Howdy!
It’s hard to believe the spring semester is over. It feels like yesterday our students were finishing their finals. Many have begun new jobs, or summer internships. Some are even continuing with their schooling. We started the semester with 20 of our brightest students visiting several ivy league schools on the Stark NE Tour to determine where they would like to attend business or law school. We then returned to campus to begin classes and listen to the wisdom of Dr. Bernice A. King, Dr. Martin Luther King’s youngest daughter, this year’s keynote speaker at MSC WBAC’s annual MLK Breakfast. Then our committees were in high gear producing programs where our students learned many leadership skills and they executed the many aspects of these programs. This newsletter will highlight several of these programs.
This time of year is an emotional time for our staff. We have worked with many students for two, three, and sometimes four years and are able to see their personal growth as they progress to the next leadership level. We are very happy for our students but also saddened that many will be leaving us for their next adventures in life. Our new student leaders are filled with energy and ready to change the world and our staff are excited to be part of this journey, but also are exhausted and ready for a summer, to slow down a bit. We have had some staff move on to other positions across campus that allows them to progress quicker than our organization can. We have new staff that have been hired that bring us energy and excitement that helps us engage our students.
On the programming front, though OPAS reports to another division, the student committee still resides in the MSC. This past year OPAS celebrated its 50th season. Their programming line-up and the special presentation of Lyle Lovett ’79 added extra excitement to the celebration. The upcoming 51st season looks to be just as exciting with many Broadway hits and music programs that will be quite exciting.
MSC Aggie Cinema hosted Jenny Slate, an actor who has starred in many movies and recently received an Academy Award nomination for the movie Marcel the Shell with Shoes On. More than 500 people attended the movie and her dialogue.
There were many notable programs produced by our students and we are extremely excited about the upcoming year’s lineup. I’m proud of how hard our students and staff work to provide our campus with enriching and thought-provoking programs.
Students Recognized for Their Hard Work
Many MSC Students were recognized for their hard work at the MSC Awards Ceremony. On April 17th many first-year involvement awards were received by new students who have made an impact in their committees. Also, several of our top award winners not only walked away with these prestigious awards but a check sponsored by generous former students who wanted to recognize the namesakes of the awards and the recipients. Those receiving our top awards are:
The Luke J. Altendorf Leadership Award sponsored by Mrs. Catherine Lacey and Dr. Brent Lacey ’05
Granted a scholarship of $2500 each to Hannah Bludau and Gracie Reeves.
Hannah Bludau, MSC Marketing Resource Director
Gracie Reeves, Chair, MSC Wiley Lecture Series
The James R. Reynolds Award given by Mrs. Michelle Scudder Herring ’80 and Mr. Brooks W. Herring ‘80
Granted three awards of $750 each to Roxanna Irani, Alec Farris, and Monserrat Westrup
Roxanna Irani, MSC Vice President of Business
Alex Farris, MSC Development Resource Director
Monse Westrup, MSC Hospitality Executive Director of Service
The Thomas H. Rountree Award sponsored by Mrs. Cheri Haby ’80 and Mr. Ernen M. Haby, Jr. ‘81
Ernen Haby granted two awards of $1500 each to Neha Deshmukh and Anthony Lovelace-Carroll
Neha Deshmukh, MSC President
Anthony Lovelace-Carroll, MSC Executive Vice President of Diversity
Click here to see the full list of award recipients.
AFS Contributions to our Programs
For many years the MSC has received funding from the Association of Former Students. We greatly appreciate the generosity of those of you who support the Aggie Network. The areas of the MSC who have benefited from this support are: The MSC Director’s Office, MSC CAMAC’s Mi Casa es su Casa, LatinX Theatre and Amig@s mentoring program, MSC Aggie Cinema and the MSC Spencer Leadership Conference.
We appreciate those of you who donate to the Association because it assists us in producing many programs. Also, please note that we are able to utilize the AFS Database to track all our Former Students. Please take a moment to look yourself up and make sure we have the most accurate information. www.aggienetwork.com ----Thanks.
Core Values
Recently I heard a talk where the speaker was talking about time. He said we often hear the adage of “There is no better time than the present '' to get something done. Certainly, we all would agree that time is quite precious, and we may not always prioritize our time well or we can procrastinate or spend time carelessly. Then the speaker changed up the words and said, “There is no better present than time.” When I heard this, it really resonated with me. How often are we in a place or with others and are not present. How often do we have good intentions but don’t take the time to spend with someone in need? How often are we in a place but we are not there, we may be checking our phones or letting our minds wonder? What does it mean to be present? I know at times; I’m not always present with the ones I love and the ones that love me the most …. my family members. Often, I think about the lyrics of the Harry Chapin song, “The Cat’s in the Cradle.”
Many times, we don’t know the impact of being present, but the individuals on the receiving end do. Do you remember the last time someone was present for you? I bet it meant a lot to you. Giving of one’s time can bring joy to others, and you can share in some of this joy.
Many of our MSC Committees do service projects in the local community. Last month alone we had over 4,657.50 hours of service contributed by our students with a value of $148,108. We also had many students from the MSC participate in the Big Event where nearly 15,000 students volunteered for this one day event and served nearly 2000 local residents. That is our value of Selfless Service in action. It doesn’t take much for one to give of their time, but the impact can be great. When you are too busy to share moments with others or your phone is distracting you, just pause a moment and think about, “There is no better present than time.“ Give someone a present today.
We’d like to offer condolences to the families of Diego Garcia and Penny Ditton. These individuals were crucial to the mission of the MSC and will be greatly missed.
Thank you,
Luke Altendorf
Director, MSC