Tag: LEAP Center

In a Sprint to the Finish, LEAP Ambassadors Visit Bush Library, Meet Ken Burns and Mark Burns

Even as the semester winds to a close, the LEAP Center Ambassadors refuse to slow down.  Indeed, on their first day in school following the Thanksgiving break, the Ambassadors embarked on an educational trifecta, attending three venues to learn about politics, history, nature, and art.

The tour began shortly after the Ambassadors got out of class on Monday, November 30.  From class the students drove to the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas, where they learned about World War II, the CIA, China, the United Nations, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and other historical events in which former President Bush was involved.

Bush_Museum_Christina_Web

“My favorite exhibit,” noted senior Austin Campbell, “was the Oval Office, where the political action unfolds.” The students gathered with Campbell for a “presidential conference” in the office, much to the amusement of Museum staff…

Bush_Museum_OVal_Office_Group_Action_2_Web

…as well as a more formal portrait…

Bush_Museum_Oval_Office_Group_2_Web

Brian Aldaco, on the other hand, most enjoyed the wing addressing Bush’s move from Yale to Texas. “I enjoyed learning more about his personal qualities and his family, which I think contributed to his success later in life.”

Bush_Museum_Beginning_Web

This was also true of Megan Chapa, who enjoyed seeing the wedding exhibit on the Bushes.

Bush_Museum_Wedding_Megan_Web

The students got a closer view of the seventy-year marriage of George and Barbara Bush hours later, when they sat about 20 feet from the couple for a presentation by Ken Burns and Mark Burns, who came to the Bush Library to discuss the 100th Anniversary of the national park system.

Burns_Presentation_Stage_Web

Ken Burns has won two Emmys, two Grammys, a Peabody Award, and has twice been nominated for Academy Awards. He was also the director of “National Parks: America’s Best Idea,” excerpts of which were shown. Burns provided an eloquent defense of the national park system, noting that “In Europe, governments erect cathedrals or palaces, and these ‘monuments’ are often reserved for the national elite. In the United States, we invented the idea of preserving the land for the entire nation. It’s a democratic idea.”

The national parks system was created as part of the Organic Act of 1916, legislation designed “…to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner…as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”

This idealistic notion was punctuated by Mark Burns’ (no relation to Ken) photographs, which captured the remarkable beauty of these sites. In fact, Burns is one of only three photographers to photograph all 59 of the US national parks and the only one to photograph them all in black and white.

Photography_Exhibit_2_Web

Burns’ monochromatic photography—evoking Ansel Adams—was on display at the Bush Library alongside paintings by Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Moran, and other painters of the natural world. Enriching the exhibit was the presence of Mark Burns…

Mark_Burns_Ambassadors_Web

…and Ken Burns, whom the students had the opportunity to interact with on the tour of the exhibit.

Burns_Ambassadors_2_Web

Campbell, combining politics and the environment, asked Ken Burns whether he had noticed global warming affecting the national parks. “Absolutely,” noted Burns, who went on to observe that it was possible that in a couple of decades, visitors to Montana might come across a sign that says, “the site of the former Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park.”

On this ominous note, the students walked the short distance from the Bush Presidential Museum to the Bush School of Government and Public Service, where they learned about careers—with an emphasis on those that might allow them to influence public policy for the better.

Bush_School_Overview_Web

Staff were welcoming, reinforcing the strong relationship that the Bush School has with SHSU. Indeed, the Bush School’s Master’s Program at Texas A&M has more undergraduates from SHSU than any other national university with the exception of TAMU. Some of those former SHSU students are now in the workplace, holding down careers in the state legislature, in management positions for city governments, and even as administrators at SHSU.

It was a lot to take in at the end of the semester, and although only eight hours elapsed on the tour, the students vicariously experienced World War II, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Persian Gulf War, and the development of the national park system. And, as future public servants, they may also make history—as advisors, legislators, park rangers, or even presidents.

 

Best-Selling Author Visits SHSU: Two days with Jeff Guinn

Best-selling author Jeff Guinn made his way to SHSU last week, spending time with local residents and many SHSU students.

Guinn has written 18 books, the best known of which are the NY Times bestsellers: “The Autobiography of Santa Claus,” “Go Down Together: The True Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde,” “Manson: The Life and Times of Charles Manson,” and “The Last Gunfight: The Real Story of the Shootout at the OK Corral and How It Changed the American West.”

The lives and events in these books played a central in his discussions with Huntsville residents.  With Christmas around the corner, several asked about his work on Santa Claus, and Mr. Guinn provided some intriguing and entertaining responses.  Why does Santa Claus wear red and white trim, you may wonder?  Because the real St. Nicholas was a bishop, and red and white attire was customary for bishops.

Such conversations took began over dinner at the Homestead, with local residents and LEAP Ambassadors on hand.

Guinn_Group_Web

 

For Megan Chapa, of greater interest was Guinn’s work on Bonnie and Clyde, which she read (twice) in class.  Guinn supplemented some of the information in the book with background stories about Warren Beatty, Faye Dunaway, and Estelle Parsons, who starred in the 1968 classic film, Bonnie And Clyde.  Interestingly, the duo had been known as “Clyde and Bonnie” until that time; it was the film that cemented “Bonnie and Clyde” into the nation’s consciousness.

Guinn_Ambassadors_Web

Guinn also spoke to two of Professor Yawn’s classes.  One, an Introduction to Texas Government…

Guinn_Speaking_2306_2_Web

…heard much about Bonnie and Clyde, and the early days of law enforcement (and prison life) in Texas.  Interestingly, Clyde Barrow was imprisoned in both the Eastham Unit and the Walls Unit, giving him a direct connection to Huntsville.

In Yawn’s Politics and Media, the students heard more about the impact that Bonnie and Clyde, Charles Manson, and Jim Jones (his current book subject) had on the media.  Bonnie and Clyde, for example, were one of the first subjects to have photos of themselves wired across the nation.  In fact, without this technological development, they likely would have simply been locally known.  With the infamous photo of Bonnie Parker with cigar and gun…

…being wired across the US, however, the duo became nationally famous.  Similarly, Charles Manson and his high-profile attacks (of actress Sharon Tate) brought in Hollywood and seemed to typify the California lifestyle of the 1960s and 1970s.

Guinn_3364_Speaking_8_Web

Following classes, 25 students and faculty had a low-profile lunch with Mr. Guinn, who continued to discuss the impact of the subjects he has studied, much to the delight of those attending.

Guinn_Lunch_Speaking_3_Web

According to Bella Abril, who had also read “Go Down Together,” the meeting was “very interesting,” even if she finds hearing about Manson and Jim Jones a bit disturbing.

Interestingly, Guinn has a practice of including the names of people he meets into his novels (when not publishing books on biographical subjects, he publishes fiction such as Glorious and Buffalo Trail).  On this trip, LEAP Ambassador Austin Campbell was designated as a character in Guinn’s next novel.  This doesn’t mean, of course, that Austin will actually be in the novel, but his name will be given to a character, although (ominously) Guinn does not guarantee which character will get that name…

Also of interest is that Guinn offered several of the LEAP Ambassadors the opportunity to go with him to do research on his next book subject.  While the subject hasn’t been formally released, it will involved border towns in Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona.  The Ambassadors are packing for a future road trip!

On his way out of Huntsville, Mr. Guinn stopped by the Texas Prison Museum to visit old friends Sandy Rogers and Jim Willett, who provided information and access to Guinn when he wrote about Bonnie and Clyde.

Guinn_Willett_Rogers_TPM_Web

He signed more than a dozen copies of his books for sale at the TPM, and headed out of town–eager, we hope, to return next year to Huntsville, Texas.