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Association looks to build new Alumni Center

It looks as if the A&M-Commerce Alumni Association is on the brink of what could literally be a groundbreaking development. The Alumni Association is working toward building a freestanding Alumni Center as a new home for the Association and the Office of Alumni Relations.

Approval from The Texas A&M University System could be sought as early as July at the next meeting of the Board of Regents.

Early plans call for a 5,000-square-foot facility to be constructed at the corner of Hwy. 50 and Culver Street, putting it at the foot of Whitley Hall and positioning it as a welcome center. In addition to staff offices, the facility would likely offer meeting space for the Alumni Association’s 28 member board and a smaller conference room, along with space to display Alumni memorabilia.

Dr. Kayla Price (BS ’88, MBA ’90, EDD ’02), Director of Alumni Relations, said several factors prompted the Alumni Association to pursue new quarters. The first was the need for more space. Keeping track of Alumni generates a great deal of records, she noted, and hosting Alumni events means keeping a certain amount of gear at hand.

“Where we are now, we actually have a student employee working out of a closet,” Kayla said. “As critical as our space issues are, however, I have even more concerns about our visibility and accessibility for Alumni at our current site.”

The Office of Alumni Relations currently is located in one small corner of the large Memorial Student Center. It is accessed by a narrow sidewalk that essentially dead-ends at the Alumni office door.

“Unless our Alumni know exactly where we are beforehand, they can have a hard time finding us,” Kayla said.

Another prompt came when the University began plans to renovate the Memorial Student Center, which meant the Alumni Office would be moving anyway. “As the board investigated existing facilities, it became clear that a new structure might be more cost-efficient,” Kayla said. “The University has since tentatively agreed to lease land to the Association for the project, clearing the way for us to pursue a new building. We consider this one of the most exciting developments for the Association in a long time.”

Association President René Castilla said, “It‘s exciting for two reasons: The center is going to be a natural gathering place for Alumni, and it will be a great symbol of pride for A&M-Commerce.”

René said he expects the new center could well be the catalyst for more alumni participation in both the Alumni Association and in university life.

Alumni interested in contributing to the New Alumni Center can call the Office for Advancement at 903-886-8180 or the Office of Alumni Relations at 903-886-5765. Donations may also be mailed directly to the Texas A&M University-Commerce Foundation, which accepts gifts on behalf of the University, at PO Box 3425, Commerce, TX 75429-3425.

Gifts can also be made through the University’s secure online site at www.tamu-commerce.edu/foundation/. From there, donors may navigate to the online giving form, at the bottom of which is a pull-down list of endowments that includes the Alumni Association’s planned Alumni Center.

“It would be great for Alumni to be able to drop by and have parking space readily available,” Kayla said. “It would be wonderful to be able to have guests come to the office without having to step around storage items. And it would be very good for current students to have a visible reminder that, as Alumni in-themaking, they too will one day inherit a role in the future of their Alma Mater.”

Alumni Boomtown

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decked out in brick or stone, the center’s upscale appearance fits right in. The facility is owned by Brenda’s sister, who also is a graduate of the University.

Going to school at ETSU was a natural for Brenda, who lived just down the road in Mount Vernon.

“I have three brothers and one sister who all went to ETSU,” she says. All of that brotherly and sisterly love may have also influenced her choice of major–she completed a bachelor’s of social work in 1979.

Brenda was delighted to return to campus last year for the Sports Hall of Fame dinner when her husband, Max (BS ’79, MS ‘92), received the Outstanding Coach Award. While at the event, she ran into one of her old professors, Dr. Kenneth L. “Rock” Clinton, and “had the opportunity to tell him how much he meant to me,” she says. Dr. Clinton (BS ’65, MS ’68) is a sociology and criminal justice professor and heads the International Studies Program.

The Alumna compares being a student at ETSU years ago to being part of a close-knit family. “I felt like the teachers really cared about us,” she says.

Brenda’s husband coaches and teaches for Frisco ISD, and her brother in-law is a band director there, so she remains constantly aware of the district’s neverending expansion.

“When I moved here, there were about 3,000 people,” she remembers. “I can see a tremendous change within the school district. They have handled the growth very well.”

This group should fit you to a ‘P’

The Alumni newsletter in your hands certainly is aptly named, isn’t it? As always, The Pride is filled with stories of intriguing, busy graduates— starting on page 1, where we meet Mr. George Purefoy, city manager of one of the fastest growing towns in the nation, to page 11, where we learn that Mrs. Ruby Jo Collins Nelson is, after 49 years, still teaching in a school building that bears her name.		Dr. Keith McFarland
	President, Texas A&M University-Commerce

Go all the way back to Class Notes, and we hear from Alumna Amy Morgan that she is a new mom to Georgia Caroline (who must be six months old by now). From Alumnus John Lindsay we hear about the award he earned for his work with Warner/Elektra/Atlantic Music developing artists such as Josh Groban.

You, then, belong to a group that also is aptly named. We call our family of Lion graduates “the Pride,” and, as one of them, you can be happy in knowing that you’re in very successful company.

As a university president, I meet many men and women, and I can proudly say that A&M-Commerce Alumni are some of the most fascinating and productive people I’ve ever met.

Your Alumni Association is a good reflection of and upon you, the Pride. For more than 100 years, the Alumni Association has been at the center of campus activity, spreading the influence of our Alumni to present-day University life. It is a hardworking yet fun-loving group made up of people who enjoy themselves and one another while they promote your Alma Mater.

If you aren’t already a dues-paying member, perhaps you should think about joining the likes of Mrs. Nelson and Mr. Lindsay in leaving your mark on this edition of The Pride—which you can literally do by filling out the form on page 16. Once you’ve done that and sent it in with your dues, you’ll be an active member of the A&M-Commerce Alumni Association.

And then you and I both will have yet one more reason to be proud of the Pride.

Annual Alumni Golf Scramble slated for June

The 34th Annual Alumni Golf Scramble will be Saturday, June 4, at the Sand Hills Golf and Country Club in Commerce.

Former students, faculty, staff, and their friends are eligible to participate. All participants must be 21 years of age or older. The first 72 paid entries will be assured a place in the tournament.

There will be a dinner at 6:30 that evening to recognize team winners.

Cash prizes, based on the number of entries, will be awarded. For each and every hole-in-one on the number 17 hole, $10,000 cash will be awarded, with $5,000 going to the player and $5,000 going to the A&M-Commerce Alumni Association Legacy Scholarship Endowment. The Hole-In-One Prize is sponsored by Williams Motors of Commerce.

Cost is $50 per player and includes green fees and dinner. Reservations for dinner guests who do not register for golf are $15.

Businesses, organizations and individuals can sponsor individual holes, where their names will be displayed on signage. Sponsorships are $50 each.

Proceeds after expenses will go to the Alumni Association Legacy Scholarship Endowment.

For additional information, or to receive a Golf Scramble brochure, phone the Alumni Relations office at 903-886-5765 or 1-800-675-4667. Or e-mail alumni_relations@tamu-commerce.edu.