Rising to the challenge
SMU has met the challenges introduced by COVID-19 with innovation, creativity and resilience. In the midst of the pandemic, here are some of the ways that SMU has continued to be Mustang Strong.
SMU history: Experiencing challenges and triumphs over more than a century
Today’s health crisis and human rights movement may differ from anything we’ve seen before, but Mustangs of every generation have faced challenges in their times. Sometimes we’ve stumbled. Sometimes we’ve triumphed. But for more than 100 years, we’ve been engaged. World War I and the Roaring Twenties 1915 A financial crisis and the collapse in cotton prices hurt Texas and the nation. SMU scales back its plans for dormitories in the fall, build-ing three temporary halls for under $40,000. (In 1926, all three still-standing dorms were destroyed [...]
Carolyn and David B. Miller ’72, ’73 make $50 million commitment to SMU and the Cox School of Business
When former Mustang basketball standout David B. Miller ’72, ’73 and his wife, Carolyn, made the largest single alumni gift in SMU history, the Hilltop milestone made headlines in Dallas. Longtime business columnist Cheryl Hall ’73, who earned her journalism degree from the University, wrote about the publicity-shy couple for The Dallas Morning News. In this excerpt of the newspaper profile, their generous spirit and their love for family, community and SMU shine through. BY CHERYL HALL ’73 How does a guy who went to Southern Methodist University on a basketball scholarship strike it so [...]
Pastor Richie Butler ’93 creates opportunities for crucial conversations about race
Pastor Richie Butler ’93 remembers a particularly heated discussion during a town hall shortly after a white police officer shot and killed Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, on a street in Ferguson, Missouri, on Aug. 9, 2014. The conversation grew fiery among the many members of the community in attendance to speak with the leadership of the Dallas Police Department, the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office and the Dallas County Sheriff’'s Office. “I noticed every negative emotion and energy – division, anger, mistrust, frustration, hate,” and many in attendance felt that justice would not [...]
Whitney Wolfe Herd ’11: Empowering women to make the first move
As an SMU undergraduate, Whitney Wolfe Herd ’11 started two companies in response to problems she saw in the world. Today she’s the founder and CEO of Bumble, the billion-dollar social connection app that empowers women to make the first move.
Growing green, sowing hope in Dallas’ food desert
Owen Lynch harbors a “crazy” idea – one that just might help eliminate the food deserts scattered throughout South Dallas.
All in: How Candice Bledsoe ’07 shows students ‘no dream is out of reach’
Candice Bledsoe ’07 founded the Cutting Edge Youth Summit at SMU to help younger students with big dreams visualize a future powered by higher education.
Navigating the intersection of commerce and compassion
In less than a year, Neha Husein ’19 has piloted Just Drive – a mobile app that awards points to drivers who lock their phones while driving – from a class assignment into a viable startup. Along the way, SMU’s innovation ecosystem put her on track for success. Her venture won financial awards from SMU, and faculty mentors helped steer her in the right direction. She even tapped into the Mustang alumni network to bring her idea to life.
SMU and LIFT team up to reduce adult illiteracy in Dallas
Codex: Lost Words of Atlantis, an engaging game with an educational mission, earned the SMU/LIFT team, People ForWords, a place among the eight semifinalists chosen from 109 international teams competing for the $7 million Barbara Bush Foundation Adult Literacy XPRIZE presented by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation.
Army chaplain Jeff Matsler ’93 helps veterans work through ‘moral injury’
For more than a decade, U.S. Army Major Jeff Matsler ’93, a chaplain and bioethicist at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, has made it his mission to study “moral injury.” Members of the armed forces return from war not only psychologically and emotionally battered but also spiritually injured. “Soldiers on the front line need to hear the message of forgiveness and redemption,” he says.