From the U.S. credit rating to AI and the admission process, TCU is in the news.
INSTITUTIONAL
Fort Worth students return to school as district addresses security, lingering COVID
gaps
Aug. 14, 2023
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Beyond the nutrition, outfits and rowdiness, district and city leadership reiterated
the seriousness behind fixing academic and mental health obstacles caused by the COVID-19
pandemic that students are still overcoming. A multi-tiered support system is in place
so they can attack both academic and behavioral issues that they’re seeing, according
to the superintendent. This includes a partnership with Texas Christian University that provides a counseling clinic where families and students can receive counseling
at no cost.
Two of the top three college campuses in Texas can be found in Fort Worth and Dallas
Aug. 9, 2023
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
TCU was named the No. 2 college campus in Texas for 2023. It earned an overall grade
of A and an A+ for its campus, as well as four stars from 1,702 reviewers. “TCU has
an incredibly inclusive and supportive community. The professors genuinely care about
their students and want their students to succeed. Many have their PhD, with years
of real-world industry experience,” one senior said in their review of the university.
The Niche.com ranking is based on key statistics and student reviews using data from
the U.S. Department of Education.
TCU Announces Scholarship Program for Native American Students
Aug. 9, 2023
FW Inc.
TCU announced this week the initiation of the Four Directions Scholars Program designed
to provide opportunities and support for two first-year undergraduate students who
hold citizenship in federally recognized tribes. “The Four Directions Scholars Program
is evidence of TCU’s commitment to Native American nations and communities,” said Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado, TCU’s chief inclusion officer, in a statement. Scott Langston, interim Native American nations and communities liaison, added “These scholarships
are integral to our goal of broadening access to TCU's offerings and aiding Native
students in emerging as leaders within their tribal nations upon graduation.”
Don't Autocomplete Your Application
Aug. 2, 2023
Forbes
The newest influencer on the admission landscape is artificial intelligence (AI) and
it has the potential, if used wisely, to serve as a powerful guide to traversing the
path to college. Conversely, if permitted, AI can take the reins and lead applicants
down an inauthentic road that may be statistically predictable but can be misleading
at best and unethical at worst. Heath Einstein, dean of admission, makes a different prediction. “AI is a seemingly ubiquitous topic
among college admission counseling professionals. There is growing concern for how
students and their advocates could leverage ChatGPT and similar systems to manipulate
the admission process,” he said. “It won’t be long before a college leans directly
into AI, hoping not to mitigate, but entirely eliminate the ‘problem’ by asking students
to use technology to craft their best college essay.”
FACULTY
After hottest summer on record, heat-related illnesses are now being tracked nationwide
Aug. 15, 2023
The 19th | 130,246 unique visitors per month
A new dashboard launched by the Biden administration to track heat-related illnesses
will help municipalities and medical professionals with prevention efforts and assist
families as they make housing decisions, particularly for older adults, experts say. Dr. David Capper, chair of clinical sciences at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU, stressed the
importance of checking on older family members during extreme heat, especially those
who might be isolated. “If family and friends know that grandma lives alone in her
house that she’s had for 60 years — the key is to be willing to reach out, to be willing
to check on her every day during severe heat waves,” he said.
Ten Signs You're Too Stressed About Your Wedding (And What You Should Do to Calm Down)
Aug. 14, 2023
Tekdeeps.com
It happens to the best of us brides-to-be: We do everything we can to make sure the
big day goes perfectly, and then, seemingly all of a sudden, we turn into a giant
ball of stress ready to destroy anything—or anyone—in our path. If you’ve stopped
doing the things you love and that make you happy, whether it’s exercise classes,
hanging out with friends, or even taking a long swim, because of wedding planning,
it’s time to take things back. “The best way to handle this is to realize that wedding
planning should fit into your life, not the other way around,” said Angela Thompson, professor of sociology. “If your entire lunch break is spent planning your wedding
instead of hanging out with colleagues, or you’re on a date with your fiancé and you’re
constantly on your phone looking at wedding decorations, you’re doing too much.”
Exploring the Role of Attentional Reorienting in the Reactive Effects of Judgments
of Learning on Memory Performance
Aug. 14, 2023
MDPI
Research on judgments of learning (JOL) reactivity has revealed that the mere act
of measuring monitoring during learning can directly influence memory. Multiple mechanisms
have been proposed to explain JOL reactivity effects, and some mechanisms may be more
relevant in some contexts than in others. To investigate this idea, Michelle L. Rivers and Sarah K. Tauber from the Department of Psychology at TCU, along with three others, created an online
sample of participants and undergraduate students studied a set of moderately related
word pairs (e.g., dairy–cow) in preparation for a cued recall test. Outcomes suggest
that positive reactivity for related word pairs is not solely explained by attentional
reorienting during encoding.
Why Disney Can't Make Hits Like It Used To
Aug. 12, 2023
Newsweek
Despite strong showings, the past year has been lackluster for Disney. Even though
Disney may struggle to make its money back on these films from cinema sales, they
will continue having value on Disney+ for years to come, according to Kimberly Owczarski, associate professor of film, television and digital media. “They released too many
films in a short time frame in what was already a crowded summer of competition,”
she explained, and added: “They have relied too much on franchises that are either
skewing older or there are too many texts to keep track of in theaters and on streaming,
like with the Marvel properties.”
Will oil demand slow down or stay flat in 2024? - Marketplace
Aug. 12, 2023
OLTNEWS
The International Energy Agency predicts that energy demand may not grow as quickly
next year, and the IEA cites the growth of electric vehicles. But Tom Seng, assistant professor of energy finance, isn’t buying it. “They’re not being sold
at the clip manufacturers would expect, you know, we’re seeing discounts from Tesla
and others,” Seng said. “And so I don’t give much credit to EVs having a big impact
on the drop in demand in 2024.”
Why the ERCOT grid has held up despite record-breaking summer temperatures
Aug. 11, 2023
Denton Record-Chronicle
In ERCOT’s preparedness report, the organization made conservative estimates for how
much energy it could generate at each power plant. Natural gas plants don’t perform
at peak efficiency during strings of 100-degree summer days, said Tom Seng of TCU’s Ralph Lowe Energy Institute. Seng, who previously lived in Tulsa, is over
halfway through his first Texas summer. He’s moved his workouts earlier in the morning
or later in the evening and runs ceiling and box fans in his home to avoid running
his air conditioner too frequently. Seng is waiting for the day he steps outside and
realizes, finally, that it is only 90 degrees. “When I step out of my apartment or
step out of my truck,” he said, “I really do feel like the sun is sucking the life
out of me.”
The Downballot: GOP debacle in Ohio + why sheriff elections matter, with Emily Farris
August 10, 2023
Daily Kos
Sheriffs, who in America are elected officials, have their “day-to-day tasks complicated
by being a politician and thinking about, okay, what policy should we put in place
for jails and how we run those?” explains Emily Farris, associate professor of political science. “Can we find somebody good enough to reform
an office that is perhaps, just at its heart, bad? And I don't know if there's a solution.
This idea that there's no such thing as a progressive sheriff would certainly question
it and say, ‘We just need to get rid of sheriffs altogether.’ That there needs to
be a different system in place and moving towards abolition ideas as well.”
Why the ERCOT grid has held up despite record-breaking summer temperatures
August 10, 2023
The Dallas Morning News
Texas’ record-breaking temperatures this summer have caused energy demand to soar.
The Natural gas plants don’t perform at peak efficiency during strings of 100-degree
summer days, said Tom Seng, assistant professor of professional practice in the Ralph Lowe Energy Institute.
Seng said ERCOT likely accounted for worst-case scenarios in its summer preparations,
ensuring it had the energy supply to meet high demands.
‘It’s about being empathetic scholars’: New TCU medical school class starts with an
emphasis on empathy
August 6, 2023
Fort Worth Report
The Burnett School of Medicine at TCU recently hosted a speaker for the incoming class
of 2027 about the importance of empathy and compassion, two qualities TCU administrators
believe to be key for the future of medical care. His speech helped frame the incoming
students’ education in terms of the importance of patient care, said Natalie Lundsteen, assistant dean for student affairs. Empathy and compassion are two tenets the medical
school has been imprinting on students since its founding in 2019. “It’s about being
empathetic scholars,” Lundsteen said. “It’s about caring for a patient who is sometimes
at the worst moment of their life and recognizing they can come out of it.”
False fraud claims a focus of Rudy Giuliani’s 2020 Missouri testimony, St. Louis defamation
suit
August 5, 2023
Phelps County Focus
Rudy Giuliani conceded in a carefully worded court filing that his assertions about
Georgia election workers committing fraud during the 2020 presidential race were false. That
concession has rekindled interest in Giuliani’s 2020 Missouri testimony and the impact
it could have in a separate defamation suit filed in St. Louis by the same election
workers against the right-wing outlet Gateway Pundit. Giuliani’s admission won’t
help the Gateway Pundit fend off the allegations, said Daxton Stewart, an attorney and journalism professor specializing in media law. “Just repeating
something that someone else said that was false still makes a publisher subject to
defamation claims,” Stewart said.
Week in Review: Four Fabulous and Not-So-Fabulous F-Words
August 5, 2023
The Lens with Stephanie Kelton
It wasn’t all that long ago that leading economists were arguing that the Trump tax
cuts had so wrecked the nation’s finances, that it would be next to impossible for
Congress to fire off enough fiscal support to thwart an economic downturn. That was
obviously wrong. To the extent that the downgrade makes any sense at all, it stems
from the increasingly erratic posturing around the debt ceiling limit. It is about
our willingness—not our ability—to pay our bills. “Can the U.S. be forced into debt
default? Never,” said economics professor John T. Harvey. “Could the gridlocked, highly partisan, and dysfunctional U.S. government prevent
us from meeting financial obligations we absolutely have the legal and economic ability
to meet? Yes. Shame on us, United States. And for that, the debt is the least of our
worries.”
Should We Downgrade Fitch Or The USA?
August 2, 2023
Forbes
Yesterday, Fitch issued a downgrade of US long-term debt from AAA to AA+. Is there
a universe in which this makes sense or is it Fitch that deserves a downgrade? First
and foremost, it needs to be made clear that it is impossible for the United States
to be forced into default on debt denominated in dollars. Not unlikely, not improbable,
but impossible. “This doesn’t mean that there can’t be other consequences, like inflation
or crowding out of the private sector (both of which also require at that we are already
at full employment), but default is off the table,” said John T. Harvey, professor of economics.
ALUMNI
#97 DJ Perera: Teaching Innovation in the Arts
August 8, 2023
Fort Worth Report
Innovation and art share something in common: creativity. That is why DJ Perera ’10, is teaching students the value of utilizing innovation not just in the classroom,
but for their future. As an immigrant and artist, Perera’s world widened from the
opportunity education provided him. But he also learned the necessity of using creativity
to be innovative in art, but also in life. Now, after receiving many awards and honors,
he is teaching his students about using technology in art, innovating the artistic
space, and how creativity and innovation build off each other.
Cellist recalls early days of Van Cliburn piano competition at TCU
August 8, 2023
Hoopla
Mary Neita Werner ’52, was destined to become a great musician. Her mother, Vivian Harder Johnson, was
a highly-sought piano teacher in Fort Worth. “My mother was the finest keyboard person
in this town, and I’m not saying that because she was my mother – she was,” said Mary
Neita. “Everybody in town studied with Mother. And I could play the piano, but I didn’t
get her talent.” Being the best cellist in school landed her a four-year scholarship.
She and a few other band members would form units and play garden parties and tea
parties for extra spending money.
TCU Grad Is Buying a Bunch of Buc-ee’s Snacks These Days
August 7, 2023
Since late 2020, local entrepreneur Chris Koerner ’19 MBA, has been in the spotlight for making a substantial amount of sales by reselling
Buc-ee’s related items on his site TexasSnax.com. Before Koerner came up with this
idea, the popular chain really didn’t have much of an online store presence. That
was until Koerner filled six carts with more than 600 items from the Denton Buc-ee’s
locale to sell online in the fall of 2020. “I was driving home from a Buc-ee’s one
day and thought to myself that they must kill it in online sales,” Koerner said. “After
I got home, I went to their website and didn’t see anything online.” This was what
Koerner called his “lightbulb moment.”
Drama student working toward MFA in London directs ‘Escape from Margaritaville’
August 3, 2023
The Spokesman-Review
Collin Pittman ’21, is a young but experienced director, who will call the shots on “Jimmy Buffett’s
Escape to Margaritaville,” at the Spokane Valley Summer Theater. “I’m very grateful
to be given such a great opportunity,” Pittman said. “But I believe this is the perfect
show for me to step into since it has that summer feel and it’s upbeat.”
‘Out of Nowhere’ - Prolific thriller author Sandra Brown brings latest tale to Mark
Twain House
August 2, 2023
Connecticut Post
Sandra Brown ’69 is the author of 73 New York Times best-sellers. Her new book, “Out of Nowhere,” is a fast-paced, emotional thriller
where the lives of a young mother and a high-rolling consultant collide under devastating
circumstances – culminating in a desperate manhunt that will change their futures
forever. Brown holds an honorary doctorate from TCU.
ATHLETICS
TCU Basketball: Frogs Go Undefeated in Foreign Tour
Aug. 11, 2023
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
With the NCAA allowing a foreign tour once every four years, TCU Basketball decided to travel to Europe to play four exhibition games and go sightseeing. This
is a great opportunity for Frog fans to get a first look at what the 2023-24 team
will look like. On Aug. 4, TCU departed for Paris to play two exhibition games before
traveling to London for two more. Games were against teams from various professional
teams from different leagues over the world. In Paris, they played Areus All-Stars
and Elite Basket Congo, Aug. 8. They arrived in London by train before playing Barking
Abbey and the Surrey Scorchers. TCU won all four games in blowout fashion, scoring
over 100 in each.
TCU Women's Soccer: Freshman Newcomers
August 9, 2023
Sports Illustrated
Meet the eight incoming freshmen to Horned Frog Soccer. Women’s Soccer welcomed a
new class of freshmen for the 2023 season: Sasha Carbone, Gabbi Ceballos, Katrina Chong, Brooke Conover, Bella Diorio, Marli Galdamez, Elise Krone and Landen Matthews. Head coach Eric Bell and the team kicked off their 2023 season against SMU in August.