Everything Nac

The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre, School of Music and SFA Dance Program will present Rodgers and Hammerstein’s musical “Oklahoma!” at 7:30 p.m. nightly through Nov. 10 in W.M. Turner Auditorium on the SFA campus. Among the show’s performers are, front from left, theatre majors Sadie Mae Taylor, Arlington sophomore; Bayley Owen, Royse City sophomore; Richard Rogers, Kerrville junior; back from left, dance majors Christina White, Rockwall senior; and Sarah Boon, Ennis junior. Single tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for seniors 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.

Artwork by Aric Verrastro of Menomonie, Wisconsin, took first place in this year’s Refined Art Metals/Jewelry Competition and Exhibition at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Refined is a biennial exhibition of jewelry and metalwork hosted by the art metals program in SFA’s School of Art. This year marked the 10th anniversary of the event. Perry A. Price, executive director of the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft in Houston, served as juror.

Verrastro’s piece, titled “Zafiro,” was designed with steel, sterling silver and mixed media. Melissa Lovingood of Greensboro, North Carolina, took second place with “Barnacle Pin,” a design of sterling silver and shell. Third place winner was Amanda Bartlett of San Antonio with “As Above, So Below,” a design of brass, steel and mixed media.

Refined opened Oct. 26 and will show through Dec. 29 in The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House, 329 E. Main St. The Cole Art Center is SFA’s historic downtown gallery. Admission to the exhibition is free.

For more information, call (936) 468-1131.

More than 40 high school and community college business teachers from around the state recently attended a conference at Stephen F. Austin State University for the annual Texas Business and Technology Teachers Association. SFA’s Department of Business Communication and Legal Studies, housed within the Rusche College of Business, hosted the conference.

This year’s conference focus was “On the Beam: Finding a Balance Between Humanity and Technology” and included various speakers who discussed topics such as online and face-to-face courses and online educator technology. Dorothy Hetmer-Hinds, pictured, from Trinity Valley Community College discussed motivation and how to become effective educators in today’s digital age.

SFA business students enrolled in a leadership communication course assisted with the conference arrangements and delivery.

By Kasi Dickerson, senior marketing communications specialist at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s SFA Gardens will host the monthly Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 8, in the Brundrett Conservation Education Building at the Pineywoods Native Plant Center, located at 2900 Raguet St.

Dr. David Creech, SFA Gardens director and professor emeritus of agriculture, will present, “SFA Gardens: Where Good Ideas Meet Insurmountable Obstacles.”

Creech has been at SFA since September 1978. He received his bachelor’s degree in horticulture from Texas A&M University in 1970, a master’s degree in horticulture from Colorado State University in 1972, and returned to TAMU to receive his doctoral degree in 1978. After a long career in teaching, Creech retired in 2007. He returned to direct SFA Gardens in a part-time position.

Creech’s research interests include fruit and vegetable, ornamental evaluation, endangered plants, salinity studies, woody tree and shrub evaluation, and investigating the potential of kiwifruit as a specialty crop for Texas. He also has authored numerous scholarly and trade articles and lectures widely.

Since 1981, Creech has accumulated a long list of international work in Pakistan, Guatemala, Mexico, Nepal, Israel and China. In the last 21 years, he has undertaken over 25 consultancies in China, working with the Blueberry Improvement Program and Taxodium Improvement Program at the Nanjing Botanical Garden, as well as connecting with the new plants arena in the China nursery and landscape industry. He is an advocate of increasing forest cover and smart use of land and plant resources.

Creech has held positions within many organizations, including as president of the Native Plant Society of Texas and president of the Southern Region American Society of Horticulture Science. He is the current president of the Texas Association of Botanical Gardens and Arboreta and of the International Plant Propagation Society Southern Region.

The Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series is held the second Thursday of each month and includes a rare-plant raffle after the program. The lecture is free and open to the public, but donations to the Theresa and Les Reeves Lecture Series fund are always appreciated.

Parking is available at the PNPC and Raguet Elementary School, located at 2428 Raguet St.

For more information, call (936) 468-4129, or email sfagardens@sfasu.edu.