From April Fool鈥檚 and tulips to natural gas and climate change, TCU and its faculty, alumni and students are in the news.
INSTITUTIONAL
April 4, 2024
AACSB International announced today that 26 institutions have extended their business
accreditation and six have extended their accounting accreditation.鈥TCU鈥痚xtended both its business accreditation and accounting accreditation. Achieving
this milestone ensures greater access to high-quality business education for learners
around the world and businesses seeking top talent. 鈥淎ACSB congratulates each institution
on achieving AACSB accreditation,鈥 said Stephanie Bryant, executive vice president
and global chief accreditation officer at AACSB. 鈥淭he commitment to earning accreditation
is a true reflection of each school鈥檚 dedication鈥攏ot only to its students, alumni
network and greater business community鈥攂ut to society as a whole.鈥
April 3, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram鈥
TCU鈥痑nnounced its plans to work with the city to update the traffic signal and improve
the crosswalks between West Berry Street and West Cantey Street. Currently there are
four crosswalks pedestrians can use to traverse South University Drive. Only one of
them is protected by a traffic signal. The other three have signs indicating cars
should stop for pedestrians, but vehicles regularly speed through, leaving students
and others to either wait or try their luck dodging traffic. 鈥淲hile we may experience
some inconveniences along the way, the final result of this much-needed project will
improve safety for both vehicles and pedestrians through campus and also provide additional
beautification,鈥 said facilities project manager鈥Morgan McGlothlin鈥痠n the university blog post.
April 2, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram鈥
Almost all of the oldest universities in the United States are private colleges. Harvard
and St. John鈥檚 College, for example, were founded before the 18th century and boast
alumni and founders, respectively, who signed the Declaration of Independence. Stacker
compiled a list of the best private colleges in Texas, using data from Niche released
in 2024. Niche ranks schools based on a variety of factors, including academics, value
for money, professors, campus and diversity. No. 4 on the list is鈥TCU, with an acceptance rate of 54%, net price of $42,574 and SAT range of 1130-1350.
TCU's Niche grade is an A.
April 2, 2024
The Dallas Express鈥
The hundreds of tulips that dot鈥TCU鈥檚鈥campus are not a natural phenomenon but the result of a single person鈥檚 desire to
beautify the school.鈥Mary Beasley, a former member of the school鈥檚 board of trustees, is the reason tulips saturate
the campus each spring. She is responsible for creating the $800,000鈥疢ary Evans Beasley
Endowment Fund for Campus Beautification. Thanks to the $800,000 in support, TCU has
the necessary funding to maintain its tulip program for 36 years. While Beasley died
in 2005 at the age of 102, her legacy will live on for decades.
April 2, 2024
Fort Worth Business Press鈥
The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra will present a special series of concerts this summer
as the symphony pauses its Concerts in the Garden while the Fort Worth Botanic Garden
constructs an outdoor amphitheater as part of its master plan. The Mercedes T. Bass
Sounds of the Summer Series, offered in collaboration with local businesses and arts
organizations, will feature intimate live performances, new partnerships and community
engagements. Other concerts in the series will include the 2024鈥疨iano Texas International
Festival at TCU this June at鈥疺an Cliburn Concert Hall.
April 1, 2024
Fort Worth Magazine鈥
Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr.鈥痶ook to social media today to make a major announcement concerning the school鈥檚 next
150 years. Goodbye, Horned Frogs. Hello, Squirrels. 鈥淪tarting today, I鈥檓 excited to
announce that we are transitioning from the TCU Horned Frogs to an animal seen daily
and abundantly across our beautiful campus, the TCU Squirrels,鈥 Boschini says on a
video posted to X. That video has more than 1.2 million views 鈥 and counting 鈥 according
to a TCU spokesperson.鈥
April 1, 2024
KDAF-TV (Dallas, TX)鈥
TCU鈥痯osted on its Instagram a huge announcement that sent shockwaves through the campus
community. The once-beloved Horned Frog mascot will now be鈥 A Squirrel? TCU posted
a cheeky announcement about the 鈥渃hange鈥 in mascots after over 150 years. However,
after watching the video for a while you realize this is nothing more than another
April Fools鈥 joke!
March 31, 2024
KXAS-TV (Fort Worth, TX)鈥
Happy April Fools鈥 Day! Businesses, brands, corporations and even government organizations
are pranking people on social media. Did any of them fool you? In a serious-sounding
video, with a sad music track, Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr.鈥痵hared that TCU would be abandoning its beloved Horned Frog mascot and instead become
the Squirrels. At the end of the video, they revealed it was a joke.
March 30, 2024
KXAS-TV (Fort Worth, TX)鈥
Have you seen the hundreds of tulips that cover鈥痶he鈥痗ampus every spring? This is only
possible because of one girl鈥檚 wish to beautify the campus.鈥Mary Beasley, a former member of the Board of Trustees, was passionate about the beautification
of TCU鈥檚 campus. Instead of donating funds to the general upkeep of the university,
Beasley created the Mary Evans Beasley Endowment Fund for Campus Beautification. Around
$50,000 of the fund each year goes specifically to the tulips. According to鈥Erik Trevino, director of Landscaping and Grounds at TCU, flowers only last one season so his
team has to change out the flower beds multiple times a year. 鈥淚t costs a lot of money
to do that,鈥 said Trevino. 鈥淪o, it was her investment years ago that keeps our campus
beautiful.鈥
FACULTY
April 10, 2024
www.psu.edu
Filmmaker and鈥疶CU dance professor Suki John鈥痺ill visit Penn State Hazleton on April 18 to present her film detailing the experiences
of her family before, during and after the Holocaust. A narrative dance film developed
by John over the course of 30 years, 鈥淪h鈥檓a: A Story of Survival,鈥 is based primarily
on the life of John鈥檚 mother. It follows her from a young age to her deportation to
a concentration camp, her time as a refugee and her eventual life as a U.S. citizen.鈥疛ohn
created the film as part of 鈥淭he Sh鈥檓a Project: Move Against Hate,鈥 an initiative
aimed at educating audiences about the Holocaust.鈥
April 10, 2024
Fort Worth Magazine鈥
Judy Bernas, senior associate dean and chief communication and strategy officer for the鈥疉nne
Burnett Marion School of Medicine, has been appointed chair of the Fiesta Bowl, a
two-year term beginning in the 2024-2025 season. 鈥淭his is such an exciting time for
the Fiesta Bowl Organization and we truly have the best board, staff and volunteers
in all of college sports. I鈥檓 eager to support our returning and incredibly impressive
new board members and work closely with our Yellow Jacket Committee, ambassadors and
volunteers,鈥 Bernas said.
April 5, 2024
KXAS-TV (Fort Worth, TX)鈥
On Friday, President Joe Biden is traveling to Baltimore to visit the site of the
deadly Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, which left six presumed dead and is expected
to have a major impact on the port鈥檚 economy.鈥疶CU鈥檚 Center for Supply Chain Innovation
has been keeping a close eye on the situation. The port is also the top domestic port
for autos because it鈥檚 the closest port to the Midwest auto industry so having that
out of commission could mean some degree of disruption with cars. 鈥淎 lot of auto dealerships
now have pretty good inventories again. So [this is] probably going to be some smaller
companies that feel it the most. Companies that couldn鈥檛 afford to have a lot of extra
inventory or couldn't afford to reroute their goods to other ports, which is going
to take more time and money to do that,鈥 said鈥Tyson Browning, an operations management professor.
April 4, 2024
KTBC-TV (Austin, TX)鈥
Sixteen states, including Texas, have filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration鈥檚
decision to pause new exports of liquefied natural gas, or LNG. The lawsuit argues
that the ruling requiring the U.S. to study how LNG exports affect climate change
and national security is illegal. Tom Seng of the鈥疪alph Lowe Energy Institute said, 鈥淭he Federal Regulatory Commission has to
go through the process of approving the actual export facilities. That includes an
environmental impact statement, so the Biden administration is sort of changing the
rules in the middle of the game, to say be evaluated based on impact on climate change
and national security. That鈥檚 not what the situation has been up until now.鈥
March 30, 2024
Fort Worth Report鈥
As the chair of鈥痶he鈥痚nvironmental and sustainability sciences department,鈥Michael Slattery鈥痠s often asked whether he believes in global warming. Depending on his answer, Slattery
said he expects to be put into one of two pigeon holes that he cannot crawl out of.
鈥淚 either say, 鈥榊es, of course, I believe in global warming,鈥 鈥 then I must be a Hillary
voter and an Al Gore lover and off I go. Or if I say, 鈥楴o, I don鈥檛 believe in global
warming,鈥 then I must be on the other side of the fence,鈥 Slattery said. Slattery
was one of three panelists who tackled the complex challenges and politics related
to discussions of climate change during an event hosted by the journalism department
and the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
STUDENTS
April 11, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram鈥
Immigration and border security are top issues for many North Texas candidates, but
when you look at what residents care about most, other issues are often front of mind.
Residents interviewed by the Star-Telegram pointed to policies and concerns related to the economy, taxes, health care, education
and affordable housing when asked about their concerns. For鈥Brody Grasher, a TCU sophomore, the economy 鈥 particularly lowering taxes and keeping a free market
鈥 and the Texas-Mexico border are top priorities. 鈥淭hose two probably affect me the
most,鈥 Grasher said.
April 10, 2024
KXAS-TV (Fort Worth, TX)
A medical student in Fort Worth who wanted to do something good to support Black men
is seeing his efforts pay off. Antonio Igbokidi, a fourth-year medical student at Burnett School of Medicine, started the Barbershop
Talk Therapy Project back in 2021. Igbokidi had a big Barbershop Talk Therapy event
in New Orleans last month alongside the 60th Student National Medical Association
Conference. SNMA is the oldest Black medical student organization in America, and
Igbokidi served as president this past year. He partnered with 100 Black Men in America
to pack Dennis Barbershop in New Orleans with residents and Black medical students
from all over America for a discussion on mental health.
ALUMNI
April 10, 2024
Fort Worth Magazine鈥
Evan Michael Woods鈥鈥19 is a theatrical renaissance man. Whether he鈥檚 writing, photographing or starring in a show, he consistently proves his ability to thrive in any role, onstage
or off.鈥疻hen Woods stumbled into his first theater class at his small-town Mississippi
middle school, he immediately fell in love with the art form鈥檚 amalgamation of creative
disciplines. He later set his sights on attending a premier college theatre program,
and despite navigating the audition process without a coach or mentor, earned a full
ride to study acting at鈥疶CU.
April 8, 2024
COWGIRL Magazine鈥
Fort Worth cowgirl鈥Conner West 鈥18 captured a beautiful series of photos of the solar eclipse phenomenon as she was
in the path of totality. West said, 鈥淚 have been riding since I was 6 years old and
started competing with Arabians 19 years ago. I was on the鈥疶CU Equestrian team from
2014-2018 and have continued competing as an alum after! ... My passion for photography
started back when I was in high school. It has definitely been focused mainly around
my love for horses but I always like to take the opportunity to try something new
when it comes along. What better time to do that than the eclipse?!鈥
April 2, 2024
Fort Worth Report鈥
If there鈥檚 a favorite among the 20-plus beers on tap at Maple Branch Craft, it鈥檚 probably
Raspberry Fields. But co-owner and brewer鈥Stuart Maples 鈥15&苍产蝉辫;鈥痟as a hard time deciding. He likes them all. So, apparently, do other brewers. In
February, Maple Branch took home the Texas Brewery of the Year honors from the Texas
Craft Brewers Guild for brewers making 600 barrels or fewer at this year鈥檚 Texas Craft
Brewery Cup in Austin.鈥疢aples has loved brewing beer since his days at鈥疶CU鈥檚 Neeley
School of Business, where the finance major began experimenting with the beer-making
process. After graduation, Maples and his wife, marketing major Allyssa Maples, began
making plans to open a brewery, saving money and thinking about how they would set
up the business.
ATHLETICS
April 14, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram鈥
Chase Elliott wins the AutoTrader EchoPark Automotive 400 at Texas Motor Speedway
on Sunday. It was Elliott鈥檚 first win this season and his first in his last 42 races.
Elliott, a Chevrolet driver, was sixth in the NASCAR Sprint Cup standings coming into
the race. TCU head football coach鈥Sonny Dykes鈥痝ot the day started as the race鈥檚 grand marshal alongside his family.
April 4, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram鈥
Jamie Dixon鈥痑nd鈥疶CU have finalized a contract extension that will keep Dixon leading the men鈥檚
basketball program for the foreseeable future. After leading the Horned Frogs to a
third straight NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history, Dixon had spoken
at length throughout this season about what he wanted to build in Fort Worth. Since
Dixon took over the program in 2016, the Horned Frogs have experienced their best
stretch of basketball in program history with four tournament appearances and a NIT
championship in Dixon鈥檚 first season. 鈥淚t was my dream for TCU to be respected nationally
and for people to see TCU on TV,鈥 Dixon said during the regular season. 鈥淚 love to
see them talk about TCU basketball.鈥