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Horned Frogs in the News, July 15-31, 2024

August 06, 2024

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From the Olympics to a new medical school class, from cryptocurrency to inflation, TCU and its faculty are in the news. 

INSTITUTIONAL 

 
July 29, 2024 
Fort Worth Star-Telegram 
Several blocks of West Berry Street could be developed with multifamily housing, retail space and a parking garage as part of TCU’s transformational plan for the commercial corridor near campus. If approved, 21 small lots would be replatted into two large lots spanning a combined 5.2 acres. All of the land is owned by TCU, and most of it is used for parking lots. Jason Soileau, assistant vice chancellor for planning, design and construction, said no plans for development are set in stone. The university has hired Austin-based developer Endeavor to help explore ideas for the possible mixed-use development and ways to improve pedestrian access. “Berry Street, we think, is a low-hanging fruit in terms of student experience,” he said. “We are interested in exploring a multi-use development along Berry Street that would leverage Berry Street as being Fort Worth’s new destination place.” 

 
July 28, 2024 
Sports Illustrated 
The 2024 Summer Olympics are underway in Paris. Nine current and former Horned Frogs are in Paris competing for gold. Hailey Van Lith is the only active collegian who was selected to a USA Basketball Men’s or Women’s National Team in 5-on-5 or 3x3 competition. Additionally, Dani Alvarez and Tania Moreno will represent Spain in Beach Volleyball, Rhanishka Gibbs will represent the Bahamas in the 50m Freestyle, Jadon Wuilliez will represent Antigua and Barbuda in the 100m Breaststroke, Stephanie Grundsoe will represent Denmark in Shooting, Amy Okonkwo and Tomi Taiwo will represent Nigeria in 5x5 Basketball, and Cam Norrie will represent Great Britain in Tennis. 

 
July 25, 2024 
NBCDFW.COM 
TCU is making history at the Paris Olympics with the largest contingent of student and alumni athletes in the school’s history. According to TCU, nine athletes will be competing on the world stage in Paris in various events and representing different countries. Hailey Van Lith joined TCU basketball in the spring of 2024. Van Lith is the only active collegian who was selected to a USA Basketball Men’s or Women’s National Team in a 5-on-5 or 3x3 competition. “Getting to compete for my country in the Olympics and represent my family, my home and TCU is a dream come true,” Van Lith said.  

 
July 18, 2024 
ParkourSC 
Gartner has released the findings from its biennial Top 25 North American Supply Chain Undergraduate and Graduate Programs report. The report is intended to support chief supply chain officers, heads of supply chain strategy and supply chain HR partners to identify the programs best equipped to support their growing talent needs. For the graduate program ranking, TCU Neeley came in at No. 18. 

 
July 18, 2024 
The Dallas Morning News 
The Art Galleries at TCU are pleased to present “Do you really believe that?” The group exhibition is in honor of the late art historian and curator Dr. Frances Colpitt and runs Aug. 30-Nov. 16 at Fort Worth Contemporary Arts. The title of the exhibition is a phrase Colpitt, who taught at TCU from 2005 to 2022, often used to challenge her students and galvanize critical thinking and discussion in class. A panel discussion featuring artists and curators of the exhibition will be held at 4:30 p.m. Aug. 30 in Moudy North Building, Room 132.  

 
July 15, 2024 
Fort Worth Inc 
The Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine welcomed its sixth cohort of 60 new medical students at the traditional White Coat Celebration at TCU’s Legends Club. “We are thrilled to welcome our sixth group of Empathetic ScholarsÂź and future physicians,” said Dr. Stuart D. Flynn, founding dean of the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU. “This group will begin their medical education journey in our brand-new medical education building in the heart of Fort Worth’s Medical Innovation District just steps away from all our clinical partners. This group has a distinctive opportunity to learn to practice medicine with empathy and amass deep medical knowledge from physicians and patients in our community.”  

 
July 15, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
Ronald “Ronnie” William Clinkscale, who passed away July 10, served more than 30 years as a trustee at TCU, where he was a noted football player during his college days. Clinkscale was known as the fastest player for the Horned Frogs in the 1950s. “Emeritus Trustee Ron Clinkscale was a cherished member of the Board of Trustees who was respected for his thoughtful approach and wise counsel in any and all situations,” Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr. said. “He will forever be remembered for his devotion to family and friends as well as his selflessness and service in the Fort Worth community.”  

FACULTY 

 
July 29, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
The Fort Worth ISD superintendent told the school board that it breached her contract subsequent to her evaluation in January, according to an email obtained by the Fort Worth Report. Educational leadership experts say the message from Superintendent AngĂ©lica Ramsey reflects a complex relationship between the district’s top administrator and the school board, which oversees the superintendent. A healthy superintendent-school board relationship would see both sides comfortable with honestly discussing hard topics, said Jo Beth Jimerson, professor and William L. and Betty F. Adams Chair of Education. “In the ideal, they would also recognize that while they come from different places, they do want to help kids, even if they’re trying to approach it in different ways and also recognize that they are all human beings juggling a number of pressures. That is really important.” 

 
July 28, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
Fort Worth is becoming a cryptocurrency destination. An influx of cryptocurrency businesses now call Cowtown home — and Fort Worth is embracing them. Experts and Fort Worth officials attribute that growth to the city’s decision to bring a bitcoin mining operation to city hall in April 2022. “For Fort Worth, the municipal bitcoin mining, I think, created this tech-hub energy that the city needs to continue to build on,” said Brandon Chicotsky, assistant professor of professional practice in marketing. Fort Worth can now make a claim to be more technologically savvy in “a way that is responsible and likely generating revenue for the city and for its residents,” he said. 

 
July 28, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
After Gateway Church was rocked by allegations that its founder, Robert Morris, sexually abused a then-12-year-old girl in the 1980s, the backgrounds of current leaders have drawn fresh scrutiny. Prisoners mentored by ex-offenders, or someone they can relate to, have a better post-incarceration outcome, said Kendra Bowen, associate professor and director of graduate programs for Criminology & Criminal Justice. “It is important to note that when solely talking about people who have committed sex crimes, research shows that nonsexual offenders do not relate to them and do not want to be mentored by them,” Bowen wrote in an email. “Therefore, it is not a good idea to put a convicted sex offender as a mentor of an individual or group of individuals who have not committed a sex offense.” 

 
July 24, 2024 
Fort Worth Star-Telegram 
It’s an age-old debate: tampons vs. pads — which is better for you? We asked experts for their thoughts on the subject and — spoiler alert — the decision does in fact come down to your personal preference. “Although there is a higher risk of toxic shock syndrome with tampons, this risk is still so low that if you’re following appropriate tampon hygiene and removing after eight hours of use, the risk becomes almost negligible,” said Dr. Melanie Lagomichos, assistant professor at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU. 

 
July 24, 2024 
Fort Worth Star-Telegram 
The Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex recently ranked first in the nation for metrics analyzing inflation rate trends. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and a study from WalletHub showed North Texas’ increased costs. Another aspect of local inflation is the cost of housing. In the consumer price index, housing accounted for over 36% in May 2024. “If our housing prices are going up, then our inflation would be going up faster,” said John T. Harvey, economics professor. Despite the negative connotations around increased inflation, the business growth and housing demand in the North Texas region is positive, Harvey said. “It is a side effect of an otherwise positive economic event, and that is that people are being attracted to this area,” he said. 

 
July 24, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
James Hill, director of the Center for Real Estate at Neeley School of Business, has been elected to the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas board of directors. “With my background in finance and real estate, I am eager to represent the public’s interest and contribute to the formulation of monetary policy and the promotion of economic stability,” he said. “I also look forward to strengthening the connection between Fort Worth and this vital institution, ensuring our community’s voice is heard on a national stage.”  

 
July 24, 2024 
WalletHub 
The cheapest car insurance companies in Texas are Texas Farm Bureau, State Farm and Geico. The difference between the cheapest and most expensive car insurance in Texas is $2,265 per year, so it pays to compare quotes. Mauricio Rodriguez, professor and director of the LKCM Center for Financial Studies at TCU Neeley, said insurance companies are fair to college students. “Insurance companies typically charge higher premiums to college students relative to older adults because college students are typically more likely to be in accidents,” he said. 

 
July 23, 2024 
Fort Worth Star-Telegram 
President Joe Biden’s exit from the presidential race raises more than just questions about who will succeed him on the Democratic ticket. It also prompts questions about what his absence means for down-ballot races. “We have to kind of wait to see this thing sort out for a few days,” said Jim Riddlesperger, political science professor. “There’s a potential, obviously, that having a new face in the election will add a level of energy and excitement that was notably lacking this year.” 

 
July 23, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
Dr. Sandra Esparza, director for clinical skills at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU, is a champion for service learning. She believes it creates better physicians and has seen community engagement embraced more than when she was in medical school over 20 years ago, she said. “Medical school is different now, but in a good way,” Esparza said. “We’re really trying to get people to understand it’s not about treating the disease as much as it is about treating the person. If they can learn that early on, that’s going to make a huge difference in their careers.” Burnett School of Medicine’s service learning curriculum allows beginning medical students to understand the communities they plan to serve and learn about their future patients’ needs, said Korie Hawkins, assistant director of service learning and community engagement. “Our trademark is that we are creating the next generation of Empathetic ScholarsÂź, and so it’s imperative that we uphold a sense of community, and we’re aware of everything that’s around us. It’s putting the human back in medicine,” she said. 

 
July 22, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
Some Tarrant County congressional candidates are skeptical Vice President Kamala Harris’ name at the top of the presidential ticket will have a tangible impact on their races. James Riddlesperger, political science professor, said Harris’ presidential candidacy could have an energizing effect on Democratic voters, but he expressed skepticism about which races that energy would actually impact. “There are a couple hundred Democrats, maybe even more, running for office all over the state of Texas who are trying to figure that out right at this moment,” he said. “If you’re a Democrat, you’re looking at this as a real opportunity.”  

 
July 22, 2024 
Crime Stories with Nancy Grace 
Christopher Scholtes, who was arrested and charged with murder after his 2-year-old daughter died in a hot car, had been distracted by video games and “regularly” left his kids alone in the car, court documents revealed. “You’ll be clawing at whatever is restricting you. Even a baby is going to try and get out of there if they can, so they’ll be pulling at the seatbelt, etc., or pounding their head on something. So it can be a seizure, or it could be them trying to get out of the restraints,” said Dr. Kendell Crowns, chief medical examiner in Tarrant County and associate professor at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU, when asked what happens to a person who dies in a hot car. 

 
July 19, 2024 
NBCDFW 
Most Americans may not even remember the last time they wrote a check. Checks, as we know them today, first originated in the 11th century but didn’t become mainstream until the early 20th century, following the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, according to a historical survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. But back then, “everyday people didn’t have checking accounts, that was for rich people,” said Stephen Quinn, professor of economics and co-author of the Atlanta Fed’s report. “It wasn’t until after World War II that checking accounts were a common thing.” Postwar prosperity greatly expanded the use of checking accounts to middle-class households, making checks the most widely used noncash payment method in the U.S., the Atlanta Fed found. 

 
July 18, 2024 
U.S. News 
When filling up your tank with gas and watching the numbers tick up, you may think you have it worse than everybody else. Not so, according to data collected by Global Petrol Prices, an industry-wide fuel price tracker. Out of 170 countries analyzed, America has the 40th least expensive gasoline, placing it in the top quarter for the cheapest in the world. As of July 15, the average price of gasoline in the world was $1.33 per liter – or $5.02 per gallon. One reason for the differences in prices, according to Tom Seng, assistant professor of professional practice at the Neeley School of Business, is subsidization. “Every single one of these countries on this list produce some level of oil, so they do have supply, but some like Saudi Arabia also sell crude oil and gas at a discount to their own residents,” he said. 

 
July 18, 2024 
The Dallas Morning News 
Marcela Fuentes, the Fort Worth-based author of the masterfully executed debut novel Malas, a genre-bending work that explores generational trauma along the U.S.-Mexico border, did not set out to write a book centered on the lives of Latinos on the border. “I don’t think I sat down to write a novel and was like, ‘Oh, I’m only writing for Tejanos,’” said Fuentes, assistant professor of creative writing. Her knowledge of the subject matter comes from growing up in Del Rio and visiting family in Laredo.  

 
July 15, 2024 
Pop Sugar 
Mosquito bites are never a good thing, but it’s more important than ever to stay protected from the creepy crawlers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued a health advisory after the Americas had a record-breaking number of dengue fever cases spread by mosquitoes. Dengue fever is a viral infection that spreads from the bite of an infected mosquito, said Dr. Nikhil Bhayani, a board-certified infectious disease physician and assistant professor at the Burnett School of Medicine at TCU. The virus is most commonly found in tropical and subtropical regions and can cause flu-like symptoms lasting between two to seven days, he said. 

 
July 15, 2024 
Fort Worth Report 
On a sweltering June afternoon, Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare stood in a shaded alcove outside Carroll ISD’s administration building. Speaking from a wheeled lectern rolled onto the pavement minutes earlier by Christian nonprofit organization Texas Values and surrounded by supporters holding “Save Women’s Sports” signs, O’Hare began his address. His focus? The Biden Administration’s change in Title IX language to redefine “sex” to include “gender identity,” which O’Hare believes would strip girls and women of the legal protections provided under the federal civil rights law passed in 1972. “The government will appeal, and Carroll ISD will go on doing what they wanted to do in the first place,” Matthew Montgomery, assistant professor of political science, said. “Now it’s in a federal district court, and it’ll get appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.”  

ATHLETICS 

 
July 29, 2024 
USA Today 
TCU basketball player Hailey Van Lith swears that despite what outsiders might think, her last 15 months have not, in fact, been a miserable experience. Yes, it’s true that Van Lith, one of the top guards in women’s college basketball the last few seasons, has had a somewhat of a rollercoaster journey, transferring from Louisville, Kentucky, where she was an All-American, to then defending-champion LSU in spring 2023, where she struggled, some would say significantly. But before that, Van Lith will try to silence doubters by helping the American women defend their 3x3 basketball gold medal. “This is a great opportunity for me to be around pros, to learn from pros,” she said, “but at the end of the day, my views on myself are never determined by people outside of me. College has been what it’s been for me, but at the end of the day, the Olympics and playing for Team USA is the ultimate experience — and if they think I’m worthy to play for the national team, then that says a lot.”   

 
July 26, 2024 
Sports Illustrated 
Jake Silverman will be the new director of program development for the Horned Frogs this coming season, according to head baseball coach Kirk Saarloos. This move signifies that Saarloos understands the changing landscape and has already dubbed someone to handle the reigns in that department. Silverman, who was the associate head coach at the University of Washington as the associate head coach, has already proven to be a threat on the recruiting trail. During his time with the Huskies, he swayed a player to come to campus after being drafted and played a hand in swaying the No. 3 prep recruit in Washington to step foot on campus. 

 
July 15, 2024 
Fort Worth Magazine 
Cheers, chants and symbols go a long way in helping a team maintain its edge in the face of competition. It’s for this very reason many schools have professional spirit directors, to keep things hyped, so to speak. TCU announced the hiring of Brittani McLaurin as the school’s new spirit director. McLaurin will oversee the head coaching duties for the Showgirls as well as overseeing TCU Cheer and Rangers programs, plus the SuperFrog mascot. “We are very excited to welcome Brittani to our TCU family as the new leader of our spirit programs,” said Ryan Peck, deputy athletics director for external affairs. “Spirit is an integral part of our game-day experience and in representing TCU globally. Brittani’s level of passion, dedication and work ethic throughout her career as a dancer, instructor and coach will further enhance the longtime tradition of excellence from all our spirit teams.”  

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