Brazos Matters

Craig Huffhines, Director of the Institute for Equine Sciences at Texas A&M University

Craig Huffhines, Director of the Institute for Equine Sciences at Texas A&M University discusses his background & path to Texas A&M, the beginnings and scope of the Courtney Cares program, program partners across campus, benefits of hippotherapy, the types of clients who can benefit, student outcomes, identifying horses that exhibit traits that make them a good fit for the program, areas of research in equine science, funding needs, and the difference between therapy dogs and horses.

Maggie Hostetter, Performance Dietitian with Texas A&M Athletics

Maggie Hostetter, Performance Dietitian with Texas A&M Athletics discusses her background, why she chose a career in college sport nutrition, her path to Texas A&M, what all is involved in a typical day either in or out of season, nutrition options made available to student athletes, common misconceptions and mistakes made in nutrition, protein needs, cherry juice, and guilty food pleasures.

Darby Roberts & Robert Tirso, Student Affairs Planning, Assessment & Research at Texas A&M University

Darby Roberts, Director, Student Affairs Planning, Assessment & Research at Texas A&M University & Robert Tirso, Data Analyst, Student Affairs Planning, Assessment & Research at Texas A&M University discuss the WISHES Survey & Aggie Wellbeing Survey, their roles in this office, trends that they're currently seeing, first generation students vs others, the importance of fostering a sense of belonging, positive vs negative survey responses, confidentiality of responses, the option of having follow-up from the university, faculty & staff student support, some of the questions in the survey, who the survey is sent to (and how), and where to find data from the survey.

Lauren Craig, PhD, Assistant Director of Counseling & Sport Psychology Services for Texas A&M Athletics

Lauren Craig, PhD, Assistant Director of Counseling and Sport Psychology Services for Texas A&M Athletics discusses her path to this field and to Texas A&M, the teams she works with & resources available, what needs are the same & different among different sports, managing pressure in the postseason, traits that she usually sees in top athletes, things that the general public can also put into practice, growth and fixed mindsets, routines, and athlete superstitions.

Flora Charner, Professor of Practice in the Texas A&M University Department of Communication & Journalism

Flora Charner, Professor of Practice in the Texas A&M University Department of Communication & Journalism discusses her background in journalism and path to Texas A&M, transitioning from a media career to education, examples of how she's stayed involved in the journalism field while teaching, including current events in the classroom, how the use of AI in journalism is evolving, where college students are getting their news, goals of the A&M journalism program, what skills hopeful journalists should prioritize, and renovations to the department's space in Bolton Hall.