The latest issue of TCU Magazine goes live online Feb. 25 and is packed with engaging stories that highlight the innovation, resiliency and altruism of the Horned Frog community. Showcasing TCU research, people and programs, the spring issue spotlights the role of Horned Frogs in the groundbreaking Sloan Digital Sky Survey, puts a personal — and young — face on homelessness and explores how the media has changed over the last 50 years.
“We thought it would be a good time to look at the field of journalism since its reputation has taken hits over the last decade,” said Caroline Collier, TCU Magazine editor. “The integrity of the news industry has been challenged by a lot of people, and we wanted to take a step back and, through our faculty experts and a lot of successful alumni, assess what has changed in journalism — which is a lot of things, from revenue to digital platforms to social media — and what hasn’t changed — which is this commitment to factual, unbiased truth. It’s a lively read that balances different factors that journalists have to grapple with.”
Complementing the story is a Q&A between veteran journalist Bob Schieffer ’59 and Kristie Bunton, Ph.D., dean of the Schieffer College of Communication.
“He gets into some interesting ideas about why journalism is so necessary to a functioning democracy,” Collier said.
“We also have a feature about homelessness, which is a growing problem in Fort Worth and even at TCU, which is a surprise to a lot of people — you don’t necessarily think about TCU students not having a secure place to sleep, but that does happen,” she added. “A young graduate named Jacob Trevino ’19 was really kind to share his story.”
As an unaccompanied youth in junior high and high school in Arlington, Texas, Trevino slept on friends’ couches to get by. He came to TCU, earned a degree in theatre and is now a graduate student who works as a counselor for the TCU College Advising Corps, which was created to increase the number of low-income, first-generation and underrepresented students entering and completing higher education.
“The story also looks at how this has become a much bigger problem in the past year,” Collier said. “Hopefully it will inspire people to reach out to help our community members.”
Another feature describes how Peter Frinchaboy, Ph.D., an associate professor of physics and astronomy, helped TCU have a role in the history-making Sloan Digital Sky Survey by serving as a coordinator for the international collaboration that creates the most detailed 3D maps of the universe ever made.
“He has to manage schedules in different time zones and help facilitate meetings in different languages. In trade, his team gets to have some say in what sort of data is being collected by this pioneering, boundary-pushing survey,” Collier said.
“His own work is uncovering anomalies in migrations of star clusters. They assess where stars originated from based on their chemical composition. They are finding that some are outliers that have moved thousands of light-years away from where they should be. And there are no current laws of science that can explain why that might have happened. It’s definitely a galactic mystery,” she added.
Other stories to look for in the spring 2021 issue:
FarmHouse Fresh: A boutique skin care company founded by Horned Frogs grows its own ingredients to make high-end beauty products. “A lot of their profits go into rescuing abused farm animals. So it’s part profit and part personal mission to help animals,” Collier said.
Literacy and empathy: College of Education professors Jan Lacina, Ph.D., and Robin Griffith, Ph.D., co-edited a textbook about global views on teaching literacy, including insight on how teaching children empathy through reading is a pathway to creating a kinder and more just world. “It’s a great way for young people to widen their horizons and gain cultural sensitivity,” Collier said.
Engaging difference and diversity: In a Q&A, Lynn Hampton, Ph.D., an assistant professor of professional practice in the John V. Roach Honors College and a sociologist, elaborates on how she makes her classroom a brave space — where people are unafraid to share their thoughts and experiences. “In her classroom, students come together with a sense of respect and understanding and ultimately leave with a desire to make change,” Collier said. “Reading this Q&A makes me feel very inspired about being at TCU and about the power of higher education.”
Bear education: Jessica Erwin ’05 left her life as an elementary school teacher to become a park ranger at Grand Teton National Park. Bridging both passions, she now is a bear safety education trainer for visitors at Grand Teton and has teams of volunteers who help park rangers learn how to coexist with bears.
Healthier living: After launching her own medical practice, Dr. Suzanne Bentz ’84 quickly realized that many of her patients had conditions that could be improved or resolved through weight loss and healthy lifestyles. She pursued additional training, received board certification in obesity medicine and ultimately founded Red Mountain Weight Loss, which is now the largest medical weight loss practice in the Southwest. “I have a feeling that story is going to be widely read after a year of social isolation,” Collier said.