J.K.G. Silvey statue

UNT dedicated a life-size, bronze statue April 25 at the Environmental Education, Science and Technology Building in honor of J.K.G. Silvey, who served on the biology faculty from 1935 to 1977 and chaired the department from 1952 to 1973.

Speakers at the dedication included Gayle Strange ('67) of Denton, chair of the UNT Board of Regents and a former student of Silvey's. A fish fry after the ceremony honored Silvey, who died in 1989.

"Doc," as he was known, specialized in limnology, or the study of freshwater conditions, and often had fish fries on student research trips.

David Iles ('77), the sculptor of the series of Texas wildlife on the grounds of the EESAT Building, also sculpted the Silvey statue. It features the professor examining the contents of a beaker and surrounded by a tackle box and microscope, water sampler and fishing net containing a large-mouth bass. Money for the $40,000 statue was jointly raised by the Department of Biological Sciences, the Institute of Applied Sciences and the J.K.G. Silvey Society.

Silvey was named a Distinguished Professor Emeritus upon his retirement. He also served as associate dean of basic sciences for what was then known as the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine from 1971 to 1975. He played a key role in TCOM becoming the UNT Health Science Center at Fort Worth.

Ken Dickson ('66, '68 M.S.), Regents Professor of biological sciences and a former Silvey student, says the professor had a profound impact on the lives and careers of countless students, encouraging them with "wise counsel and kindness" to pursue careers in medicine, dentistry, biology, environmental science and teaching.

"'Doc' Silvey excelled as a teacher, researcher, administrator, motivator, mentor and friend," Dickson says.

Former students and colleagues established the J.K.G. Silvey Society in 1965 to recognize his contributions.

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		Jerry R. Thomas

Jerry R. Thomas, professor and chair of the Department of Kinesiology at Iowa State University since 1998, has been named dean of the UNT College of Education effective Aug. 1.

Thomas also had served as interim dean of Iowa State's College of Education and interim associate dean for research and graduate studies in the college. He previously held faculty and administrative positions at Arizona State University and Louisiana State University and also served on the faculty at Florida State University, Georgia Southern College, Bloomsburg State College and Jefferson State Junior College. He earned his bachelor's degree from Furman University and master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Alabama.

Thomas will also hold a position as professor in UNT's Department of Kinesiology, Health Promotion and Recreation while serving as dean. He replaces Jean Keller, who will return to the faculty to focus on teaching and research after serving as dean since 1997.

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COBA dean

		O. Finley Graves

O. Finley Graves was named dean of the College of Business Administration this spring. Graves, who was appointed interim dean in August 2007, arrived at UNT in 2002 as a professor of accounting and chair of the accounting department. In January 2007, he became the college's associate dean for academic affairs.

He has served on numerous UNT committees, including the committee to plan a new Business Leadership Complex, which he chairs. He served as advisor to the UNT chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants from 2002 to 2007 and received the Council of Business Students Faculty of the Year Award in 2006.

Prior to joining UNT, Graves served at Kansas State University, the University of Mississippi, the University of Newcastle in Australia and the University of Alabama. His doctorate and master's degree in accounting are from the University of Alabama at Tuscaloosa.

He replaces Kathleen Cooper, who stepped down from the deanship to pursue her interests in national economic and energy policy issues.

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Engineering dean

		Costas Tsatsoulis

Costas Tsatsoulis, chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Kansas and a highly accomplished researcher, accepted a position as dean of UNT's College of Engineering, effective Aug. 1.

At the University of Kansas, Tsatsoulis served as assistant professor from 1988 to 1993, associate professor from 1993 to 1999 and professor since 1999. He became interim chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science in August 2003 and was named permanent chair in January 2004.

Tsatsoulis also will hold a position as professor in the UNT Department of Computer Science and Engineering while serving as dean. He earned two bachelor's degrees and his master's and doctorate from Purdue University. He replaces Oscar Garcia, founding dean of the College of Engineering, who returned to the faculty to teach and assist colleagues and students with research.

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New women's coach

		Shanice Stephens (Photo by Rick Yeatts)

Shanice Stephens, associate head coach at Clemson University, was named the new Mean Green women's basketball coach this spring. Stephens had been at Clemson for three years and previously was an assistant at Rice University. She received the NCAA's Judith Sweet Spirit Award in 2006 and participated in the Achieving Coaching Excellence Program, sponsored by the Black Coaches and Administrators Association.

Stephens is the youngest head coach in the Sun Belt Conference and the second-youngest Division I head coach in Texas. As the recruiting coordinator for the past three seasons at Clemson, she helped the Lady Tigers sign some of the best classes in school history. The 2006 class was ranked 22nd in the nation by the All-Star Girls Report.

Stephens earned her undergraduate degree in 1993 from Oklahoma State where she was a member of two NCAA Tournament teams and was named to the All Big Eight Academic Team. She earned a master's degree in 1996 from the University of Central Oklahoma.

Assistant coaches joining Stephens include Jalie Mitchell Johnson ('02), the Mean Green's all-time leading scorer. Johnson, who also ranks No. 1 in free throws and attempts and ranks in the top 10 in school history in 10 other categories, was inducted into the North Texas Athletic Hall of Fame last year and is one of just two players to have her number retired.

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Recent deaths

		Stefan Bardas

Stefan Bardas, 93, Professor Emeritus of music who worked at North Texas from 1955 to 1980, died April 29.

He was born in Germany to a musically prominent Austrian family and survived the Holocaust by attending school in Rome at the Conservatory of Saint Cecilia, earning his bachelor's degree in music during World War II.

After arriving in New York, he played popular music in piano bars and taught aspiring students. Before coming to North Texas as artist in residence, he served as a piano teacher at Carroll College, Wesleyan University and Northwestern University.

He was well known for his performances of the 32 pieces in the Beethoven Cycle of Sonatas and for the piano fingering technique he developed for pianists with small hands. He was one of fewer than 1,400 pianists worldwide carrying the distinction of "Steinway Artist."

After retiring from North Texas, he continued to teach piano part-time at El Paso Community College, was an adjunct faculty member at New Mexico State University at Las Cruces and taught private lessons.

Memorials to a scholarship to be established in his memory, made payable to the UNT Foundation, may be sent to the UNT Division of Advancement, P.O. Box 311250, Denton, Texas 76203-1250. For more information, call (940) 565-2243 or e-mail elida.tamez@unt.edu.

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