Stephen F. Austin State University

The new student center at Stephen F. Austin State University has a new name. The recently renovated building, dedicated just days earlier in a ceremony attended by more than 1,000 students, faculty, staff and community members, has been renamed the Baker Pattillo Student Center in honor of Dr. Baker Pattillo, SFA president.

Pattillo told members of the Board of Regents, following the vote taken during the board’s April meeting, that he was surprised by the incredible honor.

"I have had the good fortune to work with Dr. Steen, SFA’s third president, and I always thought it was so appropriate that the library was named in his honor because he was so devoted to the mission of the university’s library,” Pattillo said. “I felt the same way about the coliseum being named for Dr. Johnson (SFA’s fourth president). Because of his love for athletics, it was very fitting. So, following in that tradition, the Student Center is the building that I am most closely associated with, because the students have always been the heart of my work.”

Pattillo expressed his appreciation to the regents, as well as SFA’s faculty and staff, for their continued support.

"I’m just one member of a team,” he said.

Building projects once again highlighted the agenda of the Board of Regents meeting. Regents authorized the president to negotiate a contract for architectural services for the $28 million Education Research Center with 3D/International. The board approved contract negotiations with HKS if negotiations with 3D/International are not successful. J.E. Kingham Construction Company was selected as construction manager at risk for the project.

Regents voted to launch the third phase of student housing construction. The campus master plan update presented to the Board of Regents in January by 3D/International recommended that four residence halls – Hall 10, Mays Hall 11, North Hall 9, and South Hall 12 – be demolished and replaced with apartment-style housing. The halls are located around a horse-shoe shaped driveway on Clark Boulevard.

The administration was authorized to develop a list of qualified design/build firms to be considered for the Phase III project by issuing a Request for Qualifications. The submissions will be evaluated by representatives from the housing department and the physical plant, along with a representative of the Board of Regents.

The firms selected during the initial evaluation process will submit proposals for the project to the board’s Buildings and Grounds Committee at the regularly scheduled July meeting. The Building and Grounds Committee will interview respondents for recommendation to the full Board for approval.

Regents accepted a gift of real estate from the heirs of Jimmy Hinds. More than 2 acres of land adjacent to the SFA Pineywoods Native Plant Center will be used as a park and named the Jimmy Hinds Park.

Renovations for the Department of Accounting also were approved by regents. The work will be funded by a gift from Gerald Schlief, an SFA alumnus, and his wife. The lobby and office suites will be renovated to include stained woods, ceramic tile, and new carpet, lighting and furniture. The physical plant will act as general contractor for the $175,000 project.

The board authorized its building and grounds committee to give final approval for a campus signage project that will include five gateway signs and 22 directional signs on the interior of the campus at a cost not to exceed $125,000.

Regents approved moving the Division of Environmental Science to the Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture. Currently the bachelor’s degree portion of the program is housed within the forestry college, while the master’s degree program is in the College of Sciences and Mathematics.

"Streamlining the program in one department will be more efficient,” said Dr. Marlin Young, provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We would like to offer a doctoral program in environmental science, and this will increase the likelihood that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board would approve that.”

Regents approved an online nursing transition program targeted for delivery beginning in summer 2007. According to Dr. Randy McDonald, director of instructional technology, all courses in the program are currently offered in an online format.

The Online RN to BSN Transition Program is designed for the registered nurse who has passed the national, standardized exam for registered nurses, and who has a current license as a registered nurse.

"This program will offer a convenient and flexible alternative to the traditional, classroom approach of nursing education to give nurses additional opportunities to pursue a bachelor’s degree,” McDonald said. “This will better equip these nurses to move into management positions, in addition to enriching their education.”

McDonald said the program will be attractive to nurses throughout the state who want to complete a bachelor’s degree. Several hospitals in the East Texas area offer tuition reimbursement for employees pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing.

Regents approved a new name for a master’s degree program in the Department of Human Sciences. The name of the master’s degree will be changed from family and consumer sciences to human sciences to more accurately reflect the diverse academic areas of the degree, which encompasses specialization in: child development; family and consumer sciences; fashion merchandising; food, nutrition and dietetics; hospitality administration; interior design; and interior merchandising.

Regents approved:

* small-size class list for the spring semester,
* $4.6 million summer budget,
* changes in university policy and procedure, and
* contract for purchase of electric utility purchase in conjunction with Texas A&M University system.

Regents heard reports from the president, audit services, the faculty senate, and the Student Government Association president.