Monthly News Archives: February 2014

HPU’s Symphonic Band to present spring concert

BROWNWOOD – February 28, 2014 – The Howard Payne University Symphonic Band will present its first concert of the spring semester on Thursday, March 6, at 7:30 p.m. in the university’s Mims Auditorium. There is no admission charge for the concert, and the public is welcome and encouraged to attend.

The band will perform a varied and exciting program, including the Sinfonians, a symphonic concert march; October by Eric Whitacre; Abram’s Pursuit by David Holsinger; Pastime by Jack Stamp; Second Suite in F by Gustav Holst; and much more.

“There is sure to be something to delight the musical tastes of everyone in attendance,” said Corey Ash, associate professor of music and director of bands. “Come enjoy an evening of exciting music, compliments of Howard Payne University’s School of Music and Fine Arts and the HPU Symphonic Band.”

Juan Hernandez of Brownwood to present senior recital at HPU

angel and juan hernandez for web BROWNWOOD – February 28, 2014 – Juan Hernandez, a Howard Payne University music education major and saxophonist from Brownwood, will present his senior recital on Tuesday, March 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the university’s Grace Chapel. The recital is titled “Latin American Music for the Classical Saxophone.”

“Music is the universal language and the language that goes beyond words,” said Stephen Goacher, professor of music and director of the jazz orchestra. “I am pleased that Juan has chosen a recital program highlighting his interest in cultural diversity through the arts. The artistic thoughts of the Latin American music will have universal appeal.”

Assisting Juan will be his brother Angel Hernandez, a freshman music education major, on marimba. Dr. Elizabeth Wallace, professor of piano at HPU, will also accompany Juan.

The public is welcome to attend the recital and there is no charge for admission. For more information, contact HPU’s School of Music and Fine Arts at (325) 649-8500.

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Photo cutline: Juan Hernandez, right, will present his senior recital at Howard Payne University on March 4 at 7:30 p.m. He will be accompanied by his brother, Angel Hernandez, left.

HPU faculty and staff promote heart health awareness

Heart Health Month 2014 for web BROWNWOOD – February 28, 2014 – In honor of American Heart Month in February, several Howard Payne University faculty and staff members wore special t-shirts for a day as part of the American Heart Association’s “Go Red for Women” campaign for heart health awareness.

Pictured (back row, left to right) are Ferrisa Childs, assistant director of student aid; Kim Rosato, instructor of exercise and sport science; Kim Bryant, associate professor of communication; Tammy Dake, custodian; Diane Hackney, facilities department coordinator; Dr. Julie Welker, chair of the Department of Communication and professor of communication; and Martha Fothergill, coordinator of records and reports. In the front row (left to right) are Susan Sharp, administrative assistant for the School of Education and certification officer; Gretchen Campbell, executive administrative assistant to the vice president for student life and dean of students; Dr. Mitzi Lehrer, associate professor of education; Ann Johnson, custodial services supervisor; and Cheryl Mangrum, associate director of admission.

HPU art professor to be featured in national exhibition

David Harmon HPU for web BROWNWOOD – February 26, 2014 – The artwork of David Harmon, professor of art and chair of the Department of Art at Howard Payne University, was selected for inclusion in a national exhibition. Two of Harmon’s pastel pieces will be featured in The Pastel National 2014 Exhibition at the Wichita Center for the Arts in Wichita, Kan.

The exhibit will be showcased at the Wichita Center March 28 through May 11, with an opening reception to be held on Friday, March 28, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

“Professor Harmon is very talented, both as an artist and as a teacher,” said Lawson Hager, interim dean of HPU’s School of Music and Fine Arts. “We’re very pleased that his work is being recognized at the national level.”

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Photo cutline: Artwork by David Harmon, professor of art and chair of the art department at HPU, will be showcased in a national exhibition.

HPU to present Spring Sing 2014

BROWNWOOD – February 21, 2014 – Howard Payne University students will perform in the annual Spring Sing event on Friday and Saturday, February 28 and March 1, at 7:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., respectively, in Mims Auditorium.

This year’s theme is “Remember When” and each participating group will perform a 12-minute original musical/theatrical sketch that will be filled with action, hilarity and inspiration. Student organizations participating in this year’s event include the Archery Club, Chi Alpha Omega, Delta Chi Rho, Iota Chi Alpha, Kappa Kappa Psi, Sigma Theta Phi and Tau Beta Sigma.

Spring Sing is a popular event on the HPU campus, drawing audiences of students, faculty, staff, alumni and members of the community. General admission tickets are $5 for all audiences and are available for purchase beginning Monday, February 24. Tickets may be purchased at the Cashier’s Office (room 203 of HPU’s Packer Administration Building) or during lunch in the Mabee University Center. Tickets will also be available for purchase at the door on the evenings of the event. Reserved seating tickets are available for $10 at the HPU Cashier’s Office but must be purchased by Thursday, February 27.

A Spring Sing student committee, co-chaired by Kaitlin Vernon, a junior from Bangs, and Brandon Yost, a senior from Fresno, Calif., is coordinating this year’s production. Staff advisers include Francie Harvey, director of student activities; Nancy Pryor, resident director; Jake Sneath, resident director; and Dr. Brent Marsh, vice president for student life and dean of students.

“As a treasured tradition on campus, Spring Sing is the perfect opportunity for alumni and community members to visit campus,” Harvey explains. “We have more groups than ever, and audiences are going to experience each organization’s qualities and humor.”

Photo cutline: HPU will present its annual Spring Sing event February 28 and March 1 at the university’s Mims Auditorium.

HPU’s Student Speaker Bureau competes at Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association championship tournament

BROWNWOOD – February 19, 2014 – Howard Payne University’s competitive speech and debate team, Student Speaker Bureau, recently competed at the Texas Intercollegiate Forensics Association spring championship tournament at Rice University. The team won 5th place overall sweepstakes, losing only to Division I universities.

“This is a great accomplishment,” said Dr. Julie Welker, head of the communication department and SSB coach. “It is outstanding when a university the size of HPU comes in right behind larger universities. Most of those schools have upwards of 20 students on their team and enter twice as many events. We are competing with eight students. Our students pack a lot of bang for their buck!”

The team had a strong showing in debate, as the open division team of Katie Mullaney, senior English and Guy D. Newman Honors Academy major from Boylston, Mass., and Ben Palmer, senior youth ministry major from Brownwood, advanced to quarterfinals.

HPU had four speakers in the top 20 for parliamentary debate speaker awards. Winning top speaker awards were Mullaney and Adam Jones, freshman communication, youth ministry and Academy major from Irving, both of whom ranked in the top 10. Palmer and Andres Zambrano, freshman Academy and political science major from Brownwood, ranked in the top 20.

Palmer also advanced to semifinals in extemporaneous speaking, and Jones advanced to semifinals in impromptu speaking.

“I am extremely proud of all of these students,” said Welker. “This was our first parliamentary debate tournament since last September, so we were a little rusty. It’s impressive that we had a team break to quarters and receive such great speaking awards.”

Welker added that the HPU students have been able to step in and succeed, even with such a young team.

“We only have two graduating seniors on our team, Katie and Ben, and they are great leaders,” she said. “Their debating experience really shines through at these tough tournaments.”

Other students who competed at the tournament were Marcos Corley, junior criminal justice major from Corpus Christi; Meg Eakin, freshman political science major from Plano; Jaclyn Bonner, freshman communication major from Lytle; and Adrianna Perez, junior political science major from Rowlett. Kim Bryant, associate professor of communication, also helps coach the team.

This Valentine’s Day, alumni couple reflects on time at HPU

BROWNWOOD – Feb. 10, 2014 – For Howard Payne University alumni Ben and Angela (Haney) Butler, the university will forever represent more than just an education – it’s also where they met and fell in love. The couple was married on November 2, 2013, just one month before they crossed the stage to receive their Master of Business Administration degrees.

Ben, a Graham native, and Angela, from Denison, both started at HPU in the fall of 2008. After seeing each other around campus for a year, they became friends in the fall of 2009.

“I could always tell that there was something special about Ben,” said Angela. “He was always the guy who would do anything to help out a friend. If you ask any of his friends from HPU, they’ll tell you that he goes above and beyond to take care of other people.”

It wasn’t until the next year, however, that Angela noticed her feelings for Ben were evolving into something deeper.

“I finally told a mutual friend of ours, and he got so excited that he immediately went and told Ben,” she said.

According to Ben, he didn’t quite believe the news for the first few weeks.

“I wasn’t sure if it was true or if my buddies were just playing a joke on me,” he said. “Angela was the type of girl that I always felt was out of my league, and I still do. But on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving that year, as I was getting ready to head home for break, I decided to text her.”

A month later, the couple was “officially” dating and they continued to do so throughout the rest of their undergraduate careers.

“Ben actually chose to get his Master of Business Administration degree through HPU before I did,” said Angela. “He had an extra year of eligibility left in baseball and thought the MBA program sounded perfect.”

Angela, who had taken an internship in her hometown after graduating with a bachelor’s degree, discovered that a long-distance relationship was not what she wanted. Fortunately, she applied for an admission counselor position with HPU’s Office of Admission and was hired soon after.

“I didn’t really think anything about getting an MBA until after I came back to work at HPU and more people began to tell me about their great experiences with the program,” she said. “It was enticing to me because an MBA can help you in so many different fields, and it can be completed in only one year. I decided to follow in Ben’s footsteps and get mine too.”

In between busy work schedules, baseball and other events, Ben and Angela attended graduate classes together at nights and on weekends. Their relationship continued to blossom, and they became engaged on March 16, 2013, at a family friend’s house after a home baseball game.

“I turned a corner and saw Ben standing there with a beautiful bouquet of flowers, his Bible and a little blue box wrapped in white ribbon,” Angela said. “He proposed and I said yes in front of our friends and family. We celebrated the night away.”

Due to the fact that Ben finished his MBA in August and Angela finished hers in December, they had the rare opportunity to graduate together a month after their wedding.

“It was a really cool thing to do,” Angela said. “I even had the registrar’s office make sure that my name said ‘Angela Nicole Butler’ on my diploma instead of ‘Haney.’ When I walked the stage they had me wait for Ben’s name to be called too. We were able to get our picture taken together on the platform, as husband and wife, both graduating with our Master of Business Administration degrees. It was a really great experience to get to share with him.”

The couple now lives in The Colony, with Ben working for Evantage, Inc., and Angela for Lewisville ISD. They’ve joined Prestonwood Baptist Church and say they have been blessed by God’s continual provision.

“As far as the future goes, sometimes it seems like we have a ton of plans and sometimes it seems like we’re just playing it fast and loose,” Angela said. “We would both eventually like to pursue entrepreneurship. We want to travel. We want to raise a family. But right now, we’re just taking it one step at a time and loving each other with everything we have.”

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Photo cutline: Ben and Angela (Haney) Butler graduated from HPU with Master of Business Administration degrees just one month after their wedding. They are pictured with Dr. Les Plagens, left, dean of the School of Business, and Dr. Lois Patton, right, professor of business administration and director of the MBA program.

3D printing: Scientists believe new technology, now taught at HPU, will change the world

(This article was originally published in the winter 2013-14 issue of the Link magazine)

BROWNWOOD – February 4, 2014 – “There isn’t an area of society that will not be touched in some way by the concept of 3D printing,” says Dr. Lester Towell, professor of computer information systems and chair of the department of computer information systems at HPU.

3D printers, such as the one recently acquired by the university, create three-dimensional objects by printing successive layers of a variety of materials including plastic, metal, ceramic and glass. The technology stands poised to change the world in which we live – scientists have already successfully printed biological matter, which could one day render organ transplant lists obsolete.

In between teaching a full course load and other responsibilities that come with being a faculty member and department chair, Dr. Towell can be found at the printer. The unit – small enough to fit on the corner of his desk – prints a material called acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic.

Dr. Towell happily demonstrates the machine to faculty, staff and students as well as to groups and organizations outside the university. An undergraduate class, 3D Engineering Printing, was created around the technology.

“My hope is that it reignites interest in the STEM courses – science, technology, engineering and math,” says Dr. Towell. “I believe 3D printing is a fun way to pique the students’ curiosity in these subjects.”

Dr. Towell’s office is littered with the brightly colored plastic objects produced by the printer. Though they could easily be mistaken for toys, the items are proof of the machine’s capabilities.

“This, for example,” he says, holding up a plastic ball bearing, “was manufactured as one unit. That’s something that can’t be done with any other manufacturing process. The 3D printer takes away the need for assembly in this instance.”

Dr. Towell believes that 3D printing will eventually have an impact on society similar to that of the Internet.

“Regardless of the field, 3D printing is going to play a huge role,” he says. “It’s going to happen, and HPU is out in front of the pack.”

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Photo cutline: Dr. Lester Towell demonstrates the university’s 3D printer.

HPU to host financial aid seminar for parents of area high school students

BROWNWOOD – Feb. 3, 2014 – Parents of area juniors and seniors in high school are invited to a free seminar at Howard Payne University to learn more about financing college educations. HPU will host the meeting on financial aid and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 6, in the university’s Paul and Jane Meyer Faith and Life Leadership Center.

Glenda Huff, HPU’s director of student aid, will discuss the financial aid process with a special emphasis on the FAFSA, the application used to award loans and grants to students at universities across the nation.

According to Huff, it is extremely essential to begin the financial aid process as soon as possible after January 1.

“Some schools have very early ‘priority dates’ for awarding financial aid funds,” she said. “Parents of all area students, even those not planning to enroll at HPU, are welcome to attend this session.”

University representatives will also discuss HPU’s Heart of Texas Scholarship Program, designed to benefit students graduating from high schools in Brown, Callahan, Coleman, Comanche, Eastland, McCulloch, Mills and San Saba counties. The scholarship awards up to $14,000 annually to students who meet the requirements.

For more information about the seminars, contact PJ Gramling, director of admission, at (325) 649-8406 or pgramling@hputx.edu. For more information about HPU financial aid, visit www.hputx.edu/financialaid or call (325) 649-8015.