Everything Nac

The Calliope Concert Series at Stephen F. Austin State University will present guest artist Jacquelyn Adams performing a horn recital at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 29, in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

Adams, who is assistant professor of horn at The University of Southern Mississippi, will perform with her husband, award-winning fiddler Thomas Jenkins, accompanied by SFA School of Music faculty member James Pitts, piano.

“Jacquelyn Adams is a rising star in the horn world as a pedagogue and performer,” said Dr. Charles Gavin, professor of horn at SFA. “It will be great for our students and the students of East Texas to experience her.”

Adams, who is also a faculty member at the Kendall Betts Horn Camp, plays principal horn with the Pensacola Symphony Orchestra, Meridian Symphony Orchestra and Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra; she is also third horn with the Mobile Symphony Orchestra. Additional orchestral experience includes performances with the Opera Company of Philadelphia, Albany Symphony, Fort Worth Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the National Symphony of the Dominican Republic.

She has performed with renowned artists representing an array of genres from Kanye West to Luciano Pavarotti. A former New York City resident, her on-Broadway experience includes “Beauty and the Beast,” “South Pacific,” “West Side Story,” “Lion King” and “Legally Blonde.” Television and movie appearances include CBS’s “The Early Show,” Disney’s “Step Up 3D” and BET’s Music Awards 2007.

The SFA program will include standards of the horn repertoire, new works written for Adams and musical collaboration with her husband, who is an expert at improvisation, Gavin said.

“They will combine to present a unique genre of music for horn and fiddle,” he said. “This will be a unique and engaging performance!”

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

The Music Preparatory Division in the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music will host its annual fall Middle School Choir Camp from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 23, in the Wright Music Building on the SFA campus.

The choir camp is designed to help East Texas area middle school students learn their UIL all-region competition music, according to Pat Barnett, director of the Music Preparatory Division.

Dr. Tod Fish, associate director of choral activities at SFA, is the combined conductor for the camp. Clinicians are Charlotte Davis, adjunct faculty, soprano I; Amanda Sheriff, graduate student, soprano II; Evelyn Shaffer, graduate student, alto; Nita Hudson, lecturer of voice and opera, tenor; and Dr. Chris Turner, assistant professor of voice, bass.

Accompanists are Donna Dear, Nio Ajero, Kaden Harman, Alan Zamarron and Emma Terrell, piano, and Jonah Raychev, violin. The Music Preparatory Division’s Advisory Board is in charge of arrangements. Nicole Stewart, vice-president of the advisory board, is the overall camp director.

All participants should bring Region 21 All-Region music, pencil, water and a snack. Concessions will be available for purchase during scheduled breaks. The dining hall in the Baker Pattillo Student Center will be open from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Cost per student is $20. Registration is accepted by calling (936) 468-1291 or by email at pbarnett@sfasu.edu.

With excitement and anticipation, Mary Jo Goodwin Morris made the five-hour drive from her home in New Braunfels to the campus of Stephen F. Austin State University.

The 87-year-old former SFA twirler had been invited to attend the Lumberjack Marching Band and Twirl-O-Jacks Reunion and to perform with an SFA alumni band in Homer Bryce Stadium prior to the kickoff of the football game between the SFA Lumberjacks and the University of Incarnate Word.

A number of Morris’ family members, including some of the seven siblings in her family, two of her four sons and several of her nieces and nephews, either graduated from or attended SFA. Her baby brother, the late Judge Gerald A. Goodwin of Lufkin, was an SFA graduate. So the memories she carried with her back to campus for the reunion represented “some of the happiest times of my life,” she said.

Morris had returned to campus many times for events that celebrated the SFA Twirl-O-Jacks’ rich history. Most recently, she attended events last year that celebrated The Lumberjack Marching Band’s 90th anniversary and the Twirl-O-Jacks’ 60th anniversary.

After graduating from Lufkin High School, Morris was a freshman at SFA in the fall of 1948 and made the twirling line that year and the following. She recalls wearing the “freshman cap,” living in Gibbs Hall, “doing a lot of crazy things” and riding around in roommate Doris Smith’s convertible.

The rivalry between what was then Sam Houston State Teachers College was strong even in those days, she said, recalling when a group of guys from Sam Houston “painted up campus,” were caught and sentenced to serving meals in the dormitories and leading SFA cheers outside the dorms.

“One who had attended SFA before going to Huntsville was put in a wooden and screened box and put on the train to ride back to Huntsville,” she said. “It was unbelievable.”

She was a member of the Pine Burrs (now Chi Omega), whose initiation attire remains vivid in her mind.

“We wore these old tow sacks that had pine cones all around them,” she said. “We had a clock hanging around our necks, wore pigtails with purple bows in our hair and no makeup, and wore one high heel and one low heel shoe. There was a photo of us in the annual.

“I loved SFA and had a wonderful two years there,” she said. “SFA was real special.”

Her college and twirling career was sidelined when she met Ferrell Morris of Pasadena while she was working during summers in the Houston area. The two married in the fall of 1950, and Mary Jo had a large wedding party, including her roommate from college and many of her twirling colleagues. Mary Jo and Ferrell had a long and happy life together and were blessed with four sons and a lifetime of adventurous careers and extensive travel, including a few years in the Middle East. Throughout the years, Morris has enjoyed working with children, often as a teacher and now as a “reading buddy” for students in the New Braunfels area and as a kindergarten Sunday School class teacher.

She stays active by working out at area gyms, including participating in water aerobics. She still mows her own lawn, and not with a riding lawnmower, she points out.

“My kids fuss at me for that,” she said, “but all I have to do is turn the key and follow it. As long as I can keep doing what I’m doing, I want to keep going as long as I can.”

Morris enjoyed reconnecting with her past at Saturday’s reunion. She said event organizers and representatives of the SFA Alumni Association “have been so precious to me.”

“They have reached out to me, and I feel so flattered,” she said, adding that she enjoyed meeting SFA President Dr. Baker Pattillo and sitting with him and his wife, Dr. Janice Pattillo, during the game. Prior to the weekend, she said she was looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones.

“It’s exciting at my age to get this attention,” she said. “It’s flattering. They treated me like I was special, when I’m just another human being, just passing through this world.”

Beginning the week of Sept. 18 through Friday, Nov. 17, Stephen F. Austin State University’s Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture will host NacogdoTREES, a free, community-wide contest celebrating the natural beauty of Nacogdoches.

“The goal of the NacogdoTREES is to highlight the importance of urban and community trees, raise awareness of their ecological benefits, introduce the community to the field of forestry and encourage citizens to spend time outdoors,” said Sarah Fuller, outreach coordinator for SFA’s Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture.

The competition includes categories for largest tree circumference, largest crown, tallest tree, best shade tree as well as best tree overall. To teach some of the basic forestry measurements, such as tree height and crown spread, college faculty members also developed videos available on the competition webpage that guide participants through the process.

“Keep in mind that it’s not just all about numbers and measurements,” said Dr. Shelby Laird, SFA assistant professor of forestry. “The best overall tree may be the tree with the best story, the most fans or simply just the most beautiful. We really hope that NacogdoTREES will encourage people to get out to some of our amazing city parks and recreation areas on campus.”

The competition also will serve as a learning opportunity for beginning forestry students at SFA. Students enrolled in Laird’s course, Careers and Competencies in Forestry, will execute technical measurements needed to determine the winners of those categories. Laird said she also hopes the competition will provide insight into what specifically endears individuals to certain trees, and provide baseline data for future research.

Trees eligible for submission must be located on the SFA campus, properties managed by Nacogdoches Parks and Recreation or on your personal property. For competition guidelines and entry form, a list of prizes, as well as area maps and resources, visit forestry.sfasu.edu/nacogdotrees.

During the past 10 years, the Gilbert I. “Buddy” Low Scholarship Program has covered the cost of tuition and fees for several San Augustine High School graduates to attend Stephen F. Austin State University.

Those involved with the scholarship program recently celebrated a decade of promoting student success with a luncheon that brought scholarship donors, current and past scholarship recipients, and SFA administrators together.

Low, who graduated from SFA in 1954 and is a trial attorney with Orgain Bell & Tucker in Beaumont, credits his San Augustine teachers with preparing him for the rigors of higher education.

“When I got to SFA, I did well because of the quality education I received from my teachers in San Augustine,” Low said. “I had a job on campus and did pipeline work — hard, hot work — and saved during the summers to pay for my education. I started the scholarship program because I wanted to help students like me who really couldn’t afford to go to college be able to attend SFA and concentrate on their studies.”

Low’s pay-it-forward approach has helped 31 SFA students achieve their dream of higher education.

“During the past decade, we have selected three scholarship recipients per year to join this elite group of student leaders,” said W. Frank Newton, president and chief executive officer of the Beaumont Foundation of America, which administers the scholarship program. “From year to year, the recipients become mentors and support the subsequent year’s recipients, thus continuing the cycle of academic success.”

The scholarships are awarded based on financial need as well as potential for academic success in college. Interested students are screened by the school district and participate in an interview with representatives of the Beaumont Foundation of America.

“If not for this scholarship, I don’t think I would have been financially able to attend college,” said Ben Eberlan, 2014 San Augustine High School graduate and accounting major at SFA. “While the scholarships provide the funds to help us attend college, there is a tremendous support system in place, as well, that helps ensure our success. Everyone from university administrators to faculty members is vested in helping us graduate. If we need help, we get it.”

Twelve scholarship recipients were present at the luncheon along with eight SFA administrators, including SFA President Dr. Baker Pattillo; Dr. Steve Bullard, provost and vice president for academic affairs; Jill Still, vice president for university advancement; and Drs. Janet Tareilo and Mary Nelle Brunson, associate provosts.

“The 1.5-to-1 student-to-administrator ratio at today’s luncheon is a clear indicator of SFA’s commitment to the success of the students in this program,” Newton said. “Many of these administrators have spent time teaching and know that it’s not just the availability of academic resources that make students successful — it’s also about the relationship between the students and those they look to as leaders and mentors.”

Each scholarship recipient is eligible to receive up to $11,200 per year for four years of study at SFA. In addition to paying for tuition and fees, the scholarship also provides reimbursement for books and supplies.

“When I found out I was a Buddy Low Scholarship recipient, I was overwhelmed with joy,” said Cordestine Clifton, a 2014 San Augustine High School graduate and SFA kinesiology major. “Knowing that I had this backing from the program took so much weight off me and my parents. I can go to school now and concentrate on my studies and not have to worry about accumulating debt.”

Chelsea Heidbrink, SFA student success coordinator, manages all student aspects of the program.

“I work to ensure that the students are meeting the scholarship requirements, are engaging at the university, and I help to eliminate the barriers they may face in college,” Heidbrink said. “I advocate for the students and help them in any way I can so their journey at SFA is as smooth as possible.”

During the luncheon, Pattillo addressed attendees and acknowledged Low for his support in helping students from his hometown reach their academic potential.

“Buddy Low never forgot where he came from,” Pattillo said. “His generosity combined with his expectation of success has provided the opportunity for these students to live and learn in a student-centered environment. They have already proven to be leaders among students, and there is no doubt that they will go on to become leaders in their communities and professions.”

For questions about the scholarship program, contact April Smith, associate director of development at SFA, at (936) 468-5406.

By Donna Parish, assistant director of creative services at Stephen F. Austin State University.

The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music will present faculty members Christina Guenther and Ron Petti in a recital at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 26, in Cole Concert Hall as part of the Calliope Concert Series.

Guenther, professor of flute, and Petti, director of accompanying at SFA, will perform the program “Song and Dance” featuring works by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, Franz Schubert, Grigoras Dinicu, Samuel Barber, Eugène Bozza, Philippe Gaubert and Eldin Burton.

The program opens with Bach’s “Hamburger Sonata,” which was written in Hamburg, Germany, in 1786. “While neither movement is technically a dance, the second, Rondo, is dance-like in character,” Guenther explained. C.P.E. Bach is the most famous son of the great Baroque master Johann Sebastian Bach and falls into the period between Baroque and Classical known as the Empfindsamer Styl (sensitive style).

“During this period, one can see, read, and hear what is known as Sturm und Drang (storm and stress) in visual art, literature and music,” Guenther said. “This is featured in proto-Romantic ways through subjectivity and freedom of emotion and expression.”

The program also includes Theobald Boehm’s arrangement of two Schubert Lieder – Der Lindenbaum and Ständchen, followed by Romanian composer and violinist Dinicu’s Hora Staccato. “Dinicu wrote this piece in 1906 for his graduation from the Bucharest Conservatory,” Guenther said. “A lively dance written in the Romanina hora style, it is a famous piece originally written for violin.”

The program continues with three songs that are not related, Guenther said, “but we find them to make a lovely set together; each of the three pieces has a title that means ‘song.'” The set features Barber’s Canzone, Bozza’s Aria, and Gaubert’s Madrigal. The recital concludes with Burton’s three-movement Sonatina.

“This piece was written in 1948 as a composition project while Burton was at the Juilliard School,” Guenther said. “It is his only published work and won the 1948 New York Flute Club’s composition contest. Burton’s only other known work is an unpublished flute concerto.”

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.