Honoring Alumni at SHSU’s Distinguished Alumni Gala

Written by Jacob Wessels

Students recently had the opportunity to attend the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Gala at the Lowman Student Center, kicking off Homecoming weekend by celebrating alumni and university leaders who embody the campus motto: “The measure of a life is its service.” Hosted by Sam Houston’s Alumni Association, it proved to be a night to remember for many of the students and alumni alike.

The evening opened with dinner and a welcome from VP Matt Bethea…

…before he turned it to Master of Ceremonies Mia Gradney and Alumni Association Board President Dr. Deirdre Holloway. University President Dr. Alisa White then addressed the crowd, highlighting the university’s growth and milestones, including a historic fundraising year surpassing $31 million, enrollment nearing 22,000 students, and the opening of the new Health Professions Building in Conroe. She emphasized how Bearkat alumni directly shape student success through career networks like “Bearkats Hiring Bearkats” and hands-on community engagement.

The heart of the program was the presentation of awards honoring exceptional service, entrepreneurship, and leadership:

Dr. Kathleen Gilbert, a first-generation college graduate, has directed the SHSU Food Pantry and Tripod’s Thrift since its opening. She transformed a small student initiative that once served 17 students from an office bookshelf into an operation recording over 5,000 visits annually, ensuring students facing food and professional clothing insecurity stay enrolled and earn their degrees. She was aptly honored for her work with the first of two Service Awards.

Mattie C. Provost also recieved a Service Award! Provost shared her journey from being a first-generation student to spending three decades rising through the ranks of the Houston Police Department to become Assistant Chief. Now serving as Chief Deputy of the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office, she spoke on the value of second chances and leading with empathy for front-line workers.

Joseph Anderson was the recipient of the Outstanding Young Alumni Award. A former Bearkat track-and-field student-athlete, Anderson translated discipline and corporate internships into becoming a Chick-fil-A owner-operator in Southeast Houston, an area known to be a ‘food desert.’ Managing more than 100 team members, he creates opportunities by funding employee scholarships and partnering with local food banks.

Regina Bynote Jones, reflecting on her time as an Orange Key student host and navigating personal health hurdles, detailed her career journey leading legal operations across global energy and agriculture giants. She currently serves as Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer, and Corporate Secretary for Archer Daniels Midland while actively mentoring future generations of legal and corporate leaders. She was recognized with the highest SHSU Honor: the Distinguished Alumni Award.

Larry D. Larrison was also a recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award. Coming from a multigenerational Bearkat family, Larrison built a 42-year career in the insurance industry alongside his ranching operations. During his tenure as Alumni Association President, he helped establish the “Hire a Bearkat” initiative to create clear pathways between alumni businesses and graduating students.

Kenneth Ross was the final recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award. Starting as a student-athlete and a Huntsville police officer, Ross transitioned into insurance, becoming one of State Farm’s top agents nationwide over a four-decade career. Throughout his success, he maintained continuous involvement in Bearkat athletics and community initiatives such as Habitat for Humanity.

The gala concluded with a spirited performance by the Bearkat Marching Band and the traditional singing of the Alma Mater led by music student Tito Portillo.

Hearing these stories firsthand demonstrated that life after college is rarely linear. Each honoree showed resilience through obstacles and setbacks, with an enduring commitment to lifting others up, which remains the defining standard of the Bearkat community.

Exploring the Houston (LSAC) Law Forum

Written by Robin Houghton

This past weekend, LEAP students drove into Houston to attend the Law School Admission Council’s Houston Law School Forum. This event brings together representatives from over a hundred law schools across the United States, allowing prospective law students to speak directly with them about the law school experience. Even though some of us are only sophomores, we all arrived eager to learn more about law schools across the country.

The purpose of the law-school fair is to educate pre-law students about law school in general and about specific law schools in particular. For the general aspects of law school, the fairs have workshops on topics such as “paying for law school” or “applying to law school.” Law school representatives are there to answer specifics, with LSAC also suggesting specific questions for each school (see, for example: Law School Forums and Fairs Near Me | LSAC).

With so many schools to choose from, we ended up at the South Texas College of Law, a law school that frequently visits SHSU to present to our Pre-Law Society. We were excited to reconnect with a familiar name and ask more personal questions about their law school and the admissions process.

One of the most memorable moments came from visiting the table for the University of Minnesota Law, a school I have been interested in for a while.

Speaking with Robin Ingli about the university’s concentrations and focus on Human Rights advocacy made my many options in law schools clearer. Their emphasis on public service and practical training was a highlight for me, and I left knowing more about a school I thought I already knew a lot about.

Overall, the experience is much like a career fair, with lots of booths to pick up literature and the like.

Much of the information can be found on the schools’ websites. But, as a sophomore pre-law student, the event allows you to see all the opportunities that exist, which is perhaps more than people come into college realizing.

And, for the upper-classmen among us, the experience allows the opportunity to obtain more specific information and narrow down options. It’s a worthy event.

Face to Face with a Dictator: The Real Story Behind The Hunt for Saddam

LEAP Students are always eager for opportunities to expand their understanding of global affairs and politics. Recently, we returned to Houston for a special World Affairs Council event featuring a screening and discussion of TNT’s limited series High Value Target: The Hunt for Saddam, alongside the man who lived it: former CIA Senior Leadership Analyst John Nixon.

The program was moderated by Ronan O’Malley, WAC’s Chief Programs Officer, who has followed and hosted Nixon since the 2016 release of his groundbreaking memoir, titled Debriefing the President: The Interrogation of Saddam Hussein.

The evening took a slight departure from the traditional format, opening with a screening of the premiere episode. Starring Joel Kinnaman as Nixon and Waleed Zuaiter as Saddam Hussein, the dramatization pulled us straight into the tension of 2003 Iraq and retraced the relentless intelligence work that led U.S. forces to an underground spider hole in Ad-Dawr.

Following the screening, Nixon took the stage to talk more about Hollywood’s adaptation, the reality of Iraqi leadership, and what it was like to look the Iraqi dictator in the eye.

As the CIA’s top Hussein analyst, Nixon was flown in the middle of the night along Baghdad’s perilous Airport Road to answer the critical question: Had they truly captured Saddam Hussein?

Nixon recounted that the moment the door opened to the holding room, he knew instantly that the person sitting across from him was Hussein. Yet instead of seeing a broken captive, Nixon encountered a master manipulator sitting calmly on a folding chair, acting as though the interrogators were merely guests arriving on a routine Saturday evening. Hussein immediately sought cracks in the room, attempting to pit the CIA and military interpreters against one another when translation discrepancies arose.

Nixon also discussed how Hussein’s chaotic record-keeping contributed to the catastrophic intelligence failures surrounding weapons of mass destruction. For example, Iraq had destroyed vast amounts of stockpiles, but Hussein kept no verifiable paper trail, which was partly out of bureaucratic disarray, and partly out of fear of showing regional weakness to neighboring Iran.

Perhaps most surprising was Hussein’s reaction to September 11. Far from expecting a confrontation, Hussein genuinely believed the attacks would bring Iraq and the United States closer together against shared extremist threats, completely failing to grasp that Washington was already preparing to seal his fate.

Addressing the broader takeaways of the war, Nixon offered a candid reflection that regime change is deceptively difficult, and removing a strongman without a stable post-war framework creates a vacuum that endures for decades.

Before concluding, attendees had the chance to mingle, snap photos, and discuss the nuances of intelligence analysis with Nixon, making it another unforgettable night with the World Affairs Council.

SHSU Moot Court Reaches Sweet Sixteen at UC San Diego

Written by Allie Plunk

On October 3rd and 4th, Sam Houston State University’s Moot Court Team had the incredible opportunity to compete in the Triton Tidal Invitational, hosted by the University of California–San Diego.

The first day consisted of three preliminary rounds, each with pre-assigned competitors and arguments. Interestingly, both of SHSU’s teams had one round arguing as Petitioner and two rounds arguing as Respondent, allowing each team to practice both sides of the case and adapt their arguments to different perspectives.

After each round, the teams had the chance to regroup, discuss feedback, and prepare for the next argument. Between rounds, we were also grateful to have snacks graciously provided by Stephanie Fors, which kept everyone fueled and ready to take on the next challenge!

Once the preliminary rounds concluded, we anxiously waited for the results. The standings would determine which teams would advance to the “Sweet Sixteen” and return on Sunday for another day of competition. Despite some skepticism about our chances (editor’s note: deserved skepticism), both of SHSU’s teams made it into the “Sweet Sixteen”! We were thrilled to have the opportunity to compete again and prove ourselves against some incredibly talented teams.

On Sunday, both teams returned to the courtroom ready to give it their all. Although neither team ultimately advanced to the quarter-finals, making it to the “Sweet Sixteen” was an accomplishment we were extremely proud of.

Beyond the results, the scrimmage gave our Moot Court teams something even more valuable: experience. Throughout the weekend, we were able to test our arguments in a competitive setting, identify some of our strongest points, uncover weaknesses in our cases, and come away with new ideas for strengthening our arguments. Every round gave us something to learn from, and we made it out with a much better understanding of what we can do to prepare for our next competition.

We are incredibly grateful to UC San Diego for hosting such a valuable and exciting scrimmage. We are proud of how far both teams made it and are looking forward to putting what we learned into practice. We are all excited for competition at Texas A&M on October 30th, and we can’t wait to see what the team accomplishes next!

Allie and the Tools of Success: Cherry Fritter, Notes, Ring Light, Notes, Coffee-Flavored Sugar from Seven Bros., Half-Hearted Smile, and More Notes

From the Capitol to the Canvas: LEAP’s Austin Adventure Comes to a Close

Written by Brittlyn Jackson and Kayla Fleming

To wrap up an exciting and informative weekend in Austin at the Texas Tribune Festival, LEAP students visited the Blanton Museum of Art. Founded in 1936 and located on the edge of the University of Texas at Austin’s campus (with an astonishing view of the Texas State Capitol), Blanton houses more than 22,000 pieces from a variety of cultures, time periods, and artistic styles.

Professor Yawn pointed out many great artists throughout our visit, including one of his personal favorites, Jerry Bywaters. Bywaters was a Texas regionalist, and his piece, Oil Field Girls, gave us a view of the West Texas landscape and conditions during the 1940s.

We also learned about Thomas Moran and Albert Bierstadt, important artists associated with the Hudson River School who created paintings depicting the American West. Their paintings, The Golden Hour and Indian Canoe, allowed us to see how Americans viewed the West in the late 1800s. The warm tones of what appeared to be a setting sun, along with the beautiful landscapes, made these paintings visually striking and compelling.

We also encountered art pieces from the Spanish Americas, many of which had unknown artists. I noticed a lot of the Spanish art consisted of religious paintings and sculptures. We also came across another Texas native and Latino artist, Luis Jiménez, whose fiberglass sculpture, Border Crossing [Cruzando el Río Bravo], immediately caught my attention. The sculpture itself stands around 4ft tall and features bright neon colors. The sculpture, like most of Jiménez’s work, features bright colors he associates with Mexico, making it all the more captivating.

We then got to see examples of Pop Art, including Andy Warhol’s painting, Farrah Fawcett. We also viewed artists who specialized in cubism and abstraction. One of the most well-known artists we saw was Pablo Picasso, who had two paintings on display when we visited.

We also got to visit Ellsworth Kelly’s chapel, titled Austin, located outside the museum. The Chapel was solid white with geometric designs and colorful stained-glass windows that looked stunning in the light, a staple of Kelly’s work.  

My favorite piece personally was Madam C. J.  Walker by Sonya Clark, a portrait of Madam Walker made entirely out of hair combs. I really liked how the individual combs came together to create the portrait. I also enjoyed the creativity and symbolism behind using the combs, especially because Madam Walker rose to fame in African American hair care products.  

After the museum, we had the chance to drive by the Elisabet Ney Museum on our way home. It was built in her former home and art studio in Hyde Park, standing out because of its limestone castle-like structure. We were especially interested due to our tour of the Capitol, where she has two prominent statues in the South Foyer. They are of Sam Houston and Stephen F. Austin, two prominent figures in Texas History.

The museum was a perfect way to end an exciting and educational trip. LEAP students learned a lot and enjoyed their time there tremendously. From exciting panels sparking new ideas to culinary adventures like Skipjack Oyster, it was a trip to remember. We are excited to take our lessons and newfound ideas back to Huntsville, where we can use them in our everyday lives.