April 2018
Game changer: SMU Indoor Performance Center
Come out to cheer on the Mustangs under new Head Coach Sonny Dykes at the annual spring football game in Ford Stadium on April 14 and be part of the celebration as halftime festivities kick off the construction of the SMU Indoor Performance Center.
We appreciate your generosity, Mustangs!
Thank you to the more than 2,200 alumni, parents, students, faculty, staff and friends who contributed over $747,824 during Mustangs Give Back. Missed the deadline? There’s still time to fund meaningful projects for our world changers.
AT&T CEO to deliver Commencement address
Pioneering business and technology leader Randall L. Stephenson will speak at the all-University ceremony on Saturday, May 19, where SMU expects to award more than 2,500 undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees.
A visionary approach to research and innovation
With a significant gift from Dallas business leaders Linda Wertheimer Hart ’65 and Milledge (Mitch) A. Hart, III, SMU will establish the first university-wide initiative focused on interactive network technologies created at a major research university.
Expanding engineering know-how and possibilities
A newspaper article about SMU engineering camps for underrepresented youth sparked a $2 million gift from the Hamon Charitable Foundation that will support expansion of the camps and provide scholarships for students who attend them.
Knee-deep in the business of politics
With the midterm elections squarely in his sights, economics major Zach Miller ’19 relied on the SMU network as he scaled “the next level in politics” by starting a political consulting firm and serving as finance director for a Texas Senate hopeful.
Giving voice to a stronger student community
As Student Body President David Shirzad ’18 winds down his term and prepares for graduation, he reflects on his high-spirited campus involvement and ultimate goal of shaping a community “where all people have a voice, and they believe they’re being heard.”
Couples should assume less, communicate more
Family psychologist Chrystyna D. Kouros is the lead author of a new study that finds couples pick up on one another’s feelings pretty well, when the emotion is happiness, but they often fail to recognize when a partner is sad, lonely or feeling down.
Keeping an eye on the oil patch from space
An analysis of radar images by a team of SMU geophysicists indicates that a large swath of the West Texas oil patch is heaving and sinking at an alarming rate. According to the researchers, two giant sinkholes near Wink, Texas, may just be the tip of the iceberg.
Congratulations to the SMU Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2018
Former student-athletes Janielle Dodds ’07, Denny Holman ’67, Wes Hopkins ’83, Hank Kuehne ’99, Cheril Santini ’95 and the late Clyde Carter ’35 have been named to the SMU Athletics Hall of Fame and will be recognized at the annual banquet and induction ceremony on Friday, May 4 at Moody Coliseum.
Sign up now for summer learning fun
No boredom allowed this summer, thanks to SMU’s wide-ranging learning activities for kids. Youngsters will create code, learn the fundamentals of engineering, express themselves artistically and fine-tune their athletic abilities at summer camps offered at SMU-in-Plano and on the main campus in Dallas.
ICYMI: In Case You Missed It
Please enjoy this roundup of interesting videos and stories highlighting some of the people and events making news on the Hilltop.