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 Visitors to Stephen F. Austin State University's swine center won't find Dr. John Mehaffey behind the desk of a typical professorial office space. More likely than not, they will have to pass through multiple doors following the intermingled sounds of student voices and contented pig grunts to locate him.
Although Mehaffey, associate professor of agriculture in SFA's Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture, didn't initially plan to pursue a career in academia, it seems, as the adage goes, he has taken to it like a pig to mud.
"My favorite part of teaching is the students," Mehaffey said. "You get to see a lot of different perspectives on life, and each student has something to offer to our program, to me as an individual and to my family."
Mehaffey joined SFA in 2012 following a career in research and development in the meat industry. He believes this experience in the private sector provides him with valuable insight to share with students.
Students in Mehaffey's classes obtain direct and extensive experience in swine, goat and sheep production - from reproduction and health to sales.
"I almost see my classroom as an experiment," he said. "The swine center is a constantly evolving process."
Mehaffey explained that because there is not a large market for commercial swine in Texas, the center focuses its efforts on providing quality livestock for 4-H and FFA students to show across the state.
Read more ...
 Agriculture graduate students Garret Ashenbranner and Ian Brock received top honors at the Ninth Annual Agricultural Consortium of Texas Research Symposium hosted by Texas A&M University.
Ashenbranner’s research investigating a composting poultry litter system compared to a conventional poultry litter system and its effects on the performance of broiler chickens was named top research poster, while Brock’s research evaluating the water consumption of broilers reared on different water treatment programs placed second.
Fellow students Kennedi Achilles and Shania Simons also presented in the graduate research competition, while Carly Wright competed in the undergraduate portion.
Annual Agricultural Consortium of Texas Research Symposium is comprised of all universities in Texas who offer courses in agriculture.
Read more ...
 Stephen F. Austin State University’s Landscape Competition Team won multiple awards at the 2019 National Collegiate Landscaping Competition held in Fort Collins, Colorado, during spring break.
Anna Clair Cunningham, a junior horticulture major, was named Top Student and overall winner of the event’s school social media competition.
“I posted 153 photos to Instagram in three days,” Cunningham said. “The point was to promote the event, support other teams and raise awareness of the competition.”
For her efforts, Cunningham received $1,000, and the SFA Landscape Competition Team received $1,000 worth of landscaping equipment.
Dr. Jared Barnes, assistant professor of horticulture and faculty advisor for the team, won the faculty social media competition for his coverage of the event and also received $1,000.
“When you have a student and faculty member who win a social media competition, I think it shows that we also are teaching the concept that you have to share what you do and what you love,” Barnes said. “I think that is something we as an industry haven’t done enough.”
Junior horticulture major Jevon Richeson placed in the top 25 among 90 competitors in the interior plant identification competition and said that his work growing plants with the SFA horticulture program provided him with valuable experience.
Read more ...
 The Stephen F. Austin State University timbersports team, the Sylvans, claimed its third consecutive victory at the 62nd annual Association of Southern Forestry Clubs Conclave hosted last week by Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.
“This was the most talented and dedicated team I’ve seen since becoming the faculty advisor in 2012,” said Dr. Jeremy Stovall, associate professor of forestry.
The team competed in a series of challenging academic and physical events against 13 other universities from across the South, including Clemson, Virginia Tech and Auburn.
Although physical events, such as crosscut sawing, axe throwing and log birling, an event in which two competitors run on a floating log with the goal of pitching an opponent into the water, take center stage, excelling in the academic events is a key point of pride for the Sylvans.
“The win in the academic competition really speaks to the strengths of our forestry program and the quality of our undergraduate students,” Stovall said. “This win is coming in the same year our student chapter of the Society of American Foresters won the national quiz bowl and our student chapter of the Wildlife Society won the state quiz bowl.”
As if placing first in both academic and physical events wasn’t enough, two SFA students sealed their positions in Southern Forestry Conclave history by setting records in two physical events.
For the first time in the 62-year history of the Southern Forestry Conclave, Tyler Jones, a junior urban forestry major, threw a perfect score of 15 by hitting five consecutive bullseyes in the axe-throwing event.
Read more ...
A new partnership between Stephen F. Austin State University and the Lone Star College System will enable eligible students to enroll in SFA’s Bachelor of Science in spatial science program upon receiving an Associate of Applied Science in geographic information systems.
“Lone Star College has a strong Associate of Applied Science program in geographic information systems,” said Dr. Hans Williams, dean of SFA’s Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture. “After completing the degree at Lone Star, students can seamlessly transfer to SFA’s Bachelor of Science in spatial science program, further enhancing their technical and professional skills that lead to rewarding careers in geospatial analysis across many disciplines.”
LSC is the largest higher education institution in the Houston area and offers more than 170 programs of study.
SFA’s spatial science program offers two areas of specialization for those who plan to participate in the collaborative program — natural resources and land surveying. A third emphasis area, cultural resources, also will be available at a future date.
According to information provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistic, faster-than-average growth in the occupational group representing key spatial science careers will take place during the next decade.
“We are excited about this SFA partnership, which provides an opportunity for students to further their studies in preparation for specialized careers as foresters and surveying and mapping technicians, to name a few,” said Dr. Kelly Gernhart, dean of arts, humanities and social sciences at the Lone Star CyFair campus.
Read more ...
 The Oklahoma State Park system encompasses diverse landscapes ranging from subterranean caverns to rolling mountains. However, of the more than 55,000 acres that comprise the state park system, some of the most spectacular, scenic vistas are not accessible to those with health or mobility limitations.
Stephen F. Austin State University graduate student Kyle Thoreson is hoping to remedy this utilizing the rapidly evolving technology of virtual reality.
Thoreson, pursuing a Master of Science in resource communications at SFA, serves as a park ranger at Osage Hills State Park, located within the Osage Nation Reservation in northeastern Oklahoma.
When contemplating topics for his final nonthesis project, Thoreson said he researched the growing popularity of 360 videos and how this technology can be utilized to share Oklahoma’s state parks with everyone.
“For example, to get to the best vantage point of the falls at Natural Falls State Park, you have to go down to the very bottom so you’re looking up at the falls,” Thoreson said. “We have sort of a skyway that goes out and gives you a view from part of the way down, but it’s just not the same as being below the falls.”
By capturing 360 video and audio from this position, Thoreson said people unable to make the hike down will still have the opportunity to fully immerse themselves in the experience of the 77-foot waterfall.
Thoreson presented his idea to regional managers within the Oklahoma State Park system, and he is currently collecting 360 video at select parks.
Read more ...
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