MIA: Charles Gidley

Once upon a time there was a residence on the Sam Houston State University campus that was named for a man named Charles Gidley.

Time passed.

That's about all there is to it, aside from the fact the structure was torn down a few years ago. Of all the people who have had buildings named in their honor, Gidley stands out like a sore thumb. Our research a decade ago turned up nothing of any merit and now SHSU archivist Barbara Kievit-Mason is putting forth an effort to finally identify this mysterious individual.

"I can find no record of him here in the archives and all the folks I have talked to know nothing of him. I have listened to various theories that he was a librarian, music professor, etc., but none of these have panned out," she says in Today@Sam. Mason tells us she has exhausted all the usual sources - cemetery listings and census records – and interviewed numerous people and surfed the Internet, all to discover who Gidley was and his association with the university.

Anyone with information may contact Kievit-Mason at 936-294-3699, or by e-mail at lib_bak@shsu.edu.

May 2004 Regents Report

Several curriculum changes, including the addition of a Doctor of Education Degree in Literacy Education, were approved Friday by Sam Houston State University's governing board. Today@Sam has a rundown of the changes that the Texas State University System Board of Regents approved during their regular quarterly meeting:

...the board accepted preliminary plans prepared by Huitt-Zollars, Inc. of Houston for the $2.4 million Visitor's Center. The addition to the present Estill Building will be the first stop for campus visitors of many kinds, and will also house the SHSU Alumni Association.

The board also authorized the awarding of a contract for a new East Central Plant chiller, with an estimated cost up to $2.5 million, without full board approval to facilitate the planned construction schedule.

Also approved was the purchase of the Church of Christ Student Center for use by Residence Life, and the $55,000 demolition of the Gidley House, which is not being used because of its poor structural condition.

Tougher Admission Standards Among Regents Actions

Tougher admission standards, a new name for the Department of Public Communication, and new fees relating to library use, correspondence courses and degree programs and majors offered online were among the measures approved Friday for Sam Houston State University by the Board of Regents:

• Approved contracts and purchase orders of $180,000 for renovation of the University Theater Center.
• $125,000 to replace the Sam Houston Memorial Museum roof, and $145,000 to replace auditorium seating in the Beto Criminal Justice Center.
• Approved preliminary plans for a $285,000 renovation of the Smith-Hutson Business Building.
• Approved demolition of Hathorn House, a two-story residence hall built in 1961, because of foundation settling and damage.