Everything Nac

Stephen F. Austin State University’s Office of Research and Graduate Studies recently announced the 2023 recipients of the President’s Innovation Fund, which rewards efforts to enhance innovative recruitment, retention and teaching practices that focus on student success.

This year, there were 13 recipients — those included teams and individuals, faculty and staff — who received more than $145,000 in total awards. They are given to those who proposed novel ways to approach recruitment, retention, teaching and learning, with a particular focus on helping more students from all backgrounds to not only persist but to excel.

Highlights include a $34,000 award to Dr. Keith Hubbard, professor in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, and Dr. Dipak Singh, assistant professor in the Department of Computer Science, to build on a multiyear effort to collect and analyze data on student engagement and success; and a $7,435 award to a team from the DeWitt School of Nursing to implement a three-day nursing summer camp for high school students.

Faculty members who received implementation awards in the previous cycle were invited to submit a follow-up proposal that focused on enhancing or refining the initial implementation project, with a second phase to replicate the project on a broader scale or across other disciplines.

Recipients will present the results of their projects in fall 2023. For a complete list of recipients and the awards they received, visit the President’s Innovation Fund.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host its annual Garden Gala Day Plant Sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 1 and 2 at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, located at 2900 Raguet St.

The sale will feature more than 300 varieties of hard-to-find, “Texas-tough” plants, including Texas natives, edibles, tropicals, perennials, shrubs and trees, with an emphasis on pollinator-friendly selections. The sale also will offer exclusive SFA introductions. The featured plants are produced by SFA Gardens staff members and volunteers, and a full list of available plants will be posted at sfasu.edu/sfagardens two weeks before the sale.

This popular event benefits the SFA Mast Arboretum, PNPC, Ruby M. Mize Azalea Garden and Gayla Mize Garden, along with educational programs hosted monthly at the gardens. Educational programs provided at the SFA Gardens reach more than 15,000 participants annually.

Parking will be available at SFA’s Janice A. Pattillo Early Childhood Research Center, located at 2428 Raguet St. Visitors are encouraged to arrive early and bring a wagon for their plants.

For more information, call (936) 468-4404 or visit sfasu.edu/sfagardens.