewed by KVUE Midday News Anchor Jenni Lee on the topic of rising antisemitism in academic life, and the need to support civil discourse around controversial issues. The interview can be seen here.

Professor of Anthropology Melissa Johnson participated in the Kulcha 2025 symposium, hosted by the Heritage Education Network Belize, from October 29–31. She presented “Early Belizean Social History: The case of the Crawford family” on October 29. The presentation can be accessed here at 4:54 (4 hours, 54 minutes); the live Q and A starts about 30 minutes later.

Assistant Professor of Feminist Studies Meagan Solomon, alongside her Mellon Publicly-Engaged Humanities (PEH) Research Assistant Mia Santoscoy ’26, attended the 2025 Lesbian Lives conference in New York City from October 24–26. They presented on a roundtable titled “Latina/e Lesbian Archival Praxis and Memory Work: A Plática/Roda de Conversa with Malflora Collective,” which included seven members of the Latina/e lesbian collective co-founded by Dr. Solomon with support from the Mellon PEH grant. In the roundtable, Malflora Collective members discussed the non-traditional and community-based archival practices that Latina/e lesbians engage in, arguing that their memory work is rooted in collectivity, lived experience, and cultural reclamation as a form of decolonial praxis. Together, they highlighted how noninstitutional archives and digital memory projects like Malflora Collective are crucial for preserving the stories of marginalized communities and fostering transnational solidarity in the face of cultural and political oppression.

Professor of English Michael Saenger was an invited speaker on the topic of “Academic Engagement Network’s efforts to confront antisemitism and support and protect Jews and Zionists in academic spaces” at the Jewish National Fund’s annual conference in Hollywood, FL from October 23–26.

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse was invited to comment on Hannah Bacon’s paper, “A Critical Phenomenology of Carceral Time,” presented at the 63rd annual Society for Phenomenology Existential Philosophy Conference. This year’s conference was held online over two weekends, October 17–18 and 24–25.

Professor of Psychology Fay Guarraci and psychology alumnus Ian Klepcyk ’24 collaborated with colleagues at the University of Texas at Austin to finally complete a four year long project that was accepted for publication in Hormones and Behavior, titled “Chronic periadolescent leuprolide exposure affects the expression of multiple genes in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland with a different pattern of expression in female and male Long-Evans rats.” This project is one of the first studies to investigate changes in the brain associated with exposure to puberty blockers for a prolonged period of time in an animal model.

Professor of Anthropology Melissa Johnson led a workshop on the “Early Social History of the Lower Belize River Valley” for undergraduate students at the University of Belize (UB) from October 17–18. Eight students and two professors from UB spent Friday working with archival documents and information that Dr. Johnson has collected to start to tell the story of a family of color who lived in British Central America starting in the mid 1700s. The president of the university and two deans joined the workshop for Dr. Johnson’s presentation. The following day, Dr. Johnson organized a field trip for the group to Belizean Creole villages in the lower Belize River Valley, where the group learned about history and culture first hand from elders of the communities. Dr. Johnson worked closely with Lecturer in History and Coordinator of the Intercultural Indigenous Language Institute Delmer Tzib and Assistant Professor of English Christopher De Shield to develop the workshop. The activities were all sponsored by funding from the Mellon Foundation’s Grant to SU, “Deepening the Heart of Texas: Public-Engaged Humanities for Social Justice.”

Five mathematics majors presented preliminary work on their mathematics capstone projects at the 20th Annual Texas Undergraduate Mathematics Conference held this year at St. Mary’s University on October 17-18. Kristian Duddridge ’26 presented “What’s magical about hexagonal tiling?” Tanner Klein ’26 presented “A Different Type of Circuit: Exploring Graph Theory in Mario Kart World.” Sebastian Loder ’26 presented “Snakes and Snowmen: Exploring new classes of graphs within the Game of Cycles.” Kacy Miller ’26 presented “Path-finding and Patterns in Free Flow.” Avery Weatherly ’25 presented “Pip Pip Hooray! A mathematical exploration of Pips, a New York Times Game.” All five projects are being supervised by Garey Chair and Professor of Mathematics Alison Marr, who also attended the conference and moderated a session of talks. Daisy Orozco ’27 and Joshua Rodkey ’29 also attended the conference.

Garey Chair and Professor of Mathematics Alison Marr co-organized the successful Applied Mathematical Intersections (AMI) conference (celebrating the work of Dr. Ami Radunskaya) from October 3-5 at Pomona College. The conference kicked off Friday night with a math/music/Ami themed scavenger hunt and concluded Sunday morning with a reflection-based discussion of the weekend’s activities. In between, there was a music jam, an improv workshop, hands-on activities, collaborative problem solving sessions, a poster session, and two dual talks (inspired by our very own Paideia Connections lectures) that each featured one musician and one mathematician. Assistant Professor of Mathematics Noelle Sawyer also attended and led the logic puzzles hands-on activity. More information about the conference is available here.

Professor of History Melissa Byrnes was part of a roundtable on “The State of the Field: European Urban History” at the Urban History Association Conference in Los Angeles. Her opening remarks focused on cities as imperial (and postcolonial) spaces, renewed emphasis on community agency, and the rich intersection of local and transnational histories.

Assistant Professor of English Sonia Del Hierro co-published a brief essay titled “Algunos pensamientos sobre las señoras” in the Spanish-language feminist blog, Indisciplinadxs Linguistica Feminista. This essay/blog entry provides a framework for understanding linguistic, historical, and contemporary perspectives on the identity label “señora” within Latine/x and Mexican American communities. This work emerges from Del Hierro’s larger project, Señora Power, a multi-disciplinary project committed to writing Chicana feminist consciousness into public history.

Counselor Geneva Walker, LPC has been selected to deliver a TEDx talk on November 15. Her talk, titled “The Ache and the Answer: Holding Grief, Purpose, and the Courage to Live Victoriously,” explores resilience, mindfulness, and the power of thriving through adversity. In addition to her work with Southwestern students, Geneva is an advocate for mental health awareness and intentional living, bringing both professional expertise and lived experience to her message.

Director of Public Engagement Manda Wittebort and recent graduate McKenzie Rentie ’25, facilitated an interactive workshop session titled “Time Together as Ceremonial: Passage through the Spaces We Create” at Imagining America’s National Gathering this fall. The two curated a session dedicated to cultivating radical spaces driven by social justice, one’s lived experiences, and engaging in collaborative creative culture-making that brings people together in ways that foster empathy, joy, play, and connection. Attendees reflected on the knowledge they all are already equipped with to build meaningful connections and create sub-cultures, consider what roadblocks and challenges are keeping them from the approaches they already know, and utilize the power of storytelling as a space for belonging.

Professor of Physics Steven Alexander and four of his research students — Heidi Jackson ’26, Casandra Nunez ’26, Anshika Katrodia ’26, and Brooke Ramey ’27 — attended the Fall 2025 meeting of the Texas Section of the American Physical Society, held October 10-11 in Fort Worth. Dr. Alexander presented a poster titled “Using Molecular Annealing to Find Molecules with Specific Absorbance Peaks” and Brooke Ramey presented a poster titled “Verifying the Experimental Hyperpolarizabilities of Organic Molecules Using Density Functional Theory.” Heidi Jackson, Casandra Nunez, and Anshika Katrodia presented a poster titled “Analyzing Emission Spectra to Determine the Mass of a Black Hole.” All of the posters generated considerable interest and some insightful discussions.

Duncan Chair and Professor of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura was invited by the Simons Foundation to be a math consultant to botanical gardens for their Math in Bloom program, part of the Infinite Sums initiative that seeks to make the beauty of mathematics accessible to a wide audience through programming initiated by non-mathematicians. Horticulturalists and directors from five botanical gardens around the country gathered at the San Antonio Botanical Garden to brainstorm ideas for a pi day (3/14), infinity day (8/8), and Fibonacci day (11/23) that will take place in 2026. More information is available here.

Supported by funds from the Garey Chair in Biology and the Mellon Grant for Publicly Engaged Scholarship, Professor of Biology Romi Burks gave a talk and tasting at the Northwest Chocolate Festival, titled “Get Origin(al): Educated by chocolate in Brazil and Peru.” Dr. Burks shared her professional development experiences abroad this summer learning about supply chains and post-harvest practices in two important origin countries that grow Theobroma cacao, the tree that provides the beans from which we make chocolate. She also participated in the “Unconference,” a networking opportunity for professionals in the chocolate industry.

Assistant Professor of Anthropology Naomi Reed presented a talk, titled “Oral History as Liberation,” at the Universities Studying Slavery Consortium’s Fall Conference, “Second Foundings: Universities, Slavery, and Struggles for Justice in Texas and Beyond,” at Rice University in Houston on Saturday, October 11. She discussed the Southwestern University Racial History Project’s oral history collection and the critical methodology used to gather, preserve, and exhibit stories of alumni of color. Her talk featured an excerpt of the oral history of Eva Mendiola ’75 that was recorded by SCOPE 2022 student Kalista Esquivel ’26 as well as a clip of the forthcoming documentary that she created with Esquivel and SURF 2025 student Mia Santoscoy ’26 about Mendiola’s journey to founding women’s sports at SU. The conference program can be found here.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music Jeanne Hourez was invited to give masterclasses and perform recitals in Nevada and Utah during fall break. Dr. Hourez visited the University of Nevada – Las Vegas, Southern Utah University, and Snow College. Her recital program, dedicated to women composers, included pieces by Ania Vu, Mel Bonis, Marguerite Canal, Marie Jaell, and Agathe Backer-Grondahl.

Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby and three of his SURF research students — Sabina Martinez Carreon ’27, Bryan Guzman-Sanchez ’26, and Rishi Rajesh ’27 — attended the 2025 Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) Annual Meeting, held October 8-11 in San Diego. Dr. Crosby moderated two sessions at the international conference, a bioprinting session and a rapid-fire talk session for undergraduates in biomaterials. Sabina presented the group’s poster, titled “Post-Print Reinforcement of GelMA/HAMA Scaffolds via PEGDA Infiltration,” at the main conference and at the separate LatinX in BME Symposium. Both posters were well-attended by other conference-goers and generated some insightful and helpful discussions. Amanda Mejia ’27 and Gabriela Nicole Hislop Gomez ’26 also attended and participated in the conference.

Hispanic Academic Success Coordinator Amalia Merino co-created the recently-published Encuentra deck of NetVUE Conversation Cards, a resource designed to promote reflection on vocation, identity, and purpose through bilingual conversation. The Encuentra deck is part of the Network for Vocation in Undergraduate Education (NetVUE), which operates under the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC). Decks may be ordered through Southwestern University’s NetVUE Campus Contact, available here.

For the first time, Southwestern University was represented at the 2025 HSI Battle of the Brains, a premier national competition that brings together top student talent from across the country to solve real-world business and technology challenges. Southwestern’s inaugural team included eight exceptional students: Asin Allavudeen ’27, Santiago Cuevas ’26, Cassidie Gomez ’26, Julyssa Hernandez ’27, Yeva-Mariya Hayko ’26, Anna Hulett ’28, Alyanna Martinez ’27, and Juan Carlos Martinez Varela ’27. Selected through a competitive internal application process, the students participated in a 24-hour cross-disciplinary challenge integrating computer science, marketing, finance, and sustainable business strategy. They also engaged in professional development workshops led by industry leaders from Dell Technologies, eBay, Thrivent Financial, Capital One, and The Home Depot. Southwestern’s team earned first place in the Video Marketing Challenge, an interactive activity sponsored by Kickin It ATX that tested their creativity and collaboration under a time constraint. In addition, Juan Carlos Martinez Varela was awarded scholarships from both Dell Technologies and eBay in recognition of his outstanding academic and professional accomplishments and his ability to make a lasting impression on company representatives throughout the event. Special thanks to the faculty and staff who coordinated the team’s participation: Hispanic Academic Success Coordinator Amalia Merino, Director of the Center for Career & Professional Development Adrian D. Ramirez, Associate Professor of Spanish Abby Dings, and Professor of Business Debika Sihi. Gratitude is also extended to the blind judges who assisted with the internal selection process, Assistant Vice President of Admission Christine Bowman, Director of Admission Jaime Gonzalez, and Professor of Kinesiology Scott McLean, as well as Visual Content Producer Todd White for photography and videography of the event.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published the study score for composer Margaret Bonds’ setting of W.E.B. Du Bois’ “Credo” with Hildegard Publishing Company. Cooper published the first edition of this work, which Du Bois’ widow, Shirley Graham Du Bois, pronounced “a work of art that is eternal – that will live as long as people love each other and really believe in brotherhood,” back in 2020, and in that guise, Bonds’ “Credo” has been performed dozens of times on both sides of the Atlantic, earning a solid place in the modern concert repertoire. That score and the orchestral parts were available only on a rental basis, however. The present study score, available to libraries and individuals, as well as performing ensembles, will finally enable “Credo” to be studied, taught, and discussed as a worthy peer of iconic orchestral and orchestral/choral works by Bach, Beethoven, Bernstein, Mahler, and other canonical white Euro-American male composers.

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse presented a paper titled “Towards a Black Consciousness like Black Feminist praxis” at the 43rd Annual Spindel Conference, hosted by the Philosophy Department at the University of Memphis from September 25-27. The conference proceedings will be published in a special issue of the Southern Journal of Philosophy.

Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer and Southwestern graduates Mattigan Aga ’25 and Holly Lawson ’23 published a research article titled “Plant maturity differentially affects the phenolic composition and antioxidant properties of green basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) cultivars.” The article is part of a special issue that highlights undergraduate research in the American Chemical Society’s journal ACS Omega. The work was supported by The Welch Foundation and Southwestern’s Herbert and Kate Dishman endowment. The open-access article is available to read here.

Associate Professor of German Erika Berroth co-organized and hosted the 6th biennial joint conference of the three Texas Chapters of the American Association of Teachers of German at Southwestern on Sept 12-13. German educators from the Houston, South Texas, and North Texas chapters presented and collaborated on the conference’s dual focus topics: the uses of AI in teaching and learning, and best practices for recruitment and retention in German programs. Hueber Publishing, one of Germany’s premier textbook suppliers, provided an extensive book table and expert guidance to their K-16 materials. Representatives from the Houston Sängerbund promoted their scholarship for study abroad opportunities. Berroth’s SURF students Kendyl Feuerbacher ’27, Rylee Morris ’28, and Maglor Williams ’27 presented their summer research project on the Perry Rhodan science fiction collection, including reflections on how high impact experiences (HIEs) contribute to recruitment, retention in the German Program and beyond, and to their trajectories of personal and professional development. Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone and Berroth shared insights into the benefits of collaborations among faculty and staff in integrating DISCO into the curriculum and providing and mentoring HIEs. Over 30 participants from middle schools, high schools, colleges, and universities emphasized the importance of vertical alignments in curricular developments for teaching and learning languages and cultures. Participants could earn continuing education credits. This marks the third time Berroth brought the joint conference to SU’s campus, a significant commitment to community outreach, to increasing the visibility of SU’s Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, and to invigorating recruitment efforts.

Director of Study Abroad and International Student Services Monya Lemery is currently serving her second year of a three-year elected term on the Forum Council. In this role, she has been a leader in exploring the intersection of technology and international education, having co-led a “Member Mingle” on “AI in Education Abroad” in September. This year, she continues her work by serving on the “Working Group on AI in Education Abroad,” helping to establish professional standards for the field.

Professor Emeritus of Kinesiology Jimmy Smith and Professor of Religion and Culture/Environmental Studies Laura Hobgood were invited by Lifelong Learning (formerly Senior University) to teach a six-week class called “Going to the Dogs.” The course is based on their 20-year FYS taught at SU.

Professor of Art History Allison Miller published a review of the book Bronze Mirrors in Ancient China: Artistry and Technique by Kin Sum Li in caa.reviews, an online, open-access journal published by the College Art Association. You can read the review here.

Assistant Professor of History Bryan U. Kauma presented the paper “‘Political Grains:’ Bad Politics, Hunger, and the Weaponization of Grain in Zimbabwe, c.2000-2010” at the 2025 Rocky Mountain Workshop on African History, held at Portland State University from September 12-13. The paper has also been accepted for publication by the Journal of Asian and African Studies.

Professor of Education Michael Kamen and Associate Professor of Curriculum Instruction and Learning Sciences at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Debra Plowman published “Data Charts: Making Connections?” in the Summer 2025 newsletter of the International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education. Their quarterly column tells the ongoing story of the fictional character, Ian Quiry, as he studies and struggles to learn how to be an effective elementary school STEM teacher. The summer column can be read here, starting on page ten of the newsletter.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Four Pieces for Piano Solo by Will H. Dixon with Recital Publications (Fayetteville, AR). Dubbed “the original dancing conductor” by James Weldon Johnson in his iconic memoir Black Manhattan, Dixon (1879-1917) was one of the leading musical lights of the generation of African Americans who lived and worked in Manhattan’s “Tenderloin District” in the generation leading to the emergence of the Harlem Renaissance. Dixon, an actor, playwright, composer, pianist, and singer, was featured as a composer and performer on the great stages of Europe in the first decade of the dawning twentieth century. His music is a rich synthesis of African American vernacular musical traditions and Euro-American classical idioms. Most of his more than 100 surviving works remain unpublished. Dr. Cooper published these four from the privately curated Barnes/Dixon/Meyers Historical Harlem Papers, Archives, and Musical Manuscripts Collection. The volume contains two maxixes (Brazilian tangos) and two valses lentes (slow, romantic waltzes).

This summer, University Chaplain and Director of Spiritual Life Ron Swain, along with art alumna Georgianne Hewett ’90 presented “Courageous Conversations about Difficult Issues in Higher Education” at the United Methodist Campus Ministry Association’s Summer Institute. The two also facilitated a lunch conversation on trust.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Twelve Art Songs and Spirituals by Margaret Bonds, Florence B. Price, and Clarence Cameron White with Classical Vocal Reprints (Fayetteville, AR). The volume includes Cooper’s first four published editions of music by Clarence Cameron White, who before his posthumous erasure was considered the leading African American composer of classical music. The work also includes three never-before-published compositions by Florence B. Price (among these a moving setting of the first three stanzas of Robert Frost’s “A Prayer in Spring”) that Price wrote when she learned of the surrender of Nazi Germany, as well as five songs by Margaret Bonds that may all be considered revelatory, each in its own way. This volume brings the total number of Cooper’s first editions of music by Price to 152 and that of music by Bonds to 45.

During the summer, Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse participated in a workshop on “African Voices in Global Intellectual History” in Konstanz, Germany from June 23 – 25. They presented their working chapter, which is a commentary on one of Mamphela Ramphele’s essays. The workshop aims to publish contributions into a book anthology that will feature African figures of the 19th and 20th centuries in annotated original documents. The reader aims to contribute to bringing African voices into the global historical perspective and thus stimulate new research.

Mail Clerk Hans Venable ’84 will appear in the roles of “Lane” and “Merriman,” described as “extremely judgmental butlers,” in Oscar Wilde’s classic comedy The Importance of Being Earnest at Austin Playhouse in Austin, TX. Wilde’s razor-sharp wit skewers social conventions as Victorian etiquette turns into pure comedic chaos with fake names, real feelings, and plenty of tea getting spilt. Performances are September 19 through October 19, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2:00 p.m. Sunday. Performances are at Austin Playhouse West Campus, located at 405 W. 22nd in Austin. For more information and to make reservations, click here.

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey was awarded a Launching Early-Career Academic Pathways in the Mathematical and Physical Sciences (LEAPS-MPS) grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). This $250,000 research grant will support her lab’s research over the next two years, studying the effects of native environment and external stressors on diatom light-harvesting.

Associate Professor of Communication Studies Lamiyah Bahrainwala (LB) delivered a virtual invited talk titled “The Role of the Critic” to graduate students at Arizona State University. The graduate students were dope and gave LB hope.

Professor of Business Debika Sihi had her chapter titled “Advertising and Connected Experiences Through Smart Home Devices” accepted for publication in the forthcoming book Developing Digital Narratives in Marketing Communication. This chapter examines how smart home devices like speakers, TVs, and appliances create marketing opportunities through personalized, interactive ads. While convenience and relevance are benefits, challenges include privacy concerns and ad fatigue. Both marketers and consumers stress the need for trust, non-intrusive design, and ethical, transparent strategies as device adoption grows amid evolving privacy rules.

Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer and Southwestern graduates Haley White ’20, Bailey Meyer ’20, Jared McCormack ’22, and Holly Lawson ’23 published a research article titled “Comparison of culinary and ceremonial matcha green teas: relationship between phytochemical composition and antioxidant properties” in the Journal of Food Measurement and Characterization. The research was supported by The Welch Foundation and Southwestern’s Herbert and Kate Dishman endowment. The open access article is available to read here.

Associate Professor of Computer Science Jacob Schrum ’06 had his peer-reviewed article, “Text-to-Level Diffusion Models With Various Text Encoders for Super Mario Bros,” accepted for publication and oral presentation at the 21st Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment (AIIDE 2025), to take place in November 2025. The article is co-authored with Dr. Schrum’s SURF students Olivia Kilday ’28, Emilio Salas ’26, Bess Hagan ’25, and Reid Williams ’26. AIIDE is a highly selective venue with an acceptance rate under 25%. Videos and other content associated with the publication are available online here, and a pre-print of the accepted article is on arXiv here.

This summer, Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music and Artist in Residence Hai Zheng Olefsky was invited to serve as a guest judge for the 2025 Colburn-Pledge Music Scholarship Competition, presented by Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW). MBAW, a nonprofit dedicated to multicultural arts and social impact, works to celebrate shared humanity by making global arts accessible to all. The Colburn-Pledge Music Scholarship provides college tuition assistance to outstanding young string players who aspire to professional careers in classical music.

Professor of Art History Allison Miller presented the paper “Origin Stories: A Bronze ‘Cymbal’ from Hepu as a Case Study” on August 19 at the 10th Worldwide Conference of the Society for East Asian Archaeology, held at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. The paper was given in a session titled “New Approaches to Gifting, Tribute, and Trade across Asia (11th c. BCE-10th c. CE).”

Professor of Political Science Bob Snyder had his paper “The Myth of Trump’s Transactional Foreign Policy” accepted for publication in the International Journal. It shows that Trump’s foreign policy has been more tributary than, as often characterized, transactional.

Professor of Environmental Studies Joshua Long was featured on NPR’s On Point with Magna Chakrabarti. The episode, titled “The Transformation of Austin, Texas,” explored Austin’s motley and often unjust history of urban development.

Professor of Environmental Studies Joshua Long presented the keynote address, titled “Climate Justice or Climate Apartheid: Interrogating trajectories of climate action and response,” at the 2025 CRE Conference in Montreal, Quebec.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone presented as part of a panel at the 2025 TPS [Teaching with Primary Sources] Fest that included archivists from Kenyon College, the University of Maryland, and the Stratford Festival. The session “Exhibitions as Outreach: Preparing, Collaborating, Teaching, and Recovering When It All Goes Wrong” explored how exhibitions can serve as impactful outreach and teaching tools through collaboration with faculty, students, and community partners — highlighting both successes and lessons learned when plans go awry.

Assistant Professor of Economics and Business Raji Kunapuli organized a professional development workshop titled “AI-Enabled New Research Methods in Entrepreneurship and Strategy” at the Academy of Management Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. The workshop drew more than 250 research scholars and explored cutting-edge AI-based methods for management research, including text analysis and AI-enabled experimental designs.

Three faculty and an alumna participated in the 2025 MathFest, a national meeting of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) in Sacramento, CA from August 6–10. Professor and Duncan Chair of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura presented “Linear Algebra Class Projects to Research Projects.” Professor and Garey Chair of Mathematics Alison Marr presented “Trying, Flailing, Tweaking, Succeeding: A Grading Journey” and served on a Project NExT panel titled “Navigating the Shifting Tides of Academia in 2025.” Associate Professor of Mathematics Therese Shelton presented “Cholera Models with Pathogen Growth for Student Engagement in Undergraduate Differential Equations and Beyond.” She also co-organized the contributed paper session, “In the Real with Applications of Differential Equations for Learning,” jointly sponsored by SIMIODE and CODEE. Futamura, Marr, and Shelton also each provided professional service in monitoring MAA minicourses. Mathematics and computer science graduate Emma Kathryn Groves ’17 was a co-author on a presentation “Assigning Interconnected Projects in a Dynamical Systems Course.” She also co-organized the contributed paper session “From Theory to Practice – Applying Literature-Based Teaching Practices in the Real Classroom.” Dr. Groves achieved her Ph.D. in 2023 and is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the United States Military Academy in West Point, NY.

Professor of History Melissa Byrnes presented a paper titled “French Anti-Salazarism in the 1960s: Allying against Imperial Violence” at the Global Consortium for French Historical Studies in Paris, organized on the theme of “Resistance.”

Professor of Psychology Fay Guarraci co-chaired and presented a workshop at the annual meeting of the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, titled “Moving Forward: A Workshop on Issues Facing Transgender Research (Models, Community, and Funding),” in addition to a poster presentation, titled “Chronic periadolescent leuprolide exposure affects the expression of multiple genes in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland with a different pattern of expression in female and male Long-Evans rats,” co-authored by psychology graduate Ian Klepcyk ’24.

Assistant Professor of Violin Jessica Mathaes traveled to New Zealand, where she completed a three-month appointment as Associate Concertmaster of the Auckland Philharmonia. Selected through an international audition search process, Mathaes led the Auckland Philharmonia in many concerts during her tenure, playing alongside international colleagues, conductors, and soloists from throughout the world.

Sociology and feminist studies graduate Emily Dimiceli ’25 received an honorable mention for the prestigious Joe Feagin Undergraduate Paper Award for her fall 2025 sociology capstone project. This national award, presented by the Sociology of Racial and Ethnic Minorities section of the American Sociological Association (ASA), recognizes outstanding undergraduate scholarship. Emily accepted the honor at this year’s ASA meeting in Chicago. In its commendation, the award committee described Emily’s paper as “ambitious original research… well-grounded in racial theory, including conceptualizations of colorblind racism and historical racism.”

Assistant Professor of Sociology Amanda Hernandez and environmental studies graduate Sarah Ventimiglia ’24 traveled to Chicago to present at the Association for the Sociology of Religion Annual Meeting. Sarah presented their faculty/student collaborative research “Hashtag ChristianGirl: The White Commodified Self on TikTok.” Amanda’s 2024 book, Intersectional Identities of Christian Women in the U.S.: Faith, Race, and Feminism, was the subject of an “Author Meets Critic” book panel.

Southwestern’s Admission Office staff recently participated in admission workshops across Texas with the Private College Collective, a small group of select private colleges and universities, by offering admission presentations and a college fair. Assistant Vice President of Admission Christine Bowman and Associate Director of Regional Admission Josh Huggins presented in Austin and Dallas on holistic admissions beyond the GPA, using an interactive activity to help participants better understand how applications are reviewed. Director of Admission Jaime Gonzalez presented in Houston on the value of a private college education and the benefits that come with investing in a private college education. The Private College Collective includes the following selective private universities: Washington University, Vanderbilt University, Trinity University, University of Denver, University of Tulsa, Southern Methodist University, Drake University, and Southwestern University.

Associate Professor of Computer Science Jacob Schrum recently attended the Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference in Málaga, Spain to present his peer-reviewed paper, “A Quality Diversity Approach to Evolving Model Rockets,” co-authored with Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby. The article, freely accessible here from the ACM Digital library, describes the use of AI methods inspired by evolution to create designs for model rockets. An informative video about this joint research is also available here.

On July 30, University World News published an article by Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle, titled “Universities must flex for the new student demographic.” The article can be read here.

Professor of English Michael Saenger was selected to join 50 faculty members from around the country to represent the Academic Engagement Network (AEN) at the annual Israel on Campus Coalition National Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. The AEN Delegation joined 750 students to learn about the Middle East and to form connections of solidarity to confront rising antisemitism at universities. This publicly engaged humanities project involved a serious engagement with politicians, authors, and community leaders, and culminated in an appearance by Ritchie Torres (D-NY).

Associate Professor of German Erika Berroth participated in two international conferences this summer. She presented her research paper, “Memory, Objects, Landscapes: Ecosystems in Marica Bodrožić’s Texts,” at the FrideL (Frauen in der Literaturwissenschaft) conference in Stuttgart, Germany. The Conference offered a focus on gender in/and nature in German studies. At the XV Convention of the Internationale Vereinigung der Germanisten (IVG) in Graz, Austria, Berroth contributed to “Section 32: Narratives of Psychological Crises in Contemporary German Language Literatures.” Her research paper, “Pantherzeit und Lockdown-Lyrik: Kreativität und Reflexion in der Pandemie,” contributed to a series on literary representations of crisis experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. Active since 1951 in international collaborations in German studies, the IVG meets every five years, bringing together 1,700 German studies professionals from over 60 countries worldwide.

Professor and Duncan Chair of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura presented a workshop on “Writing a Mathematical Art Manifesto” at the Bridges Math Art Conference in Eindhoven, Netherlands. Attended by artists, mathematicians, and those in between, the exercise prompted interesting discussions that explored the boundaries of what might be considered mathematical art, its reception in the math and art worlds, and its rich connection to feminine and indigenous arts: textiles, weaving, knots, crochet, tiling, quilting, basketmaking, etc.

For the first time (and almost certainly also the last), Professor of Music Michael Cooper was quoted at some length in an article by Investor’s Business Daily. Titled “Florence Price Composed Lasting Beauty Amid Horrific Tragedy” and written by Paul Katzeff, the article is in the journal’s “Leaders and Success” column. Cooper’s remarks dealt partly with issues of Price’s biography but mostly with the agency of racist and sexist music publishers in ensuring that Price’s music would be largely forgotten in the decades following her death in 1953. The article can be read here.

Professor and Chair of English Eileen Cleere presided over her final conference as President of Interdisciplinary Nineteenth-Century Studies (INCS) in Genoa, Italy from June 18-21. In that capacity, Cleere ran a board meeting, planned upcoming conferences in Washington, D.C., Dallas, TX, and Rome, Italy, and introduced the keynote speaker, Professor Clair Pettitt, for a lecture held at the Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace). Cleere also delivered a paper titled “The Quickening: Pregnancy and Pronatalism in Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility,” and participated in a special roundtable called “Slowing Down Time: Embodied and Generational Resistances to Speed and Acceleration.” Her roundtable talk was titled “Becoming a Minor Character,” and suggested that the Victorian novel can help us understand models of institutional service generationally, with specific focus on the gendered and generational labor often required to sustain work in public facing (PH) and community facing (CEL) initiatives.

Associate Professor of Spanish Abby Dings presented a talk titled “Open Educational Resources for Spanish for Healthcare Professions” at the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP) annual conference, held June 26-29 in Panama City, Panama. The presentation highlighted strategies for incorporating open educational resources (OER) into medical Spanish curricula to enhance accessibility, build communicative competence, and promote cultural humility.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper has won the 2025 Pauline Alderman Award from the International Alliance for Women in Music for his book Margaret Bonds: The “Montgomery Variations” and Du Bois “Credo” (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023). This was the first book-length study of Margaret Bonds and her music (followed in Spring 2025 by Cooper’s biography of Margaret Bonds published with Oxford University Press). At just 164 pages, it’s a slight book, but not an insubstantial one. Adjudicators praised it for its “exceptional interdisciplinary analysis” and described it as “illuminating,” “monumental,” and “revolutionary.” More information about the honor can be found here and here.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone was selected as one of only 20 participants to attend the Texas A&M Book History Workshop. She successfully completed the intensive, hands-on program, which offered an in-depth introduction to the history of books and printing.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone was selected for the inaugural cohort of the Teaching with Primary Sources Institute. She successfully completed the six-week intensive program, which focused on topics and teaching strategies related to the use of primary sources in instruction.

Professor of Theatre Desiderio Roybal designed stage scenery and is the scenic charge artist for Magnolia Musical Theatre’s production of SpongeBob the Musical. This professional production is directed by Professor Emeritus of Theatre Rick Roemer, with technical direction by Scene Shop Manager Monroe Oxley. Students Ansh Tripathi ’28 and Yeva Tcharikova ’28 collaborated with Roybal and Oxley as academic interns in the fabrication and painting of scenery. Students Emma Hoover ’27, Olivia Hynes ’27, Piper Swisher ’27, and Emily Williams ’28 are scenic carpenters and painters. The production is running Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m. from July 16 through August 16 at the Hill Country Galleria Pavilion in Bee Cave, TX. Attendees are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chair and their favorite beverage to be transported to Bikini Bottom for an unforgettable evening of entertainment featuring a talented cast and crew performing alongside a live orchestra.

Professor of English Michael Saenger delivered a paper titled “Unveiling Hermione and Other Deferrals” at the European Shakespeare Research Association Conference in Porto, Portugal. The paper addresses Shakespeare’s sense of time as a dramatic and poetic experience in The Winter’s Tale. This play includes an appearance of an old man dressed as Time midway through its performance, and it also includes very subtle and fascinating ways of hearing temporal change and stillness.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle was interviewed for and quoted in an article published by Inside Higher Ed and Jenzabar titled, “Maximizing Data for Student Success – Data Storage and Analytics.” The article can be downloaded here.

Kinesiology major Raghav Sharma ’26 and Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Tatiana Zhuravleva presented their Summer 2025 SURF research project on the effects of attentional focus on rowing performance in experienced individuals at the NASPSPA Conference, held June 2–6 in Lake Tahoe, CA.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Six Songs on Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar by Florence B. Price with ClarNan Editions (Fayetteville, AR). Those who know Price’s other songs such as “Sympathy” or “Difference” know that Dunbar’s poetry, which the late Nikki Giovanni described as “peerless,” elicited particularly intense responses from Price’s musical imagination. But these six never-before-published songs shed new light on the beauties that emerged from the convergence of their creative spirits. Two of the songs are in the African American dialect, whose inherent poetry Dunbar famously celebrated, while four are in conventional English; collectively, they trace themes ranging from teem with wit, wisdom, and deeply human experience and emotion, in circumstances ranging from romantic love through despair, to end-of-life longing to be “called home” and rejoin long-departed friends and loved ones. This edition marks Cooper’s 149th publication of previously unknown music by Florence Price since September 2019.

Assistant Professor of Geographic Information Sciences Stephanie Insalaco recently published a dataset, in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and the United States Geological Survey. The data product provides a collation of estimates of species vulnerability to climate change that have been made using correlative niche models, which can be used by states in the southeastern U.S. when making their State Wildlife Action Plans. The dataset can be found here.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle was recently interviewed for and featured on “The Connected College” podcast, on the topic of “Unconventional Ways to Predict Student Success.” Questions posed and answered included “How can you use the data you already have (but aren’t looking at) to predict student success?,” “How can you create incentives to drive the adoption of high-impact practices?,” and “How can you build caring, mentoring relationships that increase student success?” The episode can be streamed here. Jeff’s complete list of 100 variables that can be used to predict student success can be read here.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle was interviewed for and featured in an article on “Top higher education trends for 2025” published by EdX. The article can be read here. His analysis of the top 15 trends in 2025 for higher education is available here.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Amanda Hernandez was interviewed on the “Classical Ideas” podcast about her 2024 book Intersectional Identities of Christian Women in the United States: Faith, Race, and Feminism. The episode can be streamed here. She also soft launched her forthcoming podcast “But Is It Feminist?,” which can be heard here.

In his final week of work at Southwestern, former Vice President and Dean for Student Life Brit Katz was notified that he had won the highest level of achievement and commitment to the principles and values upheld by the National Interfraternity Council (NIC) and its member fraternities. The NIC Silver Medal recognizes individuals for their lifelong service to the interfraternal community and significant contributions and dedication to the advancement and betterment of fraternities and the broader fraternal experience. More information on the awards is available here.

Education major Sydney Jackson ’27 was selected to receive the Student Travel Award by the International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education (ICRSME). Posted in the spring newsletter, “the ICRSME Student Travel Award is presented to one graduate or undergraduate student to offset the cost of attending an ICRSME consultation. This year’s recipient is Sydney Jackson from Southwestern University. Sydney was able to attend her first ICRSME consultation in Valladolid and share her research with other scholars in the field.” A photo of Sydney receiving the award can be seen here, on page 10 of the newsletter.

Professor of Education Michael Kamen and Associate Professor of Curriculum Instruction and Learning Sciences at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Debra Plowman published “Math is a 4-Letter Word” in the Spring 2025 newsletter of the International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education. Their quarterly column tells the ongoing story of the fictional character, Ian Quiry, as he studies and struggles to learn how to be an effective elementary school STEM teacher. The spring column can be read here, starting on page six of the newsletter.

Assistant Professor of Economics Hieu Nguyen recently had a research article, titled “Who are we up against? Heterogeneous group contests with incomplete information,” accepted, and subsequently published, in the Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization. In this paper, Dr. Nguyen and his two co-authors use a laboratory experiment to test the theoretical predictions of an inter-group Tullock contest model in which players have incomplete information about their opponent and may be subject to an advantage or disadvantage. In reconciling theory and experimental evidence, the researchers propose and test an extended model that incorporates some insights on players’ non-monetary utility of winning and in-group altruism from the social psychology literature. The article’s findings provide important implications for the future design of group competitions, and are potentially applicable to many legal, governmental, and scientific settings. The study’s published and preprint versions are available here and here.

Assistant Professor of Economics and Business Raji Kunapuli published an article titled “Expert Decision‐making Complexity in New Industries: The Case of Security Analysts” in the Journal of Behavioral Decision Making. This article examines how expert security analysts might be hindering the emergence of new technological firms.

Associate Professor of Psychology Carin Perilloux presented a talk titled “The Parental Effort Scale: Creation and Validation” at the annual meeting of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society (HBES) in Atlantic City, NJ in June. The talk described the 2+ year process of designing a new psychological instrument with SU psychology capstone students.

Assistant Professor of Education Raquel Sáenz Ortiz and SU alumna Rebecca Ramirez ’24 published an article titled “An undue burden: The impact of censorship laws on Ethnic Studies teachers in Texas” in the Ethnic Studies Pedagogies Journal. This article analyzes conversations and surveys with middle and high school ethnic studies teachers in Texas about the impact of censorship legislation (Senate Bill 3, passed in 2021) on their teaching.

Theatre alumnus Kyle Bussone Peterson ’24 is currently appearing as “Motel Kamzoil” in Fiddler on the Roof, now playing on the historic Angus Springer Stage at the Palace Theatre. Motel is a sweet and timid character who stands up for himself when he and Tevye’s daughter, Tzeitel announce their engagement. The production is directed by Professor Emeritus Rick Roemer, former Artistic Director and Chair of the Theatre Department. The show opened on May 30 and runs Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through July 6. Many performances are sold out, and remaining dates have limited seating available.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle was part of presenting a webinar on “Maximizing Summer Months: A Roadmap to Year-Round Student Success.” Over 15 different colleges registered to learn about using summer to successfully engage incoming students and help them explore potential careers, majors, and classes. More information can be found here.

Assistant Professor of Political Science Alex Goodwin and Dr. Tony E. Carey, Jr. published an article titled “With All Due Respect: Respectability Politics and Black Support for Police Defunding and Abolition” in Political Behavior. This article examines how respectability politics shapes Black Americans’ views on policing and support for institutional reforms.

Professor Emerita of English Helene Meyers published “Making Good Jewish Trouble: A Review of Sandi DuBowski’s ‘Sabbath Queen’” in The Revealer. It can be read here.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle’s article, “Using Summer as Powerful Predictor of Future Student Success” was featured as one of the Top Ten Higher Ed News Stories of the Day by Academica, one of the most trusted names in Canadian higher education. The full Top Ten list can be viewed here.

Duncan Chair and Professor of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura was selected as an awardee of the Simons Foundation Open Interval Program, alongside artist and Assistant Professor of Design at the University of Texas at Austin Jiabao Li and co-director of Austin’s Fusebox arts organization Ron Berry. The trio was one of 15 selected from across the country to embark on seven months of “unbounded exploration.” They gathered with the other artists, scientists, and leaders of arts organizations in upstate New York to brainstorm and collaborate on research around the theme of symmetry. More information is available here.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle published an article on how universities can more effectively engage incoming students in the summer. The article, titled “Using Summer as Powerful Predictor of Future Student Success,” was published in The Evolllution: A Modern Campus Illumination. The article can be read here.

At the Human Anatomy and Physiology Society’s Annual Meeting, held in Pittsburg, PA from May 21–25, Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Jennifer Stokes (in collaboration with colleagues from other institutions) presented a workshop on the “Social Determinants of Health” and how to integrate this important content into anatomy and physiology curriculum.

Alpha Phi Omega (APO) holds regular bone marrow donor drives on campus. The Gift of Life Marrow Registry recently notified our Southwestern chapter that, as a direct result of the November 2023 donor drive, a matching donor has been identified for a 63-year-old woman battling myelodysplastic disorder. APO is so excited to be a part of the Gift of Life’s lifesaving mission. APO is a gender-inclusive, national service fraternity celebrating 30 years at SU and 100 years overall.

Alumna Esmeralda Rosas ’24 recently published her biology capstone as part of an applied journal section called “Management in Practice” within the journal Management of Biological Invasions. Co-authored with fellow apple snail lab alumna, Cynthia Bashara ’23, this study reports a four-year monitoring effort with Austin community member David Christie that resulted in a local eradication of invasive snails. Success stories in invasion biology often get overlooked, but this paper, titled “Winning the shell game: environmental DNA (eDNA) confirms local control of the invasive apple snail, Pomacea maculata” provides a template for others to follow. A downloadable PDF of the paper is available here. Made possible by devoting time during a recent sabbatical, this publication represents the second outcome of the ongoing collaboration between Professor and Garey Chair in Biology Romi Burks, and Matthew Barnes ’06, Associate Professor at Texas Tech University.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published the first edition of a floral meditation by Florence Price titled Coreopsis with ClarNan Editions (Fayetteville, AR). Price wrote the piece for two pianists at two keyboards, but alongside this, Cooper also included an arrangement for one keyboard and four hands, prepared by Po-Sim Head and Kowoon Lee. Those interested in hearing what the beautiful Coreopsis flower sounds like channeled through the musical imagination of Florence Price may hear this evocating gem here.

Professor of English Michael Saenger published “Faculty on Fifth Avenue” with The Times of Israel. The blog post argues for academic freedom and informed discussion about the Middle East. It can be read here.

Last summer, Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle applied and was selected to complete a nine-month, 32-hour City of Georgetown Civic Leadership Academy. He and his ~30 fellow attendees “graduated” at the City Council meeting on May 13. The City of Georgetown Civic Leadership Academy seeks to educate, connect, and inspire leaders to develop a strong commitment to community service for the greater good of Georgetown. More information is available here.

Professor of Kinesiology Scott McLean was recognized as a Fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine.

Associate Professor of Art History Allison Miller gave a presentation, titled “The Gaze of Animals in Western Han Bronze Sculpture,” on May 9 at the “Same and/or Other? Animals in East Asian History” workshop, organized by the Chinese Animal Studies Network. The workshop was held at the Institute of Sinology and East Asian Studies at the University of Münster, Germany from May 8-10.

Associate Professor of Art History Allison Miller gave an invited lecture (in Chinese) at the University of Science and Technology of China (中国科学技术大学) in Hefei, Anhui Province, titled “Rediscovering Early China’s Polychrome Bronzes” (中国早期青铜器彩绘的再发现), on May 6.

Academic Success Coordinator Jennifer Frias founded a chapter of Alpha Alpha Alpha (Tri-Alpha), a national honor society for first-generation college students. The Southwestern University chapter, Mu Omega, was officially chartered on May 1. The purpose of Tri-Alpha is to promote academic excellence and provide opportunities for personal growth, leadership development, and campus and community service for first-generation college students. First-generation faculty and staff who are inducted into Tri-Alpha serve as mentors. The first cohort, Alpha, inducted 30 students, seven staff members, and three faculty.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle, Ph.D., was quoted in North Carolina’s Shelby Star newspaper, in an article titled “How did Gardner Webb University score on Forbes’ list of universities in poor financial health?” about formulas used to estimate college closures. The article can be read here, with a subscription.

Professor Emeritus of Music Kiyoshi Tamagawa has an article in the forthcoming issue of the International Suzuki Journal  (June 2025). “Origins of the Suzuki Violin School Repertoire” demonstrates that many of the pieces included in Shinichi Suzuki’s renowned sequence of violin instruction books were compiled from instruction books and string repertoire already in circulation in the early twentieth century, for which other musicians were responsible. The mostly German sources reflect Suzuki’s study as a young violin student in Berlin and were largely unacknowledged when the first published Suzuki Method  volumes appeared in the 1950s. By tracing the editorial paths of three particular compositions from Books 2 and 3, Tamagawa shows how the versions in Suzuki’s method are substantially altered from the original works, and in at least one case, misattributed.

Kinesiology alumni Corban Ruiz’s ’23 “fun” COVID student research project turned independent study with Associate Professor of Kinesiology Ed Merritt, which morphed into a research assistantship data management role for biology major and kinesiology minor Iliana Hernandez ’27, was published in the International Journal of Exercise Science. The paper, “Age of Anaerobic, Aerobic, and Skill-Based Olympic Athletes 1988 – 2024” provides insight into the development of and, potentially, the onset of age-related declines in human metabolic systems. The good news for most of us is that there has been at least one 65-year old who has competed in the Olympics since 1988 in a non-equestrian event! The paper can be read here.

Professor of Business Debika Sihi was selected to the Marketing Management Association (MMA) Board of Directors to serve a three-year term. In this role, Debika will have the opportunity to help shape the strategic direction of the organization and contribute to the continued growth and success of future marketing scholars, including service related to doctoral student consortiums and editorial/review work for conference proceedings and affiliated journals.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello ’99 has been invited to be the mezzo-soprano soloist with the European American Musical Alliance (EAMA) in Paris, France for the month of July. Altobello will be one of four singers to workshop and perform international new works in collaboration with the EAMA’s composition program. Composition faculty Philip Lasser, Benjamin C.S. Boyle, and Abbie Betinis will lead the month-long intensive. More information is available here.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello ’99 has been invited to be the mezzo-soprano soloist in W.A. Mozart’s “Requiem” with the Texas Bach Festival, under the direction of Dr. Barry Williamson. The concert will be held on Sunday, June 29 at 3:00 p.m. at First United Methodist Church in Georgetown. More information is available here.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello’s voice student, mezzo-soprano Kaley Williams, has been doing wonderful things on the operatic stage in Central Texas. In the summer of 2024, Ms. Williams performed as a young artist with the Classical Music Institute Festival (CMI), partnered with the San Antonio Opera. The festival was led by Dr. Christopher Besch and featured selections from Spanish operas, canción líricas, and zarzuelas. In the fall of 2024, Ms. Williams performed in the ensemble with Georgetown Palace Theatre’s production of Sweeney Todd, directed by Kristen Rogers. In March 2025, Ms. Williams performed the roles of “Tara” and “Tattooed Man” in Tyler Mabry’s new opera Ray Bradbury with One Ounce Opera in Austin, directed by Matt Smith. This summer, Ms. Williams will perform in Gilbert & Sullivan Austin’s production H.M.S. Pinafore, directed by Carol Brown, and conducted by Dr. Jeffrey Jones-Ragona. Ms. Williams began her vocal studies with Professor Altobello in the fall of 2022.

Associate Professor of Art History Allison Miller gave an invited lecture (in Chinese) at Guangxi University for Nationalities (广西民族大学), titled “Rediscovering Early China’s Polychrome Bronzes” (中国早期青铜器彩绘的再发现) on April 28.

John H. Duncan Chair and Professor of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura was invited to give two talks at Indiana University Indianapolis (formerly IUPUI). She was the keynote speaker at the award ceremony for the IU Indianapolis High School Math Contest, and also gave a talk at the mathematics department colloquium. Both talks were on her research using mathematical perspective and projective geometry to analyze art.

Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby first authored “Fabrication of Microgel-Reinforced Hydrogels via Vat Photopolymerization” in the journal ACS Macro Letters with Abhishek Dhand and the Burdick Lab at the University of Colorado Boulder. The manuscript is the culmination of his pre-tenure sabbatical and demonstrates for the first time that micron-sized hydrogels can be incorporated at high densities in complex resin-printed geometries. The work can be found here.

Assistant Professor of Education Raquel Sáenz Ortiz and SU alumnae Rebecca Ramirez ’24 and Laura Carrasco Torres ’25 published an article titled “Centering community in fugitive pedagogy: Pláticas with Chicana Ethnic Studies teachers” in Chicana/Latina Studies: The Journal of Mujeres Activas en Letras y Cambio Social. This article analyzes the impact of censorship legislation (Senate Bill 3, passed in 2021) on middle and high school Mexican American Studies teachers.

Sociology and feminist studies double major and race and ethnicity studies minor Emily Dimiceli ’25 has been accepted into the 2025 American Sociological Association’s (ASA) Honors Program. As a part of the program, she will present her capstone research paper, titled “‘Obama was voted president by white people’: Predictors of Americans’ Perceptions of Racism,” at this year’s ASA annual meeting in Chicago, IL.

On April 23, as a member of the American Physiology Society, Associate Professor of Kinesiology Ed Merritt met with staff in the Washington, D.C. offices of Senator Ted Cruz, Senator John Cornyn, Representative Lizzie Fletcher, and Representative Vincente Gonzalez, to discuss the importance of science research and education funding, highlighting the negative impact proposed cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF) will have on Texas’, and the country’s, health and education outcomes.

Biology major and kinesiology minor Iliana Hernandez ’27 presented research findings from the recently completed clinical trial “Exercise Training Adaptations in Middle-Aged Adults With and Without Post-Exercise Peanut Consumption” at the American Physiology Summit in Baltimore, MD on April 26. Co-authors on the study are kinesiology major Erica Otto ’25, Southwestern alumni Matthew Bierwirth ’24, Rachel Chiella ’24, Barrett Knapp ’24, and Zachary Moon ’24, and Associate Professor of Kinesiology Ed Merritt.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle, Ph.D., presented on “Advisor AI: Providing Personalized, Holistic Support to Students Throughout Their Academic Journey” at HERDI (Higher Education Research and Development Institute) Innovate in San Antonio, TX on April 29. More information can be found here.

Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle, Ph.D., was one of three presenters on a webinar for career advisors and counselors titled, “Transforming Student Success with Personalized, Holistic, and Intentional Support.” More information can be found here.

Professional Academic Advisor Jenny Terry Roberts ’95 received the Organization Advisor of the Year Award for her work with SU’s chapter of Alpha Phi Omega, the gender-inclusive national service fraternity. APO was founded 100 years ago on the principles of leadership, friendship, and service; the Alpha Gamma Kappa chapter was chartered at SU in 1991. Jenny joined in her first semester as a student at Southwestern and loves helping current students keep it going strong. Additional awesome SU APO Advisors include Faculty Advisor Debika Sihi, Community Advisor Paul Ford ’00, and Scouting Advisor Scott Roberts ’94.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello’s voice student Will Mallick ’24 has been taking the musical theatre stage by storm in Austin. In October 2024, Mallick performed “Will Hanks” in a professional workshop of Mr. Hanks, A New Musical, written by Lane Rockford Orsak, composed by Francis McGrath, and directed by Laura Galt. In December 2024, Mallick performed “Apprentice Scrooge” in A Christmas Carol  at ZACH Theatre, directed by Dave Steakley. In February and March 2025, Mallick understudied and performed the role of “Bob Gaudio” in Jersey Boys  at ZACH Theatre, directed by Cassie Abate. In March and April 2025, Mallick performed as an “ensemble member” in Company with Roustabout Presents, directed by Adam Roberts. Currently, Mallick is performing the lead role of “Pigeon” in ZACH’s children’s musical production Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, directed by Nat Miller. This summer, Mallick will perform the title role “Conrad Birdie” in Bye Bye Birdie  at TexArts, directed by Kimberly Schafer. Will Mallick began his vocal studies with Professor Altobello in the fall of 2020.

Professor of History Melissa Byrnes contributed to a published roundtable review of Jack Snyder’s book Human Rights for Pragmatists  for H-Diplo and the Robert Jervis International Security Studies Forum. It can be read here.

Staff Instructor in Spanish Noelia Cigarroa-Cooke and Professor of Spanish Carlos de Oro presented the paper “El monstruo político como una alegoría crítica en el cine latinoamericano contemporáneo” at the 2025 Secolas Conference in Mexico City, Mexico from April 24-26.

Assistant Professor of History Soojung Han presented the paper “Changes to Diplomatic Relations through Marriage Alliance Systems in Middle Period China (304-907)” at the T’ang Studies Society Conference, hosted by the T’ang Studies Society and the Elling Eide Center in Sarasota, FL.

Herman Brown Chair and Professor of Communication Studies Valerie Renegar returned to Postira, Croatia last week for the 7th Days of Ivo Škarić rhetoric conference. She presented a paper titled “The Weight of Stigma,” co-authored with Kirsti Cole of North Carolina State University. This international conference featured rhetorical scholars from 10 countries across three continents.

Professor of Political Science Eric Selbin was an invited participant at Harvard University’s David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies 30th Anniversary Symposium. Selbin was invited by the Center’s Director, Rockefeller Professor of Latin American Studies, and Professor of Government Steven Levitsky to interact with former Chilean President (2006-2010; 2014-2018) and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (2018-2022) Michelle Bachelet Jeria, former Member of the National Assembly of Venezuela Maria Corina Machado (2011-2014), and former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo (1994-2000). It was also an opportunity for Selbin to reconnect with an old friend, Dora María Téllez, Nicaragua’s famous Comandante Dos, who, since her 2023 release as a political prisoner, has been the Richard E. Greenleaf Distinguished Chair in Latin American Studies at Tulane University and is currently the Robert F. Kennedy Visiting Professor of Latin American Studies at Harvard.

At formal ceremonies on April 22, six seniors were named to the “5 Points of Pirate Pride,” the undergraduate hall of fame for the most well-rounded leaders. Inductees are: Emily Dimiceli, Charlie Fournier, Bodhi Hassell, Luke Marx, Sophia Trifilio, and Madi Vela. Their formal portraits will be enshrined in the McCombs Center as role models for future classes.

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse presented a paper titled “Living In Contemporarity: Towards an afro-fem ethic of sufficiency” and participated in a closed workshop on MJ Alexander’s book Pedagogies of Crossing: Meditations on Feminism, Sexual Politics, Memory, and the Sacred  at the philoSOPHIA Conference held at Texas A&M University in College Station on April 10.

Assistant Professor of Education Marilyn Nicol published an article with her colleague Dr. Bethanie Pletcher of Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi, titled “Teaching Writing Skills Alongside the Writing Process: Interactive Writing in the Prekindergarten Classroom.” The article was published in The Reading Teacher  and highlights case study findings alongside practical tips for implementing interactive writing in primary grades. The article can be read here.

Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Raquel Moreira coauthored the forum essay, “Centering Latin America: gender politics, attacks on higher education, and lessons of resistance from Brazil,” with Dr. Raiana Carvalho of Furman University. The piece, published in the National Communication Association’s journal Communication Education, argues that by centering Latin America, and Brazil in particular, we hope to disrupt the hegemonic narrative that foregrounds the United States as the primary spreader of anti-higher education conservative ideologies. Instead, we offer evidence that these far–right attacks are transnational in nature, and that Latin America is at the center of both the articulation of such conservative ideas as well as of the organized resistance to such ideologies. The essay can be found here.

Sociology students and faculty members attended the Southern Sociological Society annual meeting in Charlotte, NC from April 9-12. Five sociology seniors presented their capstone research: Catherine Angell presented “Presidency or Penitentiary: Exploring Americans’ Attitudes Towards Felons’ Right to Vote;” Isabella Bahamon presented “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Choice: Predicting Americans’ Attitudes Towards Abortion Rights,” which won the 2025 Odum Award for Best Undergraduate Paper; Emily Dimiceli presented “‘Obama was voted president by white people’: Predictors of Americans’ Perceptions of Racism;” Mary Kate McAdams presented “‘It seems like the system has a few favorites’: Factors that Affect American Attitudes about Racial and Economic Bias in the Criminal Justice System;” and Chelsey Rocha presented “‘DEI is just racism against white people’: Americans Attitudes About Anti-DEI Bills in Higher Education.” In addition, faculty and students presented on their collaborative research projects. Assistant Professor of Sociology Amanda Hernandez and environmental studies major Sarah Ventimiglia ’25 presented their co-authored study titled, “Hashtag Blessed: Performances of White Femininity and Consumption on TikTok.” Professor of Sociology Maria Lowe presented her collaborative study (with co-authors Dr. Reginald Byron of the University of Denver, Brigit Reese ’24, and Carson Maxfield ’24) titled, “Residents of Color in non-Predominantly White Neighborhoods: Are They More Likely to Worry about Racialized Surveillance Than White Residents?”

Spanish minor Jessica McCutcheon ’28 presented a research paper titled “Cerrando Brechas: Desafíos de Salud Mental para los Inmigrantes Hispanos” at the Latin American and Latinx Studies Symposium held at Rollins College on April 4. Jessica’s paper addresses one of the most urgent and often overlooked public health issues in the U.S.—the systemic barriers to mental health care for Hispanic immigrants. At a time when mental health disparities are deepening, her research brings critical attention to the cultural, linguistic, and structural challenges affecting one of the fastest-growing populations in the country. Her participation in the symposium was sponsored by Endowed Professor of Spanish Carlos de Oro, who mentored Jessica in preparation for her presentation.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music Jeanne Hourez has been nominated for the 2025 Texas Music Teachers Association Outstanding Collegiate Teaching Achievement Award. This prestigious honor recognizes exceptional achievement in collegiate-level instruction in music performance, composition, theory, history, or any combination of these disciplines. Dr. Hourez was elected to represent the Central Texas region and was nominated alongside six other distinguished faculty members from across the state. The results will be announced in early June.

Assistant Professor of Mathematics Noelle Sawyer gave a plenary talk on April 11 at the Infinite Possibilities 2025 conference held at the Institute for Mathematical and Statistical Innovation at the University of Chicago. Her talk was titled “It Takes a Village(r)” and called for the audience to examine who is in their lives, who they are responsible for, and to think about adding to their community.

Assistant Professor of Mathematics Noelle Sawyer was the local invited speaker at the Math For All Austin conference on April 5. She spoke about how we can find interesting geometry all around us if we keep our eyes open for cone points in a talk titled “Embracing Hyperbolicity.”

Professor of Spanish Katy Ross published an article titled “No quiero ser mamá: Non-motherhood in Pronatalist Spain” in Letras Hispanas. This article analyzes how a graphic novel portrays a woman’s decision to not become a mother and the pushback she receives through her visual narrative. Read the article here.

Associate Professor of Communication Studies Lamiyah Bahrainwala (LB) published the article “Caste-Attentiveness” in the Quarterly Journal of Speech, the #1 ranked journal in communication studies. In this article, LB refuses caste as an “India-specific” problem and places it alongside anti-indigeneity, anti-Blackness, and settler colonialism as a global system demanding unrelenting critical attention. Read more here.

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey gave a talk at the American Chemical Society Spring 2025 national meeting in San Diego on her recently published work with chemistry graduate Lexi Fantz ’21 on low energy chlorophylls in cyanobacterial light-harvesting.

Chemistry majors Jodi Glenn-Millhouse ’25, Kaiden Salaz ’25, Annalina Slover ’26, and Carolyn Waldie ’26 presented posters on their research on how photosynthetic diatoms adapt their light-harvesting under light and magnesium stress at the American Chemical Society Spring 2025 national meeting in San Diego. Their presentations resulted from research done with Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey.

Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Bonnie Sneed provided a pre-UIL clinic for five choirs at Copperas Cove High School. The all-day clinic involved over 15 pieces. A Sweepstakes Award-winning program, Copperas Cove High School has a professional staff of two full-time high school teachers and an accompanist.

Assistant Professor of History Bryan Kauma was awarded the inaugural American Society for Environmental History (ASEH) Research Fellowship at the just-ended ASEH annual conference in Pittsburgh. He also presented his forthcoming paper, “Farming the God’s Way: Rethinking Fertilizers and Hybrid Seeds in African Grain Production in Colonial Zimbabwe, 1950s to 1970s.”

Spanish major Maricruz Zacharias ’25 presented a research paper titled “Danzas aztecas: la representación ceremonial de las creencias” at the Latin American and Latinx Studies Symposium held at Rollins College on April 4. Maricruz studied how through the performative nature of dance rituals, the choreographic patterns were used to convey stories, spiritual beliefs, and communal values. Her paper comes from the independent study she is doing this semester with Associate Professor of Spanish María de los Ángeles Rodríguez Cadena, who mentored Maricruz to present at the Symposium.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Adriana Ponce and sociology major Chelsey Rocha ’25 presented “Intersectionality, Accessibility, and Fraudulent Behavior: Feminist, Qualitative Methodology and Emerging Virtual Recruitment” at the Southern Sociological Society (SSS) Annual Conference in Charlotte, NC. Dr. Ponce and Chelsey’s presentation wrestled with accessible recruitment practices for diverse stepfamilies while protecting the data from interested respondents misrepresenting their qualifications for the study.

Professor of Political Science Eric Selbin published a chapter titled “International Political Sociology & Resistance: Whither Revolution” in The Oxford Handbook of International Political Sociology, edited by Stacie Goddard, George Lawson, and Ole Jacob Sending (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2025). This is the third piece in a three-year trilogy calling for a refiguration of revolution and with these provides the basis for a current book project.

Professor of Political Science Eric Selbin served as the external member on the doctoral dissertation committee of Katalin Amon, who successfully defended “The Mortgage Debtor, the Neighbor, the Homeless Citizen, and the Family: Understanding Citizenship and Housing Through Citizen Imaginaries” at Central European University in Vienna. Selbin is also currently serving as an external member on dissertation committees at the University of Cambridge and the University of Virginia.

Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby presented his sabbatical research, titled “Digital light processing 3D printing of microgel-reinforced hydrogels,” via a 15-minute platform presentation at the 2025 Society for Biomaterials (SFB) Annual Meeting held in Chicago on April 10. The first-author work is currently under review.

Physics majors Joseph (Joe) Dorsey ’26 and Amanda Mejia ’27 attended the Capital of Texas Undergraduate Research Conference (CTURC) hosted at the University of Texas at Austin. Joe presented platform presentations on his and Amanda’s research conducted in the bioprinting laboratory of Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby.

Lord Chair and Professor of Computer Science Barbara Anthony co-authored a paper, titled “Bachelors of Arts versus Bachelors of Science Degrees in Computer Science,” with Edward Talmage at Bucknell University and Andrea Tartaro at Furman University. The paper was published in the proceedings of the 29th annual Consortium for Computing Sciences in Colleges Northeastern Conference. It finds that there is a lack of consistent definitions for each degree within computer science, but that insights can be gained along several dimensions for liberal arts institutions that offer both degrees.

Computer science majors Timothy Berlanga ’25, Rudy Guerra Jr. ’25, and Kyle Keleher ’25 attended the Consortium for Computer Sciences in Colleges: South Central Region Conference at McNeese State University on April 5. They won first place in the poster competition for their work “Better Picks: Using Machine Learning to Make Smarter Sports Betting Decisions.” This project, done along with Kade Townsend ’25 in the Computer Science Capstone taught by Lord Chair and Professor of Computer Science Barbara Anthony, built upon ideas first developed in the artificial intelligence course taught by Associate Professor of Computer Science Jacob Schrum.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello performed Dr. Chris Prosser’s 11-minute comedic operatic duet, titled “META Anthem,” at KMFA Radio’s Opera Austin Festival at the Draylen Mason Music Studio on November 16, 2024, in conjunction with LOLA (Local Opera Local Artists). The piece featured Altobello as mezzo soprano, baritone Brandon Morales, and pianist Brad Baker, and was directed by Rebecca Herman. A hilarious spoof on the ridiculousness of social media, the piece was written for Altobello and Dr. Tim O’Brien in the spring of 2023 and premiered at the Here Be Monsters Music Festival in Austin that summer.

Recent music graduate Makenna Palacio ’24, a student of Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Julia Taylor, has been accepted into the Houston Grand Opera (HGO) Young Artist Vocal Academy. All participants receive the opportunity to work on-site for a week of classes in character development, score preparation, diction, and movement, in addition to daily voice lessons and coachings with HGO music staff, including Director of Vocal Instruction Stephen King.

Assistant Professor of Anthropology Naomi Reed organized and supported the submission, reception, and presentation of the panel “Salons, Skateboarding, and Tabletop Gaming: Stories of ‘Alternative’ Intersectional Gender Expression in Recreational Communities,” presented on April 4 at the 2025 Southwestern Anthropology Association Conference in Pomona, CA. During this panel, anthropology and classics double major Marley Sensenderfer ’25 chaired the session and presented the paper talk “Roll for Stereotypes: D&D and Gender Performativity Tabletop role-playing games,” anthropology major Emma French ’25 presented the paper talk “Gender and Skateboarding Culture,” and anthropology and environmental studies double major Rose Reed ’25 presented the paper talk “White Beauty Standards in a Hair and Nail Salon.” This panel was a collaboration of three student anthropology capstone research projects that deconstruct intersectional manifestations of gender in public space via insider (or native) ethnographic analysis. More information on the session and the conference can be found here.

Garey Chair and Associate Professor of Kinesiology Ed Merritt was interviewed by BBC News for an article about fat-burning during exercise. His expertise was featured in several international editions published in various languages, including Pashto, Portuguese, Swahili, Thai, and Turkish.

Associate Professor of German Erika Berroth earned two materials grants from the German Foreign Office and the German Academic Exchange Service, Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD). The grants cover two curated collections of German language publications: German language poetry across the ages, and German language texts in natural history, climate science, and the anthropocene. Students will engage with those collections in their studies of German language, literatures, and cultures at all proficiency levels. Success with DAAD materials grants is made possible through Berroth’s commitment to community engagement as a DAAD Ortslektorin.

Professor of Anthropology Melissa Johnson’s article “Tigah camp: unruly multispecies assemblages, race and gender in a Belizean trophy jaguar hunting camp” has just been published in the journal Latin American and Caribbean Ethnic Studies. It can be read here.

Associate Professor of History Jethro Hernández Berrones presented a brief lecture titled “Mapeando las prácticas de partería de la ciudad de México: La Escuela Libre de Obstetricia y Enfermería y la visualización de los partos en casa después de la revolución. [Mapping Mexico City’s midwifery practices: The Free School of Obstetrics and Nursing and the visualization of at-home births after the revolution].” The presentation was part of the activities of the second workshop of MX.digital, an interdisciplinary group of scholars from the United States and Mexico, including historians, anthropologists, geographers, and computer scientists, interested in the creation of digital repositories and maps for the visualization of the history of Mexico, organized by the Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE), Aguascalientes, and sponsored by John Hopkins University. He became a member of the curricular committee tasked to design a general and flexible curriculum to disseminate knowledge, methodology, and projects on digital and public history for the collection, organization, and visualization of historical information.

Professor of Environmental Studies Joshua Long presented a paper titled “Exploring the fractured imaginaries of climate-displacement and security” at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Geographers in Detroit. At this same conference, Long also served as a discussant on Farhana Sultana’s “Author Meets Critics: Confronting Climate Coloniality” panel.

Professor of Environmental Studies Joshua Long co-chaired three sessions titled “Confronting Climate Apartheid” at the Annual Meeting of the American Association of Geographers in Detroit. Long also co-chaired a panel on the “Coloniality of Climate Change” at this same conference.

University Business  has agreed to publish an article by Director of Fraternity and Sorority Life Jeff Doyle, titled “Has Student Affairs Become Too Decentralized to Best Help Students Succeed?,” in their April 2025 issue. One version of the article can be found here.

Olivia Bakke ’25, Zachary Collins ’25, Shobby Enakpene ’26, Christina Kuras ’25, Kacy Miller ’26, Abby Ryan ’25, Elise Samples ’25, and Vanessa Villarreal ’25 participated in the National Collegiate Digital Marketing Championship held at Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business on April 1. All students demonstrated fantastic mastery of digital marketing strategy.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone and Instruction and Student Success Librarian Emily Thorpe presented a session titled “From Concept to Creation: Designing Engaging Library Creator Kits” at the Texas Library Association Annual Meeting in Dallas.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone was one of three panelists at the recent Texas Library Association Annual Conference in Dallas. The panel, titled “Navigating the Library Profession: Insights from Academic, Public, and School Librarians,” provided insight into each librarian’s journey and recommendations for navigating the field.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone, at the request of the Texas Library Association (TLA), presented a session on “Reimagining Special Collections: Outreach, Engagement & Hands-On Learning” at the recent TLA Annual Conference in Dallas.

Three faculty and eight students participated in the 2025 meeting of the Texas Section of the Mathematical Association of America, which took place March 28–29 at Prairie View A&M University. Garey Chair and Professor of Mathematics Alison Marr served on the Executive Committee as the section’s chair-elect. Associate Professor of Mathematics John Ross also served on the Executive Committee, in the role of Digital Media Editor. Ross also serves as a co-leader of Section NExT, a professional development program for early-career mathematicians. As part of his work for NExT, he led “Inquiry without Overhaul,” a session on introducing inquiry-based learning into mathematics classes in easy-to-digest pieces. Three students presented. Clay Elliott ’26 presented “Linear Algebra Behind Satisfactory,” which featured work done in his Linear Algebra class with Lord Chair and Professor of Mathematics Fumiko Futamura. Georgia Micknal ’25 and Avery Weatherly ’25 presented “Antimagic Polydominoes,” which featured research done with Marr. Assistant Professor of Instruction of Mathematics Will Tran also attended, as did students Caytie Brown ’27, Ashlyn Cadena ’27, Camille James ’26, Robert Karcher ’27, and Dash Puentes ’27. All eight students competed in the Math Bowl as part of two different teams on Friday. Both teams finished in the top half of all teams competing.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Applied Music Katherine Altobello ’99 was the mezzo-soprano section leader and vocalist for Congregation Beth Israel’s High Holy Day season in September and October 2024. Professor Altobello sang under the leadership of Cantor Sarah Avner, Conductor Dr. Jeffrey Jones-Ragona, and Collaborative Pianist Dr. Maimy Fong. This marks Professor Altobello’s ninth year singing High Holy Days with the synagogue, the oldest Jewish synagogue in Austin.

Associate Professor of Spanish Abby Dings published “Pedagogical Approaches to VE” with co-author Tammy Jandrey Hertel of the University of Lynchburg. The chapter, which appears in The Palgrave Encyclopedia of Computer-Assisted Language Learning, edited by Lee McCallum and Dara Tafazoli, explores the use of virtual exchanges in second language teaching as a means to enhance the learning experience by providing opportunities to interact and communicate with speakers of the target language. More information on the volume can be found here.

Associate Professor of Communication Studies Lamiyah Bahrainwala steered several student projects that were accepted, presented, and recognized at a highly selective regional conference. Three Southwestern students traveled to Albuquerque, NM, to present their research at the 2025 Undergraduate Scholars Research Conference hosted by the Western States Communication Association. This marks the fourth conference Dr. Bahrainwala has mentored her students through. Faculty reviewers and the conference chair commended the students afterwards and attempted to recruit them to their graduate programs. Mia Santoscoy ’26 presented her paper “The Dehumanization of Palestinians in U.S. Media: Animal rhetoric through death tolls, Instagram infographics, CNN, and X.” Mia also received a standing ovation from the faculty speakers at the Palestine Solidarity day-long workshop on February 14. Vanessa Villarreal ’25 presented her paper “Mean Girl Feminism: Latina Narratives, TikTok, and the Fight Against Misogyny.” Elisabeth Barlin ’25 presented her paper “Sexy, Cute, and Popular to Boot: The Satirizing of Cheerleading within Bring It On.” Congratulations to these outstanding students.

Senior Aidan Gomez ’25 presented a poster titled “The Rules of Quotas Matter: Female Representation in the Italian and Japanese Legislatures” at the ASIANetwork Conference in San Antonio on March 29. The poster emerged from a paper written in Professor of Political Science and Vice President for Academic Affairs Alisa Gaunder’s Women in Politics in Europe and Asia course.

Assistant Professor of Classics Jeffrey Easton presented a paper at the Classical Association of the Middle West and South Annual Meeting in Champaign-Urbana, IL. The paper explored evidence from a set of eight Latin inscriptions which highlight a form of lateral social mobility among subaltern Romans. The paper suggests that while cases of extraordinary vertical social mobility tend to draw the most scholarly attention, cases involving incremental, multi-generational upward social and economic advancement represent a far more common experience for most Roman families.

Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Bonnie Sneed performed as the piano accompanist for four choirs from East View High School for their UIL performance in March. She performed on a total of eight pieces ranging from the 16th century to the modern period, including one with an East View clarinetist. The contest was held at Georgetown High School with three judges from across the state of Texas. This two-day event involved over 30 choirs from Region 26.

Senior Research and Instruction Librarian Katherine Hooker and Instruction and Student Success Librarian Emily Thorpe have received the 2025 Library Instruction Round Table “Project of the Year” award. Given by the Texas Library Association, this award recognizes an innovative or creative library instruction project or initiative in Texas. The recognized project was “Navigating Knowledge: Mastering the Ocean of Information,” a custom-built digital escape game that introduced information literacy and library information to incoming students in Fall 2024 FYS and AES courses.

Professor of Sociology Maria Lowe, sociology and business graduate ThuyMi Phung ’23, and sociology and art history graduate Katherine Holcomb ’23 presented their co-authored paper titled “The Interaction of Race and Racial Grievance: Predictors of American Attitudes about Critical Race Theory” at the Eastern Sociological Society annual meeting in Boston from March 6-9.

Professor of English Michael Saenger presented a seminar paper titled “A Mouldy Tale Newly Set” at the Shakespeare Association of America conference in Boston on March 21. His paper discusses the path of Pericles, a play that Shakespeare co-authored, through its recent performance by the Royal Shakespeare Company. The play was once disdained because of its collaborative nature and sprawling geography, but now has become interesting for the same reasons.

Professor of Business Debika Sihi co-hosted a panel with Hannah Walters, Associate Professor of Marketing at Northern State University and author of “AI in Marketing: Applications, Insights, and Analysis,” at the Marketing Management Association Spring Conference. The panel explored four initiatives for integrating AI as a tool to develop critical thinking across marketing courses. Debika also presented her early-stage research project titled, “Place Marketing: Bridging the Gap Between Longtime Locals, Newcomers, and Tourists through Digital Marketing,” which examines how city marketing and communications teams manage the evolving brand identity of fast-growing communities.

Associate Professor of Computer Science Jacob Schrum and Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby had their paper, “A Quality Diversity Approach to Evolving Model Rockets,” accepted for publication in the Proceedings of the Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference. For this paper, evolutionary computation algorithms studied by Dr. Schrum were applied to the problem of designing model rockets, like those built by Dr. Crosby’s students in his Introduction to Engineering class. The designs evolved by Dr. Schrum’s program were simulated in a computer, and the most promising designs were built by physics and computer science double-major Kade Townsend ’25, before being launched and evaluated in the real world.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Margaret Bonds  as a part of the Composers Across Cultures series by Oxford University Press (New York). It is the first book-length biography of the composer, pianist, and activist who (as many readers of these Notables know distressingly well) is Cooper’s primary musical heartthrob of late. The book draws on an unprecedented mass of archival materials, offers insights into previously neglected (but important) facets of Bonds’ career, points out and corrects a number of longstanding and widely repeated fictions, and includes as its final chapter a 100-page survey of Bonds’ more than 400 compositions, categorized by genre. It’s also Cooper’s third book completed in as many years (although its origins date back to the mid-1980s). Readers of this notice may rest assured that Cooper will now take a break from writing books (though his series of editions of previously unpublished works by Bonds and her friend and mentor Florence Price will continue…). Those interested in this book about one of the most extraordinary musicians and musical activists of the twentieth century may read snippets (or more) at OUP’s website here and through their favorite booksellers.

Assistant Professor of Music Ruben Balboa was named a national finalist for The American Prize in Orchestral Conducting, college/university orchestra division. The American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts are the nation’s most comprehensive series of contests in the performing arts. The American Prize is unique in scope and structure, designed to recognize and reward the best performing artists, directors, ensembles and composers in the United States at professional, college/university, community, and high school levels, based on submitted recordings. The full announcement can be viewed here.

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey and chemistry graduate Lexi Fantz ’21 published an article titled “Functional Connectivity of Red Chlorophylls in Cyanobacterial Photosystem I Revealed by Fluence-Dependent Transient Absorption” in the Journal of Physical Chemistry B. They used ultrafast laser spectroscopy to show energy transfer between low energy chlorophyll sites on the picosecond timescale. This work was done in collaboration with researchers at Swarthmore College, National Institutes of Health, the University of Chicago, and the University of Sheffield. The article can be read here. 

Digital Initiatives and Collections Assistant Christina Gerardo won a Texas Library Association Branding Iron Award in the print marketing category for her Distinctive Collections Zine.

Head of Distinctive Collections and Archives Megan Firestone presented “The Early Years of Southwestern University in Georgetown, TX” as part of the Preservation Georgetown Spring Lecture series.

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse was awarded the Kristeller-Popkin Travel Fellowship worth $4,000 from the Journal of the History of Philosophy  for a research project titled “Interrogating Apartheid’s Foundations through Alfred Hoernlé’s Philosophy.” Dr. ka’Nobuhlaluse is one of two awardees to receive the highly competitive grant.

Visiting Assistant Professor of Music Bonnie Sneed was the visiting clinician for the Round Rock High School Choirs in February. She conducted, accompanied on piano, and gave instruction for foreign language diction, historical style, and vocal pedagogy, as well as provided several interpretative ideas for three choirs. She also gave conducting and UIL preparation coaching to their director. The choirs did well at the UIL contest, receiving at least one Sweepstakes Award for their performance and sight-reading abilities.

Assistant Director of Advising Hayley Harned presented a breakout session, titled “You Said What? Navigating Self-Disclosure in Academic Advising,” at the NACADA: The Global Community for Academic Advising Region 7 Conference in Memphis, TN from March 5-7. She also co-presented on “Enhancing NACADA Leadership Through the Emerging Leaders Program” and “Let’s Talk Professional Mentoring” due to her roles as an Emerging Leader and the Region 7 Mentoring Chair.

Professor of Education Michael Kamen and education major Sydney Jackson ’27 presented two research sessions: “STEM and Successful Play-based Programs” at the International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education in Valladolid, Yucatán, México, and “Play-Based Programs: Themes for Success” at the annual conference of The Association for the Study of Play in South Padre Island, TX.

Professor of Education Michael Kamen and Associate Professor of Curriculum Instruction and Learning Sciences at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Debra Plowman presented two workshops: “Playing with Numbers: Choice, Joy, and Wonder in Mathematics Education” at the annual conference of The Association for the Study of Play in South Padre Island, TX, and “Playful Approaches for Learning Math: Choice, Joy, and Wonder” at the International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education in Valladolid, Yucatán, México.

In honor of the 2025 International Women’s Day, Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music Jeanne Hourez organized a charity concert in Austin. The program consisted of music written exclusively by women, and Dr. Hourez invited Assistant Professor of Music Ruben Balboa to perform with her. The concert was dedicated to Dress for Success Austin, with all proceeds donated to the organization, which supports women’s independence and professional success.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music Jeanne Hourez presented a lecture-recital, titled “Marguerite Canal & her three Esquisses Méditerranéennes for piano: An exploration of Impressionist colors and timbres,” at the Symposium on Timbre and Colour in French Music at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire in the United Kingdom in February.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Margaret Bonds’ choral love song “Supplication” with E.C. Schirmer (St. Louis). Written for SATB chorus and piano, the work proceeds from the usual sense of the term “supplication” (an earnest request or entreaty, especially one made deferentially to a person in a position of power or authority – OED Online), but challenges its connotation of hierarchy (here, gender hierarchy): the men’s and women’s voices address each other with mutual/reciprocal deference: “Once more I offer you my adoration, I offer you my love. Once more I beg of you, heed my supplication… I want to love again, and learn to smile. I want to live again the life you made worthwhile… This is my tender supplication, this is my plea.”

Assistant Professor of Education Marilyn Nicol presented and conducted a workshop titled “Experience Based Learning: A Renewed Perspective in Early Childhood Education” at the Association for the Study of Play conference in South Padre Island, TX.

On International Women’s Day, Assistant Professor of Feminist Studies Meagan Solomon released the first episode of her collaborative podcast, Malflora Podcast, which is a series of pláticas (community conversations) with Latina/e lesbian activists, writers, artists, and scholars. Malflora Podcast is published by Malflora Collective, a community project dedicated to preserving the lives and legacies of Latina/e lesbians. Dr. Solomon first conceptualized Malflora Collective as a 2024 Mellon Publicly-Engaged Humanities Summer Fellow. Since then, the project has grown to include a team of nine members, including Communication Studies/Latin American and Border Studies double major Mia Santoscoy ’26, who is currently serving as Dr. Solomon’s Research Assistant. In Episode 1 of Malflora Podcast, members from Malflora Collective introduce themselves and their work memorializing Latina/e lesbian history and culture. Listen here or on all major streaming platforms.

Camille James ’26 presented a poster in the mathematics and computer science section of the 128th annual meeting of the Texas Academy of Sciences in Waco from February 28-March 1. This work on “Distortion of Single Transferable Vote on a Line” with Lord Chair and Professor of Computer Science Barbara Anthony investigated improving the gap between the existing upper and lower bounds of this measure of social welfare.

From March 3-5, Assistant Professor of Education Alicia Moore engaged in National Service by fulfilling her federal appointment as a member of the Board of Visitors for the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC). The century-long history of this institution has played a vital role in strengthening American alliances and national security. During the meetings, she engaged with international military officers from Morocco, Singapore, Germany, Sweden, and Canada, two of whom shared that their nations send only their top officers in hopes of qualifying for the prestigious postgraduate program at the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS). Dr. Moore provided curricular guidance and support, contributing to the ongoing development of CGSC’s academic programs.

Professor of English Michael Saenger was an invited member of the delegation representing Academic Engagement Network (AEN), an organization dedicated to fighting academic antisemitism, at the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) “Never is Now” conference in New York City from March 3-4. The conference featured both Jews and allies who are working to fight a tide of Jew-hate that is rising at college campuses nationwide, including David Schwimmer, Gal Gadot, Billie Jean King, and Van Jones, as well as the presidents of the University of Michigan and Washington University in St. Louis. AEN and ADL announced a new partnership to clearly articulate that debate and protest about the Middle East is good, but harassment of Jewish students and calls for genocide must be stopped. A photo including Saenger and Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director of the ADL, to promote the work they are doing together can be seen here, via X.

Assistant Professor of Economics Hieu Nguyen had a research article accepted for publication in the peer-reviewed Journal of Comparative International Management. Dr. Nguyen, the study’s main contributor, and his co-authors, Quang Evansluong of Umeå University and Aliaksei Kazlou of Linköping University, employed the Getis-Ord statistic, a local indicator of spatial autocorrelation, and a combination of publicly available and restricted-access data on new business formation in Sweden, to extend the existing discourse on native and immigrant entrepreneurship. The selection and agglomeration theories of economics and the disadvantage and cultural-capital theories of entrepreneurship research were used to rationalize some of the patterns observed in the study. A link to the paper’s preprint is available here.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Margaret Bonds’ choral gem “Rainbow Gold” with E. C. Schirmer (St. Louis). Scored for mixed chorus and piano, “Rainbow Gold” was part of what Bonds called “a certain line” of compositions that she was “anxious to promote” after she became the only woman of color in classical music in the white- and male-dominated American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers in 1955, because the compositions advanced the cause of Black music and gave voice to the Black experience. She took it on a dangerous tour of thirteen Southern states as the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964 was gaining steam toward passage. In a letter to her family, she linked it to the end of segregation, tying the growing spirit of hope born of that Act’s progress to audiences’ enthusiasm for the piece and its populist message hailing the rewards that – so Bonds believed – would come to those who devoted themselves to doing good for others: “There’s a folly in believin’ / You can’t take it with you when / All these riches you’re achievin’ / No one else could use again, / It’s the pay you’ve been receivin’ / While you did good deeds for men – / Rainbow Gold.” Rainbow Gold posthumously premiered using a pre-publication print of Cooper’s edition by the Capitol Hill Chorale (Washington, D.C.) in 2022. Those interested in being moved to earn their own Rainbow Gold can hear that performance here.

Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Jennifer Stokes presented a workshop on “The Power of Collaborative Learning: Faculty and Student Reflections on the Implementation of Collaborative Critical Thinking Problem Set Sessions” at the Human Anatomy and Physiology Society’s Southern Regional Conference, which was held in Lakeland, FL on March 1.

Assistant Professor of Sociology Amanda Hernandez was selected to be in the Sacred Writes Spring 2025 Carpenter Cohort. Sacred Writes provides support, resources, and networks for scholars of religion committed to translating the significance of their research to a broader audience. This spring cohort focuses on training scholars of religion, gender, and sexuality on translating their work into public scholarship. More about the program and her cohort can be found here.

Joseph (Joe) Dorsey ’26, Gabriela Nicole Hislop Gomez ’26, Bryan Guzman-Sanchez ’26, Sabina Martinez Carreon ’28, and Amanda Mejia ’27 attended the Texas Academy of Science (TAS) 2025 Annual Meeting hosted in Waco. Joe and Amanda presented platform presentations on their research conducted in the bioprinting laboratory of Assistant Professor of Physics Cody Crosby. Joe was awarded first place among the platform presentations in the physics and engineering section. Dr. Crosby also contributed as one of the meeting’s section chairs.

Part-time Instructor of Applied Music Sarah Oliver published “The Biopsychosocial Approach: A New Path Toward Healing Physical Pain in Musicians” with Sage Journals. It will appear in the spring issue of the American String Teacher journal.

The weekend of February 28 – March 2 brought scientists from all over Texas to McLennan Community College and Baylor University in Waco, for the 145th Texas Academy of Sciences meeting. Ten students represented the Biology Department, including Gage Mallo ’26, Johun Reyes ’26, Annika Tracy ’25, Murphy Jacobie ’27, Madeleine Thomas ’26, Kylie Allemeier ’26, Katelin Pilarski ’26, Sarah Berver ’26, Alanna Guerrero ’25 and Jordan Emerson ’27. 

Based on her collaboration with Assistant Professor of Biology Kim McArthur, Annika gave a talk, titled “Location-independent axon pathfinding in the hindbrain of larval zebrafish,” that earned the first place undergraduate talk award for the neuroscience section. 

Madeleine presented a poster with her research mentor, Assistant Professor of Biology Sunny Scobell, titled “A morphological analysis of the dopaminergic pathway in the brain of a male pregnant pipefish.” Dr. Scobell also mentored Jennifer Smalz, a student from her previous institution (UD: The University of Dallas), who gave a talk titled “Investigating male pregnancy in Gulf Pipefish using scanning electron microscopy to describe the anatomy of the brood pouch over the reproductive cycle.” Ms. Smalz’ talk earned the first place undergraduate award in the systematics and evolutionary biology section. Within that section, Dr. Scobell also gave two presentations, one co-authored with UD student Farah Atarah, titled “Brood pouch anatomy throughout the course of male pregnancy in Gulf Pipefish,” and another focusing on her endocrinology, titled an “Investigation of the role of prolactin during reproduction in a fish with male pregnancy.”

Murphie presented a microbiology focused poster, titled “An affinity analysis of Aliivibrio fischeri and zooxanthellae” with the mentorship of Director of First Year Biology Laboratories Stacie Brown.

Working with Chair and Garey Professor of Biology Romi Burks, Gage presented a poster, titled “You better Belize they’re different: Phylogenetic analysis and species identification of native apple snails in Belize,” that garnered a first place best poster award in the systematics and evolutionary biology section. His poster co-author Johun secured first place in the Undergraduate Research Award Competition, complete with a $2,000 prize to continue the work, with his proposal, “Beneath Belizean waters: Discovering diversity of native apple snails in northern and southern Belize.” 

Also from the Burks lab, Kylie, Sarah, and Katelin shared their recent troubleshooting efforts in the lab in a poster titled “Extraordinary extraction efforts: Experiments to enhance DNA extraction for tissues of apple snails of conservation interests” that also used collections from Belize that occurred as part of the 2024 study abroad experience.

Dr. Burks also gave an oral presentation in the science education section about the recent undergraduate research experience that she developed in BIO50-222, Methods in Ecology and Evolution. Her talk, titled “Methodological microplastics: Development of an undergraduate CURE to quantify abundance of microplastic fibers in a local stream,” came out of conversations with microplastics expert Andre Felton from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Professor and Garey Chair of Chemistry and Biochemistry Maha Zewail-Foote is the first author of a landmark publication in Nucleic Acids Research, a top journal in the field showcasing leading edge research. This publication, “Oxidative damage within alternative DNA structures results in aberrant mutagenic processing,” is the result of years of dedicated work and marks a major scholarly milestone. Conducted in collaboration with a research team at UT Austin, this work demonstrates that certain DNA structures are particularly susceptible to damage, contributing to genetic instability — a key factor in diseases like cancer.

Isabella Bahamon ’25 was selected for the Southern Sociological Society’s 2025 Howard Odum Award for Best Undergraduate Paper for her capstone project titled, “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Choice: American Attitudes about Abortion Rights in the United States.” Professor of Sociology Maria Lowe supervised Isabella’s project during this year’s sociology capstone class.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published Margaret Bonds’ “Note on Commercial Theater” as part of the Margaret Bonds Signature Series  with Hildegard Publishing Company. The song is Margaret Bonds’ final art song based on a text of her longtime friend and collaborator Langston Hughes, an art song in the style of blues, and about the blues – and it is a searing critique of cultural appropriation: “You’ve taken my blues and gone – You sing ’em on Broadway and you sing ’em in Hollywood Bowl, and you mixed ’em up with symphonies, and you fixed ’em so they don’t sound like me … But someday somebody’ll stand up and talk about me, and write about me – Black and beautiful – and sing about me, and put on plays about me! I reckon it’ll be me myself! Yes, it’ll be me.” (To hear Hughes’ own reading of it with jazz accompaniment, click here.) Bonds wrote her in 1960-61 and at that time, Hughes’ assistant George Bass described it as “another message from the gods to man via MARGARET BONDS,” and a pre-publication version of Cooper’s edition (2019) was used for a videorecording released by the Antwerp-based team Songs of Comfort in 2021 (that powerful recording can be seen here) – but the song has until now remained in manuscript. This edition marks its first publication.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper and Part-Time Instructor of Music Christopher Washington published the world-premiere edition of Two Songs for Peggy Lee  by Margaret Bonds with ClarNan Editions. Cooper accessed the original autographs in the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture and the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library and prepared the volume as a whole, while Washington composed the piano part for “Don’t Speak,” which survives in lead sheet only (vocal line with chord changes, but no written-out accompaniment). The two songs represent Bonds’ well-known ability to synthesize classical and non-classical styles and offer a glimpse into the workings of Bonds’ genius as it had come to exist by 1968. “Don’t Speak” is a love song of great tenderness and eros-tinged intimacy, while the other song, “Bunker Hill,” is a hard-hitting critique of the human costs of urban renewal and gentrification, named for the storied Bunker Hill neighborhood of Los Angeles, whose poor and underserved community of immigrants and minorities was heartlessly displaced in 1958 so that the area could be redeveloped with high-rise, high-rent, and predominantly white-owned facilities.

Professor of Education Michael Kamen and Associate Professor of Curriculum Instruction and Learning Sciences at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Debra Plowman published “The 5E Instructional Model Gets an F? Is it Time to Move On?” in the Winter 2025 newsletter of the International Consortium for Research in Science and Mathematics Education. Their quarterly column tells the ongoing story of the fictional character, Ian Quiry, as he studies and struggles to learn how to be an effective elementary school STEM teacher. The newsletter can be read here.

Several psychology faculty members and students presented posters at the annual meeting of the Society of Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) in Denver this past weekend. Professor of Psychology Erin Crockett, along with current capstone students Clayton Crusius ’25 and Sarah Doroshow ’25, presented a poster, titled “Self-Expanding in a Virtual Reality World,” at the main conference. Associate Professor of Psychology Carin Perilloux, along with current capstone students Samantha Gonzalez ’25, Gwen Metz ’25, Georgia Micknal ’25, and Griffin Salinas ’25, presented a poster titled “A Labor of Love (Mostly): Developing a Self-Perceived Parental Effort Scale” at the Evolutionary Psychology Pre-Conference.

Assistant Professor of Philosophy Zinhle ka’Nobuhlaluse co-edited, along with Maha Marouan and Alicia Decker, and contributed a critical interview to the piece “In Conversation with Mamphela Ramphele on the Urgency of Storytelling for Blackwomen in South Africa,” in Writing African Feminist Subjectivities, the first-ever special issue on African feminism in the history of the journal Feminist Formations. This landmark issue, now live on Project MUSE, brings together a powerful collective of feminist scholars, activists, and artists, engaging with African feminist thought in profound and transformative ways. The Writing African Feminist Subjectivities  issue can be accessed here.

Associate Professor of Theatre Kerry Bechtel was invited to collaborate with the Drama Department at Austin Community College (ACC) on their production of The Long Christmas Ride Home  by award-winning playwright Paula Vogel. Bechtel designed the costumes and mentored three ACC students in costumes, hair, makeup, and puppetry. This deeply moving play chronicles a seminal event in the life of Vogel and her siblings and features bunraku puppetry. The production runs through March 2, 2025. Tickets can be reserved here.

Vice President and Dean for Student Life Brit Katz’ essay, “Latitude for the Attitude of Gratitude,” was accepted for publication in the book The Intentional Life: Crafting Your Legacy One Day at a Time, edited by Dr. David Anderson. The editor announced a publication date of late Summer/early Fall 2025.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music Jeanne Hourez has been elected to the College Music Society South Central Chapter Board as the Advisory Board Member for Performance. In this role, Dr. Hourez hopes to build stronger connections between institutions in the South Central region. She aims to encourage more performance opportunities for students and faculty from colleges in the region, as well as to develop exchanges with surrounding communities. She also seeks to promote collaboration between different musical fields.

Part-Time Assistant Professor of Music and concert cellist Hai Zheng Olefsky has been teaching and coaching top young talents in the greater Austin area. Three of her students won cello auditions in the 2024–2025 Texas All-State Symphony and Philharmonic Orchestras, including the first cello chair of the Philharmonic Orchestra, sponsored by the Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA). Two of her cello students from St. Stephen’s School won cello auditions for the Texas Private School Music Educator Association (TPSMEA) 2024–2025 All-State Orchestra.

Assistant Professors of Sociology Adriana Ponce and Amanda Hernandez, Assistant Professor of Political Science Alexander Goodwin, Assistant Professor of History Bryan Kauma, and Assistant Professor of English Sonia Del Hierro published “Teaching with Color: Thematic Hires and the Politics of Teaching in Texas,” in the journal Sociology of Race and Ethnicity. This article joins a growing conversation in the humanities and humanistic social sciences on ways faculty of color shoulder the burden of thinking about our shared futures as racialized, intersectional, and collaborative. You can find the article here.

Associate Professor of Communication Studies Lamiyah Bahrainwala (LB) has secured a donation of two dozen volumes by Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar from the Ambedkarite Buddhist Association of Texas (ABAT). Dr. Ambedkar is one of the world’s most important contemporary thinkers, and authored the Constitution of India, the world’s largest democracy. He is also a leading anti-caste and Black-solidarity activist who has collaborated with W.E.B. DuBois to explore the overlapping injustices against Black and Dalit individuals. Metadata and Discovery Librarian Hong Yu and Director of the A. Frank Smith, Jr. Library Center Casey Duncan processed and catalogued the materials for the Library Center. In honor of Black History Month and this important donation, please join us for a special panel and refreshments in the Periodicals Room in the Library (the “First Thursdays” room) on Thursday, February 20, from 1:00 – 2:30 p.m. The panelists include Ambedkarite scholars from UT Austin, and members from ABAT who will contextualize the donation.

Assistant Professor of Theatre Gabriel Peña, Scene Shop Supervisor Monroe Oxley, and Professor of Theatre Desiderio Roybal collaborated on Adam Gwan’s chamber musical, Ordinary Days, for Penfold Theatre. This intimate musical follows four individuals as they navigate the frantic energy of New York City. Audiences are invited to consider the beauty of the ordinary as the characters connect, fall apart, lose each other, and find themselves. Peña served as director, Oxley as technical director, and Roybal as scenic designer. SU theatre major Bethani Pedraza ’25 and theatre minor Yeva Tcharikova ’28 provided technical assistance. Penfold Theatre is a 501(c)(3) professional theatre company recently setting roots in Round Rock, TX after 15 years of producing theatre in the greater Austin area. The productions run February 7 – March 1 at their new permanent home in Round Rock. The trailer, tickets, and information about Penfold Theatre is available here.

Regional Associate Director of Admission Jaime Gonzalez has completed the certification needed to become an interviewer for Gates Millennium Scholarship (GMS) finalists and will begin interviews this March. According to their website, “the goal of the GMS program is to promote academic excellence and to provide an opportunity for outstanding minority students with significant financial need to reach their highest potential.”

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published “Three Early Songs” by Margaret Bonds with Hildegard Publishing Company (Worcester, MA). The volume is the first publication of three works written before Bonds moved to New York, where she would spend most of the rest of her career, in October 1939. The earliest of the three songs, “Sleep Song” (text by Joyce Kilmer) was written when Bonds was just 14. The second, “The Sea Ghost” (text by Frank Dempster Sherman), written in 1931 or early 1932, is a parable of recognition of repressed traumatic memory; it is significant because it enhanced Bonds’ national recognition by winning the Rodman Wanamaker Competition in Musical Compsition for Composers of the Negro Race in 1932 (the prize of $250 is the equivalent of about $5,200 today). And the third song, “Sunset,” written ca. 1934-1938, is Bonds’ only known setting of the poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar – a glistening meditation on the beauties of daylight passing into the beautiful darkness of night.

Professor of Music Michael Cooper published the first edition of “Joy,” written by Margaret Bonds on a text of Langston Hughes, with Hildegard Publishing Company (Worcester, MA). Written for four-part mixed chorus and piano, the composition has the greatest compositional longevity and variety of any of Bonds’ works, having first been composed in 1936 and then re-arranged by the composer at least seven times for various forces over the next twenty years. The reason for that recursive process is probably the lesson taught by Hughes’ parable-poem and Bonds’ music: that Joy/joy is not the exclusive domain of “upstanding” institutions such as churches and universities – Hughes wrote the poem just after he had abandoned his studies at Columbia University due to that institution’s deeply ingrained racism – but rather something that is equally often found in humble, ne’er-do-well quarters. That is an idea that both poet and composer lived by – and Margaret Bonds’ music gives exultant voice to its beauty. Those interested in hearing the music (which was released on Conspirare’s Grammy-nominated album “The House of Belonging” last year) can find it here.

Professor of Philosophy Michael Bray discussed the crisis of democracy and populist politics as the guest for an episode of the limited podcast series Crisis Point, run by the Sheffield Political Economy Research Institute (SPERI) at the University of Sheffield, England. The series will air in March.

Counselor Geneva Walker, LPC, recently presented a meaningful talk on self-care and mindfulness to the mothers and daughters of the Austin360 Chapter of the National Charity League. Her presentation highlighted the importance of prioritizing mental health and well-being, incorporating practical tools and a guided meditation to inspire intentional living. Geneva’s commitment to fostering growth and resilience continues to make a positive impact both on and off campus.

Associate Professor of Theatre Kerry Bechtel designed the costumes for Unity Theatre’s production of The Trip to Bountiful. This mid-20th century play was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning Texas native Horton Foote and explores themes of longing, discontent, and family. This production runs from February 6 through February 23 in historic Brenham, Texas. Tickets can be purchased at unitybrenham.org.