[VPAAEtal] Schedule of Proposal Defenses & Final Defenses for October 2026

[Academic Affairs]

TO:          All Graduate Faculty and Doctoral Students

FROM:     Dayla Burgin
                 Admissions Supervisor/Doctoral Degree Coordinator

RE:            Schedule of Proposal Defenses & Final Defenses for October 2026

Monday, October 5, 2026, 9:00 am, Zoom, Chad Hunter, Final Defense
Lived Experiences of Retention and Attrition: A Phenomenological Case Study of Earl-Career, Alternatively Certified Teachers and Administrative Support
Major Advisor:  Dr. Elsa Villarreal

Thursday, October 8, 2026, 12:00 pm, Zoom, Lilly Rudin, Final Defense
Sentiment Analysis of Social Agents in Horror Video Games
Major Advisor:  Dr. Salvatore Attardo

Monday, October 12, 2026, 4:00 pm, Zoom, Weiping Lam, Final Defense
The Lived Experiences of Early-Career Bilingual Counselors Navigating Counseling, Supervision, and Artificial Intelligence in Asian American Mental Health Care
Major Advisor:  Dr. Ajitha Kumaran

Tuesday, October 13, 2026, 11:00 am, Zoom, Jill Davis, Final Defense
"What Would George Lucas Do?": The Narrative Gift Cycle and Symbolic Capital Movement in a Platform-Based Fandom Gift Economy
Major Advisor:  Dr. Rebecca Rowe

Thursday, October 15, 2026, 2:00 pm, Zoom, Crystal Hulkewicz, Final Defense
Mathematics Self-Efficacy in Middle School: Examining Variations by Track, Gender, Language, and Elective Choice
Major Advisor:  Dr. Julie Mills

Friday, October 16, 2026, 2:00 pm, Zoom, Zane Brand, Proposal Defense
Take your Time: Speed-Accuracy Instructions and the Response Time-Accuracy Relationship for Eyewitnesses
Major Advisor:  Dr. Curt Carlson
Graduate Council Representative:  Dr. Burchan Aydin

Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 10:00 am, Zoom, Teresa Perez, Final Defense
The Workplace Experiences of Neurodivergent Licenses Professional Counselors
Major Advisor:  Dr. Ajitha Kumaran

Wednesday, October 21, 2026, 11:00 am, Zoom, Lyndsey Norris, Final Defense
The Relationship Between Sugar Dating and Financial Anxiety Among Undergraduate Students at a 4-Year Public University
Major Advisor:  Dr. Anjum Najmi

Thursday, October 22, 2026, 4:00 pm, Zoom, Casey Richards, Final Defense
Exploring Mattering's Impact on Texas Academic Advisors: A Narrative Study
Major Advisor:  Dr. Leslie Ekpe

**If you are a faculty member or a student and want to attend a defense, please contact the Major Advisor

Dayla Burgin, BS

Admissions Supervisor
Doctoral Degree Coordinator

The Graduate School  |  McDowell Business Administration, Room 142

P: 903.886.5167



Mail: P.O. Box 3011, Commerce, TX 75429

Ship: 2600 S Neal Street, Commerce, TX 75428

Students please include your CWID in every email

Apply Texas: ApplyTexas - Applicant Home Page<https://www.applytexas.org/>
Doctoral application
packet:  http://www.tamuc.edu/academics/graduateSchool/documents/doc_packet.pdf



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