Office of Communications

Contact: Amy Houle

Communications Specialist

Office: (817) 531-7521

ahoule@txwes.edu

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TEXAS WESLEYAN STUDENTS SELECTED AS HATTON W. SUMNERS SCHOLARS

Tiara Nugent, Martin Garcia and Tiffany Hanzik, students at Texas Wesleyan University, have received the Hatton W. Sumners Scholarship. This generous scholarship is given on behalf of the Hatton W. Sumners Foundation to foster the development of citizen scholars and citizen leaders. The scholarship also provides a number of enrichment activities, including private access to speakers at the Hatton W. Sumners Distinguished Lecture Series; participation in a variety of public policy, leadership and civic participation programs; and access to several educational and internship opportunities in Washington, D.C.

Tiara Nugent, a native of Burleson who was home-schooled, has worked in two elementary schools’ before- and after-school programs for three years. She is currently a Dean’s List student at Texas Wesleyan, where she is majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing and a minor in Spanish. Nugent is a staff writer and photographer for Texas Wesleyan’s campus newspaper, The Rambler, and tutors classmates. Nugent is a member of Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society and has been published in Aries, Texas Wesleyan’s national literary journal. Her community service includes Vacation Bible School Teacher, and teacher in eight Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP) Children's Institutes, four overseas in Singapore and Malaysia and four in Texas. Nugent plans to teach English and writing after graduating from Texas Wesleyan in 2008.

Martin Garcia graduated from Birdville High School in 2005, where he played varsity baseball and was a member of the National Honor Society and Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA). He is currently a Dean’s List student at Texas Wesleyan, where he is majoring in English with a concentration in literature. Garcia is a member of Alpha Lambda Delta Honor Society, Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity and Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society. His community service includes serving as Mexico Mission Trip Leader and assisting the elderly with home repairs. Garcia plans to attend law school after graduating from Texas Wesleyan in 2009.

Tiffany Hanzik graduated from Arlington High School in 1999 and received an associate’s degree from Tarrant County College. She is currently a Dean’s List student at Texas Wesleyan, where she is majoring in paralegal studies. Hanzik plans to attend law school after graduating from Texas Wesleyan in 2009. She is the daughter of Vanessa McCauley, and the granddaughter of Buddy Seay and the late Dearl McCauley and Carolyn McCauley.

Hatton W. Sumners represented Texas in the United States Congress from 1913 until his voluntary retirement in 1947. Established in 1949, the Hatton W. Sumners Foundation is dedicated to the study and teachings of the science of self-government, to the development of leaders with a sense of community responsibility, and to the maintenance of the American constitutional principles and the quality of life afforded under those principles. In support of this policy, the Foundation established an endowed scholarship program at Texas Wesleyan in 1994.