NEW STAFF
Shahnaz Khaja -
Executive Director's Suite STAFF LEAVING
STAFF MOVE Angela Mejia
Birthdays
Mary Beard - Feb. 1
Damon Wilkins - Feb. 1
Paley Wu - Feb. 6
Daniel Herrera - Feb. 16
Eartha Walls - Feb. 16
David Bell - Feb. 17
Charles Harper - Feb. 18
Joe Papari - Feb. 19
Gretchen Voight - Feb. 25
Cara Hendricks - Feb. 26
Anniversaries
Irma Herrera - 35 years!
Pat Woods - 31 years!
Patricia May - 15 years
Adrienne Hawa - 11 years
Angela Mejia - 4 years
Jessica Dixon - 2 years
Mitzie Goff - 1 year
Tom Fomby Accepts the Chief Marshall Position from Brad Carter
At December Graduation, President R. Gerald Turner announced the retirement of Brad Carter as SMU's Chief Marshall after 18 years of service in that position. The ceremonial passing of the Chief Marshall's role occurred on February 3, 2009 when University Registrar John Hall presented Brad Carter with new academic regalia and gave the Chief Marshall's robe to Tom Fomby. Dr. Turner, Provost Paul Ludden, and Associate Provost Tom Tunks were present. Dr. Turner again thanked Chief Marshall Emeriti Carter for his work and welcomed Chief Marshall Fomby to his position. Former Provost Ruth Morgan, who appointed Brad Carter to his position, was present as well as many other faculty and staff.
Our best wishes go to Brad Carter and congratulations to Tom Fomby.
Tom Tunks, Brad Carter, and President Turner
VIPs -
Very Important Ponies
Some of our VIPs this month are:
Student Orientation Registration Team - Monica Cordero, Joe Papari, Barbara Mohrle, Rob Pocklington, Missy Bryant, Pam Fincher, and Anel Reyna - Today's demo of the new Student Orientation Registration and Tracking component of ACCESS.SMU was impressive. This new component to ACCESS.SMU leverages our PeopleSoft investment. Great job! - John Hall
Paley Wu and Nancy Skochdopole - Thanks for the work on the 2009 SMU Summer School website. John Hall This is very COOL, thanks to all. Bonnie Wheeler
Cheryl Moore and Stephen Forrest - you are great! When I needed enrollment stats in a hurry, both of you stepped up. Thank you. Pat Woods
Student Financial Operations Team - Deveron Ellison, Stephany Coleman, Rod Del Rio, Claudia Favela, Kelly Milazzo, Monica Juneau, and Walter Jimenez - I don't know what has changed, but our stop payments have decreased dramatically. Last year for June thru December we had 581, this year only 137. Good job. I appreciate everything you do to make our refund process a big success. Charles Harper
Gretchen Voight - Congratulations on her election as a Director at Large of NAACO - National Association of Academic Ceremonies Officers.
Transfer Team - Mary Compian, Myriah Garcia, and Adrienne Montgomery - Thanks for all your extra efforts in processing transfer credits. Your efforts are greatly appreciated and I can't thank you enough for going above and beyond every day. Each of you are reliable, organized, and a pleasure to work with. Thank you for being such an asset to our team. Monica Gomez
Payment Plans Pay Off
In a proactive move, SMU expanded the options for payment plans to assist our students and families to pay the charges for spring term. These options have been attractive to our families and has assisted SMU in retaining our undergraduate students.
Undergraduate enrollment is up 1.7% for spring 2009. Families using the 5 month payment plan increased 14%, 10 month payment plan increased 6%, the 4 month payment plan for small balances increased 51%, and the 4 month payment plan for larger balances increased by 31% over spring 2008. Two hundred and thirty-three families are participating in the 9 month payment plan offered for the first time this spring.
SMU Custom Regalia
Undergraduate, Master's and Doctoral
May Commencement will mark the first ceremony for the new custom regalia designed specifically for SMU. The undergraduate regalia includes a red stole with blue Dallas Hall logos, the master's regalia adds a red Dallas Hall logo to the gown. The doctoral regalia has red chevrons and panels as well as a six pointed tam.
President Turner has new custom regalia as well. The distinctive look of the SMU regalia will add color to our ceremonies and stand out as our graduates join the faculty at other institutions.
Important Dates
Quotation of the Month
SMU Trivia
Question
Answer Epi Ramirez Bench Enrollment Services Highlights Transfer Website- check it out at
March 4th
Division Meeting
Feb. 16 - Mustang Monday
Mar 9-14 - Spring
Break
Mar 21 - Spring Fest
Mar 26-27 - Mustang Days
Apr 3-4 - Mustang Days
April 10 - Good Friday Holiday
Apr 8
- Last day to drop
May 4 - Last day of instruction
May 5 -
Reading Day
May 6-12 - Final Examinations
May 15 - Baccalaureate
May
16 - Commencement
May 25 - Memorial Day Holiday
The greatest thing in the
world is to know how to belong to yourself.
Michel De Montaigne
Chevrons are the three velvet stripes on the sleeve of a
doctoral gown.
Gets Plaque of Remembrance
Census Reports - spring enrollment now available at
http://smu.edu/intranet/des/current_term.asp
Online Registration for Orientation - new students are able to register for AARO and Mustang Corral online. This new offering in ACCESS.SMU adds convenience for the student and allows the New Student Programs office to track students as they sign up.
IEP Automation - the Intensive English Program (IEP) offers non-credit courses to prospective international students. Under the direction of John Wheeler, this program provides intensive English instruction for over 200 students. With the assistance of Enrollment Service, General Education, and the International Center, the enrollment process is live in ACCESS.SMU. This not only facilitates enrollment but allows SMU to process the students into the SEVIS data bases as required by the Federal Government.
Summer School Website - Information on summer 2009 is available on the new and improved Summer School Website at http://smu.edu/summer
. Look for more information as Spring Break approaches. Encourage your students to participate in SMU-in-Taos, SMU Abroad, or SMU-in Dallas for a fun and rewarding Summer in the City 2009.