Today@Sam Article

CHSS Students Blend Education and Community Impact through Skills Challenge

June 17, 2025
SHSU Media Contact: Campbell Atkins

The pursuit of excellence in higher education is often fueled by opportunities beyond the classroom. A Bearkat’s unique collegiate journey features collaborative projects with real-world players and tangible results that prepare students for their professional aspirations.

“Sam Houston State University is building the Texas workforce,” said Taylor Morrison, SHSU’s community engagement coordinator. “Giving students applied learning experiences both in a curricular and a co-curricular context is essential to their development of understanding personal and social responsibility.”

SHSU’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) strives to encapsulate its broad curriculum with unique community partnerships through an annual student skills challenge. During the Spring ’25 semester, CHSS students devised comprehensive plans to assist local non-profit Good Shepherd Mission with an upcoming expansion effort.

“Our college offers one of the widest arrays of majors of any on campus,” said James Crosby, associate dean of CHSS. “With such a wide variety of disciplines, we know we teach critical skills that are highly desirable across the workforce for our students as well as employers.”

Participating scholars, including junior political science student Timi Akindele, broke into three groups and created detailed proposals to design a tiny home community on a newly acquired plot of land adjacent to the non-profit organization, located in Huntsville.

“Progress is not just about paperwork. It’s important to meet people where they are, learn their perspectives and work for them,” said Akindele, who earned the project’s outstanding individual title as well as a scholarship. “This project opens doors for people in our community, not just students at Sam. It feels good that my work can be used for the betterment of others.”

Akindele’s proposal focused on every aspect of the potential project, including the land development process, grant funding opportunities, examples of successful tiny home communities, relevant city codes and ordinances and the steps needed to move forward in the process.

“I made sure to add in some sustainability features, including rainwater collection for irrigation and solar panels for bathhouses and outdoor lighting,” she said. “Texas gets a lot of sun, so we can let it do some of the work for us.”

The aspiring lawyer had no issue wearing multiple hats throughout the project, but would have to face one of her biggest fears to bring her vision to life. She credits hands-on faculty members like her project advisor, Miriam Akoto, for guiding her through the process.

“I was terrified of public speaking,” said Akindele, who was required to present her proposal in front of Good Shepherd Mission’s Board of Directors. “My advisors and CHSS staff members were my backbone. They helped calm me down and prepare for the speech. Now, I am glad I was able to have the opportunity to face that fear. It gave me more confidence in myself.”

The board was impressed with each presentation and will be using ideas from all of them moving forward. The outstanding team award was presented to Adamari Escobedo, Victoria Camarillo, Meghan Makthepharack and Matthew Neal. Dena Horne served as the team’s faculty advisor.

The spring semester marked just the second year of the CHSS skills challenge. The first pursuit in 2024 included a similar expansion effort in partnership with Huntsville’s SAAFE House, a shelter committed to assisting victims of family violence and sexual assault.

Crosby initially looked to the Center for Community Engagement on campus for partnership ideas. Due to the successful collaboration they arranged with SAAFE House, he did the same in 2025. As it happens, Taylor Morrison has for years worked closely with Good Shepherd Mission and currently sits on their board of directors. Previously, she served as the board’s president.

“We had a generous gift from the community to help us acquire that land, so we needed to start making strides on it,” Morrison said. “This seemed like a perfect opportunity for the mission to partner with CHSS students. The general approach of humanities-based education would help them dig into all the different aspects of the project.”

The perfect marriage allowed the mission to establish a viable plan for the property’s future under newly appointed executive director Monte Robinson while the students benefitted from working relationships with local professionals in fields such as government, real estate, accounting and law. They also forged relationships with faculty advisers within their college they may not typically interact with.

“One of the really beneficial things Dr. Crosby and the advisors brought to the table was the idea of encouraging students to run free with ideas,” Morrison said. “Our students have such a wealth of creativity. Both Monte and I have really seen that as a beneficial aspect to this partnership.”

CHSS also exposes its students to multiple disciplines through a skills workshop during the fall semester, which is organized based on alumni surveys to ensure professional relevance and scope. The recent fall series expanded to five areas of coverage, including critical thinking and communication skills, data analysis and literacy and artificial intelligence in today’s classroom.

“Our idea is to ultimately link those workshops to the skills challenge,” Crosby said. “One of the greatest outcomes is assisting the outside community. It is special to showcase what our students can do.”

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