New Programs, Buildings Boost Stephen F. Austin State University
With upwards of 12,000 students and dozens of undergraduate and graduate study programs, Stephen F. Austin State University is a major hub of learning. And with more than 1,500 people on staff, it’s also the biggest employer in Nacogdoches.
All that, plus a near-constant stream of major new facility construction and multiple research activities, means that the university is a major economic development force in the region, says Bob Wright, executive director of marketing and public affairs.
The academic research taking place at the university is addressing pressing needs of not only East Texans, but society as a whole, Wright says. Active research projects total more than $40 million.
“Whether it’s seeking a cure for cancer in local pharmaceutical plants, learning which elementary classroom teaching methods result in higher student achievement or gaining a better understanding of the region’s changing ecology by studying the life cycles of insects, SFA students and faculty are actively working on solutions to some of our nation’s most critical problems,” he says.
The university’s most recent major undertakings include the $30.8 million Early Childhood Research Center, which opened in July 2009. The 120,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art complex combines the university’s Early Childhood Laboratory, University Charter School and Department of Elementary Education. SFA is the only university in the state to operate an early-childhood lab and charter school in conjunction with educator-preparation programs.
The research center, Wright says, “will allow us to build on our long history of teacher preparation and expand our capacity for research, positively impacting Texas schoolchildren for generations to come.”
The $13 million Richard and Lucille DeWitt School of Nursing will open in winter 2010, helping to meet the critical need for more qualified nurses throughout the state, Wright says.
A new freshmen residence hall and parking garage are also on the drawing board.
Stephen F. Austin works to be proactive in the community through several initiatives, including energy conservation.
University regents have authorized a campus-wide energy audit by Siemens, which will develop a program to include infrastructure renovation and replacement, and increased use of alternative energy.
The impetus for the study, and its resulting changes, came from the fact that a “green” campus, or one with significant energy-savings programs, is high on the list of desirable qualities that incoming freshmen look for when they’re choosing a university, according to SFA officials.
The college also contributes to the region’s cultural landscape through concert series, a concert orchestra, art exhibitions and theater presentations at the campus’ performing arts and gallery venues.
“This is a very exciting time to be a Lumberjack,” Wright says.
