From the Olympics to a new medical school class, from cryptocurrency to inflation, TCU and its faculty are in the news.
INSTITUTIONAL
July 29, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Several blocks of West Berry Street could be developed with multifamily housing, retail
space and a parking garage as part of TCU鈥檚 transformational plan for the commercial
corridor near campus. If approved, 21 small lots would be replatted into two large
lots spanning a combined 5.2 acres. All of the land is owned by TCU, and most of it
is used for parking lots. Jason Soileau, assistant vice chancellor for planning, design and construction, said no plans for
development are set in stone. The university has hired Austin-based developer Endeavor
to help explore ideas for the possible mixed-use development and ways to improve pedestrian
access. 鈥淏erry Street, we think, is a low-hanging fruit in terms of student experience,鈥
he said. 鈥淲e are interested in exploring a multi-use development along Berry Street
that would leverage Berry Street as being Fort Worth鈥檚 new destination place.鈥
July 28, 2024
Sports Illustrated
The 2024 Summer Olympics are underway in Paris. Nine current and former Horned Frogs
are in Paris competing for gold. Hailey Van Lith is the only active collegian who was selected to a USA Basketball Men鈥檚 or Women鈥檚
National Team in 5-on-5 or 3x3 competition.鈥疉dditionally, Dani Alvarez and Tania Moreno will represent Spain in Beach Volleyball, Rhanishka Gibbs will represent the Bahamas in the 50m Freestyle, Jadon Wuilliez will represent Antigua and Barbuda in the 100m Breaststroke, Stephanie Grundsoe will represent Denmark in Shooting, Amy Okonkwo and Tomi Taiwo will represent Nigeria in 5x5 Basketball, and Cam Norrie will represent Great Britain in Tennis.
July 25, 2024
NBCDFW.COM
TCU is making history at the Paris Olympics with the largest contingent of student
and alumni athletes in the school鈥檚 history. According to TCU, nine athletes will
be competing on the world stage in Paris in various events and representing different
countries. Hailey Van Lith joined TCU basketball in the spring of 2024. Van Lith is the only active collegian
who was selected to a USA Basketball Men鈥檚 or Women鈥檚 National Team in a 5-on-5 or
3x3 competition. 鈥淕etting to compete for my country in the Olympics and represent
my family, my home and TCU is a dream come true,鈥 Van Lith said.
July 18, 2024
ParkourSC
Gartner has released the findings from its biennial Top 25 North American Supply Chain
Undergraduate and Graduate Programs report. The report is intended to support chief
supply chain officers, heads of supply chain strategy and supply chain HR partners
to identify the programs best equipped to support their growing talent needs. For
the graduate program ranking, TCU Neeley came in at No. 18.
July 18, 2024
The Dallas Morning News
The Art Galleries at TCU are pleased to present 鈥淒o you really believe that?鈥 The group exhibition is in honor
of the late art historian and curator Dr. Frances Colpitt and runs Aug. 30-Nov. 16
at Fort Worth Contemporary Arts. The title of the exhibition is a phrase Colpitt,
who taught at TCU from 2005 to 2022, often used to challenge her students and galvanize
critical thinking and discussion in class. A panel discussion featuring artists and
curators of the exhibition will be held at 4:30 p.m. Aug. 30 in Moudy North Building,
Room 132.
July 15, 2024
Fort Worth Inc
The Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine welcomed its sixth cohort of 60 new medical
students at the traditional White Coat Celebration at TCU鈥檚 Legends Club. 鈥淲e are
thrilled to welcome our sixth group of Empathetic Scholars庐 and future physicians,鈥
said Dr. Stuart D. Flynn, founding dean of the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU. 鈥淭his group will begin their
medical education journey in our brand-new medical education building in the heart
of Fort Worth鈥檚 Medical Innovation District just steps away from all our clinical
partners. This group has a distinctive opportunity to learn to practice medicine with
empathy and amass deep medical knowledge from physicians and patients in our community.鈥濃
July 15, 2024
Fort Worth Report
Ronald 鈥淩onnie鈥 William Clinkscale, who passed away July 10, served more than 30 years as a trustee at TCU, where he
was a noted football player during his college days. Clinkscale was known as the fastest
player for the Horned Frogs in the 1950s. 鈥淓meritus Trustee Ron Clinkscale was a cherished
member of the Board of Trustees who was respected for his thoughtful approach and
wise counsel in any and all situations,鈥 Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr. said. 鈥淗e will forever be remembered for his devotion to family and friends as well
as his selflessness and service in the Fort Worth community.鈥
FACULTY
July 29, 2024
Fort Worth Report
The Fort Worth ISD superintendent told the school board that it breached her contract
subsequent to her evaluation in January, according to an email obtained by the Fort Worth Report. Educational leadership experts say the message from Superintendent Ang茅lica Ramsey
reflects a complex relationship between the district鈥檚 top administrator and the school
board, which oversees the superintendent. A healthy superintendent-school board relationship
would see both sides comfortable with honestly discussing hard topics, said Jo Beth Jimerson, professor and William L. and Betty F. Adams Chair of Education. 鈥淚n the ideal, they
would also recognize that while they come from different places, they do want to help
kids, even if they鈥檙e trying to approach it in different ways and also recognize that
they are all human beings juggling a number of pressures. That is really important.鈥
July 28, 2024
Fort Worth Report
Fort Worth is becoming a cryptocurrency destination. An influx of cryptocurrency businesses
now call Cowtown home 鈥 and Fort Worth is embracing them. Experts and Fort Worth officials
attribute that growth to the city鈥檚 decision to bring a bitcoin mining operation to
city hall in April 2022.鈥淔or Fort Worth, the municipal bitcoin mining, I think, created
this tech-hub energy that the city needs to continue to build on,鈥 said Brandon Chicotsky, assistant professor of professional practice in marketing.鈥疐ort Worth can now make
a claim to be more technologically savvy in 鈥渁 way that is responsible and likely
generating revenue for the city and for its residents,鈥 he said.
July 28, 2024
Fort Worth Report
After Gateway Church was rocked by allegations that its founder, Robert Morris, sexually
abused a then-12-year-old girl in the 1980s, the backgrounds of current leaders have
drawn fresh scrutiny. Prisoners mentored by ex-offenders, or someone they can relate
to, have a better post-incarceration outcome, said Kendra Bowen, associate professor and director of graduate programs for Criminology & Criminal
Justice. 鈥淚t is important to note that when solely talking about people who have committed
sex crimes, research shows that nonsexual offenders do not relate to them and do not
want to be mentored by them,鈥 Bowen wrote in an email. 鈥淭herefore, it is not a good
idea to put a convicted sex offender as a mentor of an individual or group of individuals
who have not committed a sex offense.鈥
July 24, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
It鈥檚 an age-old debate: tampons vs. pads 鈥 which is better for you? We asked experts
for their thoughts on the subject and 鈥 spoiler alert 鈥 the decision does in fact
come down to your personal preference. 鈥淎lthough there is a higher risk of toxic shock
syndrome with tampons, this risk is still so low that if you鈥檙e following appropriate
tampon hygiene and removing after eight hours of use, the risk becomes almost negligible,鈥
said Dr. Melanie Lagomichos, assistant professor at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU.
July 24, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex recently ranked first in the nation for metrics analyzing
inflation rate trends. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and a study from WalletHub
showed North Texas鈥 increased costs. Another aspect of local inflation is the cost
of housing. In the consumer price index, housing accounted for over 36% in May 2024.
鈥淚f our housing prices are going up, then our inflation would be going up faster,鈥
said John T. Harvey, economics professor. Despite the negative connotations around increased inflation,
the business growth and housing demand in the North Texas region is positive, Harvey
said. 鈥淚t is a side effect of an otherwise positive economic event, and that is that
people are being attracted to this area,鈥 he said.
July 24, 2024
Fort Worth Report
James Hill, director of the Center for Real Estate at Neeley School of Business, has been elected
to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas board of directors. 鈥淲ith my background in finance
and real estate, I am eager to represent the public鈥檚 interest and contribute to the
formulation of monetary policy and the promotion of economic stability,鈥 he said.
鈥淚 also look forward to strengthening the connection between Fort Worth and this vital
institution, ensuring our community鈥檚 voice is heard on a national stage.鈥濃
July 24, 2024
WalletHub
The cheapest car insurance companies in Texas are Texas Farm Bureau, State Farm and
Geico. The difference between the cheapest and most expensive car insurance in Texas
is $2,265 per year, so it pays to compare quotes. Mauricio Rodriguez, professor and director of the LKCM Center for Financial Studies at TCU Neeley, said
insurance companies are fair to college students. 鈥淚nsurance companies typically charge
higher premiums to college students relative to older adults because college students
are typically more likely to be in accidents,鈥 he said.
July 23, 2024
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
President Joe Biden鈥檚 exit from the presidential race raises more than just questions
about who will succeed him on the Democratic ticket. It also prompts questions about
what his absence means for down-ballot races. 鈥淲e have to kind of wait to see this
thing sort out for a few days,鈥 said Jim Riddlesperger, political science professor. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a potential, obviously, that having a new
face in the election will add a level of energy and excitement that was notably lacking
this year.鈥
July 23, 2024
Fort Worth Report
Dr. Sandra Esparza, director for clinical skills at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU, is a champion
for service learning. She believes it creates better physicians and has seen community
engagement embraced more than when she was in medical school over 20 years ago, she
said. 鈥淢edical school is different now, but in a good way,鈥 Esparza said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e really
trying to get people to understand it鈥檚 not about treating the disease as much as
it is about treating the person. If they can learn that early on, that鈥檚 going to
make a huge difference in their careers.鈥 Burnett School of Medicine鈥檚 service learning
curriculum allows beginning medical students to understand the communities they plan
to serve and learn about their future patients鈥 needs, said Korie Hawkins, assistant director of service learning and community engagement.鈥淥ur trademark is
that we are creating the next generation of Empathetic Scholars庐, and so it鈥檚 imperative that we uphold a sense of community, and we鈥檙e aware of everything
that鈥檚 around us. It鈥檚 putting the human back in medicine,鈥 she said.
July 22, 2024
Fort Worth Report
Some Tarrant County congressional candidates are skeptical Vice President Kamala Harris鈥
name at the top of the presidential ticket will have a tangible impact on their races.
James Riddlesperger, political science professor, said Harris鈥 presidential candidacy could have an energizing
effect on Democratic voters, but he expressed skepticism about which races that energy
would actually impact. 鈥淭here are a couple hundred Democrats, maybe even more, running
for office all over the state of Texas who are trying to figure that out right at
this moment,鈥 he said. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e a Democrat, you鈥檙e looking at this as a real opportunity.鈥濃
July 22, 2024
Crime Stories with Nancy Grace
Christopher Scholtes, who was arrested and charged with murder after his 2-year-old
daughter died in a hot car, had been distracted by video games and 鈥渞egularly鈥 left
his kids alone in the car, court documents revealed. 鈥淵ou鈥檒l be clawing at whatever
is restricting you. Even a baby is going to try and get out of there if they can,
so they鈥檒l be pulling at the seatbelt, etc., or pounding their head on something.
So it can be a seizure, or it could be them trying to get out of the restraints,鈥
said Dr. Kendell Crowns, chief medical examiner in Tarrant County and associate professor at the Burnett
School of Medicine at TCU, when asked what happens to a person who dies in a hot car.
July 19, 2024
NBCDFW
Most Americans may not even remember the last time they wrote a check. Checks, as
we know them today, first originated in the 11th century but didn鈥檛 become mainstream
until the early 20th century, following the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, according
to a historical survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. But back then, 鈥渆veryday
people didn鈥檛 have checking accounts, that was for rich people,鈥 said Stephen Quinn, professor of economics and co-author of the Atlanta Fed鈥檚 report. 鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 until
after World War II that checking accounts were a common thing.鈥 Postwar prosperity
greatly expanded the use of checking accounts to middle-class households, making checks
the most widely used noncash payment method in the U.S., the Atlanta Fed found.
July 18, 2024
U.S. News
When filling up your tank with gas and watching the numbers tick up, you may think
you have it worse than everybody else. Not so, according to data collected by Global
Petrol Prices, an industry-wide fuel price tracker. Out of 170 countries analyzed,
America has the 40th least expensive gasoline, placing it in the top quarter for the
cheapest in the world. As of July 15, the average price of gasoline in the world was
$1.33 per liter 鈥 or $5.02 per gallon. One reason for the differences in prices, according
to Tom Seng, assistant professor of professional practice at the Neeley School of Business, is
subsidization. 鈥淓very single one of these countries on this list produce some level
of oil, so they do have supply, but some like Saudi Arabia also sell crude oil and
gas at a discount to their own residents,鈥 he said.
July 18, 2024
The Dallas Morning News
Marcela Fuentes, the Fort Worth-based author of the masterfully executed debut novel Malas, a genre-bending work that explores generational trauma along the U.S.-Mexico border,
did not set out to write a book centered on the lives of Latinos on the border. 鈥淚
don鈥檛 think I sat down to write a novel and was like, 鈥極h, I鈥檓 only writing for Tejanos,鈥欌
said Fuentes, assistant professor of creative writing. Her knowledge of the subject
matter comes from growing up in Del Rio and visiting family in Laredo.
July 15, 2024
Pop Sugar
Mosquito bites are never a good thing, but it鈥檚 more important than ever to stay protected
from the creepy crawlers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently
issued a health advisory after the Americas had a record-breaking number of dengue
fever cases spread by mosquitoes. Dengue fever is a viral infection that spreads from
the bite of an infected mosquito, said Dr. Nikhil Bhayani, a board-certified infectious disease physician and assistant professor at the Burnett
School of Medicine at TCU. The virus is most commonly found in tropical and subtropical regions and can cause
flu-like symptoms lasting between two to seven days, he said.
July 15, 2024
Fort Worth Report
On a sweltering June afternoon, Tarrant County Judge Tim O鈥橦are stood in a shaded
alcove outside Carroll ISD鈥檚 administration building. Speaking from a wheeled lectern
rolled onto the pavement minutes earlier by Christian nonprofit organization Texas
Values and surrounded by supporters holding 鈥淪ave Women鈥檚 Sports鈥 signs, O鈥橦are began
his address. His focus? The Biden Administration鈥檚 change in Title IX language to
redefine 鈥渟ex鈥 to include 鈥済ender identity,鈥 which O鈥橦are believes would strip girls
and women of the legal protections provided under the federal civil rights law passed
in 1972. 鈥淭he government will appeal, and Carroll ISD will go on doing what they wanted
to do in the first place,鈥 Matthew Montgomery, assistant professor of political science, said. 鈥淣ow it鈥檚 in a federal district
court, and it鈥檒l get appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.鈥
ATHLETICS
July 29, 2024
USA Today
TCU basketball player Hailey Van Lith swears that despite what outsiders might think, her last 15 months have not, in fact,
been a miserable experience.鈥痀es, it鈥檚 true that Van Lith, one of the top guards in
women鈥檚 college basketball the last few seasons, has had a somewhat of a rollercoaster
journey, transferring from Louisville, Kentucky, where she was an All-American, to
then defending-champion LSU in spring 2023, where she struggled, some would say significantly.
But before that, Van Lith will try to silence doubters鈥痓y helping the American women
defend their 3x3 basketball gold medal.鈥淭his is a great opportunity for me to be
around pros, to learn from pros,鈥 she said, 鈥渂ut at the end of the day, my views on
myself are never determined by people outside of me. College has been what it鈥檚 been
for me, but at the end of the day, the Olympics and playing for Team USA is the ultimate
experience 鈥 and if they think I鈥檓 worthy to play for the national team, then that
says a lot.鈥濃
July 26, 2024
Sports Illustrated
Jake Silverman will be the new director of program development for the Horned Frogs this coming season,
according to head baseball coach Kirk Saarloos. This move signifies that Saarloos understands the changing landscape and has already
dubbed someone to handle the reigns in that department. Silverman, who was the associate
head coach at the University of Washington as the associate head coach, has already
proven to be a threat on the recruiting trail. During his time with the Huskies, he
swayed a player to come to campus after being drafted and played a hand in swaying
the No. 3 prep recruit in Washington to step foot on campus.
July 15, 2024
Fort Worth Magazine
Cheers, chants and symbols go a long way in helping a team maintain its edge in the
face of competition. It鈥檚 for this very reason many schools have professional spirit
directors, to keep things hyped, so to speak. TCU announced the hiring of Brittani McLaurin as the school鈥檚 new spirit director. McLaurin will oversee the head coaching duties
for the Showgirls as well as overseeing TCU Cheer and Rangers programs, plus the SuperFrog
mascot. 鈥淲e are very excited to welcome Brittani to our TCU family as the new leader
of our spirit programs,鈥 said Ryan Peck, deputy athletics director for external affairs. 鈥淪pirit is an integral part of our
game-day experience and in representing TCU globally. Brittani鈥檚 level of passion,
dedication and work ethic throughout her career as a dancer, instructor and coach
will further enhance the longtime tradition of excellence from all our spirit teams.鈥濃