Texas A&M at Work: May 19, 2025
A Texas A&M student's work honors Aggies missing in action, New Student Conferences begin May 20, and Texas A&M AgriLife Extension releases a visual guide on its impact on the state.
Texas A&M at Work is a biweekly email designed to keep employees up to date on the most vital and relevant information, news and events across all Texas A&M University campuses.
Honoring Aggies Missing In Action
According to the U.S. Department of Defense, there are currently more than 80,000 Americans listed as missing in action, and the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is tasked to provide the fullest accounting to the families of the missing.
Texas A&M University former student Jackson Baker ’25 and a team of student researchers have created a comprehensive list of Aggies listed as missing in action from World War II to the present day. Baker, who graduated this semester and plans to continue on to graduate school, joined Dr. Erika Bravo’s research group in 2022 as an intern. Bravo, a research partner fellow in the College of Arts and Sciences at Texas A&M, conducts historical research in support of the DPAA and was tasked with finding photographs of Texans listed as missing in action to accompany their service member profiles on the DPAA website.
Since yearbooks are a great source for photos, Bravo asked Baker to start with Texas A&M’s Aggieland yearbooks first, since they had easy access to them, and look for photos they still needed. She also asked him to look for a list of Aggies unaccounted for and compare it to the list of photographs they still needed. He soon discovered that no such list existed, but he wanted to create one. This spawned the project and his undergraduate thesis.
Center For Teaching Excellence Summer Workshops
Whether you are new to teaching or new to teaching at Texas A&M, the Center for Teaching Excellence invites faculty and staff to this summer’s ‘Getting Ready to Get Ready’ teaching excellence sessions. These workshops and programs are tailored to help all types of instructors toward enhancing student engagement and instructional impact in the classroom.
Contact Human Resources And Organizational Effectiveness
Find answers to your questions and get the assistance you need in the HROE service portal, all in one convenient location. Visit Service/HROE to explore new features and receive expert help from our team on hiring, employee relations, benefits, classification and compensation, payroll and more.
New Student Conferences Begin May 20
Student Life and campus partners are preparing to welcome the incoming class of 2029 and new transfer students. Thousands of new Aggies will be on campus over the summer with their families alongside them as they begin their journey in Aggieland. Be ready to help them find their way or greet them with a “Howdy!” All New Student Conference (NSC) information is available online. The NSC is a two-day orientation program required of all new undergraduate students at Texas A&M.
Dig Into AgriLife Extension’s Big Impact With This Visual Guide
Since 1915, the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service has bridged the gap between academic advancements and the practical needs of farmers, ranchers and rural communities. Established through the Smith-Lever Act, the state agency connects research-backed solutions from Texas A&M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and AgriLife Research directly to Texas communities.
Today, with over 83,000 volunteers and nearly 100 programs, AgriLife Extension continues to strengthen communities, improve lives and boost economies, saving millions in health care costs, driving agricultural productivity and promoting environmental sustainability. “Our agents and volunteers work daily to build resilience,” said Dr. Rick Avery ’88 ’12, director of AgriLife Extension. “Together, we’re shaping the future of communities across the state.”
Upcoming Events
- Common Grounds – Connecting Youth to Opportunities: Engagement, Resources and Impact
May 20
- University Staff Council Meeting
May 20
- The Power of Habit (registration required)
May 20
- Fertility Connection (registration required)
May 21
- Crucial Conversations for Accountability – Add-on (registration required)
May 21
- Catapult Health Exams
May 22-23
- Estate Planning Essentials
May 22
- Kids and the Internet: Becoming a Cyber-Savvy Parent (registration required)
May 22
- The 6 Types of Working Genius (registration required)
May 22
- University Holiday – Memorial Day
May 26
- Catapult Health Exams
May 27-28
- Managers’ Minutes – Autism in the Workplace: Insights and Access (registration required)
May 29
- The 6 Types of Working Genius (Texas A&M Fort Worth) (registration required)
May 29
- Crucial Conversations for Accountability – Add-on (registration required)
June 4
- Managers’ Minutes – Leading with Emotional Intelligence: The Key to Stronger Teams and Better Leadership
June 5
- Crucial Conversations for Accountability (registration required)
June 10-11
- Pre-Retirement Counseling Workshop – Via Zoom ORP (registration required)
June 12
- Pre-Retirement Counseling Workshop – Via Zoom TRS (registration required)
June 12
- The Gardens Summer Celebration
June 14
- Common Grounds – Peter Lange
June 17
- University Staff Council Meeting
June 17
In Case You Missed It
Experts from Texas A&M’s Mays Business School share how businesses can unlock AI’s full potential with faster, more effective and more resilient strategies.
Texas Opioid Abatement Fund Council awards three-year grant for proposal spearheaded by researchers from the School of Public Health and College of Pharmacy.
The rare earth elements mined from discarded electronics could improve the U.S. supply chain.
