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Stephen F. Austin State University has partnered with Texas A&M University System’s RELLIS Academic Alliance to offer a face-to-face completer program for the Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies’ early childhood through grade 6 concentration in Bryan-College Station.

This partnership, beginning in fall 2021, will help students from Blinn College District and other institutions seamlessly transition into the SFA program.

“The SFA campus and the RELLIS Academic Alliance share a very important goal: We want to reshape education to meet the needs of our Texas students,” said Dr. Scott Gordon, SFA president. “The RELLIS Campus is a tremendous model where multiple institutions are offering programs in one location. That’s innovation, and innovation is the key to success.”

With its focus on early childhood and reading education preparation as well as extensive field experiences, the BSIS with the EC-6 concentration has a strong reputation for developing future teachers’ knowledge and skills in education with courses that provide real-world experience working with children.

“As a regional university, SFA has a historically strong reputation for helping to fill the employment needs of the area by providing access to high-quality educational opportunities,” said Dr. Judy Abbott, dean of SFA’s James I. Perkins College of Education. “Bringing our showcase degree, the BSIS, to the RELLIS Academic Alliance provides access for Bryan-College Station area students to a well-established and respected educator preparation program.”

SFA is the first institution outside the Texas A&M University System to be invited to offer a bachelor’s degree within the RELLIS Academic Alliance.

“We are proud to partner with SFA to offer an established, quality education program to our students at RELLIS,” said Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp. “I have no doubt this program will be an asset to the Academic Alliance and future students. We think it’s going to become one of the fastest growing offerings that we have.”

Abbott hopes this partnership will help address the shortage of certified teachers for the state’s public schools.

“The Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies is the most frequently awarded degree at SFA, so this opportunity to bring the BSIS to the RELLIS Academic Alliance is remarkable,” Abbott said. “We are excited to become a partner in the RELLIS Academic Alliance and to increase the development of teacher education students eligible to become certified and step into the classrooms of Texas schools.”

Students seeking to enroll in the BSIS completer program may apply for SFA’s community college transfer scholarship. This funding opportunity offers students transferring from a community college $1,000 per year if the student’s GPA is 3.0 to 3.49, or $2,000 per year if the student’s GPA is above 3.50. To be eligible, students must have at least 45 transferable hours.

About the RELLIS Academic Alliance

With the addition of the education program, the RELLIS Academic Alliance offers 26 unique academic options from 10 Texas A&M System regional universities and Stephen F. Austin State University. Program options include degrees in a variety of fields, including technology and engineering, business and industry, natural and human sciences and public service. For more information about the RELLIS Academic Alliance, visit rellis.tamus.edu/academicalliance.

About the RELLIS Campus
Founded in 2016 by the Texas A&M University System, the RELLIS Campus in Bryan fosters cutting-edge research, technology development, workforce training and two- and four-year college degrees by tapping the system’s state agencies and multiple universities, along with academic, corporate and government partners outside the system.

For more information, visit sfasu.edu/rellis.

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

The acclaimed jazz program at Stephen F. Austin State University will present its first and only live concert of the fall semester from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13, behind the Nacogdoches Convention & Visitors Bureau in downtown.

The socially distanced, outdoor concert on Pilar Street is free and open to the public and is a collaborative effort between the SFA School of Music and the Nacogdoches CVB, according to Dr. Deb Scott, professor of trombone and director of the Swingin’ Axes jazz band at SFA. Attendees should bring their own chairs for seating and wear face coverings.

To manage the limited number of people allowed to gather according to CDC guidelines, attendance orders will be received through Eventbrite, an online ticket platform. Access tickets at visitnac.org/backporch-jazz. One ticket will be issued for groups of up to four people who will be seated in the same boxed area on the brick streets behind the CVB. Entrance will be through the CVB building.

On the program are works by Chick Corea, Dizzy Gillespie, Bill Chase, Glen Miller and other jazz greats.

The evening concert will begin with Dr. J.D. Salas, associate professor of tuba and euphonium and director of SFA’s Swingin’ Aces jazz band, conducting a group that will perform Miller’s “In the Mood,” George Gershwin’s “Summertime” and “Killer Joe” by Quincy Jones and Bennie Golson.

Following the opening set, jazz combos, team taught by Scott, Salas and Mike McGowan, adjunct professor of music, will perform. Two different saxophone sections with rhythm section will perform arrangements by the 1970s group Super Sax, which performed the solos of Charlie Parker, harmonized by Med Flory. The groups will perform “Star Eyes” composed by Don Raye and Gene DePaul, and “Ko Ko” and “Moose the Mooch,” both composed by Charlie Parker. Two groups of five trombones with rhythm section will perform jazz standards arranged by College of Fine Arts Dean Dr. A.C. “Buddy” Himes. The arrangements are of “Birdland” by Joe Zawinul, “Spain” by Chick Corea, and “Night in Tunisia” by Dizzy Gillespie. A group of four trumpets with rhythm section will perform “Con Suerte” by Brad Sharp and “Bochawa” by Bill Chase.

The evening will conclude with an impressive big band tune – “Count Bubba’s Revenge” by Gordon Goodwin – performed by the Swingin’ Axes, conducted by Scott.

Due to the pandemic and as a safety measure, the jazz bands have been divided into smaller groups that have been rehearsing throughout the fall semester under the outdoor tents provided by the university on campus.

At the concert, guests will be greeted by volunteers upon entering the CVB, the only recognized entry to the concert, and shown where to place their chairs following social-distancing protocols. Parking is available for vehicles in and around downtown. Naca Valley Vineyard will sell wine inside the CVB, where restrooms are also available. UR Chef food truck will also be on site. In case of inclement weather, the concert will be rescheduled for the same time and location on Nov. 15.

For additional information, contact the School of Music at (936) 468-4602 or CVB at (936) 564-7351.

A number of students enrolled in the Music Preparatory Division of the School of Music at Stephen F. Austin State University have qualified for All Region orchestras.

The competition took place Oct. 10 through 14. Students recorded their audition on a platform on the Texas Music Educators Association website, and qualifiers were notified the following week. Their clinic/concert will be at 4:30 p.m. Jan. 16 at Tyler High School.

Qualifying for the high school orchestra are Shelby Rotramel, violin and high school concertmistress; Holden Kelly, McKenzie Ellison, Haylee Harman, Ashlynn McBroom, Karys Alders, Haley McBroom, violin; Cate Baker, viola; Jessica Schlaudt, principal cello; Will Sams and Grace Hao, cello; and Mason Baker, bass.

Qualifying for the middle school orchestra are Jonah Raychev, violin and middle school concertmaster; and Luke Scala, Gracie Lynn Harman, Lauren Hansen, Maggie Scala and Micah Hayman, violin.

Many of these students are also members of Music Prep’s Piney Woods Youth Orchestra.

For more information about programs offered by the SFA Music Preparatory Division, contact Director Alba Madrid at (936) 468-1291. The Music Prep House is located at 3028 Raguet St.