ACCOLADES AND PROFILES
We want to hear from you! This section provides news and information on our faculty, staff, students and alumni. Please send us your news, s.hudson@tcu.edu, and we will include it in the next edition of Harris College e-news.
Scrambling for 9 years–A profile of Charity McCright
While most students worry about how to balance school, extracurricular activities, a social life and the occasional job, Charity McCright added “potential deployment to Iraq” onto her list during her time at TCU. Charity is on active duty in the Army. During her college career she was deployed once to the War in Iraq, and almost deployed a number of other times.
Charity’s life has been unbelievably complex and colorful throughout her many attempts at completing her degree, and expects it to only grow more complicated as she prepares for her second tour in Iraq.
When asked where she calls home, she just laughed. “You need to have a notepad for this one,” she responded.
Charity grew up in Cortez, Colorado until completing middle school, where she moved to Redmond, Oregon until she graduated high school, but here is where Charity’s life became so confusing I deferred to drawing a flow-chart to keep up. She began college at the University of Colorado, but because her parents could not afford the cost, she dropped out and moved to Las Vegas with her aunt. After one year in Las Vegas, she decided to join the Army in order to pay for college. Charity immediately moved to Vilseck, Germany on active duty until 2002.
Charity eventually returned to the U.S. after she joined a military program to allow her to attend school while in service. She enrolled at the University of Northern Colorado in August of 2002 and majored in Kinesiology—following a life-long goal of becoming an athletic trainer after participating in her high school program. On April 6, 2004, she was told that her unit would be deployed for Iraq within one week. Charity scrambled to withdraw from classes and pack and move her belongings to her mother’s house.
Charity returned from Iraq in May 2005 and eventually completed her degree in December of 2007—9 years after beginning her college career. Not without a few almost-deployments throughout her time in college.(more)
As purple as the day is long: A profile on Mary Beth Walker
Mary Beth Walker’s first memory of TCU is a small, purple corduroy pillow with a horned frog on it that sat in her crib as a baby. Today, Mary Beth is the Assistant Director for Simulation in Harris College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Mary Beth is from a long line of TCU legends. Her mother (’48) was one of the few females to receive a degree in Geology during her time; her grandfather founded the physics department; Randolph Clark, one of TCU’s founders, conducted the wedding between her grandfather and grandmother just to name a few of the connections to the university; and Mary Beth graduated from TCU in 1980.
As Assistant Director for Simulation, Mary Beth manages the simulation lab for nursing students. Students begin working in the lab during their second semester of sophomore year in conjunction with clinical internships. The simulation lab is a learning center outside of the classroom for students to gain hands-on experience in a controlled environment. It includes video recording capabilities, two adult simulators, a six-year-old child simulator and a maternity simulator—which actually gives birth.
Until recently not all students have had the opportunity to use the lab during their time as an undergraduate, because the simulation lab is shared by nurse anesthesia students, which makes less time available for nursing students, but this summer the nurse anesthesia students will move to a new location and both labs will expand to allow all students more time in them.
Mary Beth hopes to expand the simulation lab to allow all nursing students to work in it during their time at TCU. Her plans include advancing the video recording capabilities, adding a control room and more simulators to further the believability of the scenarios. (more)
Joel Mitchell: Fisherman, Woodworker, and Professor
When students hear that his father delivered him in a cabin in Alaska without electricity, most are skeptical to believe Dr. Joel Mitchell. After all, it doesn’t seem typical for a professor of kinesiology at TCU to come from such a background.
The Homestead Years
“Apparently there was an Eskimo mid-wife who delivered my siblings, but since I was the fourth child, my father had evidently learned how to deliver a child from previous experience,” said Mitchell.
Joel was born into a family of commercial fisherman, and for a while Mitchell was as well. They fished for halibut, herring, crab and, most importantly, salmon off the coast of Alaska. And if the summer season was good to his family, they moved to Hawaii for the cold winter months.
“The Homestead Years” are the years in which Mitchell refers his childhood of growing up in Alaska. Students taking his classes can often expect to hear stories from “The Homestead Years” that always seem to parallel the lecture.
From these years, he learned to work with his hands, which he still continues today by making furniture and refurbishing old trucks and boats.
Two Hands and One Mind
His interest in making furniture actually stemmed from his father-in-law, a woodworker. Although his father frequently made furniture, it was often for necessity instead of for pleasure. Mitchell enjoys working with his hands as a way to relax.
As a fisherman, Mitchell had to be good with his hands and mind. “Fishing is a dangerous job, and when something goes wrong you need to be the one to fix it, or something can go wrong,” he said.
Until 2000, Mitchell still owned a small fishing boat in Alaska. Every summer he returned there for the summer salmon season, which lasted for six weeks.
“It was so different from what I’m used to,” Mitchell said, “It’s physical and risky, but you also need to have good sense about you. Fishing is good if you have a need for thrill, because it can get down to basic survival instincts. Although it’s incredibly stressful, it is rewarding at the same time.”
In 2000, he sold his boat to his niece and her husband, a commercial fisherman.
Hands-on can also describe Mitchell’s research.
Graduate students are an essential part in his research dealing in sodium balance issues affecting athletes.
They gain practical experience in the labs corresponding to Mitchell’s research, and although few undergraduates gain access to these labs, some seniors working on their senior projects also can gain hands-on experience with him.
Mitchell believes research is incremental. Normally not one project will result in something that drastically changes the field, he said, but with each small change there come bigger strides. (more)
Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences welcomes its first Board of Visitors
Individuals representing the health science industry were joined for the inagural Harris College of Nuring & Health Sciences Board of Visitors. The group meets throughout the year and provides insight and expertise to Harris College.
Willadean Ball, MS, PNP – received her BS from TCU in 1946, and received her PNP at the University of Texas at Arlington. After traveling, she became interested in genealogy. She is now a part of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and involved in preserving schools and history and participates in community service.
Margaret Benz, RN, MSN(R), BC-APN – received her BSN, MSN and APN from St. Louis University. She has two adopted sons from Brazil. The eldest is a junior double-major in Health and Fitness and Psychology at TCU, and runs track for the varsity team. Her other son is a first-year student at a local community college. She taught at TCU 17 year ago, and currently teaches an online nurse course at St. Louis University.
Katy Cairns, RN, MSN – received her BSN from TCU and MSN at Texas Women’s University. She came to work at TCU in the Harris College of Health and Human Sciences in 1962 and retired in 1992. She is active in nursing legislation with the American Nursing Association (ANA).
Joyce Pate Capper – is currently on the TCU Press Board and a member and former president of the Friends of the TCU Library. Her late husband, A.M. Pate, Jr., was active in TCU and the library at Harris College. Her son Pat Pate is a graduate of TCU as well.
James D. Harper, MD – is a staff anesthesiologist at Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth. He received his MD at Oregon Health Sciences University. He has been a clinical instructor for TCU students since 2004. His interests and hobbies include bicycling, yoga and snow skiing.
Mildred D. Hogstel, MSN, Ph. D – received her BSNE at Baylor University in Waco and her MSN at the University of Texas at Austin. She received her Ph. D in Higher Education at the University of North Texas. Her involvement with TCU began after she visited Fort Worth to hear Lucy Harris speak, after which she decided to move to TCU.
Virginia A. Lynch, MSN, RN, FAAN – received her BSN at TCU in 1982 and her MSN from the University of Texas at Arlington. She created the first master’s program in forensic nursing in 1986 and published the first textbook dealing on the subject. She now teaches at the University of Colorado, as well as internationally.
Mike Macko, PT, OPT, OCS, MTC – received his BS in Movement Science at TCU in 1994, and was also a 2-year baseball letterman. He received both his Master’s and Doctorate of Physical Therapy at the University of St. Augustine in Florida. He came to TCU on a transfer student’s academic scholarship and received a baseball scholarship and an NCAA degree completion scholarship.
George R. Mills, MD – received his MD at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas, and completed his Anesthesiology residency at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. His family has long been associated with TCU, and he wanted to help Harris College in his capacity as a medical professional.
Henry Neuhoff III – received his BS in Engineering at the University of Notre Dame, and currently lives in Dallas.
Wanda White Stovall – has a BFA and MS in Speech Pathology. She is currently a docent at the Kimbell Art Museum and Modern Art Museum in Fort Worth. She enjoys boating, traveling and writing. She wanted to support TCU and the Miller Speech and Hearing programs.
Wilma Jean Tade – is a retired Speech Language Pathologist. She received her MA at TCU. She came to Fort Worth in 1962 when her husband joined the faculty. She joined the faculty at the Miller Speech and Hearing Clinic in 1972 and worked there until retirement in 1990.
Harriet Waring, CRNA – is a retired CRNA. As a service oriented young woman, she was naturally drawn to nursing because of the sense of adventure and responsibility. As a retiree she is a part of several service organization and enjoys to travel, fish and read.
ADDITIONAL ACCOLADES
Marinda Allender – nursing faculty – has been selected to the Examination Committee for the Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools® (CGFNS). As a member of the Examination Committee she will be responsible for reviewing the content of the CGFNS exam. The CGFNS is an internationally recognized authority on credentials evaluation and verification pertaining to the education, registration and licensure of nurses and healthcare professionals worldwide.
Kathy A. Baker - nursing faculty - presented “Making a Difference with Evidence-based Nursing,” West Virginia society of Gastroenterology Nurses and Associates, Martinsburg, WV.
Mary Bauman - COSD graduate student – was one of two recipients of the Jeanne Braniff Terrell Scholarship which is a very prestigious award sponsored by the Texas Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation. The scholarship was in the amount of $1000.
Elizabeth Boschini – COSD student - created a new children’s book, Ellie’s Ears, with an illustrator. Written by Boschini, the story presents cochlear implants and deafness from the perspective of Ellie, a ten-year-old deaf girl with bilateral cochlear implants, as she explains her hearing loss to a new student in her mainstream 3rd grade class. Ellie’s Ears was released in honor of ASHA’s Better Hearing and Speech Month. For more information, visit their website, www.cochlearimplantonline.com.
Carolyn Cagle - nursing faculty - received funding from Oncology Nurses Foundation for her research on “Spirituality in Mexican American Cancer Caregivers.” She also was appointed as a reviewer for small grants by the Southern Nursing Research Society. Dr.Cagle presented “Collaboration to Understand Mexican American Caregiving,” 59th Biennial International Convention, Sigma Theta Tau, Baltimore, MD. She also presented “Suffering Apart and the Invisibility of the Mexican American Caregiver (co-authors P. Bradley and J.N. Wells), 135th Annual Meeting & Exposition, American Public Health Association, Washington, DC, and “Team-generated Grounded Theory: Mexican American Female Cancer Caregivers ‘Becoming Stronger’” (co-authors J.N. Wells and P. Bradley), 8th Advances in Qualitative Methods Conference, Banff, Alberta, Canada.
Carolyn Spence Cagle, Jo Nell Wells, Pat Bradley and M.L. Hollen – nursing faculty - are co-authors of “Weaving Theory and Literature for Understanding Mexican American Cancer Caregiving,” published in Hispanic Health Care International.
Harriet Cohen – social work faculty - was this year's recipient of the "Distinguished Contemporary Contribution to Baccalaureate Social Work Education Award.” This award acknowledges a baccalaureate social worker educator's achievement over his/her entire career.
Lynn Flahive – COSD faculty - presented “What’s It All About? Looking at Phonology in Everyday Therapy” and co-presented “From Our Therapy to Yours: Sharing Effective and Fun Ideas for Young Children” Parts I and II with Janet Lanza at the Indiana Speech-Language-Hearing Association State Convention, Indianapolis, IN, March 28.
Michael Hansen - nursing alumnus - is president of Critical Care Nurses Association.
Diane Hawley – nursing faculty – was nominated as a 2007-2008 Preferred Professor TCU Student Nursing Association.
Kim George – nursing graduate student – was selected as the national oncology nurse of the year.
Suzy Lockwood – nursing faculty - presented “Patient Reported experience with Lower body lymphedema: A pilot study,” 25th Annual Symposium of Gynecologic Nurse Oncologists, Denver, CO.
Deb McLachlan – nursing faculty - and the TCU nursing program were recognized by The Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth for 10 years of partnership.
Kelley Menefee - kinesiology student - was selected as the District 6 (Texas and Arkansas) representative to the College Athletic Training Students Committee, which is a new National Athletic Trainers' Association (NATA) committee. Kelley represented herself very well in her phone interview with the President of the NATA and continues to bring positive attention to the Athletic Training Program at TCU.
Joel B. Mitchell and Meena Shah – kinesiology faculty - were among the co-authors of “Effect of Prior Exercise on Postprandial Triglycerides in Overweight Young Women After Ingesting a High-Carbohydrate Meal,” published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism.
Linda Moore - social work faculty - presented “The Myers Briggs Type Inventory (MBTI) and Social Work Education,” 25th Annual Conference of the Association of Baccalaureate Social Work Program Directors, Destin, FL.
Melody D. Phillips – kinesiology faculty - published “Resistive Exercise Blunts LPS-stimulated TNF-α and IL-1β” in International Journal of Sports Medicine, Vol. 29.
Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences - Research Symposium Winners –
UNDERGRADUATE ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Elizabeth Cheek (social work) – “A Comparison of the Effectiveness of the First Offender Program on Middle and High School Aged Students”
Joy Borjes (social work) “Community Response to Repeat Intimate Partner Violence”
Laura Windheuser (social work) “Description of CARE Program Services Utilized According to Client Income”
Kelly Krammer (social work) – “Impact of Chimalli Program on Risk Prevention” (Guanajuato, Mexico)
Daisy Delgado (social work) – “Perception of Communication between Parent and Child at Middle Level Learning Center”
Amy Werry (social work) – “Trends with Advance Directives among Cancer Patients”
Anntoinette Gullett (social work) – “What Effect Does Reminiscence Have on Depression?”
Erica Silverman (KINE) – “Core Strength and Hamstring Flexibility in Yoga Participants”
Melissa Korkmas (KINE) – “Effects of an Acute Bout of exercise on Arm Volume in Breast Cancer Survivors: Implications for Breast Cancer Related Lymphedema”
Sarah Bachman (NURS) – “The Effects of Reduced Estrogen in the Attenuation of Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase (enos) Expression and Nitric Oxide (NO) Formation”
UNDERGRADUATE - TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH
Candice George (COSD) – “An Analysis of the Importance of Early Age at Cochlear Implantation in Children”
GRADUATE – ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Sara Albrecht – (COSD) – “Preverbal Language Abilities in Monozygotic and Dizygotic Twins”
Bassett, Todd; Byrd, Kristin L.; Hubing, Kym; Patrizi, Robert; Quebedeaux, Luke; Quigg, Laura R.; Rogers, Melissa. (KINE) - “The Relationship between Lactate, pH, and Bicarbonate Levels during Maximal Graded Exercise”
GRADUATE – TRANSLATIONAL RESEARCH
Aguila, Edgardo; Whitman, Tina; Wingfield, William;– (NA) – “An Evidence Based Challenge of Cricoid Pressure”
Tracy Hodge (NA) – “Is Achieving Intraoperative Tight Glycemic Control Beneficial to Cardiac Surgical Patients”
Nursing Scholarship Winners The Nursing Student Relations’ Committee just received word that the following students have received financial support from the Pate Brothers Nursing Scholarship Award. Please join us, on behalf of the Student Relations Committee, in congratulating these individuals for their achievement reflected in the support: Alesha Albert, Tamara McElrath, K’eisha Nelson, Chi Okoye, Orpheulia (Rivers) Davis, Shanna Sapp
