Everything Nac

Registration is underway for fall classes in the Music Preparatory Division of the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music, according to Alba Madrid, Music Prep director.

The fall roster for youth includes private lessons in piano, violin, cello, viola, bass, voice, trumpet and guitar. Lessons may be available for other instruments upon request. Group classes will be offered in piano for adults and children, Kindermusik (for students ages 0 to 6), Strings Project, children’s chorus (for students ages 9 to 15), youth orchestras and Raguet Strings for adult students. Lessons begin Aug. 15.

Strings Project students have the opportunity to learn to play a stringed instrument at a low tuition cost as part of an after-school activity. The project is grant and community funded. The SFA Children’s Chorus offers an introduction into choral singing for students in second through eighth grades. In this program, students are given opportunities to enjoy music and participate in a group to sing, play games and interact with other students in a musical setting. This choir is intended as a preparatory program to learn skills needed for upper level choral singing, according to Madrid.

Registration for private and group instruction can be completed online at sfamusicprep.com or by calling (936) 468-1291. Prices range from $20 to $180 per month, depending on frequency, type of lesson and lesson length. Some scholarships may be available to qualifying applicants.

The Music Prep House is located at 3028 Raguet St. Office hours are 1 to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Madrid can also be contacted at: madrida@sfasu.edu or musicprep@sfasu.edu. Parents can also find program information on Facebook and Instagram.

Stephen F. Austin State University has combined six of its key health and wellness resources into one centralized hub so students can get help faster when they need it.

Part of SFA’s Lumberjack Wellness Network, the new Health and Wellness Hub includes Health Services, Counseling Services, Student Outreach and Support, the Lumberjack Food Pantry, and a Chartwells dietitian. It also provides access to services at the Family Crisis Center of East Texas off campus.

“The Health and Wellness Hub offers comprehensive services that treat the whole person — mind, body and spirit,” said Andrew J. Dies, SFA’s assistant vice president of student affairs and dean of students. “We want to support the health and well-being of every Lumberjack.”

These services were previously spread out in different buildings across campus, but students often need a combination of these services when they’re in crisis.

“Many students find it difficult or are unaware of how to make the first step in taking care of themselves,” said Marcie Shoemaker, director of Health Services operations. “Having our services in one location allows us to take a look at the whole person and focus on what matters to them.”

Health and Wellness Hub personnel are hoping students who were reluctant to seek mental health services in the past find it easier to do so through the hub.

“My hope is that by creating the hub, we are helping to demystify counseling by having a place where students can go to really connect with someone and get the help they need,” said Clare Fite, director of Counseling Services. “Through the hub, students who are struggling either emotionally or socially and may not know where to go or whom to talk to will be connected with the appropriate people and departments that can provide them with guidance and support.”

The hub works to address the seven dimensions of wellness: career/financial, emotional, environmental, intellectual, physical, socio-cultural and spiritual. By maintaining balance among these dimensions, students improve their odds of finishing college and moving on to a successful and fulfilling career.

The Health and Wellness Hub, located in the Tucker Building at the corner of Raguet and East College streets, is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. To learn more, visit sfasu.edu/thehub.

Following recent approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Stephen F. Austin State University’s School of Social Work will begin offering a Doctorate of Social Work program in spring 2023, officially becoming the university’s fourth doctoral-level degree option.

SFA’s DSW program is structured to enhance the clinical expertise of social workers while also containing a pedagogical track that prepares graduates for teaching in bachelor’s- and master’s-level social work programs. It also will prepare social workers to enter leadership positions in health care management and administration.

“SFA’s overarching goal focuses on creating transformational learning experiences for students, and the DSW program strongly aligns with this goal,” said Dr. Emmerentie Oliphant, interim chair of SFA’s School of Social Work and the Buddy Zeagler Endowed Professor. “Students will be engaged in learning and will practice opportunities to develop leadership, teaching and practice competencies. The program also will provide experiential learning opportunities based on social work practice realities, which will develop students’ abilities to address social problems. The social work practice will focus on individuals, families, groups, communities and organizations.”

The need for social workers is at an all-time high in Texas and the United States, and the need gives rise to an accompanying need for more social work instructors to teach in bachelor’s and master’s social work programs.

The School of Social Work recognized a need for a doctoral program in 2007 and, under the leadership of Dr. Freddie Avant, associate dean of the School of Social Work, established a planning committee in 2010.

“The Bachelor of Social Work and Master of Social Work are already among SFA’s largest academic programs,” said Dr. Marc Guidry, SFA associate provost. “The DSW will further enhance the School of Social Work’s reputation as the premier provider of social work education in East Texas and take our Center for Rural Social Work Research to new heights. Adding a doctoral program adds to the reputation of the entire university for academic excellence at the highest level. Therefore, the DSW will be an anchor program for the university and a magnet for recruiting high-performing students to our campus.”

SFA is one of two Texas universities to offer the DSW program. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved Angelo State University’s DSW program at the same time as SFA’s. However, unlike Angelo State, SFA will offer in-person courses.

Currently, the nearest higher education institution to offer a DSW program is Tulane University in New Orleans, which is more than 350 miles from Nacogdoches. Therefore, the addition of the DSW program addresses a regional need for East Texas.

“I am very proud of the staff and faculty who have worked so hard to make the DSW a reality,” said Dr. Lorenzo Smith, SFA provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. “This is another great example of how SFA is serving as the anchor university for deep East Texas.”

The initial DSW cohort will consist of 10 students, and classes will be held on Fridays to make it accessible for those who work.

For more information, contact Oliphant at oliphante@sfasu.edu, or visit sfasu.edu/socialwork.