Everything Nac

The SFA Symphony Orchestra (Orchestra of the Pines) at Stephen F. Austin State University will perform under the baton of its new conductor, Dr. Gregory Grabowski, at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 14, in Cole Concert Hall on the university campus.

Among the selections on the program are Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet Overture-Fantasy” and Leonard Bernstein’s “Symphonic Dances” from “West Side Story.” The concert also features a performance by Alina Nebzhidovskaia, one of the three winners of the School of Music’s recent concerto competition, on Alexander Glazunov’s Violin Concerto.

Grabowski joined the School of Music this semester as director of orchestral activities. He comes to SFA from Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, where he conducted the Susquehanna University Orchestra and musical theatre performances. He began his career in the public schools of Frisco ISD. Grabowski has led the Richardson Symphony, Flower Mound Symphony, Lewisville Lake Symphony, Bakersfield Symphony, Baltimore Chamber Orchestra and the Fairbanks Festival Orchestra. He holds degrees from the University of North Texas and Southern Methodist University.

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 Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre will present Sarah DeLappe’s play “The Wolves” at 7:30 nightly through Saturday, Oct. 5, in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus. A finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, “The Wolves” is a coming-of-age play that follows the daily routines and conversations of nine girls on a soccer team who deal with big problems and tiny battles on the field and in life. In a scene from ‘The Wolves’ are, from left, Bridgeport freshman Elora Rogers; Irving senior Kathleen McNamara, Lufkin sophomore Britney Day (background); and Richmond senior Harsa Rutherford. Single tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and non-SFA students and $7.50 for youth. Tickets for SFA students are $5. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.theatre.sfasu.edu. The play is recommended for mature audiences.

Emily Brebach, English horn with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, will perform a guest oboe and English horn recital at 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 12, in Cole Concert Hall on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus.

The recital is part of the School of Music’s Friends of Music Concert Series and will showcase works by Eugène Bozza, Charles Koechlin, Maurice Ravel and Alyssa Morris, among others.

Three of the program pieces are French. Bozza’s “Divertissement” translates to “fun” or “entertainment,” while Koechlin’s “Au Loin” translates to “far away” or “far off.” Ravel’s “Pavane pour une infante defunte” translates to “Pavane for a Dead Princess.” These three French works are considered old favorites of the English horn repertoire.

“Chrysalis for English Horn and Piano” was written by living composer Alyssa Morris. Each movement of this piece represents a different stage of metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly. The music is fun for the performer and audience alike, according to Brebach.

Joining the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra as English horn and oboe in the fall of 2012, Brebach has performed with orchestras throughout the United States, including the Boston Symphony Orchestra, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Kansas City Symphony and the Houston Symphony. She is an artist affiliate instructor of oboe at Emory University and a faculty member of the Atlanta Symphony’s Talent Development Program, and she maintains an active private studio. Brebach also presents master classes and reed-making seminars at music schools across the country. She spends her summers in residence at the Brevard Music Center in Brevard, North Carolina, as English horn and oboe as well as artist faculty, and also as English horn at the Grand Teton Music Festival.

Saturday’s recital 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.

Brebach’s recital is part of a larger guest artist residency, which includes master classes. On Sunday, Oct. 13, she will join SFA’s Dr. Abby Y. Held, faculty oboe in the School of Music, in presenting Oboe Etude Workshop Day from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Music Recital Hall. In addition to working with SFA student oboe musicians, the presenters invite high school oboe students for a free workshop designed to help them master their All-State oboe etudes.

“This is a free event open to high school oboists who are preparing All-State audition etudes, or working on etudes in their own personal studies,” said Held, who will also present the clinic “Dealing With Nerves” during the workshop. Participants may register for Oboe Etude Workshop Day by contacting Held at helday@sfasu.edu. Held promises “surprises and prizes” at the workshop.

Stephen F. Austin State University is proud to announce the first-time accreditation of the SFA Charter School as a school psychology doctoral internship training site by the American Psychological Association.

Granted accreditation in July, this internship program expands the school psychology doctoral program’s dedication to train students based on empirically-supported best practices, ultimately leading to licensure as school psychologists and licensed psychologists. It also helps to enhance the mental health status of Deep East Texas children.

Dr. Robbie Steward, the SFA Department of Human Services chair, began the accreditation process in 2012 by developing training infrastructure framework, authoring the initial internship handbook and writing grants.

“Because the program was not APA-accredited, trainees faced greater challenges in accessing placement in APA-accredited sites, decreasing future success in seeking licensure as a psychologist,” Steward said. “Also, a number of trainees preferred maintaining a more local residence in pursuit of the doctoral degree. Something had to occur to address these issues. The probability of securing accreditation of an internship site for students associated with a non-accredited program was very small.”

The 2018 APA annual report listed 600 APA-accredited internship sites nationwide, only eight of which were located in a school setting. The SFA Charter School will now be added to those operating in a school setting in the 2019 report. According to Steward, student access to a site with this distinction brings greater visibility to SFA in recruitment and enhanced employability of program graduates.

Steward was assisted and encouraged by Lysa Hagan, CEO and principal of the SFA Charter School, and faculty members of the school psychology program in working through the accreditation process.

“Without Hagan’s trust, confidence and support, there was no hope. She took the risk to share in this adventure to this positive outcome,” Steward said. “Without the program faculty members, the outcome would not have been realized. Their degree of flexibility, collaboration and corroboration have been exemplary in sustaining the needed working alliances toward this amazing achievement.”

Dr. Frankie Clark, SFA clinical instructor, was secured to oversee the site as training director.

“Dr. Clark’s knowledge of the field in terms of ethical and legal practice, years of experience as a practitioner, documented effectiveness as a clinical supervisor, and patience provided the underpinnings of the current status of the training-service delivery unit,” Steward said.

An increasing number of students within incoming cohorts have been able to successfully apply for doctoral internships beyond East Texas and outside of the state, which connotes greater visibility and respect for the training received through SFA’s program. With accreditation, those who remain local will have the advantage of access to an APA-accredited site.

During the accreditation process, the SFA Charter School received several accolades, including recognition by Niche as the 2018-19 No. 1 charter elementary school in Texas. It also was given an A in accountability by the Texas Education Agency in 2019 and an A-superior by the Financial Integrity Rating System of Texas.

“The SFA Charter School has a strong history of collaboration with the Perkins College of Education to improve public education,” Hagan said. “The partnership with the school psychology doctoral program enhances the strong support system offered to children within the charter school community. We are honored to serve as a doctoral internship training site that will enhance the mental health status of Deep East Texas children.”

Stephen F. Austin State University’s Office of Multicultural Affairs will host a poverty simulation during two sessions Oct. 18 in the Baker Pattillo Student Center Grand Ballroom.

Participants will experience some of the daily challenges a family living in poverty may face during a simulated experience of one month.

The session times are 9 a.m. to noon and 12:30 to 3:30 p.m.

“The poverty simulation is designed to help participants begin to comprehend what it might be like to live in poverty and survive from week to week,” said Veronica Beavers, OMA director.

The event is free, but spaces are limited. Sign up to attend one of the sessions at sfasu.edu/oma. Volunteers also are needed to help with the event and can sign up on the OMA website.

For more information, contact Beavers at vbeavers@sfasu.edu or (936) 468-1073.

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