November 2024 – Page 5

OLLU’s annual two-part ring ceremony set for Thursday, Friday

OLLU will hold its annual two-part ring ceremony on Thursday and Friday. Faculty, staff and students are invited to attend and celebrate students who are receiving their graduation rings.

The first part of the ceremony – Ring the Bell – will take place on Thursday at 7 p.m. on the front plaza starting at Providence Hall followed by a procession to Sacred Heart Chapel. After a brief ceremony, the rings will be taken to the bell tower where they will spend the night guarded by OLLU Police. When the rings arrive in the tower, the chapel bells will be rung eight times representing the eight-sided design of the traditional OLLU ring.

On Friday, the second half of the ceremony – Rings Up – will take place at 7 p.m. in Thiry Auditorium where the rings will be presented to the students. Refreshments will be served following the presentation.

Volunteers needed to escort CDPs on ‘Field Trip’ down memory lane

University volunteers are needed to serve as escorts for the CDP Sisters on a “field trip” down memory lane. The event will take place:
Nov. 15
1:45-3:15 p.m.

Volunteers will escort the Sisters from Annunciation Chapel to the Mall Area, followed by a visit to Sacred Heart Chapel and a reception in the Main Building Parlors. The event will conclude when the Sisters are escorted back to Annunciation Chapel.

To volunteer, scan the QR code on the flier below or email missionandministry@ollusa.edu. Volunteers must sign up by Nov. 13.

USDA economist/data scientist will speak on campus

USDA Economist/Data Scientist Dr. Gianna Short from Washington, D.C., will host a guest lecture and discussion on campus on Friday as part of Dr. Briana Salas’s “Careers in Environmental Science” Seminar. All students, faculty and staff are invited to join TExAS FAST scholars and seminar students in hearing from this expert on land stewardship and conservation programs. The seminar will be hosted virtually, over Teams, from 1:45-3 p.m. Scab the QR code on the flier below to join, or email ollustexasfast@ollusa.edu for more information.

Guest Speaker – Gianna Short Download

TExAS FAST scholars attended conference on land stewardship

Scholars from OLLU’s TExAS FAST program recently attended the Confluence of Young Conservation Leaders (CYCL) conference at Morgan’s Camp, San Antonio, from Oct. 24-27. The theme of the conference was “Land Stewardship in an Urban Environment,” and the nine OLLU scholars who attended met and stayed with young people from all around the country and learned how to advocate for themselves and the natural world. “Initially I thought everyone was so different, there is no way we would have anything in common,” said TExAS FAST transfer student, Michaela Mendez. “But the common factor was that we are all passionate about making a change in the environment. We all want to see things get better.”

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Reminder: Apply for spring/summer 2025 graduation by Jan. 3

Students planning to graduate in the spring or summer 2025 semester have until Jan. 3, 2025, to submit the graduation application. Apply online through the “Graduation” tile in Saints Connect.

If you have any questions, email graduate@ollusa.edu.

Employees must complete computer security training by Tuesday or network access will be suspended

All university employees must complete computer security training by Tuesday, Nov. 5, to avoid losing user access. Loss of access will prevent employees from using any OLLU network systems. Loss of access will impact the ability to carry out daily responsibilities.

Training is managed by InfoSec, a third-party vendor. All employees should have received emails from notifications@securityiq-notifications.com with a message about completing the 24-25 OLLU Faculty/Staff Annual InfoSec Training course.

If you are having trouble locating the email, please contact Gregory Garza, OLLU Information Security Officer, at ollu_its@ollusa.edu.

Dr. Salas participates in National Academy of Science, Engineering, and Medicine Workshop

Dr. Briana Hauff Salas, Associate Professor of Environmental Science, attended a National Academy of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) workshop in Houston on Oct. 29, at the University of Houston – Downtown. The workshop, titled “Building Health and Climate Research Capacity in the U.S. Gulf Coast: Elevating Minority-Serving Institutions as Key Partners,” explored ways to increase MSI participating in climate-related public health research. Dr. Salas is on the planning committee for this workshop series and was a panelist for the “MSI Perspectives on Climate Impacts on Communities and Health in the Gulf” panel. A second workshop in this series, open to OLLU faculty and staff, will take place in New Orleans in February 2025. Registration for in-person or virtual attendance will be sent out in the new year. Faculty from a broad range of disciplines are encouraged to attend.

Reminder: Staff vacation leave ‘Use It or Lose It’ date is Dec. 31

Staff Employees are reminded that there is a one-year, carry-over limit on accrued vacation time. The “use-it-or-lose-it” date is Dec. 31.

Employees cannot carry over beyond this date more than the number of annual vacation days for which they are currently eligible. If work or medical conditions prohibit the employee from taking their accrued vacation by Dec. 31, the chief administrator of that division can request an extension of one additional year. The chief administrator and the employee must make every effort to schedule and use the accrued vacation in the coming year as additional extensions will not be permitted.

Contact a Human Resources team member or call 210-431-3970 for more information.

Women’s cross-country wins 10th conference championship

For the sixth year in a row and 10th time overall, the women’s cross-country team has captured the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) Women’s Cross-Country Championships. This victory adds to the team’s impressive track record in the RRAC, having consistently performed at the top of the competition over the years. The event was held at the Windcrest Golf Course.

OLLU’s victory was a collective effort, as they outpaced second-place Texas A&M University—Texarkana (TAMUT) with four of the top five individual times and six of the top eight. This strong team performance was a key factor in their success.

Third place went to Xavier University of Louisiana, who had one runner in the top 10 – Skylah Barton. Fourth place went to Jarvis Christian University.

OLLU junior Mia Curiel claimed the RRAC individual championship with a time of 24:03.6 on the 6000m course, 15 seconds ahead of the field. Leilani Leza, another standout performer, placed third for the Saints with a time of 24:41. Their exceptional performances were key to the team’s success in the championships.

The women have won nine individual championships. Jasmine Garcia won the title in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Annie Trejo won in 2018, while Lindsey Broussard won in 2019, Nadia Sifuentes in 2021 and 2022, and Sanai Robinson won the title last season.

Brett Charlton, in his first year as head coach, also captured Coach of the Year honors.

Joining Curiel and Leza for All-Conference are Liliana Hernandez for fourth place with a time of 24:45, Victoria Bartlett for fifth place with a time of 24:49, Valeria Peña for seventh place with a time of 25:01 and Claudia Helena Lopez in eighth place with a time of 25:29. Daylah Vega’s time was 27:38 for 15th place.

What’s next

The women have qualified for the 45th Annual NAIA Women’s Cross-Country National Championship that will take place Nov. 22 at the Gans Creek Cross-Country Course in Columbia, Miss.