Raising the Roof

While students have plenty of academic obligations, UHV also recognizes that part of a well-rounded college experience includes extracurricular activities and activities that support the curriculum. That’s where UHV Student Affairs and Athletics come into play as UHV continues to build its comprehensive, regional university.

During 2013-2014, students took part in numerous activities on and off campus. New student organizations were chartered at the inaugural Leadership and Organizational Award Banquet, and additional staff members were hired in Student Life & Services to increase programming for students. UHV also took over managing the residence halls in Jaguar Village to give residential students a better experience.

The year also was exciting for the Jaguars Athletics Department. Highlighting the year was the announcement the Jaguars would be joining the Red River Athletic Conference starting in fall 2015. The department also expanded with the opening of a 2,400-square-foot athletic training room. For the first time since the 2010 season, both the baseball and softball teams advanced to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics National Championships. Individual players also raised the roof with Andre Del Bosque becoming the first UHV athlete selected in the Major League Baseball Draft, and Heather Shake becoming the first women’s golfer to qualify for the NAIA Women’s Golf National Championships.

Here are just a few highlights from Athletics and Student Affairs:

Athletics

  • UHV announced it would move from the Association of Independent Institutions Conference to the Red River Athletic Conference beginning in the fall of 2015.
  • Through a grant from the M.G. and Lillie A. Johnson Foundation, a new athletic training room, located at 3402 N. Ben Wilson St., became a reality under the guidance of head trainer Thomas Pribyl.
  • The UHV Fan Shop opened at www.uhvjaguars.com, giving fans the chance to shop for Jaguars apparel online.
  • Junior reliever Ander Del Bosque became the first Jaguar selected in the MLB Draft when he was chosen in the 38th round by the New York Yankees.
  • Freshman Heather Shake became the first UHV women’s golfer to qualify for the NAIA Women’s Golf Championships after winning individual medalist honors at the A.I.I. Conference Championships. She was also the first UHV women’s golfer to earn All-American recognition being selected to the NAIA All-America second team.
  • Sports information specialist Paul Ebner was recognized as the A.I.I. Conference’s Sports Information Director of the Year.
  • The UHV women’s soccer team landed four players on the A.I.I. All-Conference women’s soccer team. Darby Price and Sheilat Akapo were named to the second team, while Caroline Carvajal and Megan Huerta were named honorable mention.
  • UHV’s Sheilat Akapo was named to the 2013 NSCAA/Continental Tire NAIA Women’s All-Southwest Region soccer team.
  • Five UHV men’s soccer players earned A.I.I. All-Conference honors. Hector Gonzalez was named to the first team, while Taylor Gordon, Israel Nava and Daniel Lozano were named to the second team. Henrik Hundesruegge was named honorable mention.
  • Golfer Heather Shake and pitcher Andre Del Bosque were named the 2014 UHV Athletes of the Year.
  • Lindsey Ortiz was named the head softball coach after serving as the interim head coach for a year. She previously served as the team’s assistant coach under Keri Lambeth and as a player during the 2008 and 2009 seasons.
  • The UHV softball team earned its third consecutive trip to the NAIA Softball Championships.
  • Ashley Winegeart was named to the 2014 Capital One Academic All-America Softball Team College Division after being selected to the CoSIDA Capital One Academic All-District 7 softball team for the third straight year.
  • Freshman Shelby Smith was named the A.I.I. Conference Freshman of the Year, as well as first team all-conference. Seniors Marley Moehrig and Ashley Winegeart also were named all-conference first team, along with junior Rachel Laird and freshman Savannah Crittenden. Seniors Kristina Droz and Alex Holland were named to the second team.
  • The UHV baseball team earned its first trip to the NAIA Baseball National Championships since the 2010 season.
  • Junior Andre Del Bosque was named the A.I.I. Conference Pitcher of the Year, while senior Ryan Suescun was named to the first team with Del Bosque. Senior Cory Carter was named to the honorable mention team.
  • The UHV men’s and women’s golf team competed in the PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championships for the first time with the men winning the NAIA team division. Heather Shake won the individual title in the Women’s College Division, while the Jaguars finished third as a team behind two NCAA Division I schools.

Student Affairs & Enrollment Management

  • The university had 286 students, the largest number ever, go through the Jaguar Journey new student orientation. Students got to meet their new classmates and learn about the UHV campus, its policies and procedures, and student support services in a fun environment.
  • UHV hosted the inaugural Leadership and Organizational Award Banquet, where 15 student organizations were officially chartered.
  • UHV student leaders Kayla Anderson, Richard Medina, Marina Miller and Jurrell Thomas were selected to attend the annual Texas State University Leadership Conference, where they enjoyed a keynote lecture by Julian Castro, secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the former mayor of San Antonio.
  • UHV hired Dakota Doman as director of student life and services to develop, administer and evaluate policies, programs, procedures and initiatives that support student life and promote student engagement. Michael Wilkinson was named associate director of student life to oversee programming efforts revolving around student activities and organizations, civic engagement, intramural sports, parent programming, student development and leadership, LGBTQ, the jaX the Jaguar mascot program and Jaguar Journey.
  • UHV took over management of the three residence halls in Jaguar Village. Brandon Lee became director of residence life, and Ashley Taylor was named assistant director for programming. These changes allowed the university to offer additional programming and student development activities in order to increase student engagement and retention.
  • Student life activities flourished not just in Victoria, but also in Sugar Land and Cinco Ranch, where students interacted during special faculty lectures, movie nights and Brain Food Breaks.
  • Three student success coaches were hired to assist freshmen and sophomores with planning degrees, choosing majors and creating class schedules. They also serve as mentors, help students connect with university support programs and provide workshops about a variety of subjects including understanding course syllabi, and time and stress management.
  • The Student Success Center, which includes tutoring, writing and testing services, expanded its tutoring hours and added online tutoring through Adobe Connect in order to better serve students at all locations.

Student Leadership Award

UHV honors an outstanding student each year who has demonstrated leadership at the university and in the community. The recipient of the 2013-2014 UHV Student Leadership Award is:

  • Caitlin Bartosh