Everything Nac

Stephen F. Austin State University’s horticulture program will host a spring plant sale from noon to 2 p.m. Thursday, May 6, and Friday, May 14, at the SFA Plantery, located at 1924 Wilson Drive.

“Our students have worked hard this spring growing a great crop of plants that will do well in East Texas,” said Dr. Jared Barnes, associate professor of horticulture at SFA’s Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture. “With this plant sale, we want to show off our student’s hard work in the greenhouses, as well as the opportunities offered through SFA’s agriculture department.”

Plants available for purchase include a variety of houseplants, succulents, tropical plants and spring annuals. All proceeds support future educational projects in SFA’s horticulture program.

COVID-19 protocols will be in place to help ensure a safe shopping environment. Social distancing and face coverings are required.

For more information, contact Barnes at (936) 468-7850 or barnesj@sfasu.edu. The community also may learn more about the horticulture program by visiting www.horticultureisawesome.com/the-plantery or following @sfahorticulture on Instagram.

Lauren Selden, professor of art at Stephen F. Austin State University, was the featured artist for April at Indiana University East in Richmond, Indiana.

Selden’s public sculpture titled “Charlie” is currently on display in Richmond. In an interview with Selden, she shares a look into her work, inspiration, creative process, problem solving and teaching philosophy in a YouTube video accessed at www.iue.edu/gallery.

“Your amazing energy, words and work will have a great impact on our students and community,” Nate Kuznia, IUE studio and gallery coordinator, wrote.

Selden also discussed the challenges of 2020 and how the pandemic’s restrictions affected her approach to making her own art, which was previously inspired significantly by travel. Current work is especially inspired by time spent with her daughter and her interactions with her students. “Artists are so good at adapting,” she said. “We kept rolling with the punches.”

Selden’s work may also be accessed at https://seldenart.com.

Online learning platform Study.com has ranked Stephen F. Austin State University among its 2021 Best Bachelor’s Degrees in Creative Writing.

Over 40 million visitors per month use Study.com to research potential schools, degrees and careers. The Best Bachelor’s Degrees list helps users learn about universities and top programs like those offered at SFA.

Study.com compiled the list by considering hundreds of universities across the country and selected SFA based on academic and career resources, the quality of education, faculty, and more.

SFA’s creative writing program, housed in the Department of English and Creative Writing, is the only creative writing program in Texas and one of just a handful in the nation to offer a Bachelor of Fine Arts.

“We create a positive environment where students have an opportunity to write in a variety of genres,” said Dr. John McDermott, program coordinator and professor of creative writing at SFA. “We strive to work individually with students, especially during the two semesters of their senior thesis. We have a small, vibrant literary community where the students and professors get to know each other.”

Students within the program take courses in poetry, fiction and nonfiction before completing their thesis during their senior year. Additionally, students complete a literature minor to help ensure they have achieved a well-rounded library of knowledge.

SFA offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts in creative writing, and both an undergraduate and graduate minor in creative writing.

For more information on the program, visit sfasu.edu/English.

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