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Horned Frogs on a mission

Faculty and staff honored for their attitude and example.

Horned Frogs on a mission

Faculty and staff honored for their attitude and example.

To educate individuals to think and act as ethical leaders and responsible citizens in the global community

The new mission statement adopted by the University last spring was easy enough to learn. But to exemplify? The answer seemed to be a resounding yes at the start-of-school University luncheon in August as 12 “Horned Frogs on a Mission” were picked and honored from more than a hundred nominations — faculty and staff who “educate us all by their attitude and by their example,” Chancellor Michael Ferrari said.

Senior Design Lecturer Pat Walter has led seniors for the past five years in the “capstone” course that transforms them from students into professionals.

Music Prof. German Gutiérrez has opened innumerable doors for students in performance venues, including the TCU’s own Latin American Music Festival, established two years ago.

Groundskeepers David Yarbrough’s and Escho Weatherspoon’s efforts at Amon Carter Stadium and the academic lawns, respectively, may influence more people than any other one task.

Residential housekeepers Julie Graver, Janett McTaggart and Gail Truitt organized a campus car wash that raised nearly $900 for student Robbyn Kindle’s four-organ transplant surgeries last spring.

Social Work Prof. Linda Moore’s long-standing ability to inspire students led one of her classes to help change University policy (and earn an “A” in class) when they spearheaded the effort to make Martin Luther King Jr. Day a TCU holiday.

Campus Judicial Officer Mike Russell has a hard side in his disciplinary position, but he also exhibits a softer demeanor when dealing with student tragedies that has come to be known as the “Mike Russell treatment.”

Mailing Services Manager Glen Hulme and Coordinator Judy Cartmill treat their 50 student employees with the same care they deliver thousands of pieces of mail, resulting in one of the most popular work-study destinations on campus.

Campus Crime Prevention Sergeant Connie Villela (absent due to a knee injury) brought new awareness and national attention to date rape and violence through an innovative Assault Prevention Theatre begun last year — 15-minute vignettes performed by TCU theatre students trained by rape crisis counselors.