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Dr. Shannon Darst, assistant professor, and Donna “DJ” Dean, clinical instructor, in Stephen F. Austin State University’s Department of Education Studies received two of the 12 awards presented by the Texas Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired in 2020 for leadership and service in the field.

Darst received the Phil Hatlen Award, which is presented to an administrator or a university professor who has implemented innovative changes or provided outstanding leadership that ultimately improved services to programming and the quality of life for students with visual impairments.

Darst met Hatlen early in her career while working as a teaching assistant at the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. He encouraged her to continue seeking her passions.

“I never realized that working with individuals with visual impairments was a passion of mine until many years after Dr. Hatlen’s initial encouragement to pursue my passions,” Darst said. “I love this work. I love the people who share in this work with me. I love the kids and adults with whom I have been lucky and blessed to work alongside. The giver in me can never get enough of the work I am so graciously allowed to do every day.”

A published author, Darst has worked with prospective teachers of students with visual impairments across the U.S. since 2014. She developed several courses, including online courses in Unified English Braille code after the transition to the UEB code in 2015. Darst facilitates SFA’s graduate visual impairment preparation program.

Dr. Rona Pogrund, a professor of special education at Texas Tech University, was one of Darst’s nominators for the Phil Hatlen Award.

“Dr. Darst is an emerging leader in the field of visual impairment,” Pogrund said. “She works tirelessly to improve services and to train high-quality future teachers.”

Pogrund added that Darst has contributed significantly to the development and validation of research on two service intensity tools that have impacted services for children who are blind and visually impaired across the nation.

“She serves on multiple stakeholder and professional organization committees, providing leadership wherever she goes,” Pogrund said. “Dr. Darst brings passion and expertise to all that she does to improve the lives of individuals with visual impairments. She is most deserving of this award.”

TAER’s orientation and mobility division presented Dean with the Bob Bryant and Bill Bryan O&M Leadership Award, which is given to an individual who has made an enduring impact on the field of O&M in the state.

Dean said she was “surprised and humbled” by the honor of receiving the award named after Bob Bryant and Bill Bryan, who started the first O&M program in Texas.

“I had the pleasure of learning under both of these men, who are true leaders in our field,” Dean said. “They set a forward path for those of us who came behind them, as well as those who are still to come.”

Working both as a direct service provider and personnel preparation leader, Dean coordinates SFA’s O&M program. She also works closely with community organizations to provide opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students to learn, grow and become effective professionals in the O&M field. Dean serves as internship coordinator and has made agreements with more than 75 agencies and individuals to facilitate the placement of interns.

Dr. Michael Munro, visual impairments specialist at Region 6 Education Service Center, was one of Dean’s nominators for the Bob Bryant and Bill Bryan O&M Leadership Award.

“DJ is an incredibly passionate and talented orientation and mobility specialist and a great teacher,” Munro said. “She brings that passion to her students and models for them the heart of the field. Her students benefit greatly from her excellence in all that she does for them and for the program.”

By Jo Gilmore, marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.

All online degree programs in Stephen F. Austin State University’s Rusche College of Business will be converted to an eight-week format by spring 2021. The college has already started the process of moving classes to the new model, which will replace the traditional 16-week schedule.

“The advantage with the eight-week course format is that if offers our online students more flexibility within their academic schedules,” said Dr. Tim Bisping, dean of the Rusche College of Business. “They can focus on a couple of classes at a time and still be full-time students. It also provides options for students who may need to temporarily stop and restart their program of study due to unforeseen circumstances. Many college students today balance work, family and other issues while pursuing their degree. We want to make sure that our course offering structure is not an obstacle, but an asset to students as they seek flexible ways to complete their degree.”

By spring, the college will host three undergraduate degree programs in this format – General Business, Sports Business, and Business Communication and Corporate Education. While flexible options are the goal, research also indicates that shorter course delivery may improve student outcomes.

“Studies show that students have a higher rate of success with the eight-week courses versus extended weeks, said Dr. Steve Bullard, SFA provost and VP of academic affairs. “Our ability to meet students where they are is essential to student success. With the flexibility, potential cost savings, and favorable outcomes, it makes so much sense for our online programs to offer the 8 week schedule.”

Dr. Scott Gordon, SFA president, said the pro-active steps being taken by the college provide an outstanding example of educational leadership.

“Providing ultimate flexibility to our students through the innovative use of technologies and flexible course design and delivery is a foundational component of the new model for higher education,” Gordon said.

For more information about the eight-week online class format, contact Dr. Tim Bisping at bispingto@sfasu.edu or 936.468.3101

By Richard Massey, Senior Marketing Communications Specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University

Among 338 universities researched, Stephen F. Austin State University ranked No. 32 nationally and No. 3 in Texas for social media engagement — a metric of growing importance in an increasingly virtually connected world.

“I’m proud to see University Marketing Communications’ social media team recognized for its exceptional work,” said Dr. Scott Gordon, SFA president. “Social media engagement has been growing in importance throughout the past decade and has been particularly valuable during the global pandemic. As plans continue to evolve at a rapid pace around the world, it will remain a front-line tool for sharing those changes.”

Rival IQ, a social media analytics company, conducted the higher education social media engagement study by surveying content posted between June 1, 2019, and May 31, 2020, on three main platforms: Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

“SFA is ranked in the top 10% among universities for overall consistent, steadily engaging accounts encompassing all social media platforms,” said Dr. Shirley Luna, SFA’s executive director of University Marketing Communications. “It’s imperative SFA keeps its audience engaged because it is one of our main forms of communication with current and prospective students, alumni, and the SFA and Nacogdoches communities.”

Using survey data and a weighted formula, Rival IQ generated an overall engagement ranking for each school that blends total engagement with engagement rates, according to its report. Rather than simply comparing total clicks, likes or shares, this type of weighted formula reveals true engagement percentages so that a larger university’s sheer number of followers doesn’t bury smaller universities with a naturally lower follower base.

“Engagement rate evens the playing field between accounts with varying audience sizes,” said Kerry Whitsett, SFA University Marketing Communications social media specialist. “Obviously, an account with 100,000 followers will have more comments on any given post than an account with 20,000. So, rather than comparing total number of comments on a post, it compares the number as a percentage in relation to the number of the account’s followers.”

SFA’s ranking far surpassed other Texas universities of similar size: Texas State University ranked No. 105, Sam Houston State University ranked No. 151, and Lamar University ranked No. 267.

“One of the reasons SFA is ranked so high is because the marketing team communicates with its followers — and our communication is not one way,” Whitsett said. “We like and make comments on posts, we answer questions, and we congratulate people when they post about being accepted to SFA and upon graduation. We tell people visiting our campus, ‘We hope you enjoyed your day at SFA!’ We want our audience to know SFA is actively engaged with them.”

Of the three individual platforms, SFA’s performance on Twitter was the best ranked, landing the No. 12 position nationally.

As of August 2020, SFA has 20,800 followers on Twitter, 18,800 on Instagram, and more than 75,000 on Facebook with each platform comprising its own unique audience.

By Christine Broussard, marketing communications coordinator at Stephen F. Austin State University.