Civic Engagement – Page 31 – Center for Law, Engagement, and Politics

Voir Dire with the Freshman Leadership Program

A new semester means another collaboration between the LEAP Center and the Freshman Leadership Program. And this year, the two offices decided to do a Simulated Voir Dire, giving them a broad overview of the jury selection process. And so it was that Associate Dean Lindsay Lauher, FLP Program Assistant Dante Tamez, Professor Mike Yawn, and the LEAP Center’s Sarah-Hope Carter came to be pretend lawyers for a day, along with 30 promising leaders who participate in the Freshman Leadership Program.

The students were provided with creative biographies, requiring them to take on the perspectives of 53 year-old plumbers, 34 year-old teachers, previously convicted drug dealers, and the like. Collectively, they constituted the jury pool, brought together to consider charges of drunk driving with an associated injury.

Professor Yawn stepped them through process of checking in, the background interviews they would do, the research attorneys might undertake, and the legitimate reasons for which a potential juror might be excused.

Yawn took the students through the question-and-answer process that potential jurors go through to determine their suitability, as well as the difference between a “strike for cause” and a peremptory strike.

Beyond the strict voir dire process, students also learned a little about criminal procedure, as well as upcoming events hosted by the LEAP Center. The students, befitting future leaders, were highly engaged, with McKenzie Menefee proving particularly knowledgeable. In fact, Menefee and Lilly Temple-Dozier ended up joining the Pre-Law Society!

It was an enjoyable and educational afternoon, another rewarding cohort of the Freshman Leadership Program.

CHSS Honors Alumni, Faculty at Wall of Honor

For the 10th time, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences gathered to honor faculty and former students who have distinguished themselves. This year, two alumni and one faculty member received the honor: Ron Gay, Lt. Col. Vanessa Hicks-Callaway, and Dr. Terry Thibodeaux.

With 100 people on hand, Mac Woodward–already on the Wall of Honor–served as host, introducing speakers and honorees, and keeping the event moving along. In fact, in its new mix-and-mingle format, the event was shortest on record at approximately an hour and a half.

President White was generous with her time and on hand, and Dean Li also said a few words, with both setting a tone of graciousness and warmth.

The CHSS Advisory Board was also on hand, with two of the Board members having a direct connection to LEAP Ambassadors: Blake Roach was a Junior Fellow, a forerunner to LEAP;

…and Lupe Cuellar was one of the first Sam Houston Austin Interns. Mac Woodward, of course, has been a long-time supporter of the students. It was great to see all of them.

Ron Gay graduated with bachelors and masters degrees in political science at SHSU. He worked for Scott & White for more than two decades, before going into financial advising, and he now owns Ron Gay Financial Services.

He served on the College Station City Council, is the President of the CHSS Advisory Board, and has served the Lions Club for more than 40 years.

Lt. Colonel Hicks-Callaway…

…who majored in political science, has served in the military (where she saw combat in two tours), served as a two-time Governor appointee, and has worked on the Veterans Commission, serving veterans. She thanked President White, Dean Li, the CHSS Advisory Board, civil rights leaders, and others who have helped her along the way–chief among them her husband, also an SHSU graduate.

Dr. Terry Thibodeaux has taught at SHSU for more than 35 years, and he continues to teach in an adjunct capacity and advisor, despite “retiring” in the last couple of years.

Thibodeaux served as an advisor in the Sam Center for many years, Interim Dean for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, and Chair of the Department of Communications, touching many lives along the way. One such student was Princess Spikes, who was featured in Thibodeaux’s video…

…and who also was on hand to see her Professor accept the award in person. After hearing the nice things she said about Professor Thibodeaux, we thanked her for speaking on his behalf, to which she responded, “I’d do anything for that man.”

Dr. Brandau…

…who succeeded him as Communications Department Chair, had similar notes of esteem, and she was also in the video and on hand, making the evening one of particular poignance.

The night was also a poignant one for us. We had recently attended a presentation by David Brooks, in which he argued that life fulfillment derived primarily from relationships with–and service to–others. Thus, it was particularly special to spend time with some of the people at SHSU whom we have developed relationships with, and to meet others who have spent much energy serving others.

CJ Real Talk Series: Emergency Management

The College of Criminal Justice works to connect alumni and students in meaningful ways, including their “Real Talk” program. This program brings alumni to campus to meet and speak with students, while highlighting the alum’s current job. Last week, the featured speaker was Adam Lee, who received his master’s degree in Homeland Security from SHSU, and he spoke about the ever-growing importance of emergency management and how students can enter that line of work. (You can watch the program here.)

Student Engagement & Retention Specialist Luke Putman Introduces SHSU Alum Adam Lee

Lee currently works for Memorial Hermann Health System as the Director of Emergency Management and Organizational Resilience but has experience with the public sector of security. His experience includes working as Assistant Emergency Management Coordinator for League City, TX (a position he held in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey) and for SouthEast Texas Regional Advisory Council (SETRAC). He held the latter position when COVID descended upon the world.

While both of these emergencies were, in some sense unprecedented, the larger lesson is that emergencies, almost by definition, occur unexpectedly. Even when such events are expected, they may have unexpected outcomes or arrive in an unexpected scale. So, planners and responders will always be needed, and that is especially true in Texas.

Currently, Lee works for Memorial Hermann, and in this role he has focused on a new type of threat: cyberattacks. When you think of the technology that goes into hospital, and the pressing and urgent role they play in keeping people alive, it takes little imagination to think of what a power outage or wide-scale hacking episode could do to a hospital.

Whatever one’s goals within the field of emergency planning and security, Lee suggests networking (such as attending University events!) and education. Unlike much in the world today, the field of emergency planning has a real need for generalists or, as he said, “knowledge a mile wide and an inch deep” and to be a lifelong learner.

Lee threw out the names of free and inexpensive learning tools for emergency preparedness such as PreparingTexas.org and the Center Domestic Preparedness to increase your education. CourseRa also has free (or low cost) emergency management as well, and of course CJ has many courses that will benefit a student looking to enter this field.

And, true to his own advice, he stayed around after–sharing his knowledge and networks with students.

Pre-Law Society Informational Meeting

Are you an SHSU student considering a career in law, but don’t know where to start? If so, SHSU’s Pre-Law Society (PLS) is an excellent start to your pre-law journey!

Prospective Pre-Law Students Discuss the Pre-Law Society

In advance of our first regular meeting, which is on February 21, 2024, officers held an informational for students considering careers in law. With a focus on what the Pre-Law Society does, we highlighted our meetings as well as the benefits of the organization.

VP of Marketing, Cinthia Villarreal, Discusses PLS Advantages

Regular Meetings: The Pre-Law Society meets officially once a month, typically featuring speakers such as defense attorneys, prosecutors, judges, special prosecutors, or law-school admissions representatives. For our first meeting February 21, we are having a mix, with SHSU alums returning to discuss their law-related careers. Guests include Quinn Kobrin (3L at University of New Hampshire Law), Victoria McClendon (first-year attorney in Houston area), and Blake Roach (former aide to Governor Abbott and currently an intergovernmental affairs specialist).

Special Events: The Pre-Law Society also participates in many special events, such as last week’s “How-to-get-into-Law School” discussion with the University of Tulsa College of Law; the upcoming Mock Law class, as well as various special guests, such as former Director of Counterintelligence for the CIA Jim Olson (March 27) and former US Attorney General Alberto Gonzales (March 29). Additionally, the PLS offers a Mock LSAT each semester, giving students the opportunity to assess where they are in their law-school preparation.

Walker County DA Will Durham Covers his Role as Prosecutor

When you throw in benefits such as the (1) access to LSAT Resources through the LEAP office, (2) a free t-shirt, (3) access to expanded professional networks, and (4) eligibility for pre-law scholarships, membership in the Pre-Law Society is a great value!

For more information about Pre-Law Society and events, please email Professor Yawn (mike.yawn@shsu.edu) and follow our Instagram @prelawsocietyshsu. Many thanks to all of the students who attended this informational session for Pre-Law Society, and we hope to see you at our first meeting February 21!

If you would like to join the Pre-Law Society, you can pay at CHSS 480 on Monday, February 19 or Wednesday February 21 between 10:30am-1:30pm. Or, you can pay between 5-6pm on February 21 in CHSS 120, just before our regular meeting. Payment can be accepted in the form of cash, check, cashier’s check, or money order.

Seeing Eye-to-Eye with David Brooks

by Cinthia Villarreal

After an insightful day with Megan Henson from the University of Tulsa College of Law, Michelle Cardenas, Christina Biello, Olivia Discon, and I headed to Houston to attend a World Affairs Council event with renowned author David Brooks, the writer of How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen.

As we walked into the glamorous Royal Sonesta Hotel, we had the honor of meeting with former LEAP Ambassadors Quinn Korbin, Victoria McClendon, and Megan O’Flaherty.

Following an introduction by Executive Director Maryanne Maldonado…

…the program was officially kicked off by moderator Ronan O’Malley, Chief Program Officer at WAC.

When asked about his intentions behind writing this book, Brooks mentioned this was his attempt to teach people basic social skills. With measures of societal and individual connectedness at a low, with suicides high and climbing, and with disagreements seemingly both common and insurmountable, Brooks stressed the need for skills that will help people have meaningful, empathetic conversations with others.

One aspect of this, according to Brooks, is that there is no emphasis put on moral or character development. And while Brooks noted that he didn’t want to go back to the 1950s and “sometimes corny” way this was approached then, he does think there is a role for that in today’s society. Moreover, he notes that his own students describe themselves–in my new favorite phrase–as “morally inarticulate”.

As he notes in his book, he describes two types of people in society, which he calls illuminators, who make you feel heard and ask you questions because they are genuinely interested in your story; and diminishers, who usually stereotype people they talk to and are not interested in knowing other’s stories.

Brooks went on to describe how the same experience can affect each person differently since the act of seeing is not passive but an active, subjective construction of reality. Using another phrase that will stay with us, Brooks described “experience” not as “what happens to you but what you do with it.”

Throughout the event, Brooks proved his remarkable skills at managing the crowd. He truly captivated all of us by his amazing way of narrating and communicating his knowledge. He would have the whole room laughing one minute and tearing up the next.

A question from the audience urged Brooks to talk about what to say to someone living with depression. People usually make mistakes like telling the person what to do to “lift” the depression or reminding them of the good things they do have; however, this will only make them feel worse. Instead, he suggests approaching the person with a genuine heart by acknowledging the situation and asking about what they are feeling.

After the thought-provoking talk, we had the opportunity to meet Brooks and get our books signed and personalized.

We would like to thank the World Affairs Council for hosting yet another incredible event, the staff for their hard work, and David Brooks for such an inspirational talk.

Tragedy and Remembrance in Oklahoma City

On our day in Oklahoma, we were determined to visit the Oklahoma City Bombing National Memorial & Museum, a site strategically sandwiched by us between happier visits to the Oklahoma Capitol building and the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. We were wise to begin and end our time in OKC with happy destinations, because the Bombing Museum and Memorial is a sobering and emotional experience.

Oklahoma City Bombing National Memorial & Museum

After getting a glimpse of Oklahoma’s history from its Capitol, we went on to learn more about one of the state’s darker days. The Oklahoma City Bombing was a tragic instance of domestic terrorism in which 168 people were killed and 680 injured. On the grounds of this tragedy, the Oklahoma City Bombing National Memorial & Museum was erected.

Upon entry, we learned of how the Alfred P. Murray Federal Building served the country before its fall. Federal entities such as the Social Security Administration and U.S. Secret Service officed in this structure, along with a daycare center.

The museum unfolds chronologically, providing a history of the 1990s in general, as well as the events surrounding the bombing. The morning of the bombing, April 19, 1995, unfolded largely like any other, with the Oklahoma Water Board Resources Meeting beginning at 9:00.

At 9:02, the bomb planted by Timothy McVeigh exploded, and Oklahomans’ lives changed forever.

The explosion tore through the building, destroying approximately half of the building, killing not only people in the building, but also pedestrians and bystanders on nearby blocks. Devastation was everywhere.

The scope of the devastation was horrific to learn about, but equally as sad were the individual stories that the museum told well.

We took some time to immerse ourselves in what was a horrific day, but not one devoid of hope.

What was most striking to me was the strength of the Oklahoma community in a time of such travesty.

Watching the local news broadcasts of citizens bringing heaps of donations, lining up to donate blood, and provide support in any way possible was tear-jerking.

The perpetrator of this act of terrorism, Timothy McVeigh, was arrested after only 90 minutes after the mass murder. Despite planning a huge crime with some complex logistics and carrying it out, he didn’t think to ensure his car had a license plate on it, and this was the ultimate cause of his arrest. Interestingly, SHSU plays a small role in this history, as alum and defense attorney Chris Tritico represented McVeigh during his trial.

In all, the Oklahoma City Bombing National Memorial & Museum is meticulously crafted to evoke the gravity of this event, while honoring the victims and looking towards a brighter future in an all encompassing, devastatingly profound structure.

Chilly at the Lodge: Food, Fun, and Fundraising

by Michelle Cardenas

In a small town like Huntsville, Texas, tradition beats it all. So when the first Saturday in February rolls around, everyone is eager to indulge in one of the tastiest community events of the year!

For the past 3 years ,“Chilly at the Lodge” has brought together the community and chili chefs from all over the country for a chili cookoff. The fundraiser has proven to be a great success and fun-filled event, with much of the work being led by Karla Christian and a team of community volunteers. All the proceeds go to support the Josey Scout Lodge, where the event is held.

This year, the LEAP Ambassadors were fortunate enough to be guest judges for the community youth and adult division. Although our credentials for cooking chili are a bit lacking, we can determine what we like. As the time for judging approximated, we all headed into the judges’ area in the lodge. We were greeted by many familiar faces, including Mac and Leanne Woodward; SHSU’s Gene Roberts; former City Attorney of Huntsville Thomas Leeper;

…Assistant City Manager Sam Maisel; SHSU’s Mandy Dunbar; Pete Sessions’ District Coordinator, Jeff Murski;

…and former LEAP ambassador and current City of Huntsville Economic Development Specialist Miranda Estrada. We also had the privilege of meeting Walt Pinegar, former investigator for the Walker County District Attorney’s office.

The judging process was very official; we began with a judges’ meeting directed by Don Cullum, six-time International Chili Society World Championship qualifier.

The stakes were high, and we did not take our roles as judges lightly. We were soon divided into two groups and so Olivia, Cinthia, Jessica and I ended up judging the community youth category ,while Morgan judged the community adult chili. We quickly grabbed our ballots and got to tasting!

There were other categories such as traditional red chili, veggie chili, chili verde, and homestyle chili. With such an extensive amount of chili to be tasted, there was a wonderful lineup of judges, including Mayor Russell Humphrey, City Manager Aron Kulhavy, Michelle Lyons, and our very own, Professor Yawn.

After judging, we couldn’t help but sample the other delicious chilis from across the country, one of which was California! The chilis ranged from all walks of spice and fixings and while it was hard to choose a favorite, we ultimately cast our ballots for the ‘People’s Choice’ category (for the winners, see the bottom of the article). We had a wonderful time conversing with the many people in attendance. Who knew that chili was such a good hors d’oeuvre!?

Many thanks Leanne Woodward and Karla Christian for the opportunity to participate as judges at this amazing chili cook-off. We had a great time, and it is always a pleasure to take part in the happenings of this amazing community!

To see the winners, go to Chilly at the Lodge!

A Special Day: Learning and Giving at SHSU

Morgan Robertson

Most students at SHSU face some level of financial insecurity–but, fortunately, our alumni and external partners have proved generous, donating (literally) millions a year toward scholarships. And each year, University Advancement at SHSU brings together scholarship recipients and their donors for a celebratory lunch and this year, Michelle, Olivia and I were honored to attend.

Michelle and Olivia were recipients of the Andrew and Ila Martinez Memorial Scholarship in Public Service, granted by Russell Martinez (Associate Athletic Director and long-time friend to the LEAP Ambassadors) as well as Wayne and Andrea (Martinez) Scott. Olivia and Michelle were fortunate to already know Russell, but the lunch offered them a great opportunity to meet Mr. and Mrs. Scott. And for most of the scholarship recipients, this may be the only way they have a chance to meet and thank the donors.

I was honored to receive the Bertha Kirkley Scholarship from the Sam Houston Memorial Museum. The Museum Director, Derrick Birdsall, was on hand as the donor representative, and I have been fortunate to know Mr. Birdsall for some time.

For me, this scholarship was full circle. Bertha Kirkley, a history professor at SHSU, was instrumental in securing some of the land that now makes up the Sam Houston Memorial Museum, and she is also buried at Oakwood Cemetery–where I’ve done some volunteer work! Interestingly, the Museum grounds was one of the first sites I visited when touring SHSU, and the beauty and history of the Museum and its grounds were instrumental in getting me to SHSU.

There were many familiar faces in attendance that afternoon, and we had the chance to socialize a bit before lunch. Nancy Gaertner graciously joined me for a photo, and it is always nice to see her!

We were delighted to sit near Mac and Leanne Woodward and their scholarship recipient, Casey Bowers, an accounting major.

To kick off the luncheon, Matthew Bethea, Vice President of University Advancement, thanked all those who made such an event possible and reinforced the many reasons that make these relationships so important. With community members, SHSU alumni, and students alike joining forces to represent our university, we are building on top of a worldwide network of individuals dedicated to serving their communities.

President White took the stage and beamed with joy as she addressed the audience of students and donors alike.

With the support of the generous donors, scholarships totaling $6,000,000 were awarded to students in the 2023-2024 academic year. We are grateful we were among those who benefit from the generosity of alumni, faculty, and staff.

Sheri Robinson, SHSU Alum and CFO of Reynolds and Reynolds, also offered remarks, while announcing that her company has pledged $100,000 in scholarships for Bearkats.

As a senior this year, it is my last Scholarship Luncheon (as a recipient!), and I am very grateful for the generosity shown to me, not only in terms of financial donations, but also in terms of mentorship and friendships–not the least of which is Derrick Birdsall.

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