Melissa Howard

By Regina Durley

Melissa Howard, Center junior, plans to attend a spring break trip to Chicago with her Communications 495 class. Dressed casually with blue eyes and long blonde hair she openly sat to tell me about her future trip.

The class gets together and plans the trip themselves. Each student is assigned his or her own project to complete. Howard is in charge of city tours. The class will leave during spring break and will stay for four days in the downtown area of Chicago. Howard has been to Chicago once before when she was in the fourth grade but does not remember so she is looking forward to this trip. She cannot wait to start touring the city with the class and out on her own.

“I have never really seen a true public relations person doing their job and I feel that seeing and visiting one in Chicago will be the experience that will help me get a better feel of the job and what not to and what to do.” Howard said while brushing her blonde hair out of her face.

Howard is a member of the Association for Women and Men in Communication. The AWMC hosts meetings with guest speakers.

She is also a former Kappa Alpha rush member, but is no longer with them because she wants to focus solely on her communications studies.

When Howard was deciding on which college to attend in high school she was stressed because of all of the choices that she had and finally picked the school that did not require an essay to enter.

When Howard first started attending SFA her major was biology. She then changed her major to undecided and finally settled at a communications major in public relations.

Howard has lived in a small city her whole life and wants to move to a big city in California for at least a year so that she can get a feel of real city life. She loves to travel.

Howard said, “I am excited about the trip. I think that it will be a good learning experience both professional and personally.”

Lindsey Colley

By Antonia Steinmiller

Lindsey Colley, Houston junior, has traveled to six countries in three short years. The Cypress Falls High School graduate was born in Dallas and lives in the Houston area.

Her father, Lee Colley, 50, works for the Weatherford International oil company. Due to his job, Mr. Colley travels throughout the world. Lindsey, with her mother, sister, and brother, has traveled to six different countries worldwide. Since she is majoring in Public Relations, she found these opportunities incredible for job experience in the future.

Great Britain was the first country the Colley family traveled to in May of 2006. Colley saw the beauty of England. She went to different sights around the country including Big Ben and Buckingham Palace. She also visited an old castle that was built in the 19th century. Colley claims that England is the most westernized country in Europe she has visited. She also said that transportation was very easy to come by considering the fluency of the English language.

Canada was next on the list for the Colley family. Canada was a short trip according to Colley. The family was only there for four short days. Colley said the family did not do much while visiting Canada. The family went during the summer to a well-known resort and spa. Mrs. Colley and her two daughters had a spa day reserved for them. The men of the Colley family took time to golf 18 holes in the beautiful Canadian sun. The rest of the time was spent sightseeing local attractions.

In May 2006, not only did Colley travel to Great Britain, but they also made their way to China. From Houston to Newark, and finally China, 17 hours on a plane is more than enough for Colley.

She said China was the most interesting country she has been to thus far in her life. Differences range from culture to food to scenery to people. Colley visited Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Hangeul. She had a hard time adjusting to the type of Chinese food she was eating.

"What Americans have as their idea of Chinese food is definitely not what it is when you eat there," said Colley. "We were at a small Chinese village when our hostess ordered fish for us. It came out whole, including the head and lightly boiled. They just dropped the fish into a boiling pot of water and then served it to us. It felt as if I was eating a live fish!" exclaimed Colley.

Colley also said that fried rice in China is not the same as it is here in the United States. Here, fried rice is browned, fried rice that includes assorted vegetables and egg. In China, fried rice is smashed together deep fried rice. The fried rice looked like a rice cake.

Colley depended on McDonald's and Pizza Hut the entire time she was in China.

Colley commented on the pollution being extremely foul. "I thought just a thick layer of fog was covering the sky, but in actuality the sky has been polluted for over two years!" exclaimed Colley. Due to the pollution, the local Chinese people wear masks to cover up their faces and prevent inhaling poisonous particles.

They also visited Vietnam and Thailand. During their trip to Thailand, Colley fell ill due to a food virus. During the rest of the trip, she went to the world renown floating market. The market floats above water which tourists travel on a boat to buy products from merchants. During the Vietnam trip, Colley traveled to history related museums and did the local sight seeing tour.

One moment that stuck out to Colley was visiting the Vietnam War memorial. "It was unlike anything I have ever seen before in my entire life," said Colley, "It was breathtaking."

Her last and final visit was to France, which she did not care for too much. She said that Paris is overrated and didn't fulfill her expectations of the city life. Colley said the city was dirty and polluted, and the people were rude and unwelcoming. She could sense the bitterness coming from the people. Colley said because many people did not speak English, transportation was hard to come by. She never wants to experience France again. Au revoir!

Lindsey Colley is 5 feet 1 inch tall with long curly blonde hair. Lindsey is very tan with an olive glow. She has bright blue eyes and perfect white teeth.

Jason Sammons

“I’ve grown up at the horse track. I don’t look like a horse wrangler, but I spent 18 years on a 10 acre, no name horse ranch.”

Jason Sammons, Huntington Texas Junior, is part of a horse breeding, racing and winning family.

Sammons stated, “Over time, I grew up into a love for it. It was my Dad’s passion. It wasn’t mine. I hated having to get up early and help with them. I wanted to be out with my friends.”

“I’ve helped my dad raise three good racers. I’ve saddle broke every one of our horses. I grew up to appreciate the animals. They are beautiful, smart, loving and you can talk to them.”

“When they win a race, it’s cool because I have a connection with them.” According to Thoroughbred Times magazine, R B J ‘S Blaze, won a $24,000 purse in March 2005. Another stud, Won C C was a winner at Sam Houston Race Park in November 2002. Both were Stakes Race winners raised by the Sammons family.

Sammons continued “The foundation mare is gone. You couldn’t ask for a better bloodline. Her name was Callie Callie and she produced both of the winning colts. RBJ’s Blaze is her final colt. A leg fracture has kept him off the track for over a year but he is back in training. “

Sammons said he decided to major in Journalism at SFASU because, “I want to go into advertising, I love selling to people.”
He said that all of his experiences “help me to figure out what people need and get it for them. I’ve always been pretty good at it. I want to see what happens.”

When asked to describe himself, Sammons said, “I am six feet tall, blue eyes, brown hair, and I’m pretty scruffy with a beard, right now. You know, that sounds a little like a horse wrangler, doesn’t it?”

Jaclyn Partin

By Andrea Dailey

Jaclyn Partin was a freshman at Stephen F. Austin when she learned the hard way about wearing a seat belt even if she was in the back seat and she has the scar to prove it.

One night Jaclyn decided to go with a girl friend, Tiffanni, to go hang out at a friend's house in Mt. Enterprise. Later on in the night they wanted to get something to eat. Jaclyn and two other guys hopped into a car to go get food at Taco Bell.

It was after midnight and the back roads were dark. They ended up not being able to control the car and ended up in a ditch. Jaclyn was not wearing her seat belt in the back seat and flew into the headrest in front of her.

"I was so stupid, I always wear my seatbelt," she said.

She instantly knew something was wrong; her face was throbbing.

After the vehicle came to a stop they got out of the car and instantly Jaclyn saw blood on her shirt. Jaclyn's eye was bleeding from the impact of the collision. She said that she was fine and just wanted to get back. Her two friends were not hurt because they were wearing their seat belts.

They were able to start the car with no problem, but it started to make noises. Because the car was making noise they decided not to drive it home. Jaclyn called her friend to have them pick the three of them up.

Jaclyn did not want her mother to know that she was in a wreck. She told her mother that she was staying with Tiffanni for the night. Jaclyn thought that her eye would be better in the morning,

"I put ice on my eye all night and when I woke up I couldn't even open my eye," she said.

The injury looked like it was more than just minor. She had swelling that went from one side of her face to the other side of her nose. She knew she could not hide this from her mother.

When Jaclyn went home her mother immediately took her to the hospital to see if anything was broken. Her mother is an x-ray technician and had seen this many times, "She thought my eye socket or my nose was fractured because of how swollen my face was," Jaclyn said. Her face had no dimension to it and she couldn't open her eye.

"It was just gruesome," is the only phrase Jaclyn can describe what she looked like. She said that she did not look like her normal self. She was scared that she was not going to be able to see well out of her left eye anymore.

This young woman who was only 19 years old at the time learned that if she wants to keep her characteristics of her face then she needs to wear her seat belt at all times. She has a scar above her left eye that reminds her to wear her seat belt no matter what.

Chelsea Teichman

By Anna Redmon

Chelsea Teichman, Cushing, TX, freshman at Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA), spends most of her time working, practicing for band, and spending time with her boyfriend. When there is a chance of leisure, Chelsea enjoys designing layouts for an Internet network known as the ever-popular MySpace.

Chelsea grew up in a small town with an even smaller high school graduating class of 32 students. In high school Chelsea, Senior Class Vice President, enjoyed playing on the varsity softball team, Theater, and band where she served as drum major during her junior and senior years.

"I didn't want to do it, but the director asked me personally, so I had to say yes," Chelsea remarked in regards to being a drum major. As a result of Chelsea receiving such an honor in band, her mother let her dye her hair bright pink. Chelsea has played the flute since seventh grade and is currently a member of the SFA marching band.

Along with all the practice, and dedication needed for marching band, Chelsea also has a full school and work schedule. With a declared major in communications with an emphasis on public relations, she is enrolled in News Writing, Reading and Composition, History, and Astronomy.

"I love night classes," she added, "but they're just so long."

One of Chelsea's goals for this semester is to pass Astronomy. At night, Chelsea is a manager at Pizza Hut in Nacogdoches, where she works with Ben, her boyfriend of one year and four months.

"We're practically roommates; we go to school together, we work together, and we hang out together," Chelsea said, smiling about Ben. Chelsea and Ben met while he was working for a local radio station, and she kept calling to request songs. One day, he met her at work, and they've since been dating.

Chelsea has a very busy day-to-day agenda, socially, academically, and professionally. She completes all of her responsibilities without a driver's license. This is not a result of failed driving tests or hardship, but of choice.

"I don't want to learn to drive, it makes me too nervous," Chelsea explained.

Chelsea still lives with her parents, and carpools with Ben to get to school and sometimes work. At home, Chelsea lives with her mother and father, who have been married for 35 years. There is a significant age difference between her and her older sister, 35 and older brother who is 34 years old. Chelsea has been blessed with four nieces and three nephews of whom she talks about with pride.

Chelsea is also proud of her own "child," her five-month-old terrier mix puppy named Mickey. While playing and caring for Mickey at home Chelsea spends most of her time on the computer.

"I'm addicted to making MySpace layouts," Chelsea said enthusiastically expressing a keen talent for graphic design.

With a full life to live and a bright future Chelsea has three simple favorites: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Fast Food, and Sleep.
Chelsea is 18 years old and was born on April 10th; she stands 5 feet 4 inches tall with fair skin, shoulder length black hair and a bright smile. When asked what her natural hair color is Chelsea sighed, "I don't even know anymore, it's been pink, red, brown and black."

Chelsea has nine peircings: her tongue, a pink stud sparkling on her nose, a small hoop in her right eyebrow along with four piercings in her left ear and two in her right ear. She also has two tattoos; a row of stars on the lower left side of her back, and is in the process of getting a moon finished on her shoulder.

She was wearing blue jeans with a white studded belt, a black fitted t-shirt, with an olive green hoodie with black rose detail. She is a very interesting individual and her appearance expresses her outgoing and unique personality.

Betty Land

Antonia Steinmiller

By Lindsey Colley

Antonia Steinmiller, Mt. Prospect, IL junior, is a cheerleader here at SFASU. Antonia and her best friend from Illinois ventured all the way to Nacogdoches to join the SFASU cheer team.

She has been cheering since she was 13 years old. Antonia graduated from Prospect High School in 2004, where she cheered
all four years. She originally attended college at Lewis University in Romeoville, IL, on an academic and cheerleading scholarship. The cheer team there made it to the national competition, but never qualified for the finals.

"In nice terms, they were horrible," she said about her then cheer squad. After two years of feeling as if the team did not challenge themselves enough toward the goal of a national championship, Antonia and fellow cheerleader, Kristyn, decided they needed to make a change. They started searching for highly competitive squads around the U.S.

After running upon SFASU, the girls decided to send in a video of their cheer skills. Within a week, the girls were notified they had made the team!

In July of 2006, Antonia made her first visit to SFASU. She immediately "fell in love with our teammates, everyone supports each other. It's like a huge family." This was a very good thing for Antonia, considering her family lives so far away.

Antonia has been to six different national competitions in high school. She has also coached at six different national competitions.

The SFASU all girl team has made it to finals the past three years in row. This is a big change from what Antonia was used to from her past college experience, and she loves being a part of it. The small squad placed third in the bid video for the upcoming national competition. A bid video is sent in to the national judges and is judged and scored, even though the competition may not be held for months. This gives a squad the chance to show off their skills when they feel they are at their best. It is obvious the SFASU squad had good judgment in this decision.

"Third place is a huge accomplishment," Antonia said.

Antonia is an only child. Her parents have been divorced for 13 years. Antonia lives with her mother when she is back in Illinois. She is an outgoing, friendly person, with a great attitude on life. She is a beautiful girl both inside and out. She has pretty, long dark hair, a great smile, and her personality beams with friendliness.

Antonia loves hanging out with friends on her spare time. She also enjoys, shopping, movies, sports, and "anything outdoorsy." She has also traveled to Aruba and Barbados on vacations. She said these were "amazing trips, and I would love to go back to both places at anytime possible!"

Through her life, Antonia has always been a competitor. She said she is "grateful" for the experiences she has had to go through. "Some were more difficult then others, but where I am in my life now, I couldn't be more happy," she said with a smile on her face. She loves challenges in her life and cannot wait to face any that may arise in the future.

Antonia said her goal is to help take her "newly developed co-ed cheer squad to the national finals and win!"