The J-TAC (Stephenville, Tex.), Vol. 77, February 1977 Page: 3 of 8
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The School of
Arts & SciencesTo. I I. -
arieTon
State
University
Stephenville,
TexasI
Milk.
Lab assistants help others
Do you enjoy chemistry,
working in a lab, and helping
other people? Are you planning a
career in some chemistry related
field? Have you ever wondered
what it would be like working in
higher education? If so, then
maybe what you're looking for is
a job helping others and learning
stronger concepts in chemistry
while working as a lab assistant in
Tarleton's chemistry department.
Howard L. Nance, instructor in
physical science, gave the
qualifications needed to apply as a
lab assistant in a recent interview.
He stated that chemistry majors
have priority over students with
other majors. Class rank is also an
important factor with seniors,
given consideration over lower
classmen. An applicant must have
made at least a "C" in the course
they wish to assist in, but over all
grade point average will be
considered.
Nance stated that
undergraduates- are usually given
priority over graduate students.
There are not many chemistry
graduate students, and what few
there are usually have income
from a different source. Students
accepted as lab assistants are
started at minimum wage and earn
raises through experience. The lab
assistant job is basically composed
of helping set up lab, aiding
students in lab, and grading
papers. Lab assistant help is
primarily needed in the freshman
chemistry lab, with a few
applicants needed for organic
chemistry lab. Students aiding in
freshman chemistry lab are
expected to attend a weekly
thirty minute meeting. At this
time the instructor works over
any problems the assistants may
encounter while aiding in the lab.
Nance said that any students
interested in applying for one of
the lab assistant jobs may obtain
an application from himself or Dr.
Thomas Hinkson in the chemistry
department.
One lab assistant, Sheryl
Jefferson, a chemistry graduate
student, has worked as an
assistant for about a year. Sheryl
is a third year ROTC student and
has a B.S. in biology fromTarleton. She said she applied for
the job because she needed the
money, and was accepted. Sheryl
enjoys her work and feels she is
learning a lot from it. Scott
Stringer, sophomore chemistry
major, also feels he has learned a
lot from working as a lab
assistant. Scott has been an
assistant for one semester. He
applied for the job to Nance and
was hired to aid in a Friday
chemistry lab. Scott said he helps
Trogdon
If anyone should have his
footprints cast in the sidewalk
cement at Tarleton State
University, it should be Dr. W.O.
Trogdon, the president.
Known as the "sidewalk
president," he gets his office work
done as quickly as possible and
then it's out to the walkways so
he can mingle and talk with
students.
"This is my eleventh year here
as president, and I still feel that
there is a great need for personal
contact on our campus," Dr.
Trogdon emphasized. "Most of
our students are from small areas
and are used to being friends with
their high school administrators."
Trogdon noted that his first
few years at Tarleton were the
most interesting because the
enrollment was so small that he
knew all the students. Under his
guiding hand, Tarleton's
enrollment has increased 50
percent and the building program
has at least "doubled and maybe
tripled."
Trogdon has a plan for the
building programs that he feels
will benefit students.
"I want to develop the campus
so the library will be the center,"
he began. "The library provides
students with information they
can't get in class; it is a life-long
learning classroom and it should
be the nerve center of the
campus."
Dr. Trogdon said most of us
learn more from newspapers and
books than textbooks so he wants
the library to be easily accessible
to students.students set up their experiments,
solve equations, and find small
mistakes in their work.
Ray Templeton, sophomore
chemical engineer major, has been
both a freshman and organic lab
assistant. He stated that this job
deals with showing students
proper techniques and procedures
and trying to answer all questions,
explaining how to operate
instruments, and explaining how
and why instruments work.The classroom is just directed
learning; it sets you on the road to
learning other things," he
explained.
But Dr. Trogdon realizes that
studying books isn't the only
factor that brings students to
college.
"I think that people think they
come here to choose a mate and
with that in mind as well as the
variety of courses a co-educational
school offers I think an ideal
ratio is 55 percent male and 45
percent female," the president
observed.
"Right now Tarleton is close to
my ideal, 60-40, but I don't like
to see an institution totally
male-oriented because then all
they get are male-oriented
courses," Trogdon noted. "I like
for the enrollment to lean a little
more toward males so there is a
better opportunity for females to
come in and for programs, to
develop that interest women."
Dr. Trogdon doesn't feel there
are strictly male-type courses and
female courses and that they
should stay segregated. He
believes that everyone should be
well-rounded and he practices
what he preaches. For years the
president, who has a background
in agriculture and soil science, has
been an accomplished
needlepointer and embroiderer.
"I picked up the hobby 25
years ago," he smiled. "I used to
travel a lot when I worked in
industry.
Dr. Trogdon explained that he
began doing Swedish embroidery
and learned needlepoint later. HeTarleton State - a
blend of the best!
Tarleton Sta'te University is out of step with the rest of the
nation-and glad of it!
Drops in college enrollment were common from coast to
coast last fall. But not at Tarleton.
In the fall semester of 1976 Tarleton reached the highest
enrollment in its 77-year history with 3,207 students
registered. Another milestone was reached this spring when
2,981 students registered for the largest second-semester
enrollment in the university's history.
Tarleton is a growing, major ingredient in the city of
Stephenville, Tex. Stephenville, which is some 70 miles
southwest of the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, has a
population of 9,200-not counting Tarleton's main-campus
enrollment of about 2,800. It is the county seat of Erath
County.
Tarleton's picturesque 40-acre main campus lies in west
Stephenville. Its traditional red brick buildings are nestled
among towering live oak and pecan trees.
The location gives a student access to the best of two
worlds-urban and rural.
Big city excitement in Fort Worth or Dallas is only about
an hour away.
But if the urban sprawl is not what you want, Erath and
surrounding counties give the Tarleton student some happy
alternatives.
The rolling countryside is dotted with fine lakes and
recreational areas. There are facilities for hunting, fishing,
boating or just general picnic-type outings.
Tarleton is new as a university (that part of its history
started in 1969), but its roots go back into the 19th Century.
And it is just this combination of tradition and newness that
makes Tarleton an exciting and challenging experience f9r
the student who wants an education with meaning.gives his finished pieces away as
presents.
The president admits seeing
much change in his 11 years.
"Tremendous changes have
developed in administrative duties
such as filling out forms," he
observed. "I have to fill out forms
all the time and it is the most
frustrating aspect of being in
administration."
The other change, Dr. Trogdon
said, is not knowing what new
rules and regulations say andhaving to wait for interpretation
before they can be enforced.
"We administrators are
spending too much time doing
busy work," he pointed out. "We
should be spending that time
developing a quality education at
a lower cost to taxpayers."
Even though paperwork duties
require more and more of his
time, Dr. Trogdon never fails to
get out of his office part of the
day and stroll the sidewalks with
the students."sidewalk president"
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Tarleton State University. The J-TAC (Stephenville, Tex.), Vol. 77, February 1977, newspaper, February 1977; Stephenville, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1040241/m1/3/: accessed June 11, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Tarleton State University.