WTAW - Interviews

This podcast is a visit with Brazos County sheriff Wayne Dicky and WTAW's Bill Oliver.

Brazos County commissioners sign off on allowing three departments to receive a combined $1 million dollars in new grant money that was authorized by the legislature during the 2023 regular session.

Senate Bill 22, which passed the senate and house without opposition, gives the district attorney and county attorney's offices $275,000 dollars each towards paying assistant prosecutors, investigators, and victim assistance coordinators. 

Click HERE to read and download Senate Bill 22.

District attorney Jarvis Parsons says the additional money will go to current employees.

County attorney Earl Gray says his preference is giving a one time bonus to current employees.

Senate Bill 22 gave the Brazos County sheriff's office $500,000 dollars and the authority to spend the money on more than just employee pay.

Sheriff Wayne Dicky says because county commissioners set sheriff's employee pay above the cap in SB 22, the grant money will go towards other things.

Dicky said equipment will be purchased for communications and surveillance, along with vehicles for the crime scene and the new human trafficking departments, and a safety project will be done at one of the jail dormitories.

Jennifer Nations, Water Resource Coordinator, visits with WTAW's Scott DeLucia about World Water Day, upcoming water presentations, city water statistics, irrigation checkups, and more during her appearance on The Infomaniacs.

Councilwoman Marca Ewers-Shurtleff visits with WTAW's Scott DeLucia about technology allowing her to stay connected, the new budget cycle, a future business center at Coulter Airfield, what she is hearing from her constituents, upcoming city events, and more during her appearance on The Infomaniacs.

This podcast contains comments from the March 19, 2024 College Station ISD school board meeting.

College Station ISD school board members approve adding a third high school band director at Consolidated and College Station high schools. 

Board members were told that most 5-A high schools have four or five band directors. 

The unanimous vote during Tuesday's (March 19) meeting came after board members and administrators discussed upcoming challenges to develop a budget for the 2024-25 school year.

Before considering the new positions, administrators said during a workshop that they were studying possible staffing changes in the 24-25 school year.

The staff study came up again during consideration of the additional band directors.

Superintendent Tim Harkrider said approving the new positions now will lead to a larger pool of applicants.

College Station Mayor John Nichols visits with WTAW's Scott DeLucia about George Straight performing at Kyle Field, the recent economic development trip to California, citizen committees, the recreation center study, current construction projects, and more during his appearance on The Infomaniacs.

This podcast contains comments from the March 18, 2024 Texas A&M faculty senate meeting.

Six weeks after the Texas A&M system board of regents votes to shut down A&M's campus in Qatar, A&M's faculty senate unanimously adopts a resolution backing the work done by educators who will be losing their jobs in the next one to four years.

Faculty senate speaker Tracy Hammond told WTAW News that the resolution, submitted by a faculty senate member from Qatar, passed by a 64 to nothing margin.

This took place during the faculty senate's March regular meeting, where in College Station it was Monday afternoon (March 18) but in Qatar was Tuesday (March 19) at one in the morning.

The resolution was presented by an instructional assistant history professor at the Qatar campus, Brittany Bounds:

Whereas,

• Texas A&M University at Qatar conducts research which is in the public interest and non-classified,
• Texas A&M University at Qatar complies with all export controls and regulations,
• Texas A&M University upholds academic freedom and protects faculty from false and misleading accusations,
• Other organizations have suggested that faculty at Texas A&M University at Qatar conduct research related to national security and nuclear issues,
• These suggestions are false and misleading,

Be it resolved that,

• The Faculty Senate stands by these colleagues;
• These faculty are in good standing in Texas A&M University, in their disciplines, and in the scholarly community of the United States of America.

Bounds and Qatar campus engineering professor Dr. Mohammed Al-Hashimi said the misinformation has resulted in Qatar campus educators being harassed.

Bounds also repeated earlier statements from the A&M president that the Qatar campus does not do research involving national security and nuclear issues.

Dr. Bounds expects a third and possible fourth wave of misinformation about the work being done at the A&M Qatar campus.

This podcast is a visit with United Way of the Brazos Valley vice president Kat Gammon, Jonathan Mitchell of UWBV partner agency Adult and Teen Challenge of Brenham, and WTAW's Bill Oliver.

Sarah Norman, president of the local realtors association, visits with WTAW's Chelsea Reber about 2023 housing market statistics, local market trends, and more.

This podcast contains comments from Texas A&M university librarian Julie Mosbo Ballestro from the February 12, 2024 A&M faculty senate meeting.

March marks two years since the reorganization of Texas A&M’s library staff drew opposition from the faculty senate.

A second update in as many years was presented by university librarian Julie Mosbo Ballestro during February’s faculty senate meeting.Ballestro said “I think that we are seeing a raise in morale”, and later thanked the university for its support.

Last October, president Mark Welsh announced university libraries was given $900,000 dollars for salary adjustments and $2.4 million was restored to the library system’s overall budget.

As for staffing, Ballestro told faculty senate members about hirings in several library departments. 

She told WTAW News that as of February 13 there were 45 openings.She told the faculty senate that hirings were taking place in four phases. In part that was not to overwhelm A&M’s human resources department and library employees serving on search committees.

Ballestro’s presentation to the faculty senate included the creation of an open education resources committee that is charged with reducing the student cost of course materials and what is happening with academic engagement programs, which involves student engagement and outreach, online learning, and acquisitions and collection strategies. 

She also provided an update on the library system’s association with research at A&M, the library system’s special collections and archives, and access to digital collections.She also talked about an internal space study. 

The week after Ballestro’s comments about space utilization, A&M’s president released the recommendations of a university wide space allocation study. Among those recommendations, were allocating ten thousand square feet in Evans Library to support an academic success center and student success initiatives within academic affairs, add to the university’s capital plan renovations of the medical sciences library, begin the process to rename west campus library spaces to convey service to the west campus community, and add a west campus testing center on the first floor of the business library collaboration commons.

The presentation, followed by questions and answers, is available on the A&M faculty senate’s You Tube channel. The segment, which starts at approximately 44:10, lasts about 40 minutes.

Click HERE to read and download presentation materials shown at the February 12, 2024 Texas A&M faculty senate meeting.

Colin Killian, Director of Public Communications, visits with WTAW's Scott DeLucia about Movies in the Park, the Meeting Planner Showcase, other upcoming events, and volunteer opportunities during his appearance on The Infomaniacs.