Environmental Legacies at SHMM

The Item discusses some of the floral history of the Sam Houston Memorial Museum grounds.

1995 Bearkat Marching Band

An exhibition performance of the SHSU Bearkat Marching Band from 1995 has surfaced on YouTube.  In addition to the music, one can see the original stadium scoreboard and, though it's dark, one might see this is before the baseball and softball stadiums were constructed east of Bowers Stadium.  There's also some banners hanging around for long-gone businesses (i.e. Moore-Henry motors).

Potential LSC Expansion Presented to SGA

Lowman Student Center (LSC) expansion was the recent discussion in the Student Government Association's meeting, according to the report in the April 4 edition of the Houstonian:

The LSC currently has 125,000 gross square feet to service a population of 12,500 people. The master plan created in 2008, [LSC Director Dan] McDaniels told the Senate, asks for 200,000 gross square feet for 20,000 students. Sam Houston State University is steadily growing and is expected to have more than 18,000 students enrolled by next semester, increasing a push for an expansion of the student center.

The facility only has two large meeting rooms; room 320 holds more than 100 people while room 304 holds more than 50.

In spring 2010, students asked the LSC for upgrades and additional entertainment to be added to the Kat Klub. They wanted a brighter space to hangout, television viewing area, video gaming and more computer spaces. After these renovations were made, according to McDaniels, student traffic to the Kat Klub increased by 44 percent while program attendance increased by 92 percent. The amount of student traffic to the Kat Klub has grown by 10 percent since last year.

McDaniels said many students have asked for a bowling center to be added to the Kat Klub; however, with a lack of adequate space in the LSC, this has not been possible. He said the center could be extended to the space of Smith-Kirkley Hall, which will be torn down this May.

It is currently unknown what the cost will be for students in order to expand the LSC. The student center fee cannot increase without a referendum from the students.

“We don’t have the funding for a new student center,” McDaniels said. “We’re still looking for that funding. But what we will look at is as soon as the Board of Regents say that we can proceed, that’s when we’ll get student groups together to say what want in it.”

The LSC was built in 1962 and was renovated in 1984 and 2002. Each renovation cleaned up the existing facility, but did not expand it.

Writing on the Wall #11

It’s time for another look-see around campus. Can you identify the building or location where we took the photos that make up the former buildingshsu masthead? Here’s this month's letter and its haiklu:

acolyte of history
look on her works, ye preserved
the soldier's footsteps

Inflatable Old Main to Usher in Homecoming

Today@Sam reported on Friday that Thom Pouge Entertainment of New Waverly had been awarded the contract for the design of the Old Main Moon Walk, or bouncy-party-castle-thing, for the 2012 Homecoming Sam Jam:

Video: Restoring Austin Hall

Work continues on the $2 million restoration of the inside and out of the Austin College Building. As SHSU's oldest academic building, the 160-year-old structure has weathered quite a bit, especially since the fire thirty years ago that destroyed Old Main. KBTX-TV highlights what's being done in their recent story from Huntsville.  Completion is scheduled for May.

Gaertner Performing Arts Center Wins Construction Award

You gotta love it when it a building wins an award. More so, when the construction team wins for their work. Today@Sam reports that SpawGlass’s work on the Gaertner Performing Arts Center was recently recognized by the Associated Builders and Contractors, Inc.:

 ...the project...has earned [SpawGlass]  a national Pyramid Award in the institutional category of ABC’s Excellence in Construction Awards. SpawGlass representatives received the award February 22 during the 22nd annual Excellence in Construction Awards celebration at the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix.

“This project is an outstanding example of the innovation and commitment to superior craftsmanship that embody merit shop construction,” said Michael D. Bellaman, ABC president and CEO.

This was the second construction award in recent months recognizing SpawGlass's work on the Gaertner Performing Arts Center. In October 2011, the company was presented the ICE Award for the Center by ABC of Greater Houston. The award is given to the "Best of Houston" project that best represents the industry.

In 2009, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Building – another SpawGlass project – won the Award of Excellence in Texas Construction magazine's Best of 2009 competition.

Student Health Center asks SGA for Help

The March 6 edition of the Houstonian discussed the representatives from the Student Health and Counseling Center speaking to the Student Government Association on proposed resolutions:

Drew Miller, Ph. D, executive director of Student Counseling and Health Services, and Sarah Hanel, Director of Student Health Center, presented the Senate with ideas to expand their facilities and combine their services. With a growing student population, the Student Health and Counseling centers are experiencing overcrowding and are having to turn away students on a daily basis with a lack of staff and facilities.

The SHC is due for expansion during the 2013 fiscal year. The expansion will allow for the building of a drive-thru/walk-thru pharmacy, psychiatry/mental health and a wing dedicated to women's health services. There is no request for an increase in student fees at this point.

Time Capsule: 1982

February 11, 1982: On an unsuspecting Thursday 30 years ago, SHSU's 92-year-old Main Building begins its final full day of service to the campus.

Art at the Woodlands Campus

Recent pictures surfaced from artist Dixie Friend Gay of the three-story mural she’s creating for the new SHSU academic building on the Lone Star College Campus in The Woodlands. Friend Gay says the images were inspired by the pond and wetlands area as viewed out the window while standing on the stairwell landing.