Everything Nac

The Swingin’ Axes and Swingin’ Aces jazz bands at Stephen F. Austin State University will return from performances at the Wichita Jazz Festival on Saturday, April 23, to present their final concert of the academic year at 7:30 that night in Cole Concert Hall on the SFA campus.

The night’s performance will also be the “Last Call” for Dr. Deb Scott as director of the Swingin’ Axes. Scott has decided to step down from leading the Axes to focus more on teaching and performing as professor of trombone at SFA.

The Axes’ trombone section along with Scott will be featured in a performance of “Trombone Institute of Technology” by Michael Davis. The Axes will also perform “Big Al Meets the Barnyard Gals” by Dan Gailey; “Sweet Georgia Brown” arranged by Sammy Nestico; “Knives Out” by Radiohead and arranged by Dan Gailey; “Groovin’ Hard” by Don Menza; and “A Game of Inches” by Gordon Goodwin.

The Swingin’ Aces, under the direction of Dr. J.D. Salas, will perform “Just Friends” by John Klenner, arranged by Joe Jackson; “Deacon Blues” by Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, arranged by Gary Anderson; “Satin Doll” by Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington, arranged by Sammy Nestico; and “Clean It Up!” by Jay Chattaway.

Directing jazz bands for 30 years, Scott was the first woman in Texas to direct a university jazz band. She arrived at SFA in August 2000 and soon after started SFA’s second jazz band, the Swingin’ Aces, directing it until 2016 when she took over as the director of the first jazz band, the Swingin’ Axes, at which time she also became the director of jazz at the university. Under her leadership, the Swingin’ Axes toured and performed in Houston, Dallas and throughout East Texas as the featured band at jazz festivals and venues such as Saint Arnold’s Brewery. Additionally, the two jazz bands began performing at more local venues including the Fredonia Brewery and Lugnutz. In 2020, SFA’s jazz area also added its first minor in jazz studies.

Recently, Scott was the invited director and clinician of the Texas Community College All-State Jazz Band held at TMEA in San Antonio, an honor she has received twice. She has also been the invited director and clinician for at least 25 all-region jazz bands in the state of Texas. She has composed and published more than 20 jazz audition etudes for high school trombonists auditioning for Texas’ all-state jazz band.

Prior to coming to SFA, Scott directed the Wharton County Junior College jazz band for seven years. That band performed in New Orleans, Galveston and at the Wichita Jazz Festival. She was also a professional trombonist in Houston from 1991 to 2000 where she was lead trombone with the Ronnie Renfrow Big Band, playing about 1,000 performances and backing such artists as Kay Starr, the Mills Brothers and the Ink Spots. The first time Scott visited Nacogdoches was to perform with this band at SFA’s Annual Gala.

At the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley, Colorado, Scott was a jazz teaching assistant while obtaining her master’s degree and conducted the fourth jazz lab band.

Tickets for the April 23 concert are $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $3 for students and youth. To purchase tickets, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit finearts.sfasu.edu. For additional information, contact the SFA School of Music at (936) 468-4602.

Stephen F. Austin State University’s Early Childhood Laboratory was awarded $650,827 through the 2022 Child Care Relief Fund. The funding will be received in four installments and will be used for professional development, supplies, personnel, equipment, facilities and food services programs.

The funding was designed to help child care centers recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are extremely grateful the Texas Workforce Commission has allocated funds to Texas child care centers and particularly to SFA’s childhood lab,” said Crystal Adams, lab director. “Unfortunately, many child care centers were forced to close their doors during the pandemic.”

Last year, the Texas Workforce Commission approved the distribution of $2.45 billion in American Rescue Plan Act funds for direct relief to child care programs. In February, the commission dedicated an additional $1 billion, bringing the total available amount to $3.45 billion.

“Keeping our doors open is imperative to our economy and community,” Adams said. “This financial advancement will allow us to offset losses incurred during the pandemic but most importantly build a brighter future for our students.”

To learn more about SFA’s Early Childhood Laboratory, visit sfasu.edu/echl.

Stephen F. Austin State University graduate student Stephan McLawrence always dreamed of being a successful entrepreneur who could take care of his family and create jobs for young people from his homeland, Carriacou, Grenada. SFA’s Rusche College of Business has helped him get closer to achieving that dream through its corporate partnerships.

McLawrence will receive his Master of Business Administration in May, and through the college’s partnerships, he’s already secured a sales and operations trainee position with Hajoca, a privately held wholesale distributor of plumbing, heating and industrial supplies based in Philadelphia.

His background in banking and desire to help others be financially responsible inspired him to pursue a Bachelor of Business Administration in finance from SFA, which he received in May 2021. Before earning his degrees, however, McLawrence had to make his way to SFA from Carriacou, a 13-square-mile island in the Caribbean with a population of 10,000.

“Because of our size and an ever-increasing population, opportunities for talented young individuals are scarce,” McLawrence said. “I took it upon myself to help address this issue and knew that becoming a successful entrepreneur required vast amounts of knowledge and expertise.”

McLawrence finished school in Carriacou at age 19 and worked multiple jobs for the next four years to earn money for college.

“Throughout that journey, I heard about SFA, the campus life and scholarship opportunities from a friend of mine and decided to apply,” McLawrence said.

That decision has garnered him a bachelor’s and master’s degree from SFA, as well as landed him a post-graduation job to work toward his ultimate entrepreneurial goal.

Prior to SFA, McLawrence hadn’t heard of Hajoca. When he became a graduate assistant for the College of Business dean’s office, he helped prepare for Hajoca Day, one of several days the college dedicates to corporate partners so students can learn more about each company and their job opportunities.

“Employers are seeking to hire our many talented students, and at the same time, our students are seeking career options with successful companies,” said Dr. Timothy Bisping, dean of the College of Business. “It is a mutually beneficial relationship, and we are honored to offer these partnerships to both companies and our students.”

McLawrence discovered that Hajoca’s sales and operations training program leads to promising positions with the company. Hajoca recruiters discovered a strong potential addition to their workforce.

“This experience allowed my recruiters to meet me face-to-face and learn more about me as an individual and potential candidate,” McLawrence said. “And it gave me the opportunity to express to them my immense interest in the position, learn all about the company and their culture, and create a relationship no online recruiting app can offer.”

Hajoca recruiters agree.

“The interactions with each student, from informal meet and greets to formal in-person interviews, give us the opportunity to truly get to know a potential hire and, in turn, affords each candidate the opportunity to learn about our organization, our culture and potentially their next leader,” said Mark Allen, Hajoca recruiter and McLawrence’s future general manager.

“It is always a pleasure to be on campus at SFA, but more specifically, with the faculty, staff and students in the College of Business,” Allen added. “Their commitment to connecting students with great organizations is second to none. It is my hope that Stephan is just the first of many more smart, driven and determined individuals to join our organization.”

Two weeks after he earns his master’s degree, McLawrence will report to Hajoca’s Fort Worth location. He’s hoping some friends and family members will attend SFA and maybe even join him at Hajoca one day.

“I am always trying to persuade my friends back home to pursue their degrees at SFA,” McLawrence said. “In addition, my next mission is to be able to sponsor both of my nieces, who wish to follow in my footsteps and earn their bachelor’s degrees through SFA’s Rusche College of Business.”

To learn more about the College of Business, visit sfasu.edu/cob.

Three Sound Recording Technology majors at Stephen F. Austin State University have won the 2022 National Association of Music Merchants President’s Innovation Award. The students, from left, Autumn Mallard, Houston sophomore; Aiyanna Riley, Austin junior; and Garrett Scroggs, Bryan graduate student, will receive scholarships to help them attend the NAMM show and GenNext conference in Anaheim, California, in June. The NAMM President’s Innovation Award honors college students who demonstrate excellence in the field of music. Winners have proven dedication to pursuing a career in music to include the areas of music performance, music education, media, sound engineering and audio, event technology, production, administration, management and/or marketing along with product creation and innovation. For information about the School of Music’s SRT program, contact director James Adams at adamsjf@sfasu.edu.

The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre will present the student-directed one-act play “Sing to Me Through Open Windows” at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 22, and at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 23, in Regents Suite A in the Baker Pattillo Student Center on the SFA campus.

Directed by Baytown senior Ty Carter, Arthur Kopit’s “Sing to Me Through Open Windows” is an absurdist play told through the memory of a young boy, Andrew, who visits his dear magician friend and his butler, the Cynical Clown. With themes of lost childhood and innocence, as well as fear of the uncontrollable, this play is the perfect parallel to our experiences in the world today, according to Carter.

The cast features Kai Crumley, Kingwood sophomore, as The Boy; Sami Hurley, Dallas sophomore, as The Man; and Dorie Bloodworth, The Woodlands senior; as The Clown.

The crew includes Winnie junior Andria Clement, stage manager; Brownsboro senior Maige Anderson, scenic and props designer; Edinburg senior Makayla Moreno, costume designer; Georgetown junior David Cleghorn, lighting designer; and Plant City, Florida, senior Salvador Nunez, sound designer.

Carter’s previous SFA theatre experience includes being assistant director for the School of Theatre’s production of Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town.” He also worked for The Walt Disney Company as a performer prior to the pandemic.

Faculty production advisor for “Sing to Me Through Open Windows” is Dr. Inga Meier.

Tickets are $4. To purchase tickets, visit the SFA Fine Arts Box Office online at boxoffice.sfasu.edu or call (936) 468-6407. Available tickets may be purchased at the door. For more information about the play, call the School of Theatre at (936) 468-4003 or visit theatre.sfasu.edu.

Ashley Hoyer, a graduate distance learning student in the composition program in the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Music, has been accepted into both the Atlantic Music Festival’s highly exclusive Summer Intensive program and also the Iceberg Institute in Vienna, Austria. Based in Santa Paula, California, Hoyer came to SFA already an accomplished professional performer on mandolin, violin and cello. After completing her bachelor’s degree online, she was searching for an online master’s composition program. “SFA is one of the few universities that offers a program like this one,” she said. “Once I learned more about SFA and had an interview, I knew it would be good fit.” During her summer studies, she said she looks forward to writing a new piece for a specific ensemble and learning from its performance, and she looks forward to taking lessons with acclaimed faculty members. She hopes to continue working as a performer and composer in the future. She currently studies with Dr. Stephen Lias, professor of composition at SFA.

The Stephen F. Austin State University Spirit Teams traveled to Daytona Beach, Florida, for the National Cheerleaders Association and National Dance Alliance national championships, where they garnered first-, second- and third-place finishes.

The spirit programs are led by T.J. Maple, an adjunct professor in kinesiology.

“Proud is an understatement for the amount of hard work, sacrifices and selflessness these student athletes put in for our university,” Maple said. “They spend their entire year cheering on every other sport, making appearances and staying involved with the community, so to see them shine on the national’s stage is pure joy.”

This is the 30th year SFA has competed in these events. The teams’ NCA participation resulted in the following wins:

Division I Spirit Rally National Champions

Innovative Choreography Awards in Team Performance, Pom and Spirit Rally

Division I Pom Dance – Second Place

Division I Team Performance Dance – Third Place

Division I Small Coed Cheer – Second Place

The dance team was invited to the Dance Team Union Collegiate National Invitational Competition and had the following placements:

Division I Pom National Champions

Division I Hip Hop Dance National Champions

Division I Spirit Showdown – Second Place

Pom Battle Champions

Stephen F. Austin State University’s James I. Perkins College of Education has partnered with Lufkin Independent School District to staff up to 10 paid, one-semester internships.

Sponsorships of new and attractive programs like these internships are examples of the willingness SFA and its partners have to adapt to changes in education, according to Michelle Miller, SFA clinical experience coordinator.

“Partnerships like this continue to show how the field of education is growing and changing,” Miller said. “Incentives like the ones offered by Lufkin ISD will continue to grow our educator program here at SFA while building teacher candidate pools for the district. By providing opportunities for paid clinical teaching to our students, they can focus on what is truly important – becoming the best educators they can be. This initiative will show future educators they are valued.”

The partnership with LISD is similar to SFA’s partnership with Huntington Independent School District, where three paid internships begin this fall.

Kurt Stephens, LISD deputy superintendent, sees a big upside for the program.

“When looking at other career options, such as engineering and accounting, paid internships are the norm,” he said. “We want educators to have the same opportunities as other students entering the workforce.

“We not only place our student teachers at the top of our applicant pool when filling vacancies, but we also believe we have an obligation to encourage future educators to pursue student teaching in completing their degree,” he added. “Another bonus is this internship includes benefits, meaning interns will start contributing to the Teacher Retirement System prior to graduation.”

The 10 new internships will be paid for by LISD and are set to begin this fall.