Torchlite
August 2007For a printable version, click
here.
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Johnny Walker, TLU assistant director of admissions serves scoops of ice cream to hungry teachers Tim Marshall, right, and Brian Murphy, who were attending TLU’s sixth annual Advanced Placement Summer Institute in July. Nearly 2,000 youth and adults visited the TLU campus this summer, participating in various camps, workshops and seminars.
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TLU Today
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| Svennungsen |
On July 1, President Ann M. Svennungsen began her tenure at TLU as the 14th president of the university. Her first weeks have been a whirlwind of activities and meetings, and she is scheduled to make her first address to the TLU community at the university’s traditional opening convocation on Tuesday, Aug. 21, officially beginning the university’s 117th year. The ceremonies, which will begin at 9:30 a.m. in Jackson Auditorium, are open to the public.
During the opening convocation ceremonies, President Svennungsen will welcome students, faculty and staff. Seguin Mayor Betty Ann Matthies also will bring greetings on behalf of the Seguin community. Dr. John Masterson, provost and executive vice president of the university, will make student and faculty awards and recognize faculty promotions. Kristi Quiros, dean of student life and learning, will lead the installation of student organization leaders.
Whitacre named executive professor of business – Former AT&T Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Edward E. Whitacre Jr. has accepted an appointment as TLU’s first Executive Professor of Business in Residence. Whitacre will bring his years of experience to a variety of TLU business courses, including the university’s unique policy capstone class, which is an MBA-type course taught to seniors.
After beginning his career with Southwestern Bell Telephone Company in 1963 as a facility engineer in Lubbock, Whitacre progressed through a series of assignments in the company's operational departments in Texas, Arkansas and Kansas. He was appointed president and chief operating officer in October 1988, and on January 1, 1990, he became chairman of the board and chief executive officer. During his tenure, Whitacre led a dramatic transformation of the company into the new AT&T, the world’s largest communications company, and re-shaped the telecommunications landscape in the process.
At his retirement on June 3, Whitacre was the longest-serving CEO in the telecommunications industry and one of the longest-serving among the Fortune 500 companies.
Beyond AT&T, Whitacre’s leadership is well-known in business and the community. He has been honored numerous times for his commitment to business and the community, and he was the recipient of TLU’s 2003 Excellence in Leadership Award.
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Growing & Giving
Pre-engineering receives grant – The W.M. Keck Foundation of Los Angeles awarded $250,000 to TLU this summer for scientific equipment and student research internships as TLU reinvents its pre-engineering program. The grant will facilitate equipping the physics and pre-engineering level of the AT&T Science Facility, which is currently under construction and slated for completion in 2008. The cornerstone of the new instrumentation will be the Oxford Maran Low-Field Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR), a $100,000 instrument used for blended student research combining physics, engineering, chemistry, geology and biology.
The grant will also fund student summer research opportunities for TLU students that will develop problem solving skills, intellectual curiosity, and an understanding of research methodology that will enhance student learning and prepare them for graduate school and essential career training. The pre-engineering-physics program is TLU’s fastest growing academic discipline.
Excellence in Leadership Dinner – AT&T executive John T. Montford will be honored at the seventh annual TLU Excellence in Leadership Dinner to be held Nov. 1 at the Westin Riverwalk Hotel in San Antonio. Proceeds from the dinner support TLU’s Presidential Award for Leadership and Service Endowed Scholarship Fund, which provides financial assistance to students who have demonstrated leadership abilities on campus and in their churches and communities.
Montford, senior vice president, Western Region Legislative and Regulatory Affairs for AT&T, is responsible for all regulatory, legislative, governmental and external affairs in the states west of the Mississippi, except California, as well as Connecticut. He joined SBC in 2001 and was appointed to his current position in November 2005 at the completion of the merger between SBC and AT&T.
Montford has also been a Marine officer, practicing attorney, small business owner, district attorney, a member of the Texas Senate for 14 years, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, president pro tem of the 73rd Legislative Session, a tenured professor, and chancellor of the Texas Tech University system.
Active in the San Antonio community, Montford is the current chairman of the board of the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation. He was the 2005 chairman of the Greater San Antonio Chamber of Commerce and is a director of Southwest Airlines and Fleetwood Enterprises. His passion is giving and raising money for scholarships, having raised over $1 billion for education and charities.
The TLU Excellence in Leadership Dinner annually honors business, community, and civic leaders. Past honorees are Judge Nelson Wolfe and Tracy Wolfe, The Rev. Dr. Louis H. Zbinden Jr. and Katherine “Kip” Zbinden, Nancy Loeffler, Ed Whitacre, Gen. Robert Herres, and Gov. Dolph Briscoe.
Individual tickets to the dinner begin at $150, and tables are also available. For more information on the Excellence in Leadership Dinner, contact the TLU development office at 830-372-8030 or
click here.
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Scoreboard
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| Storrie |
Football season opens Sept. 1 – In preseason balloting by coaches, sports information directors and media members, TLU senior kicker Holt Storrie has been named the American Southwest Conference Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year, and the TLU Bulldogs have been picked to finish fifth in the conference. The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor has been predicted to win its third straight ASC football title.
The Bulldogs have a new head coach in Dennis Parker. TLU posted a 6-4 overall record and a 4-4 conference mark in 2006 under Tom Mueller. The Bulldogs start the season with a non-conference home game against Sul Ross State on Sept. 1. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Seguin’s Matador Stadium.
Get current updates on all of your favorite TLU sports by visiting our
athletics homepage.
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TLU Happenings
Freshman Move-in DaySaturday, Aug. 18
TLU Campus
Opening Convocation9:30 a.m., Tuesday, Aug. 21
President Ann M. Svennungsen
Jackson Auditorium
Open to the Public
Homecoming 2007Oct. 7-9
TLU Campus
For more information on these and other TLU events, to update your contact information, or to receive e-mail notification of
Torchlite, please e-mail
alumni@tlu.edu, or call 830-372-8026.
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