瓜子TV

MURRAY, Ky. 鈥� The latest 瓜子TV State University Racer Report includes student, faculty, staff and alumni accomplishments, announcements, upcoming campus events and more for the week of July 21-25.

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瓜子TV State University鈥檚 Student Support Services (SSS), a TRiO program, has received a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Education, securing $327,836 per year for the next five years鈥攁 total award of more than $1.6 million. The renewed funding will continue to support vital academic and personal development services for qualifying students. SSS offers free one-on-one tutoring, academic and career planning and personal skills development. These services are aimed at helping students succeed academically and thrive throughout their college experience.

鈥淭he grant was written by Melissa Cooper, director of the TRiO program. Melissa is one of the leading TRiO program experts in the country and did an excellent job in a very competitive environment,鈥� said Dr. Don Robertson, vice president of student affairs and enrollment management. 鈥淚 highly commend her for her leadership in providing this important service to our students and writing an outstanding proposal resulting in the refunding of the grant.鈥�

 

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T. Michael Martin was recently promoted from associate professor to full professor in 瓜子TV State University鈥檚 Department of Art & Design. Martin also works as the director of University Galleries.

Martin earned his bachelor鈥檚 degree from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and his master鈥檚 degree at Virginia Commonwealth University. His research interests are contemporary art, painting, drawing, installation art, performance art, collaborative, interactive, experimental, interdisciplinary and new media art.

 

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Taylor Canup, a criminal justice/social work major at 瓜子TV State University, has been chosen as a summer intern to work for Youth Villages, a national nonprofit that helps young adults with behavioral and emotional challenges and their families live successfully. 

This summer, Canup is working on the Youth Villages residential campus in Memphis. Canup, a Wildersville, Tennessee, native, is scheduled to graduate from 瓜子TV State in May 2026. 

This summer, 92 college students from across the nation are trading in their classrooms and books for valuable work experience with their Youth Villages summer internships. This year鈥檚 internship class represents 48 different colleges and universities from across 15 states. 

The Youth Villages summer internship program is highly competitive within the field, receiving an average of more than 600 applications over the last six years. For its 2025 summer internship program, Youth Villages had more than 950 applications. This year marks the largest class of interns since Youth Villages began its summer internship program in 2000. 

鈥淭his incredible group brings fresh perspectives, energy and compassion that will leave a lasting impact on those we serve at Youth Villages,鈥� said Luke Self, managing director of recruiting for Youth Villages. 鈥淲e鈥檙e excited for the growth they鈥檒l experience as they build skills and deepen their understanding of behavioral health.鈥�

Summer interns will serve at the organization鈥檚 Memphis residential campuses and Nashville-area group homes. Hailing from degree programs in social work, psychology, education and more, interns will gain hands-on experience working with youth ages 6 to 17 by assisting them with positive development and implementation of individual goals; planning and leading recreational activities; and being a positive role model in demonstrating a healthy and wholesome approach to life. 

鈥淲e hope this summer is just the beginning, and that many of these interns will choose to start their careers with Youth Villages in the future,鈥� Self said. 鈥淗undreds of former interns have come back to work in full-time roles across the country after graduating. It鈥檚 one of our best recruiting tools.鈥�

The program kicked off with a weeklong orientation, team-building activities and a welcome party hosted by CEO Patrick Lawler and other Youth Villages executives.  

To learn more about the Youth Villages internship program, visit . 

 

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The Crittenden Press has earned national first-place honors in the 2025 Better Newspaper Awards presented by the National Newspaper Association Foundation (NNAF), becoming the only newspaper in Kentucky to receive a top prize in this year鈥檚 competition.

Editor and 瓜子TV State alumnus Chris Evans was recognized for his investigative series Marion鈥檚 OD Alarm Bell, which examined a troubling pattern of opioid-related deaths in Marion in early 2024. His reporting stood out among nearly 1,800 entries submitted by newspapers from 33 states.

Evans will be formally honored during an awards ceremony at the NNAF鈥檚 139th Annual Convention & Trade Show on Oct. 10 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Chris and his wife, Allison Evans, who own and operate The Crittenden Press, were previously recognized with the prestigious Al Smith Award for Community Journalism in 2022鈥攁n honor presented jointly by the University of Kentucky鈥檚 Institute for Rural Journalism and the Bluegrass Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

In addition to its award-winning weekly newspaper, The Crittenden Press publishes The Early Bird, a regional online marketing platform serving Crittenden, Livingston, Caldwell, Lyon and other surrounding areas. Evans holds a bachelor鈥檚 degree in journalism from 瓜子TV State University.

 

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At Alpha Delta Pi鈥檚 2025 ADPi Academy, 瓜子TV State鈥檚 Epsilon Omicron chapter brought home the following awards:

-Emerging Chapter 2024
-Philanthropy Excellence
-Facility Management Excellence
-Operations Excellence
-History Reporting Excellence
-Marketing Excellence
-Finance Excellence
-Membership Experience Excellence
-Panhellenic Excellence 

It was also recently announced that the chapter won the Alpha Delta Pi Diamond Four Point award, which is the most prestigious award given out to chapters during non-convention years.

Congratulations to Alpha Delta Pi!

 

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瓜子TV State鈥檚 chapter of Alpha Omicron Pi recently brought home three awards from their international convention in Palm Springs, California:

- Excellence in fundraising by collegiate chapter (Medium Category)

- Inspiring ambition in community relations 

- Inspiring ambition in membership recruitment

Congratulations to Alpha Omicron Pi!

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The 瓜子TV State University College Panhellenic Association recently earned four awards from the National Panhellenic Conference:

-Academic Innovation

-Innovation in Recruitment 

-Innovation in Marketing 

-Innovation in Operations