Summer Robotics Camps for Middle Schoolers Set for July
Angelo State University’s Department of Teacher Education will once again host its free summer Robotics Camps for local and area middle school students this July in the Carr Education-Fine Arts Building at 2602 Dena Drive on campus.
Each five-day, non-residential camp is open to students who will be entering the sixth, seventh or eighth grade this fall. Participants will learn to build and program robots using the LEGO Spike Prime Environment.
The Robotics Camps are all beginner camps and will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day on the following dates:
- July 7-11
- July 14-18
- July 21-25
All the camps are free to all participants – and T-shirts and daily lunches will be provided. Advance registration is required, and the electronic registration form is available at angelo.edu/camp-code.
In addition to coding and robotics instruction, the camps will feature sessions on team building, information on opportunities to join groups or organizations focused on coding activities, and information on careers in coding, robotics and technology.
The Robotics Camps are made possible by a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). This marks the seventh straight year ASU has won a TWC grant to underwrite the camps.
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ASU Profs Receive TTU Chancellor’s Awards
Faculty members Dr. Kenneth Carrell and Dr. David Faught were presented with the Texas Tech University System’s 2025 Chancellor’s Council Distinguished Teaching and Research Awards for ASU during a May 1 ceremony on campus.
Recognizing academic excellence, the honors are the most prestigious awards granted to faculty throughout the TTU System. Carrell received the Distinguished Research Award for ASU, while Faught received the Distinguished Teaching Award for ASU. Each was presented with a $5,000 stipend and an engraved medallion.
“For more than half a century, the passionate supporters of the Chancellor’s Council have helped further the collective goals of the Texas Tech University System, including recognizing and retaining excellence in teaching and research among our world-class faculty,” said Tedd L. Mitchell, M.D., chancellor of the TTU System. “Our faculty members are an integral part of all we do across the TTU System. We are thankful for their contributions to our shared missions of advancing higher education, health care, research and outreach, which ensure a brighter future for countless generations to come.”
The awards are funded by gifts to the Chancellor’s Council, a giving society that supports the chancellor’s priorities across the TTU System. Since the honors were established in 2001, 281 faculty have received awards totaling more than $1.6 million.
Carrell, an associate professor of physics in the Department of Physics and Geosciences and director of the ASU Planetarium, joined the ASU faculty in 2016. His astronomy research involves studying variable (pulsating) stars, known as RR Lyrae stars, in the Milky Way galaxy. Understanding RR Lyrae stars is key to modelling the internal dynamics of all stars, including our sun. He has also begun recent studies of planets orbiting other stars, known as exoplanets. Over the past five years, he has received over $200,000 in external grant funding for his own research, as well as that of his students, from the National Science Foundation and Rubin Observatory, among others. His research has resulted in 10 publications in scientific journals and multiple conference presentations in just the last several years. He has also mentored over two dozen undergraduate student research projects, and 10 of them have been published in various journals. He has also trained more than a dozen students on the telescopes and other advanced instruments at the McDonald Observatory in Fort Davis, which along with undergraduate research, has helped propel many of them on to graduate school and careers in the fields of physics and astronomy. Additionally, Carrell coordinates the popular public astronomy shows in the ASU Planetarium, as well as local star observation parties and eclipse viewings.
Faught, an ASU alum (1997) and professor of Spanish in the Natalie Zan Ryan Department of English and Modern Languages, joined the ASU faculty in 2009. He consistently exceeds the criteria rating for teaching on his annual evaluations for all levels of courses, both in-person and online. He has taught a Freshman Signature Course every fall semester, spearheaded selection of a new textbook to give his students better online tools, and mentored multiple students through their acceptance to graduate school. He was also recently appointed coordinator for the all-level teaching certification for the Languages Other Than English (LOTE) program. Always looking for ways to improve his students’ learning experiences, he has completed Quality Matters Training and Culturally Responsive Approaches to Serving Hispanics (CRASH) training, and he was awarded an ASU Faculty Learning Commons Mini-Grant to develop video quizzes for upper-level online Spanish courses. Additionally, he has long organized an Honors Night each spring for students of languages, he is the co-organizer of the annual ASU Foreign Language Competition for high school students, and he is the faculty advisor for the Spanish Club and faculty sponsor for the Alpha Mu Gamma national foreign language honor society. Faught’s students enjoy his classes so much that they have twice collaborated to nominate him for ASU’s Gary and Pat Rodgers Distinguished Faculty Award.
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Rodgers Distinguished Awards Winners Named
University employees Chris Houston, Dr. Gayle Randall and Dr. William Taylor have been selected to receive the 2024-25 Gary and Pat Rodgers Distinguished Awards honoring outstanding ASU staff, faculty and administrators.
Houston, manager of accreditation and assessment in the Norris-Vincent College of Business, received the Distinguished Staff Award. Randall, assistant professor of management and marketing, received the Distinguished Faculty Award. Taylor, chair of the Department of Security Studies and Criminal Justice, received the Distinguished Administrator Award. Each also received a $2,500 honorarium.
They, along with 49 other nominees, were honored during a May 1 ceremony in the Houston Harte University Center.
An ASU alumnus and a staff member since 2014, Houston was honored for his university service, community involvement and exhibition of ASU’s Core Values. He has made key contributions to the University Assessment Committee, Quality Enhancement Plan team and Norris-Vincent College of Business (NVCOB) that are central to ASU’s mission and accreditation. He has served as an admissions counselor and academic advisor, effecting thousands of students in their decision to attend college and their career and course selection. He is also known for helping new faculty transition to ASU, mentoring students in various leadership programs, and exhibiting consistency and transparency in all of his interactions with students, faculty and staff. He also teaches as an adjunct for the Applied Business Statistics course during his lunch hours, and he is currently working on a Ph.D. in management and organizational leadership to further enhance his contributions to ASU. In the community, he preaches at Glen Meadows Church, where he also started a new college ministry program that provides a place of belonging for ASU students and can also lead to paid internship opportunities in the church’s various departments. From his nomination letter, “Chris is a true embodiment of the values of principled leadershipand he truly embodies the wise saying that a good name is more desirable than gold.”
An ASU alumna and 19-year faculty member, Randall was honored for her ability to engage and inspire students, her leadership of the Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity and her overall passion for Angelo State. She is known for creating a positive learning environment where her students feel supported and valued by employing innovative teaching methods in a variety of business courses, including the Housley Principled Leadership course. She also annually leads the Most Europe summer study abroad program to give students a more global perspective. She spends many “off-duty” hours mentoring and motivating students in Delta Sigma Pi and is heavily involved in promoting and conducting ASU’s annual BizPitch student entrepreneurship contest. She also helped plan the new Kevin Housley Junior Leadership Forum for local and area high school students on campus. In the community, she is active in the San Angelo Business Plan Competition, serves in a variety of roles at Holy Angels Church, involved her students in marketing research for the Downtown San Angelo “Dia de los Muertos” celebration, and promotes retail trade and commerce as a board member for Randall Motors and president of the San Angelo Cadillac Dealers Advertising Association. She previously earned the Texas Tech University System Chancellor’s Council Distinguished Teaching Award. From her nomination letter, “Dr. Randall has an uncanny ability to engage and inspire Her energy is boundless and contagious, and her dedication inspires those around her to do much the same for ASU.”
An ASU faculty member since 2011, Taylor was honored for his service in various leadership roles, his support of students and student organizations, and his extensive scholarship and publishing. Prior to becoming chair of his department, he twice served as interim chair. He has also served on the Faculty Senate and as chair or a member of over 100 department, college and university committees. Additionally, he has chaired more than 100 graduate comprehensive exam advisory committees and 20 graduate thesis advisory committees. He was the founding faculty sponsor for the ASU Student Veterans Organization and has been instrumental in expanding his department’s student groups, the Law Enforcement Club and Criminal Justice Student Association. He has taught 26 different undergraduate and graduate courses, and he developed the Civil-Military Relations, Security Issues in Africa and World Cultures portions of the curriculum. In the community, he has delivered countless keynote addresses centered on life-long learning to various civic, military and education groups, and he is a member of numerous regional, national and international professional organizations in his field. He has published seven books, including several award winners, and has been awarded 18 national grants to fund his book research. His book, “Military Service and American Democracy,” was selected as required reading for every first-year cadet at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and his books are housed in more than 2,000 libraries worldwide. From his nomination letter, “During his entire ASU career, Dr. Taylor has displayed administrative leadership, teaching distinction, scholarly achievement and extraordinary service, which have positively contributed to ASU’s reputation and educational mission.”
The Gary and Pat Rodgers Distinguished Awards were created by San Angelo native and former ASU student Gary Rodgers and his wife, Pat. Because of their association with many ASU employees over the years, the couple recognized the roles that staff, faculty and administrators perform to help ASU fulfill its mission to prepare students to be responsible and productive citizens. The Rodgers also provide the $2,500 honorarium for each award recipient and have fully endowed the Rodgers Awards through the ASU Foundation so they will continue in perpetuity.
Other nominees for the Distinguished Staff Award were Dr. Dara Anderson, Information Technology; Gillian Atwell, Communications and Marketing; Jason Brown, Center for Digital Learning and Instruction; Aaron Carrillo, Print Shop; Olivia Castro, David L. Hirschfeld Department of Engineering; Alicia Crisp, President’s Office; Elisabeth Dantzler, Small Business Development Center; Angelo Eaton, Security Studies and Criminal Justice; Adam Foster, Athletics; Brent Hyatt, KBH Center for Cyber Intelligence, Innovation and Security Studies; Rudy Jaques, Health Science Professions; Riley Mashburn, Center for Digital Learning and Instruction; Julia Middleton, Information Technology; Mandy Osborne, Center for Digital Learning and Instruction; Leigh Rasberry, Regional Security Operations Center; Joyce Reed, Freshman College; Vince Smith, Enrollment Management; and Shannon Sturm, Porter Henderson Library.
Other nominees for the Distinguished Faculty Award were Kenna Archer, Dr. Arnoldo De Leon Department of History; Loree Branham, Agriculture; Joel Carr, Social Work and Sociology; Yo-Rong Chen, Health Science Professions; Kelley Cooper, Health Science Professions; Laurie Dickmeyer, Dr. Arnoldo De Leon Department of History; Gina Heep, Curriculum and Instruction; Omar Horner, Center for International Studies; Mellisa Huffman, Natalie Zan Ryan Department of English and Modern Languages; Jaime Hyatt, Health Science Professions; Steven King, Chemistry and Biochemistry; Elizabeth Koeman-Shields, Physics and Geosciences; Caroline Koncz, Visual and Performing Arts; Kristen Lyons, Curriculum and Instruction; Eduardo Martinez, Security Studies and Criminal Justice; Jesse McIntyre, Health Science Professions; Rebekah McMillan, Dr. Arnoldo De Leon Department of History; Chelsea Procter-Willman, Health Science Professions; Tammy Stafford, Nursing; and Kristin Stanley, Health Science Professions.
Other nominees for the Distinguished Administrator Award were Scarlet Clouse, College of Education; Karl Havlak, Mathematics; Sandra Mohr, Center for Digital Learning and Instruction; Nicholas Negovetich, Biology; Duane Pruitt, Payroll Services; Micheal Salisbury, Freshman College; Wendy Sklenarik, College of Education; Thomas Starkey, Social Work and Sociology; Kyrie Villa, Counseling Services; Ashley Warren, President’s Office; and Kristi White, Health Science Professions.
— from Tom Nurre Jr., ASU Office of Marketing and Communications
