June 2023 News

Dr. Regina Hale, associate professor JoAnne Gay Dishman School of Nursing and Director of Undergraduate Research and Student Success, has been awarded the David J. Beck Teaching Excellence Award. Annually, the David J. Beck Teaching Excellence Award, established though a gift from LU distinguished alumnus David J. Beck, rewards one faculty member who excels as a teacher or otherwise brings significant honor to Lamar University through innovative instructional pedagogy. The award carries with it a check of $25,000.

On Friday, June 16, Gordon S. Williams, station operations manager for Lamar University Television News, received a congressional commendation and was honored with special congressional recognition from the office of U.S. Representative and Texas native Brian Babin.

Lamar University’s President Jaime Taylor has announced a total of 703 students to the Spring 2023 President’s list. Undergraduate students who qualify for the President’s List carry a full course load of 12 semester hours or more with grade point averages of 4.0 for that semester. The Deans of Lamar University’s five academic colleges have announced a total of 1,079 students to the Spring 2023 Dean’s list. To qualify for the Deans’ List, an undergraduate student must carry a full course load of 12 semester hours or more and have a grade point average of 3.5 or higher for that semester.

Fourth-grade Mont Belvieu ISD special education instructor and Lamar University College of Education & Human Development and Texas Academy alumna, Lauren Harpe ’14, ‘21, experienced an opportunity of a lifetime when she was selected to participate on “Survivor 44”, one of the longest-running reality shows in TV history. Here, Harpe shares her experiences and reminisces on the wildest adventure of her life and her time at Lamar University.

Dr. Teresa Simpson has been breaking the glass ceiling of higher education at Lamar University and beyond since September of 2004. In January of 2023, Simpson’s hard work paid off as she was the awarded the 2023 Texas Women in Higher Education (TWHE) Representative of the Year Award.

Governor Greg Abbott has appointed Kelvin Elgar, a chemical engineering major at Lamar University, as student regent for the 2023-24 term. Mr. Elgar is one of eight student regents appointed to the governing boards of Texas’ public university systems and independent universities.

From a young age, Christine Osborne, recent graduate with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing, and senior, Ryan Shugart, a triple major in electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and mathematics, have been interested in robotic

Life after graduation for Lamar University’s Exercise Science & Fitness Management alum, Brandon Baumgardner ’21, has been filled with plot twists and exciting new adventures while currently working as the Houston Police Department’s (HPD) Patrol Division Officer. During the fourth week of training, Baumgardner was named Class Leader for the Houston Police Academy and received the Top Shot Award given to the cadet who earns the highest score in firearms training.

The Office of Undergraduate Research recognizes exceptional students with high performances on research projects. These top students provide insight as to what the Office of Undergraduate Research means to them.