Everything Nac

Stephen F. Austin State University psychology graduate student Stacey Kerr recently received the 2017 Marilyn M. Odom Graduate Student Award from SFA’s Alumni Association.

A native of Spring Creek, Nevada, Kerr said she is honored to receive this award. “There are a lot of talented and bright graduate students at SFA, and I am in awe to have been both nominated and chosen for such an award. I am grateful to the professors and my colleagues and family for their support in my desire to pursue higher education.”

Kerr completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at the College of Idaho in Caldwell. During her time there, she met Dr. Lauren Brewer, assistant professor of psychology at SFA. Brewer recruited Kerr for SFA’s master’s program and nominated her for the award.

Kerr credits Dr. Brewer and the rest of the Department of Psychology professors as guiding and encouraging her to complete her master’s degree. “They not only mentor their students in and out of the classroom, but also foster independent pursuit of research and knowledge,” Kerr said. “I was able to earn a master’s degree in a subject that provided me with invaluable research experience and the opportunity to further cultivate leadership skills, helping me prepare for a future in the field of medicine.”

The Marilyn Odom Graduate Student Award is granted to full-time students who have a 3.8 GPA or better for all graduate work at SFA, with at least 24 graduate hours of course work taken in residence at SFA.

By Emily Brown, marketing communications specialist for Stephen F. Austin State University.

Scientists and science students from universities across the nation will soon be wearing T-shirts designed by Lumberjacks.

Stephen F. Austin State University students won the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology’s national T-shirt design contest. T-shirts with the design will be sold at the society’s 2018 annual Experimental Biology meeting in San Diego in April.

“It is a great honor for our chapter to be receiving this award, especially after all of the hard work that was put into the design,” said Logan Sheffield, SFA ASBMB chapter president and senior biology major from Angleton, Texas. “It was exciting to see that we were able to compete with the other universities, some of which are much larger than SFA.”

Volunteering in various on-campus events, chapter members are active participants in STEM Academy, Girl Scout STEM Day and High School STEM Day. Off campus, members volunteer at Nacogdoches Memorial Hospital, participate in the annual Undergraduate Research Conference hosted by the School of Honors and present research at events such as the ASBMB conference.

“The ASBMB SFA student chapter focuses on expanding the knowledge of biochemistry and molecular biology to undergraduate and graduate students,” said Carmel Tovar, chapter secretary and senior biochemistry major from San Antonio.

The chapter also seeks to inspire prospective students by participating in university-supported programs for high school students, Tovar said.

“By mentoring future generations, the idea of pursuing higher education, especially in the STEM field, becomes more of a reality than a dream,” Tovar said.

Not just an organization for STEM majors, the chapter is open to anyone wanting to get involved, Sheffield said.

“I believe our ASBMB chapter is a great organization to join for any student who is interested in biomedical sciences, as well as those that just wish to build their résumé by getting involved on campus,” Sheffield said.

For more information about the chapter, contact Dr. Tayo Odunuga, faculty adviser and associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, at odunugaoo@sfasu.edu.

By Joanna Armstrong, senior marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University

A chorus of firefighters confront Cumming, Georgia, junior Shane Reynolds as Gottlieb Biedermann in the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre’s presentation of Max Frisch’s “(Biedermann and) The Firebugs.” Curtain goes up at 7:30 nightly through Saturday, March 3, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus. Chorus members include Nychollete Easter, Houston freshman; Kaitlyn Kirby, Plano senior; Bayley Owen, Royce City sophomore; James Burns, Troup senior; and Caitlin Bice, Flint senior. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.theatre.sfasu.edu. Single tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and $7.50 for students/youth.