University of Houston-Victoria 2017-2018 President's Annual Report & Excellence Awards: Together we can


Dear Friends of UHV,
Although the University of Houston-Victoria got off to a bit of a rocky start in 2017-2018 because of Hurricane Harvey, we came together to recover and ended up having an inspiring year filled with growth and success. Our online annual report makes information about the year available to a wide audience and allows us to feature videos and highlights from the Nov. 13 President’s Annual Report & Excellence Awards event.
Here are just a few of our highlights from 2017-2018:
Because of the start of the school year and all the obstacles we overcame with your help to have a successful year, our theme for the annual report is Together We Can.
As you look through this website, be sure to view the short videos featuring students, faculty, alumni and community members talking about how UHV has made a difference in their lives. You also will see photos from the annual report dinner and videos of our special recognition award recipients.
As I look at the changes UHV is undergoing, I am very thankful for the support we have from Victoria and the region. Without our students, faculty and staff, our generous donors and our supportive community, these accomplishments would not have been possible. Remember, Together We Can make a difference.
Sincerely,
Robert K. Glenn
President, University of Houston-Victoria
UHV received nearly $2 million in donations in Fiscal Year 2018, an all-time fundraising record for the university. Gifts supported 101 different programs, initiatives and areas of the university, and came from a record-setting 1,127 individuals and organizations, including alumni, friends, corporations, foundations, and UHV employees and students. For the third consecutive year, alumni participation was the highest on record, and more than 48 percent of full-time UHV employees made donations to the university.
Here are some academic highlights from UHV’s three schools and examples of community partnerships that took place in 2017-2018:
Students have plenty of academic obligations, but UHV also offers extracurricular activities and programming so that students can have a well-rounded college experience. That’s where UHV Athletics and Student Affairs come into play as UHV students make time outside of the classroom to inspire other students and the community.
During 2017-2018, students took part in numerous activities on and off campus. More than 100 students learned leadership skills at the fourth annual ROAR Leadership Conference, and several students earned certifications in the ROAR Certified Leader program, which encouraged them to think critically about their leadership skills and how those skills could impact their future careers. They also gave back by participating in the fourth annual Alternative Spring Break trip to New Orleans and Baton Rouge, La., and several Jags Join In – Days of Service, including a trip to clean up homes in Rockport after Hurricane Harvey.
Athletics celebrated another year of successes both on and off the field. The men’s soccer team won its first ever Red River Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles to advance to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics National Championships. The softball team also claimed its first RRAC tournament title and made its sixth trip to the NAIA National Championship. In the classroom, numerous athletes earned recognition at the local, conference and national levels.
Here are some more of the year’s highlights:
Numerous local, state and national organizations also recognize UHV students, alumni, faculty and staff for their achievements.
Here are some awards and highlights from 2017-2018:
The following is a representative collection of UHV student and alumni accomplishments:
Faizon Matthews and Genesis Corona were named UHV Homecoming king and queen.
Tenna Thompson (1981) was given the 2018 Distinguished Alumna Award, and Ben Zeller (2005) was recognized as the Young Alumnus of the Year during the UHV Alumni Banquet.
Jocelyne Martinez was named the Student Volunteer of the Year during the annual UHV Student Organization and Leadership Banquet. The Jaguar Cheer Team, founded by Jacklyn Medina, was named the Student Organization of the Year, and Julian Carrizales, Cesar Gonzalez, Randall Jasek, Kevin Moreno and Keir Walker were recipients of the Spirit of the Jaguar award.
Treysi Diaz Deleon earned a certification in all four areas of the UHV ROAR Certified Leader certification program, receiving the title of Distinguished ROAR Certified Leader.
Vito Lozano collected donations and brought them in a semitrailer to Victoria to distribute after Hurricane Harvey. A member of the UHV Campus Lions Club, Lozano worked with UHV students and staff, and members of two Lions Clubs in Victoria to hand out the donations.
Waqas Ahmed, Matthew Cianciosi, Jeanelle Lopez and Ali Tamanna were ranked in the weekly Top 100 of the Global Business Simulation competition four times during the eight-week program. This was a record for UHV Global Master of Business Administration teams participating in the competition.
Lee Crews (1999), chief operations officer for the Katy Independent School District, joined the UHV President’s Regional Advisory Board.
Rohanna Pacheco (2018) was hired by the San Diego Padres as part of the Major League Baseball Diversity Fellowship Program. The fellowship was created to help young, diverse professionals gain access to front-office positions that involve influential decisions.
Kulsoom Masood, a student at Habib University in Karachi, Pakistan, came to UHV for a semester as part of the U.S. Department of State’s Global Undergraduate Exchange Program in Pakistan.
Gabrielle Garza and Emmelynn Junek each received $1,000 Preservice Teacher Scholarships from the Texas Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
Kameron Kitchen and Valerie Hang submitted education papers for the Don Luck Award at the National Social Science Association conference. Kitchen won first place for her paper, and Hang was runner-up.
Kameron Kitchen and Valerie Hang submitted education papers for the Don Luck Award at the National Social Science Association conference. Kitchen won first place for her paper, and Hang was runner-up.
The following is a representative collection of UHV faculty and staff accomplishments:
Armando Chavez-Rivera received a John W. Kluge Center fellowship at the U.S. Library of Congress, allowing him to have better access to original sources for his research about the Spanish language in the Caribbean.
Jay Lambert was given the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education’s John Jones Award for Outstanding Performance as a Senior Student Affairs Officer for Region III. The region includes Texas and most of the Southeastern U.S.
Stuart Sherman graduated from FEMA’s National Emergency Management Basic Academy at the Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, Md. He later received a 2018 Lifesaving Award at the University of Houston Police Department’s Badge Pinning Ceremony for performing CPR on a church member who collapsed during service.
Katherine Bacon was awarded the Molly Gerald Human Rights Award by the Texas Counseling Association for her work advocating for children in foster care. She also earned the UHV Distinguished Faculty Service Award.
George Rodriguez, Paul Ebner and Marci Wallace were recognized by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics-Sports Information Directors Association and the College Sports Information Directors Association for their work promoting UHV Athletics. In the two organizations’ publications and media contests, they won awards that included first and second place for UHV athletic schedule cards and first place for the baseball program. Wallace was recognized for her work redesigning the athletics website.
Lindsey Ortiz was recognized by the Victoria Business and Education Coalition for her 11 years as a mentor at Hopkins Elementary School.
Mark Ward Sr. received the 2017 Clifford G. Christians Ethics Research Award for his work compiling and editing a two-volume book series about the effect of mass media in evangelical churches. He also published a book, “The Lord’s Radio: Gospel Music Broadcasting and the Making of Evangelical Culture, 1920-1960,” and his research was featured in three books. In addition, he earned the UHV Research and Scholarly Activity Excellence Award.
Denise Prescott was named UHV’s 2017 Employee of the Year.
Justin Bell earned the UHV Teaching Excellence Award.
Barba Patton was awarded the Oscar for Achievement during the National Social Science Association conference.
Lauren Emerson published her short story, “Invasion of the Brain-scratchers” in the “Eclectically Heroic” anthology collection.
Carol Klages received a certified dyslexia therapist license from the Apple Group. The program prepares educators to become dyslexia specialists and therapists, and teach reading to students with dyslexia.
Jeffrey Cass and Trudy Wortham were part of a team that won first place for the third consecutive year in a Bowl-A-Thon hosted by Victoria Lions Club chapters. The event raised money for the Lions Eye Bank of Texas.
Beverly Tomek co-edited a book, “New Directions in the Study of African American Recolonization,” and received a Distinguished Alumni Achievement Award from Texas State University.
Marketing & Communications staff members worked on projects that earned the university seven ADDY awards for advertising excellence from the American Advertising Federation-Corpus Christi chapter, including a Gold ADDY award for the university’s 2017 website redesign. Members of the department who worked on the redesign were Paula Cobler (2018), Marci Wallace, Eric Chacon, Shane Blucher, George Rodriguez, Jeremy Shapiro, Warren Diprose, Felicity Medrano, Akalina Sanchez, Chris Perez and Lauren Emerson. A Gold ADDY award also went to Rodriguez for the 2017 UHV Baseball Game Day Program cover design, and Rodriguez, Sanchez and Perez for a campaign of four UHV/American Book Review Reading Series posters. UHV also was recognized with a Silver ADDY award for print pieces promoting the 2016-2017 UHV President’s Annual Report & Excellence Awards, a joint effort between the creative services, communications and administrative staff within the department and UHV Special Events Coordinator Nancy Gresham.
Janelle Bouknight, Liping Wei, Sherry Vafa and Harry Bashaw were honored for their outstanding work in the UHV School of Education, Health Professions & Human Development.
Jang-Woo Park was appointed to the Mathematics Field of Study Advisory Committee by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. The committee identifies the block of courses students may transfer to higher education institutions.
Ashley Walyuchow was elected to the third vice president position for the 2018-2019 membership year of the NAIA-Athletics Directors Association.
Joseph Locke helped spearhead the development of a free and open online U.S. history textbook called “The American Yawp.”
Ludmi Herath was named the UHV Student Organization Advisor of the Year for her work advising the International Student Organization. She received the award during Student Organization and Leadership and Leadership Banquet.
Karen Camargo was honored with the UHV Nursing Program Johnson Foundation Endowed Professorship for two years.
Brandon Lee was elected as the director of assessment for the Texas Association of College & University Student Personnel Administrators Board of Directors.
Michelle Ruiz co-authored a paper that won best paper in the health care, hospitality management and public administration category at the Southern Management Association Conference. The paper examined how hospital mergers impact retention of nurses.
UHV’s operating revenue in Fiscal Year 2018 was estimated at $71.2 million, and UHV spent 80 percent, or $57.2 million, of that total on providing student access and success. Financial assistance awarded to students totaled $41.2 million, a 17.2 percent increase from Fiscal Year 2014. UHV’s official enrollment in fall 2018 was 4,381. Since its beginning in 1973, UHV has conferred 20,504 bachelor’s and master’s degrees with 1,401 students earning more than one degree from the university.
Total: $71.2 million
*Estimates
Total: $71.7 million
*Estimates
Type of Assistance | FY 2014 | FY 2018 |
---|---|---|
Scholarships | $ 1,656,073 | $ 2,948,038 |
Grants | $ 8,599,674 | $ 12,186,062 |
Loans | $ 21,716,565 | $ 21,970,904 |
Short-Term Loans | $ 2,989,172 | $ 3,856,282 |
Work Study | $ 164,770 | $ 203,537 |
Total Financial Aid | $ 35,126,254 | $ 41,164,823 |
Undergraduate | 3,297 |
Graduate | 1,084 |
Total | 4,381 |
Together we can make a difference at UHV. The university appreciates all of the donors who continue to make its successes possible.
The public phase of the UHV Here, We Go comprehensive fundraising campaign was announced in November 2017. All donors are being recognized in a variety of ways throughout the campaign.
Below is a list of UHV’s donors in 2017-2018:
Strong leadership and guidance are the foundation for the successes UHV continues to experience. The university appreciates the leaders and advisors who came together to nurture UHV’s successful year.