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Experience key to West Plains volleyball season
If there is one thing that excites West Plains head volleyball coach Kaitlyn Cornelius about the 2024 season, it's having eight returning starters and three explosive players on the front row. Three years into building her program, Cornelius has West Plains among the best in the state of Texas ... and ready to knock on the door of giving the school their first-ever trip to the Class 4A State Tournament. In 2023, West Plains came within two matches of playing for a berth in the state tournament, falling to Stephenville in the Region I-4A Semifinals. "We are going to have a strong team this year," Cornelius said with the return of senior outside hitter Piper Patterson and junior middle blockers Aaniyah Kitchen and Kynzie Ward.
WT alum makes major gift to support women's golf program
Self-described super-fans of West Texas A&M University women’s athletics have established two new endowments that will provide both support and scholarship dollars for two teams. Rick and Carole Couch have made a gift of $50,000 and a planned gift of $175,000 to establish the Rick and Carole Couch Lady Buff Golf Program Fund, which will enhance player development and help finance trips to tournaments. An additional $175,000 planned gift will create the Couch Volleyball Scholarship Endowment, which provide a minimum $1,000 annual scholarship. Though the gift will support two of WT’s acclaimed women’s sports, the golf team in particular is closest to the Couchs’ heart.
Average WT debt drops 23 percent
The average debt for West Texas A&M University graduates has dropped 23 percent over the past seven years, according to a new study. The debt load also is significantly lower than national and statewide averages. The average debt load for 2023 graduates was $20,655 among students who took out loans, according to data compiled by WT’s Office of Student Financial Services for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s Accountability System. That’s down significantly from an average of $26,908 for 2016 graduates. According to Forbes, the average student loan debt is $28,950 nationwide and $32,295 in Texas.
Newton tabbed WT Employee of the Year
An administrative assistant with "a heart for others" was named West Texas A&M University Employee of the Year during a special celebration. Amy Newton, a five-year WT veteran and senior administrative associate in the Department of Agricultural Sciences in the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, won a cash prize, free parking for a year and more during WT's All-Staff Service Awards June 25 in Legacy Hall inside the Jack B. Kelley Student Center. "I'm very humbled," Newton said. "It's such an honor to be recognized for my work and for caring about my department." Newton was voted Employee of the Year by faculty and fellow staff members amid a field of 11 other employees of the month.
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the Plainview Daily Herald is published in the nation's largest cotton-growing region and on the edge of the nation's heaviest concentration of cattle-feeding and beef-packing operations. The Plainview Daily Herald's site, My Plainview, covers news, sports, entertainment and community interest for the Plainview Texas area
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