Lecture series to feature Mount Vernon’s executive director on Tuesday
Galveston College opens scholarship application for 2021-22 academic year
Galveston College sets 2021 Programs and Careers Conference
How will you choose a career that’s right for you?
Galveston College wants to help you answer that question at the 2021 Programs and Careers Conference on Saturday, Feb. 13, at 8:15 a.m. via Zoom webinar.
High school and college students, as well as the general public, are invited to join Galveston College faculty, staff and administration for an informative free webinar on academic programs that can lead to rewarding careers.
Participants will gain insight on industry employment trends, choosing the right career and developing a career pathway. Galveston College staff also will present information on the STEM Honors Program, study-abroad opportunities, college admissions, financial aid and scholarship opportunities, as well as options for student housing.
Galveston College offers certificates, Associate of Applied Science degrees, bachelor’s degrees, and transfer degree options in high-demand fields.
For more information about the conference, please contact Priselda Perez at [email protected].
Click here to register for the free webinar: https://gc.edu/conference/
Galveston College lecture series to feature Mount Vernon’s executive director and senior curator
Executive Director of Historic Preservation and Collections and Robert H. Smith Senior Curator Dr. Susan P. Schoelwer of George Washington’s Mount Vernon will be the guest speaker for the third installment of the 2021 lecture series on Diversity, Inclusion and Empowerment at Galveston College.
The lecture titled “What Can We Learn from the Exhibit ‘Lives Bound Together: Slavery at George Washington’s Mount Vernon’?” will be presented virtually at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 16, via Zoom videoconference. It is free and open to the public.
Installation of the current, award-winning special exhibition “Lives Bound Together: Slavery at George Washington’s Mount Vernon” in 2016 marked a significant step in an ongoing process of recognizing and recovering the historical experiences of hundreds of enslaved people owned by George and Martha Washington in the 18th century.
In her presentation, Dr. Schoelwer will present an overview of the galleries and offer behind-the-scenes reflections on the development of the exhibition and related projects, lessons learned, and continuing efforts to offer a more inclusive interpretation of life on one of America’s best-known plantations and most-visited historic sites.
“The lecture by Dr. Schoelwer will provide a unique glimpse at less-known historical facts surrounding the first president of the United States George Washington with respect to slavery,” said Dr. Laimutis Bytautas, chair of the Faculty Professional Development Committee at Galveston College. “The information presented in this lecture will be very valuable in providing a proper understanding of the early days of the history of the United States.”
Dr. Schoelwer directs the architectural preservation, furnishing, and interpretation of George and Martha Washington’s house and surrounding plantation buildings and landscape, as well as the creation of museum exhibitions, including “Lives Bound Together.”
Prior to coming to Mount Vernon as curator in 2010, Dr. Schoelwer served for more than a decade as head of museum collections at the Connecticut Historical Society, where she authored “Connecticut Needlework: Women, Art and Family, 1740-1840,” winner of the 2011 Connecticut Book Award for Non-Fiction. She holds a Doctor of Philosophy in American studies from Yale University, a master’s degree from the Winterthur Program in Early American Culture at the University of Delaware and a Bachelor of Arts in history from the University of Notre Dame, where she participated in the historic transition to coeducation.
“On a daily basis, Dr. Schoelwer has the opportunity to draw upon documents and artifacts that bring to life the relationships between George Washington and the slaves who served him and Martha,” said Michael Berberich with the Faculty Professional Development Committee. “The insights Dr. Schoelwer brings to the topic from putting together the award-winning exhibit will be a unique contribution to the depth of our students’ education and will add new knowledge to the Galveston community as a whole.”
In addition to Mount Vernon and the Washingtons, Dr. Schoelwer has written and lectured on a variety of topics, including American art and decorative arts, needlework and women’s history. She is currently researching a book examining the creation and continuing re-creation of George Washington portraits.
To access the Feb. 16 lecture, visit the following Zoom link on the internet: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87079157421?pwd=QzhXR1E5UmR1Qlp3ZkR5MTZXYlF6dz09. The meeting ID is 870 7915 7421. The passcode is Galveston.
For more information, please contact Dr. Laimutis Bytautas, Faculty Professional Development Committee chair, at [email protected] or (409) 944-1273.
Galveston College mourns passing of Charlie Thomas
Galveston College is deeply saddened by Friday’s passing of longtime business leader Charlie Thomas, 89, of Houston, who at one time owned multiple Texas car dealerships as well as the Houston Rockets basketball team.
Through the generosity of Mr. Thomas and his family, Galveston College opened the Charlie Thomas Family Applied Technology Center in 2013 at the dealership’s former Galveston location on Broadway Street as a commitment to provide multiple workforce and technology programs for residents to be trained to enter lucrative careers in the Galveston County area.
Since that time, the programs have produced hundreds of graduates who have joined the workforce or become their own service industry business owners and providers.
“Mr. Thomas was an outstanding business and community leader, Texan and friend of Galveston College,” said Dr. Myles Shelton, Galveston College president. “He left a tremendous legacy in Galveston and will continue to touch many lives through the students who receive technical education and training at the Charlie Thomas Family Applied Technology Center. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.”
For more information about the Galveston College Charlie Thomas Family Applied Technology Center, please contact Dr. Van Patterson at [email protected] or (409) 944-1205.
Mr. Thomas’ obituary may be found in the Wednesday, Jan. 20, issue of the Houston Chronicle. Funeral service information may be found here.
Photo: Geo. H. Lewis & Sons Funeral Directors
Galveston College Foundation announces Helen K. and Phillip A. Lohec Endowed Scholarship
The Galveston College Foundation Board of Directors has announced the creation of the Helen K. and Phillip A. Lohec Endowed Scholarship at Galveston College.
Established by Mark T. and Pamela Lohec Stasney and family, the new scholarship is available to full- and part-time students at Galveston College who are pursuing an associate degree or technical certificate and may be applied to tuition, fees, books or course supplies. The first recipient will be announced in spring 2022.
“My parents have been a part of the Galveston community for decades,” said daughter Pamela Stasney. “They have served and volunteered in the community in many roles, from government to historical to education to church. We wanted to find a way to honor their contributions and hard work, and we felt a scholarship at a local institution would be an appropriate way to thank them while supporting and encouraging others. We hope the recipients will find the same calling to work hard and to support their home communities.”
Galveston College Foundation Board of Directors Chair Jeri Kinnear said, “It is a great honor to announce that Pam Stasney and her family have endowed a scholarship to recognize the contributions that her parents, Helen K. and Phillip A. Lohec, have made to our community. Galveston College is so fortunate to have patrons such as the Stasneys, who like the college believe and support the philosophy of “opening doors and changing lives.”
“On behalf of our students, faculty and staff at Galveston College, I want to express my sincere gratitude for the creation of this endowed scholarship that will benefit our students for years to come,” said Dr. Myles Shelton, president of Galveston College. “We are thankful for the Lohec family and the positive impact they’ve had on the Galveston community.”
Currently, there are several scholarships available for students interested in Galveston College.
Application information is available on the college website at https://gc.edu/financial-aid/available-aid/scholarships/ and from the Office of Financial Aid at [email protected].
To make a gift to the Galveston College Foundation, please contact Dr. Van Patterson at (409) 944-1205 or [email protected].
College Foundation announces endowment of Vandy Anderson Scholarship Award in Culinary Arts
| The Galveston College Foundation Board of Directors has announced the creation of
the Vandy Anderson Scholarship Award in Culinary Arts endowment at Galveston College. The new scholarship will foster the development of aspiring culinary arts professionals enrolled at Galveston College. The first recipients of the Vandy Anderson Scholarship Award in Culinary Arts will be announced in spring 2021. “The Vandy I knew loved good food. You could frequently find him along with his food enthusiast friends enjoying the culinary achievements of all his favorite restaurants. This scholarship honors Vandy’s love for Galveston’s culinary gastronomic community and those that chose to take up that life’s work. The Galveston College Culinary Arts Academy scholarship means that students will be able to pursue their dreams and our local hospitality industry will have a skilled workforce,” said Jeri Kinnear, chair of the Galveston College Foundation. Ann Anderson, Vandy Anderson’s sister, said she is thrilled and grateful to everyone in the community who supported the family in establishing the endowed scholarship. “We are so honored by the establishment of this scholarship that lovingly will be named after Vandy, to whom education, history and the island were so very important,” Anderson said. “By supporting culinary student talent, this scholarship will celebrate our Vandy’s passion for life, support for education, and love of family and community – not to mention a fine meal!” Vandy Anderson passed away on April 16, 2016. He was 73. He started his radio career at KILE radio and would become the owner/manager of KGBC for more than 30 years. Broadcasters inducted him into the Texas Radio Hall of Fame in 2014. “Vandy served his community in numerous ways as a broadcaster, trustee, chair or adviser for organizations across Galveston until his passing,” said Paulie Gaido, retired Galveston restaurateur. “The scholarship honors his legacy in the Galveston community and his love for the people of the island.” Gaido’s book, “Entertaining at Home with Fresh American Seafood and Exceptional American Wine,” which he wrote with his wife Mary Kay, helped raise funds locally to honor the much-beloved man known as the “Voice of Galveston” during his long tenure at KGBC. “On behalf of our culinary arts program and our culinary students, I want to thank all of those who made this endowment possible for their generous and thoughtful gifts,” said Dr. Myles Shelton, president of Galveston College. “This scholarship will honor Vandy’s memory and celebrate his passion for life, the joy of cooking and the importance of the culinary arts. We are grateful for and humbled by the Anderson family’s decision to honor Vandy in this way.” Currently, there are several scholarships available for those interested in the Galveston College Culinary Arts Academy. Application information is available on the college website at https://gc.edu/financial-aid/available-aid/scholarships/ and from the Office of Financial Aid at [email protected]. To make a gift to the Vandy Anderson Scholarship Award in Culinary Arts or for more information about the Galveston College Foundation, please contact Dr. Van Patterson at (409) 944-1205 or [email protected]. |
Galveston College Theatre presents family holiday whodunit ‘Just in the Nick of Time’
In its second virtual production of the current season, the Galveston College Theatre department will present a family holiday whodunit “Just in the Nick of Time: A Detective Red Mistletoe Mystery” by Linda Daugherty as its 2020 gift to the community.
Show dates and times are Friday, Dec. 18, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 19, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 20, at 2:30 p.m. Please contact director Liz Lacy, program coordinator for the Performing Arts, via email at [email protected] with preferred performance date(s). Performances are free and open to the public.
A link to listen to the requested performance of this radio audio drama will be emailed before the first performance.
Company members include Dorion Alcantar, Eva Arita, Elijah Barrie, Daniel Bourque, Alyssa Gudz, Benji Shelton and Cricket Smith.
“Just in the Nick of Time: A Detective Red Mistletoe Mystery” premiered at the Dallas Children’s Theater. It is produced in special arrangement with The Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois.
Show Synopsis:
Ace detective Red Mistletoe is retained by the citizens of the North Pole to find Santa Claus, who disappeared at the height of the season. If losing Santa wasn’t enough, the heretofore colorful citizens are losing their Christmas spirit and their holiday hues. As Christmas draws near, the elves, rather than carefree in color, are glum in gray; Doctor Green, no longer sporting green, is bitten by a reindeer; and Purple Gumdrop’s not purple anymore. And the costumed children, rehearsing for Mrs. Claus’ annual “Santa Send-off Celebration,” begin to look like they’re in an old black and white movie.
It’s up to Detective Red Mistletoe, now in shades of gray, to get some answers in black and white. Could the three suspicious new arrivals, Bob Humbug, Fruitcake (Humbug’s sidekick) and Holly Wreath (Santa’s new red-headed secretary) know anything about Santa’s whereabouts? Do they really hail from the South Pole as they claim, or will their caper be uncovered by Red—helped by a now-repentant and soft-hearted Holly Wreath?
Can Red save Santa in time to bring a colorful Christmas to the children of the world and even find a little romance along the way? Of course he can—Just in the Nick of Time! A mystery to solve, a comedy with witty dialogue, plenty of holiday warmth—and Santa Claus to boot—this show is the perfect holiday fare for kids and families.
For additional information, please contact Program Coordinator for the Performing Arts Liz Lacy at (409) 944-1398 or [email protected].
Above: Alyssa Gudz, Elijah Barrie and Eva Arita rehearse for Galveston College Theatre’s production of “Just in the Nick of Time.”
Galveston College Theatre opens 2020-2021 season with H.G. Wells’ ‘The Invisible Man’
“And I beheld, unclouded by doubt, a magnificent vision of all that invisibility might mean to a man—the mystery, the power, the freedom. Drawbacks I saw none.” — H.G. Wells, “The Invisible Man”
The Galveston College Theatre Department will kick off its 2020-2021 season with the classic science fiction radio drama, “The Invisible Man,” by H.G. Wells and adapted by John de Lancie from the script by Nat Segaloff and John de Lancie.
Show dates and times are Friday, Nov. 13, at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 14, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Nov. 15, at 2:30 p.m.
Please contact director Liz Lacy, program coordinator for the Performing Arts, via email at [email protected] with preferred performance date(s). A link to listen to the requested performance of this radio audio drama will be emailed by Thursday, Nov. 12, at 10 p.m.
Described by H.G. Wells as “a grotesque romance,” “The Invisible Man” remains as remarkable and frightening today as it was upon its publication over a hundred years ago. This thrilling adaptation by John de Lancie brings one of H.G. Wells’ most terrifying characters to life with the power of imagination in the style of a classic radio drama.
The story begins on a bitter winter evening, when a mysterious stranger arrives in the remote English village of Iping in the dead of winter, his face swaddled in bandages. The stranger is Griffin, a scientist who has discovered the secret to invisibility but cannot find a way to reverse it. Freed from the constraints of physicality and rejected by a society that fears him, Griffin descends into madness, violence and brutality.
Company members include Dorion Alcantar, Eva Arita, Elijah Barrie, Daniel Bourque, Alyssa Gudz and Benji Shelton. “The Invisible Man” is produced by special arrangement with The Dramatic Publishing Company of Woodstock, Illinois. For additional information, please contact Program Coordinator for the Performing Arts Liz Lacy at (409) 944-1398 or [email protected].
Galveston College Theatre to stage ‘More Fun than Bowling’
Show dates and times are Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 18, at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, Oct. 19, at 7:30 p.m. Performances are located in Room 207 on the second floor of the Galveston College Fine Arts Building.
Doors open 30 minutes prior to curtain and admission is free.
The story follows Jake Tomlinson as he relives moments of his life with his two dead wives, Lois and Loretta, both of whom died in freak bowling accidents.
Main character Jake owns the bowling alley in a small Midwestern town and passes the time ruminating about life while sitting on a hilltop where two of his three wives are buried. Lois was zapped by lightning while carrying a bowling trophy in a thunderstorm, and Loretta was killed by only the second bowling ball rack collapse in history. In his younger days Jake was a promising concert musician, but a foul tip baseball broke his fingers which subsequently healed into a perfect bowler’s grip. Jake replays the key frames of his life and, from time to time, is visited by his daughter Molly who has become adept at talking women into marrying her father for love and free lane time. But who is that nattily dressed man with dark glasses and a revolver lurking nearby?
The Washington Times describes “More Fun than Bowling” as “a very funny and eccentrically philosophical comedy. Mr. Dietz is a…writer with a distinct comic voice. He shows us that life and certainly death is a lot like bowling. For every experience, there seems to be an appropriate bowling expression just waiting to be applied. And for those who thought that bowling was merely a matter of rolling a ball and knocking down some pins, there is an Act II description of the Zen of bowling that will change your thinking forever…. In addition to inventing vivid cartoonish characters and giving them wacky tragic actions, Mr. Dietz is a master of the comic monologue.”
Director is Liz Lacy, program coordinator for Performing Arts at Galveston College. Company members include Dorion Alcantar, Eva Arita, Daniel Bourque, Alyssa Gudz, Christiana-Rose LaCross, Eric Scales and Brittney Somoza.
This production of “More Fun than Bowling” is entered as a participating production in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, a national theater program involving 20,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide annually. It is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc., a Concord Theatricals Company.
For additional information, please contact Liz Lacy at (409) 944-1398 or [email protected].
Daniel Bourque, Eva Arita and Alyssa Gudz rehearse for the upcoming Galveston College Theatre production of “More Fun than Bowling” by Steven Dietz. Show dates and times are Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 18, at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, Oct. 19, at 7:30 p.m. Performances are located in Room 207 on the second floor of the Galveston College Fine Arts Building. Doors open 30 minutes prior to curtain and admission is free.