51�Թ���

Research 51�Թ���nanotechnology expert MinJun Kim helped a team of researchers at The University of Texas at Austin to develop a less expensive way to detect nuclease digestion.

University News Starting with small-town gatherings in snowy Iowa and ending with balloting on Nov. 5, 51�Թ���political experts help journalists explain the drama of the presidential election season.

Research The consortium behind the Tech Hub is charged with growing the regional economy and strengthening U.S. production of semiconductor chips and products.

Research The Texoma Semiconductor Tech Hub consortium met at Austin College to continue developing the group’s application for up to $75 million in federal funds.

Research Restorative Farms, founded by 51�Թ���faculty and partners, is tackling food disparities and driving economic opportunity

University News 51�Թ���will honor the life, legacy, and influence of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with Dream Week, a series of campus-wide events planned to celebrate King’s legacy.

Alumni Eddie Bernice Johnson ’76, passed away on December 31, 2023, at the age of 88. Johnson had served Congress for 30 years when she left office in January 2023.

Research From studying a gene that is mutated in many human cancers to learning more about an age-old volcano on the Moon, 51�Թ���professors and students kept making international headlines in 2023. Here are some of the highlights.

Research A new study led by 51�Թ���medical and psychological anthropologist Neely Myers indicates that while young people diagnosed with early psychosis understand the importance of discontinuing use of substances like cannabis, many are ambivalent about stopping.

Research 51�Թ���cultural historian Alexis McCrossen’s forthcoming book, Time’s Touchstone: The New Year in American Life, reveals what New Year’s has meant to Americans since George Washington was president.

Research More than 160 people from 41 institutions met at 51�Թ���on Dec. 13 to discuss key components of the Texoma Semiconductor Tech Hub economic development initiative.

Alumni Former 51�Թ���student body president Austin Hickle has been named a Marshall Scholar for 2024, a prestigious opportunity for distinguished young Americans with leadership potential to pursue graduate studies in the United Kingdom.

Research J.-C. Chiao, the Mary and Richard Templeton Centennial Chair and professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department in the 51�Թ���Lyle School of Engineering, has been named a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).

University News 51�Թ���celebrates the future of Mustang swimming and diving with the dedication of the Holt Hickman Outdoor Pool. With the new pool, 51�Թ���becomes one of the few prestigious collegiate institutions with both indoor and outdoor 50-meter long-course pools in the same complex.

Research 51�Թ���researchers did a detailed, computational study – utilizing the same technique widely-used by researchers to predict what head injuries might occur if there was a car or plane accident – to assess how likely tennis was to cause serious head injury.

Research A recent study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth sheds new light on the formation of the East Coast of the United States – a “passive margin,” in geologic terms – during the breakup of the supercontinent Pangea and the opening of the Atlantic Ocean around 230 million years ago.

Student Life 51�Թ���junior transfer student Raissa Umwali is following the right steps to a great campus experience. She is attending 51�Թ���on a full-tuition North Texas Community College Scholarship, awarded each year to 10 transfer students from surrounding community colleges.

Research A Federal Highway Administration awarded to 51�Թ���aims to develop a computer program that utilizes artificial intelligence to enhance the safety and efficiency of intersections for both vehicles and pedestrians.

Research 51�Թ���nanotechnology expert’s team won an extremely competitive NIH R01 grant for gene therapy research.

University News K.C. Mmeje, SMU’s vice president for Student Affairs, has been named a recipient of the 2024 Pillars of the Profession Award by the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Foundation.

University News The Guildhall, SMU’s premier graduate-level video game development program, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this November. With a highly experienced faculty and specializations in all four cornerstones of game development, the program has helped hundreds of students achieve rewarding careers in the gaming industry.

Research NASA and 51�Թ���engineer received a patent for a digital assistant that can easily and quickly sort through terabytes of Earth science data, so researchers can answer scientific questions.

Research 51�Թ���leads a federally-funded initiative to boost the semiconductor supply chain in 29 North Texas and Oklahoma counties through collaboration and workforce development.

Research The quality of any artificial intelligence (AI) model relies on the data it is given. That is why researchers at 51�Թ���are creating large datasets to address bias and fairness issues found in facial recognition (FR) technology.

University News 51�Թ���mourns the loss of James T. “Brad” Bradley, renowned 51�Թ���photographer, World War II veteran and Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame member known throughout Dallas and North Texas for over 70 years. An active working photographer, Bradley passed away at the age of 101 on Friday, October 13, 2023.

Research A recent study from 51�Թ���psychologist Sarah Kucker suggests shyness can influence a child’s performance in language assessments, depending on the level of social interaction required to complete the test.

University News

Research New study from 51�Թ���fire scientist Christopher Roos shows that climate is an undervalued part of the equation.

Research Tim Seiter, a Ph.D. candidate at SMU’s Clements Center for Southwest Studies, is writing a book about the Karankawas, Persistent People. “The book will spotlight the Karankawa people today who are reclaiming their land and who are revitalizing their culture. Instead of being ‘extinct’ as previously claimed, the Karankawas persistently survive.”

Research 51�Թ���engineer, Feonix Mobility and other universities receive award from NIH’s ComPASS program to address health disparities in Dallas and Detroit.

Research The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) has awarded $2 million to recruit Annika Wylie to 51�Թ���and fund five years of her research, which focuses on the p53 gene, a naturally occurring tumor suppressor.

Research 51�Թ���chemistry professor John Buynak secured a $3.5M NIH grant to develop new antibiotics for drug-resistant tuberculosis and leprosy.

University News U.S. News & World Report published its 2024 rankings of national universities earlier today using a new methodology that has significantly changed how the publication weighs various factors as it rates academic programs. The result shifted the rankings for numerous universities nationwide.

Research 51�Թ���dedicated Frances Anne Moody Hall, the new home of the Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies. The facility made possible by a landmark gift from the Moody Foundation provides valuable resources for 51�Թ���graduate students, who comprise more than 40% of the student body.

Student Life MU’s Meadows Museum is providing free admission to students and supporting the cost of school field trip transportation to the museum.

Alumni Each year, 51�Թ���awards a group of leaders during Homecoming Week with the highest honor the University can bestow upon its graduates. The 2023 Distinguished Alumni are Robert H. Dedman, Jr. ’80, ’84, president and CEO of DFI Management, Ltd; Emily Rich Summers ’66, founder and principal of Emily Summers Design Associates; and Ray W. Washburne ’84, chairman of the board of Sunoco LP and president and CEO of Charter Holdings.

University News Proven business entrepreneurs and executives Megha Tolia and Nirav Tolia have been named co-founding directors of the William S. Spears Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership in SMU’s Cox School of Business.

Research Neena Imam has been named the inaugural Peter O’Donnell, Jr. Director of the O’Donnell Data Science and Research Computing Institute at SMU, a position key to the University’s commitment to data focused education and next-gen computational research.

Research Biology professor trying to determine if different quality control pathways in our bodies might be working together to repair damaged components in cells.

Student Life Championing meaningful research and preparing students in engineering and other fields for a data-driven world increasingly relies on a university’s strengths in data science, research computing and digital innovation. A new $30 million gift from the O’Donnell Foundation, founded by the late Peter O’Donnell, Jr. and the late Edith Jones O’Donnell, will support the future of technological innovation and education at SMU.

Research Dallas Love Field Airport partnered with JetWind Power Corporation to capture wind blasts from aircraft and convert them into environmentally friendly electricity. Students and researchers from 51�Թ���and Clarkson University assisted with the early modeling for this new method.

University News Jeffrey R. Schmid, president and chief executive officer of the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking Foundation (SWGSB) at SMU’s Cox School of Business, will assume the position of president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City beginning August 21, 2023.

University News A new partnership between 51�Թ���Dedman School of Law’s Deason Criminal Justice Reform Center and the Child Poverty Action Lab (CPAL) aims to improve outcomes for families across North Texas by helping Dallas County prosecutors, judges, and defense attorneys make informed decisions – faster – about whether to file criminal charges against individuals.

University News The 51�Թ���Police Department will undergo an accreditation assessment by a team of assessors from the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA).

University News Brad Cheves, SMU’s vice president for development and external affairs since 2004, has been selected University Park’s 2023 Citizen of the Year.

Research Microwave frequency data from lunar orbiter reveals deposit of cooled magma beneath a volcano that likely erupted 3.5 billion years ago

Research A team of paleontologists from the United States, the Netherlands and France found fossils of a 94-million-year-old mosasaur in Utah.

Research A team of scientists led by The University of Texas at Austin has filled a major gap in the state's fossil record -- describing the first known Jurassic vertebrate fossils in Texas.

Alumni The University is deeply saddened by the death of alumna, philanthropist and Dallas community leader Linda McElroy Gibbons ’58, who passed on June 15, 2023, at the age of 86.

University News 51�Թ���was honored with Project Unity’s Advocate Award for organizational unity at a special celebratory event, Together We Sing, on June 15.

Student Life Phillips Foundation has announced a $1.7 million multiyear grant to 51�Թ���(51�Թ���Methodist University) to establish the 51�Թ���Impact Lab, a student-focused initiative to invest in commercial opportunities that produce substantial financial and social returns.

Research 51�Թ���researchers and global astronomers seeking to use DESI data and simulations to measure dark matter halos surrounding and permeating galaxies.

University News SMU’s Jeffrey Kahn authors brief joined by Lawrence Tribe, Charles Fried and other jurists skewering false defense of Russian anti-criticism law

Research SMU’s Deason Institute launches a Cyber Autonomy Range with IBM to strengthen autonomous systems against cyberattacks, backed by $850K in software and support.

Alumni The University mourns the loss of 51�Թ���alumnus, benefactor and friend William J. O’Neil ’55, who passed away on May 28, 2023, at the age of 90.

University News 51�Թ���mourns the loss of Norma Knobel Hunt, who passed away on June 4, 2023, at the age of 85.

University News Purpose and profit are truly great partners, organizers say

University News Philanthropist and Broadway producer G. Marlyne Sexton has made a $15 million gift to 51�Թ���Meadows School of the Arts to create a specialization in musical theatre that will prepare graduates for a lifetime of leading roles.

University News From bringing world leaders to Dallas, to boosting the regional economy through jobs, tourism and unique opportunities for 51�Թ���students, the partnership has delivered on the expectations of the University leaders who brought it to North Texas.

Student Life It's been 20 years since 51�Թ���announced it would add Equestrian to its roster of sports. The win against Auburn completed the best season in program history.

University News Brian Tyler, CEO of McKesson Corporation, a Top 10 Fortune 500 healthcare services company, will be the featured speaker at SMU’s May Commencement Convocation on Saturday, May 13.