Department Psychology and Special Education News
Governor Abbott Reappoints ETAMU Alum to Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists
East Texas A&M alumna Dr. Sangeeta Singg will continue serving on the TSBEP, helping oversee licensure and ethical standards for psychologists in Texas.
A Career of Curiosity and Commitment: Henley Named Regents Professor
Longtime psychology educator Dr. Tracy B. Henley honored for transformative teaching, research and mentorship.
Alumna Retires After Decades of Child Advocacy Leadership
After more than three decades of service in child protection and advocacy, East Texas A&M alumna Irish Burch has announced her retirement.
East Texas A&M Alum Lands Position Working For U.S. Congress
East Texas A&M University alum Emau Stephen Petaia has been appointed to the position of digital engagement manager for United States Congresswoman Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen.
Snakes and Conan the Barbarian: Unique Topics at East Texas A&M Lion’s Lecture
On April 22, attendees at the atrium of the Nursing and Health Sciences Building were treated to two equally fascinating Lion’s Lectures, one discussing snakes and the other covering Texas author Robert E. Howard.
ETAMU Assistant Professor Receives Special Appointment From Texas Governor
Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently appointed Assistant Professor Belinda Rudinger, Ed.D., to the Governing Board of the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI).
Lewisville ISD Names East Texas A&M Alum Executive Director of Special Education
Tina Clark brings years of experience to her new role as the executive director of Special Education at Lewisville ISD.
Super Bowl 2025: How Fandom Boosts Mental Health, According to Psychology Research
Dr. Stephen Reysen shares his insights into the psychology of the millions of fans who will watch Super Bowl 2025.
A&M-Commerce Alum Selected as Region 11 Principal of the Year
Dr. Winston McCowan ('01, '08) will now represent ESC Region 11, vying for Texas Principal of the Year.
Showcasing Scholarship: Highlights from TAMUC’s Annual Research Symposium
TAMUC students present innovative research projects to the university community and industry leaders.
Texas A&M University-Commerce hosted its Annual Research Symposium on April 17, 2024, at the university's Rayburn Student Center. The symposium showcased undergraduate and graduate research projects, providing…
A&M-Commerce Professional Development Series Helps Employees Grow, Thrive
This spring, Texas A&M University-Commerce embarked on the second semester of its transformative Investing in Us employee development program, which has met with high praise from faculty and staff across the university. The innovative program features eight-week courses designed to…
TAMUC Faculty Co-Edits Award-Winning Book on Furry Fandom
“Furscience,” a book co-edited by A&M-Commerce faculty Dr. Stephen Reysen, has been selected for the 2023 Ursa Major Award for “Best Non-Fiction Work.”
Reysen is an associate professor in the Department of Psychology and Special Education at A&M-Commerce. One area…
A&M-Commerce Professor to Learn, Receive Innovative New Braille Device
A&M-Commerce faculty Dr. Belinda Rudinger has been selected to participate in a two-day training on the Monarch, a revolutionary new braille device. The Monarch is the first braille device to offer more than one line of braille at a time…
TAMUC Alum Promoted to Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Chief Transformation Officer for The Texas A&M University System
A&M-Commerce alum Dr. Shonda Gibson has been promoted to the role of senior associate vice chancellor for Academic Affairs and chief transformation officer for The Texas A&M University System.
As chief transformation officer for the A&M System, Gibson's mission is…
A&M-Commerce Doctoral Student Published in Research Methods Publication
A&M-Commerce doctoral student Bailey Ayers is helping to shape the future of education with her recently published research in the Sage Research Methods Cases publication.
The case study highlights Ayers's thesis project on the effectiveness of different learning strategies in…
A&M-Commerce Professor Set to Lead Advocacy Group’s Division of Visual Impairment and Deafblindness
A&M-Commerce faculty Dr. Beth Jones was recently elected president-elect for the Council for Exceptional Children's Division of Visual Impairment and Deafblindness (DVIDB). She will serve two years as president-elect, two years as president, and two years as past president.
DVIDB's…
A&M-Commerce Alum Receives Human Rights Award
The Texas Counseling Association recently honored A&M-Commerce alum Dr. Staussa Ervin ('98, '05) as the recipient of its 2023 Molly Gerold Human Rights Award, which recognizes contributions in one or more areas of human rights.
Ervin's background advocating for human…
A&M-Commerce Alum Joins Tarleton Psychology Faculty
A&M-Commerce alumni Dr. Amanda Stevens accepted a position as assistant professor of psychology at Tarleton State University. Stevens began her position this fall semester.
Stevens earned three psychology degrees from A&M-Commerce. She completed her bachelor's with honors in 2011, her…
TAMUC Alum Selected to Chair Psychonomic Society Finance Committee
A&M-Commerce alum Dr. Tom Faulkenberry is tapped to chair the finance committee for the Psychonomic Society, an international scientific organization comprised of over 4,500 scientists and psychologists.
Faulkenberry holds a bachelor's from Southeastern Oklahoma State University and a master's degree…
Honors College Student at A&M-Commerce Earns Study Abroad Grant
The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi recently awarded A&M-Commerce Honors College student Haley Turner a $1,000 grant to study abroad. Turner is one of only 125 national recipients.
The grant is designed to support undergraduate students at campuses with…
TAMUC Students’ Children’s Book Places Third at National Competition
A children's book authored and illustrated by Texas A&M University-Commerce students Caitlyn Moniz and Cayce Parris placed third at the higher education level in a competition that culminated at the Educators Rising national conference in Washington, D.C.
The students represented…
TAMUC College of Education and Human Services Publishes Online Journal
The College of Education and Human Services at A&M-Commerce has published the first issue of Literature Reviews in Education and Human Services. The peer-reviewed, online journal endeavors to provide a collection of high-quality literature reviews for topics related to education…
A&M-Commerce Partners with Rural School Districts for $1.7 Million Grant
Texas A&M University-Commerce, in partnership with Corsicana ISD and nine school districts in the Freestone-Navarro Bi-County Co-op, will benefit from nearly $1.7 million in grant funding through the Texas Education Agency's Innovative Services for Students with Autism Grant Award Program.…
Gatlings’ Gifts Inspire New Generation of Alumni Donors
Christopher and Dr. Breanna Gatling are among the youngest donors in Texas A&M University-Commerce history. Their recent gifts set a precedent for a new generation of alumni to support their alma mater earlier in their careers.
The Gatlings introduced two…
TAMUC Psychology Professor Honored by School Psychologists Organization
The Trainers of School Psychologists organization selected Erin Harper, Ph.D., as a Black Leader in School Psychology as part of the Honoring Diverse Leaders in School Psychology Project.
Harper is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology and Special…
A&M-Commerce Faculty Member Co-Authors Article of the Year
The Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation has selected a research article co-authored by A&M-Commerce faculty member Erin Harper, Ph.D., as the journal's article of the year. The honor was announced at the National Association of School Psychologists annual convention…
A&M-Commerce Alum to Lead National Statistics and Data Science Committee
A&M-Commerce alum Tom Faulkenberry, Ph.D., is the new chair of the Joint Committee on Undergraduate Statistics and Data Science Education. The committee is co-sponsored by the American Statistical Association and the Mathematical Association of America.
The two-year appointment will see…
A&M-Commerce Psychology Professor Publishes New Book
Professor Tracy B. Henley in the Department of Psychology and Special Education at A&M-Commerce and Matt J. Rossano, professor of psychology at Southeastern Louisiana University, are co-editors of a new book, “Psychology and Cognitive Archaeology: An Interdisciplinary Approach to the…
A&M-Commerce Special Education Faculty Member Named to Board
Belinda Rudinger, Ed.D., a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Psychology and Special Education at A&M-Commerce, has been elected to the board of the Council for Exceptional Children's Division on Visual Impairments and Deaf-Blindness (DVIDB).
DVIDB seeks to advance…
TAMUC Student to Receive Outstanding Grad Student-Specialist Level Award
The Texas Association of School Psychologists' (TASP) Awards and Honors committee recently selected Kelli Lahman—a graduate student in the Specialist in School Psychology program at Texas A&M University-Commerce—as the winner of the 2021 award for Outstanding Grad Student-Specialist Level.
Lahman…
A&M-Commerce Community Psychology Clinic Finding New Ways to Serve
Under the leadership of director Tina Borke, the Community Psychology Clinic at Texas A&M University-Commerce is finding innovative ways to provide mental health services to the university and the Commerce community.
The clinic, staffed by student clinicians under the supervision…
A&M-Commerce Rodeo Student Named to National Rodeo Honor Roll
Texas A&M University-Commerce Rodeo Team member Alyssa Lockhart was named a “Scholar American” by the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association. To qualify each year, students must have earned points at an NIRA sanctioned rodeo, been in college for more than one…
A&M-Commerce Awarded Funding for Augmented Reality Research
Texas A&M University-Commerce faculty members Shulan Lu, professor of psychology and Derek Harter, associate professor of computer science and information systems, received grant funding from the U.S. Department of Defense to support their research project, “Embodied Cognition and Cognitive Control…
TAMUC Faculty Carrero Secures Research Funding
Associate professor Kelly M. Carrero, Ph.D., in the Department of Psychology and Special Education at A&M-Commerce, recently secured funding to research the design and implementation of a community-based program to increase safe interactions between law enforcement and people with exceptionalities…
TAMUC Recognized for Efforts During National School Psychology Week
The National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) recently dubbed the Specialist in School Psychology (SSP) program at Texas A&M University-Commerce as one of three leading school psychology programs in the country.
The program received an Honorable Mention for Outstanding Graduate…
Rosalie and Frank Turner Establish Endowed Professorship for Race Education at TAMUC
Award-winning novelist Rosalie Turner and her husband, Texas A&M University-Commerce alumnus Frank Turner, are doing their part to end systemic racism in America through education.
The Turners, who live in Durham, North Carolina, have established the Rosalie and Frank Turner…
A&M-Commerce Professor of School Psychology Quoted in MLK Article
Dr. Erin A. Harper, assistant professor in the Department of Psychology and Special Education at A&M-Commerce, is quoted in a recent article from realsimple.com titled “How to Give Back on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.”
The article outlines the benefits…
Governor Names TAMUC Alumna to State Board of Examiners of Psychologists
Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently appointed A&M-Commerce alumna, Sanjeeta Singg, Ph.D., to the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists for a term set to expire in 2025. The board regulates the practice of psychology in the state of Texas.…
A&M-Commerce Alumna Featured on All Things Cognitive Podcast
Dr. Dawn Weatherford recently sat for an interview with All Things Cognitive, a podcast produced by the prestigious Psychonomic Society. She discussed her recently published paper in the Psychonomic Society journal Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications.
Her paper, “You shall…
A&M-Commerce Graduate Student Earns Miller-Delange Scholarship
Kelli Lahman, a graduate student in the Specialist in School Psychology program at A&M-Commerce, recently received a scholarship from the Miller-DeLange Education Foundation.
The foundation provides scholarships for graduate students who are enrolled in programs to become licensed school psychologists,…
Texas Governor Appoints A&M-Commerce Alum to Early Childhood Committee.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott appointed 23 members to the Early Childhood Intervention Advisory Committee, including A&M-Commerce alumna Cynthia D. (Cindy) Lee.
According to a release from the governor’s office, “The Committee advises the Texas Health and Human Services Commission Division…
Professor Erin Harper Featured in Self Magazine
A&M-Commerce psychology professor Erin Harper was recently featured in an online article by Self, an American online magazine for women that specializes in health, beauty, and style. In the article, Harper shares information about how parents can support their children's…
Dr. Hsun-Yu Chan Chosen for Junior Faculty Award
Dr. Hsun-Yu Chan
has been selected as a recipient of the Augustine
“Chuck” Arize Junior Faculty Award. This award recognizes outstanding teaching, research and service
provided by A&M-Commerce faculty. Hsun-Yu is a professor in the Department of Psychology and Special…
Texas Governor Appoints Dr. Beth Jones to TSBVI Board of Trustees
A&M-Commerce Professor Beth Jones has been appointed by Governor Gregg Abbott to the board of trustees for the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI). TSBVI is a special public school that provides services to eligible students and…