OLLU’s TExAS FAST scholars and the vOLLUnteer Unity Council organized and hosted a cleanup of Elmendorf Lake on Nov. 9. Twenty-seven students showed up to help make the park and campus more beautiful. This was done in partnership with San Antonio Parks and Recreation. The plan is to turn the clean up into a regular event each semester. Watch out for the clean-up day in the spring!
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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Isaac Norris, an Urban Conservationist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), will present a guest lecture and discussion on campus Friday from 1:45-3 p.m. in Metz Hall, Room 407. Students, faculty and staff are invited.
The lecture is part of the Careers in Environmental Science Fall Seminar presented by the TExAS FAST Program and the Environmental Science and Sustainability Program.
The NRCS provides technical and financial assistance for urban agriculture pioneers and growers. The center assists with information on soil health, irrigation and water conservation, and week and pest management.
For more than two weeks this summer, students in OLLU’s Environmental Science and Sustainability program were immersed in career-building activities thanks to an ongoing grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The $5 million grant, received last summer, funds the university’s TExAS FAST (Texas Experiential Learning and Scholarship program for Food and Agricultural Science Training) Scholars Program.
The scholars were able to move into the residence halls early and explore new career pathways through hands-on events and networking opportunities. They participated in resume writing and interviewing workshops, set up LinkedIn profiles, and had professional headshots taken. In addition, USDA conservationists spoke to students about potential internships.
Scholars also had the opportunity to tour the San Antonio Office of Sustainability, meet with the leaders from San Antonio College’s Eco Centro, and visit the San Antonio River Authority’s water treatment facilities. Field trips were arranged for the students. They saw dinosaur tracks and hunted for fossilized ocean creatures on a tour of the Canyon Lake River Gorge. They learned what land stewardship can look like on a guided trip through Bamberger Ranch, where they also got to see an endangered species of African antelope and a cave home to 200,000 Mexican Freetail Bats. They visited the Witte Museum and also bird-watched, tasted edible flora, and swam in the river at Guadalupe River State Park.
The TExAS FAST Scholars spent some time giving back to the community, as well. They prepared the Garcia Street Urban Farm’s fields for fall planting and packaged over 18,000 meals with the San Antonio Food Bank.
In addition to an amazing summer career-building experience, the TExAS FAST Programs provides scholars with two years of free room and board on campus and a $1,000 monthly stipend for 24 months. For more information, visit the TExAS FAST web page and check out the program’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ollu_texasfast/
To mark Earth Day, the university will hold its third annual “OLLU SuSAINTSability” Day today at noon in the Mall Area with an unusual event that will answer this question:
How many cockroaches does it take to cover a professor?
Students will find out by purchasing cockroaches and dumping them in a box which holds Biology professor Adam Bynum. One dollar buys one cockroach, $3 gets five roaches and $5 gets 10 roaches.
Hosted by TexasFast, the proceeds will benefit Sigma Zeta, OLLU’s Math and Science National Honor Society.
The two-hour event will include Environmental Science and Sustainability students playing table bingo for free lunches, TExAS FAST students making seed bombs, Criminal Justice Society students doing waste audit demonstrations and first-generation/McNair Scholars upcycling t-shirts with bleach.
Applications for the TExAS FAST scholars program and academic scholarships are now open (priority deadline is March 1).
All students majoring or minoring in Environmental Science and Sustainability are eligible to apply for the academic scholarship. Incoming freshmen and rising sophomores are eligible to apply for the scholars program. An announcement flyer is below, along with a a link to the program website where applications can be found:
https://www.ollusa.edu/academics/enrichment-programs/texas-fast-scholars-program/index.html
Questions should be directed to Briana Salas, PhD, Associate Professor of Environmental Science, at bhsalas@ollusa.edu
Applications for the TExAS FAST scholars program and academic scholarships are now open (priority deadline is March 1).
All students majoring or minoring in Environmental Science and Sustainability are eligible to apply for the academic scholarship. Incoming freshmen and rising sophomores are eligible to apply for the scholars program. An announcement flyer is below, along with a a link to the program website where applications can be found:
https://www.ollusa.edu/academics/enrichment-programs/texas-fast-scholars-program/index.html
Questions should be directed to Briana Salas, PhD, Associate Professor of Environmental Science, at bhsalas@ollusa.edu
Applications for the TExAS FAST scholars program and academic scholarships are now open (priority deadline is March 1).
All students majoring or minoring in Environmental Science and Sustainability are eligible to apply for the academic scholarship. Incoming freshmen and rising sophomores are eligible to apply for the scholars program. An announcement flyer is below, along with a a link to the program website where applications can be found:
Questions should be directed to Briana Salas, PhD, Associate Professor of Environmental Science, at bhsalas@ollusa.edu
OLLU received a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) NextGEN program to help build the next generation of food, agriculture, natural resources and human sciences (FANH) workforce. The award was announced June 21 during a special ceremony held in Washington, D.C.
OLLU will use the $5 million, five-year grant to support “TExAS FAST: Texas Experiential Learning and Scholarship Program for Food and Agriculture Science Training.” The program will begin in fall 2023.
Incoming OLLU freshmen majoring or minoring in Environmental Science and Sustainability will have the opportunity to apply for academic scholarships of $5,000 per year, and room and board scholarships of $8,619. In addition, they will take part in the new Environmental Science and Sustainability Living Learning Community, summer research projects, and will receive a monthly stipend of $1,000 for 24 months and a paid internship ($4,000) during their senior year.
“I am beyond thrilled to have been awarded this grant,” said Briana Salas, PhD, OLLU Associate Professor of Environmental Science and Project Director. “When I created the Environmental Science and Sustainability program in 2021, I did so in response to student interests in human impacts on the environment and a desire for additional options for STEM degrees. The program has been successful in the last two years, but this opportunity will completely transform the student experience.”
Adam Bynum, OLLU Instructor of Biology, will serve as co-Project Director.
In addition to student scholarships, the grant will fund professional development activities for faculty to revise STEM classes in a CURE format (Classroom based Undergraduate Research Experiences). The CURE format allows students who otherwise might not have the chance to experience “real” research to get those experiences in the classroom setting.
