Category Archives: Photo and Video Gallery

Former President George W. Bush at the podium as (from left) First Lady Michelle Obama, President Barack Obama, former First Lady Barbara Bush, former President George H. W. Bush, former First Lady Laura Bush, former President Bill Clinton, former First Lady Hillary Clinton, former President Jimmy Carter, and former First Lady Rosalyn Carter look on.

The dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Center on Thursday, April 25, brought members of the prestigious so-called Presidents’ Club to SMU.

President Barack Obama joined former Presidents Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush to dedicate the new Bush Center.

• Watch a slideshow of the dedication. 
• Read about students’ experiences as interns at the Bush Presidential Center.

The event drew more than 10,000 invited guests, including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and other former heads of state. More than 500 members of the SMU community watched the simulcast in McFarlin Auditorium or at an outdoor viewing screen.

The dedication also was streamed live at BushCenter.org. A video of the dedication ceremony is available at bushcenter.org/live.

In his remarks, Bush thanked SMU, noting that President R. Gerald Turner runs “a fantastic university.” He said SMU students are “awesome,” drawing cheers from students in the audience.

President Obama remarked that the dedication was a “Texas-sized party.” He said all former presidents are a “support group,” and noted Bush’s “incredible strength and resolve” after the attacks of  9-11.  Referring to what all former presidents have in common, he said, “We all love this country and we do our best.”

Located on a 23-acre site on the east side of campus, the Bush Center houses the Presidential Library and Museum and the George W. Bush Institute. The Library and Museum will open to the public May 1.

The Bush Center has designated Monday, April 29, as a special library visitation day for SMU faculty, staff and students.

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Myles Taylor of SMU News captures highlights of SMU holiday traditions in this video, from Celebration of Lights and the Advent Worship Service to the Trains at NorthPark Center. Click the YouTube screen to watch, or click here to open SMU’s 2012 Christmas video in a new window.

SMU celebrates during December Graduation 2011. Mechanical Engineering Professor José Lage (right), 2011-12 Faculty Senate President, carries the University Mace. Photo: Clayton Smith.

The SMU community will celebrate the graduation of hundreds of students at its 2012 December Graduation on Saturday, Dec. 15. Civic and philanthropic leader Caren Prothro, chair of SMU’s Board of Trustees, will be the featured speaker.

Update: Watch Caren Prothro’s address and see a slideshow from SMU News.

Ceremonies will begin at 10 a.m. in Moody Coliseum with a student and faculty procession. Doors to the staging area in the Dedman Center for Lifetime Sports open at 8:30 a.m., when formal portrait sessions will begin. Processional groups begin forming at 9:15 a.m.

> Complete information for candidates, guests and faculty from the SMU Registrar

“The spirit of community combined with our celebration of the individual is what makes SMU’s December Graduation Convocation a most joyous time,” said SMU President R. Gerald Turner and Provost Paul Ludden in a joint message to December graduates.

December Graduation is a formal ceremony open to degree candidates from all of SMU’s schools and professional programs. All participants must wear academic regalia; however, honor ribbons, medals, flowers, decorated mortarboards or other adornments may not be worn during the ceremony. Students without regalia will be directed to the SMU Bookstore to rent a cap and gown. Decorated and ruined mortarboards must be replaced at the student’s expense.

> Find complete rules for regalia at the University Registrar’s homepage

Caren Prothro

Caren Prothro has provided leadership and support for civic initiatives contributing to Dallas’ rise as an international center for business and culture, including SMU’s growth as a global educational and research institution.

As chair of the SMU Board of Trustees since 2010, Prothro has focused on the University’s goal of 100 endowed faculty positions and on increasing funds for merit-based scholarships that enable the University to draw top students nationally. A member of the Board since 1992, Prothro served as vice chair from 1996-2000. In addition, she serves as a co-chair of SMU’s Second Century Campaign and its Campaign Leadership Council.

Along with her late husband, C. Vincent (Vin) Prothro, Mrs. Prothro has been a generous donor to SMU, supporting the Perkins School of Theology, Meadows School of the Arts and the Department of Biological Sciences in Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, She and her husband continued a long-standing tradition of SMU support from the Perkins-Prothro family of Wichita Falls – including Mr. Prothro’s parents, Charles and Elizabeth Perkins Prothro, and his grandparents, Joe and Lois Perkins, who endowed the SMU theology school in the early 1940s and funded six buildings for the school, including Perkins Chapel.

> Learn more about Caren Prothro

The ceremony lasts about two hours. No guest tickets are required, and free parking will be available throughout the campus. Find more information for students and guests at the University Registrar’s December Graduation home page.

> Complete instructions for candidates
> Information for guests, including maps, travel discounts and more
> Information for guests with disabilities
> December Graduation simulcast, photo and DVD information

SMU’s 2012 calendar year produced a wealth of memorable moments. Relive some of the highlights through this video by Myles Taylor of SMU News. Click on the YouTube screen to start watching, or click here to open the SMU highlight video in a new window. 

The December holidays deliver some of SMU’s most beloved annual traditions. Save the dates for these 2012 events:

• The Student Foundation’s 2012 Celebration of Lights begins at 7 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 2, on the University’s Main Quad. More than 100,000 decorative lights will fill the trees, luminarias will line the sidewalks, musicians will perform songs of the season, and SMU President R. Gerald Turner will follow a 35-year-old tradition of reading the Christmas story from the New Testament. Hot chocolate, apple cider and cookies will be served starting at 6:30. Check out slideshows and video of past Celebration of Lights ceremonies, courtesy of SMU News. 

Update: See photos from Celebration of Lights 2012.

• On Thursday, Dec. 6, SMU’s Perkins School of Theology celebrates its Advent/Christmas Worship Service in Perkins Chapel with readings and music from Perkins professors, students and alumni at 4 p.m and 8 p.m. This year’s service focuses on John 1:5 – “The light shines in the darkness….” Admission is free; food and cash donations for the North Texas Food Bank will be accepted in the chapel narthex at the entrance. For more information, contact Teresa Rosado, 214-768-2502. Read more about the service.

• The Guildhall at SMU hosts the Cohort 16 Winter Exhibition noon-6 p.m. Friday, Dec. 14, at SMU-in-Plano. Graduating students in art creation, level design and programming will show their work, and attendees will have the opportunity to play games designed by students in Cohorts 16, 18 and 19.

• The University celebrates its 2012 December Graduation Ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 15, in Moody Coliseum. Learn more about the ceremony.

SMU’S 2012 Homecoming celebration provided several days of excitement, from reunions to Pigskin Revue to the parade (led by alumnus and TOMS Shoes founder Blake Mycoskie) to the Distinguished Alumni Awards. And to top it all off, the Mustangs delivered a 44-13 victory over the Memphis Tigers in Ford Stadium.

Gary Shultz of SMU News has posted dozens of images from the weekend. Visit his Homecoming 2012 page to see slide shows of all the action.

The rain poured down, but spirits were high during SMU’s 2012 Family Weekend celebration Sept. 28-30. Relive “Boardwalk on the Boulevard” from the picnic to the Talent Show to the SMU-TCU game with a video courtesy of SMU News.

> More video and pictures from SMU Family Weekend 2012

Nearly 1,000 new Mustangs moved into SMU residence halls on Wednesday, August 15, unloading packed boxes, laundry baskets and suitcases with the help of families, friends and SMU students and staff. The first-year students left Thursday for Mustang Corral, a three-day retreat in the Texas Hill Country.

“Everything went great,” said Zach Swanger, from Scottsdale, Arizona, after he finished moving into his room at Virginia-Snider Hall. “Everybody has been so helpful and friendly. I’m excited to be on campus.”

• See more photos  from SMU News.
• SMU Mothers’ and Dads’ Clubs

“Move-In Day is a time of new beginnings and limitless possibilities,” said Lori White, vice president for student affairs. “But it’s also a day of goodbyes and missing each other, even before those final goodbyes are exchanged. I encourage parents, on your drive or flight back home, to make plans to come back to SMU for Family Weekend in September, when you’ll see your students adjusting to college and settling in to campus life.”

Angel and Rob Rice of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, moved their daughter, Savannah, into a room at Virginia-Snider. “I’m a little overwhelmed at the thought of saying goodbye,” Angel Rice said, “but we’ll be returning to campus Sunday for Rotunda Passage and Convocation, so we’ll have one more day together. And we’ll definitely be back for Family Weekend.”

The SMU Mothers’ and Dads’ Clubs sponsored “Thirst-Aid” stations near the residence halls, where parents picked up cool drinks and checked out dollies and tools.  Dads’ Club President Robert Ray ’87 delivered water to families and volunteers on a golf cart.

“We all remember that first Move-In Day with our students – feeling excited and a little sad, too,” said Kelly Mattingly, Mothers’ Club president. “It’s so rewarding to welcome new SMU families and be able to offer a hand.”