I remember sitting in my grandmother’s living room, opening an old box full of small, painted tiles. She used to let me play with them on the floor on the condition that all the tiles went back into the box. She tried to explain the game of Mahjong to me once or twice, but it never stuck in my young brain. I always understood it as a pastime for people who didn’t understand how to open a web browser.  However, Mahjong is not just a game for grandparents anymore. The classic g

Aries: New year, new you! Time to challenge yourself this year in ways you didn’t know you could. Maybe you can go skydiving and then hit up a volcano tour! Oh wait, you might need something more extreme to prove yourself.   Taurus: You’ve always enjoyed the finer things in life, so that’s just what this year will be: fine.  Gemini: You’ve already plugged the latest social events and group gatherings into your Google Calendar, every day of this year has been booked already, l

What if you combined sweeping ambient soundscapes with the denseness and fuzziness of shoegaze? The answer lies in Lovesliescrushing, who has managed to create the perfect marriage between the two over their entire career. One of their best albums, “Xuvetyn,” turns 30 years old in 2026, and I am here to say that it is every bit as forward thinking as it was upon first release.  “Valerian (Her Voice Honeyed)” fades into a song that slides from airiness to deepness like being u

Troy University’s Department of Art and Design held an awards ceremony for the grand opening of the new exhibit in the International Arts Center (IAC): the Senior Thesis Exhibit on Dec. 11. This semester’s showing highlighted works from graduating students of the 2025 fall graduating class.  This exhibit showcases the capstone projects of art and design students in the Huo Bao Zhu Gallery. At the ceremony, the Dean’s Award recipient was Maddie Ashendorf, a senior graphic desi

The show will go on for Troy’s Department of Theatre and Dance as the spring semester takes center stage.  The department’s upcoming productions include "Something Rotten!,” “God of Carnage” and “Art In Motion: An Exhibit of Soul.” Further throughout the semester, spring auditions will take place.   “I think that the audience can expect a range of styles from our upcoming shows,” said Dancer and Costume Shop Assistant Kelsie Williams, who is a senior dance major from Montgome

Each coming New Year is anticipated around the globe with celebrations and long-standing traditions. However, these customs were not always marked by fireworks, countdowns and resolutions.  The earliest recorded New Year celebration dates back to around 2000 BCE in ancient Babylon with the festival of Akitu. This 12-day celebration marked the beginning of the agricultural season and concluded with the crowning of a new king. To gain favor from the gods, citizens made promises

Troy University is set to hold its 53rd annual High School Southeastern United States Concert Band Clinic and Honor Bands (SEUS) on Feb. 5-7. The event is focused  on individual performers who apply and audition to participate in the event.  In previous years, anywhere from 60-90 schools were represented from Alabama and neighboring states. Occasionally, these students even come from other parts of the country.   “This event, like many other events across the country, is desi

Evan Crenshaw is one of the most awarded Trojans from last season, and the awards keep coming in. In the same season where the prolific punter was a finalist for the Ray Guy award and earned Sun Belt Special Teams Player of the Year, Crenshaw was named for the Sporting News All-America First Team.   Soon after his initial selection, Crenshaw was named to the Football Writers Association of America All-America First Team. With his second national honor, Crenshaw became the fir

Troy women’s basketball team moved to 13-3 following back-to-back wins with the help of Fortuna Ngnawo. In the process, Ngnawo picked up her seventh and eighth double-doubles on the season. In addition to her eighth double-double, the Trojans toppled the team who ended their conference championship push last season.  Against Arkansas State, the Cameroon native earned her 18th double-figure scoring performance in the last 19 games. She led all scorers with 21 points while grab

The R. Douglas Hawkins Tower sits on the west side of Veterans Memorial Stadium with every floor of the six-story building offering a unique maze for new visitors. On the third floor sits academic offices and an inconspicuous office, numbered 315.   The office is decorated with old Troy memorabilia, graduation cards from old students and some surprisingly comfortable chairs -- it also boasts a beautiful view looking over campus. Yet the most impressive part of the office is t

Trojans fall to No. 22 Florida State, take on Miami during trip south The Troy men’s tennis team opened its spring season this past Sunday in Florida. The Trojans faced the No. 22 Florida State Seminoles and the Miami Hurricanes.   Against the Seminoles, the Trojans fell 4-0. With the doubles matches, Florida State obtained two wins on both courts one and two. The Trojan pair of junior Luciano Alcocer and sophomore Thiago Drozdowski earned a 6-3 win on court three, but ultima

Troy football was prominently represented in the NFL Wildcard weekend, with some former Trojans advancing even further into the NFL Playoffs.  There were four former Men of Troy who suited up with four different teams. Of the four, three of them saw victories in the opening round of the playoffs.  Javon Solomon made sure to show his roots, as the Buffalo Bills defensive end entered the Jacksonville Jaguars facility proudly wearing a Troy Athletics jacket. Solomon saw limited

Troy men’s basketball took its first loss in conference play last Wednesday to Arkansas State but quickly got back on track with a win over Louisiana on Saturday afternoon.  The two-game road trip began in Jonesboro, Ark., with the Red Wolves. A struggle for most in the 86-74 loss still became an impressive night for Theo Seng. The senior managed 23 points and eight rebounds after making 10 of his 13 shot attempts.  The Trojans struggled to stop the 3-point shooting of the Re

The Troy women's basketball program reached historic heights during the 2025-26 season by shattering several long-standing school records. During a dominant 132-62 victory over Oakwood in mid-December, the team set new program marks for total points, successful 3-pointers, and total assists. This performance fueled the best start in the program's Division I history at 9-1.  Emani Jenkins led this offensive explosion by sinking ten triples, which broke the individual single-ga

The Troy football team announced the hire of Adam Austin as its offensive coordinator to start the new year. Head coach Gerad Parker snagged Austin from Tarleton State, where he led the Texans’ FCS highest-scoring offense.  Through the 2025 season, Tarleton State averaged 42.4 points and 457.6 yards per game. In Austin’s two seasons leading the offense, the Texans averaged 36.6 points per game.  “We couldn’t be more excited to add Adam and Aubri to the Troy football family,”

The Troy soccer team has a new head coach – Jake Wymann. Over the break, Athletics Director Kyle George announced the Trojans would be poaching Wymann from Montevallo.  “Coach Wymann is known as an exceptional leader,” said Chancellor Jack Hawkins, Jr., in a Troy Athletics press release. “He brings a championship-winning mentality rooted in discipline, and I am confident he will bring unprecedented success to our soccer program.”  During seven seasons with the Falcons, Wymann

The Troy University Police Department (TUPD) is testing out new ways artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to keep students safe.   Over the break, TUPD Chief George Beaudry and his staff have been running tests with new software, Coram AI. Coram AI provides software that integrates with TUPD’s Avigilon camera system.  The purpose of the tests is to see if the software can detect guns.  “Currently, we’re testing several cameras at various locations throughout campus,” Be

Troy University recently launched a new Accelerated Master of Science in Nursing (AMSN) program at its Dothan campus, allowing students who hold a bachelor's degree in a non-nursing field to enter and earn an AMSN.  “Troy’s Dothan campus has ample space, resources, and faculty to support this expansion,” said School of Nursing Director Dr. Wade Forehand. “The AMSN track will give potential students a pathway to enter the nursing workforce for the first time while advancing th

Governor Kay Ivey approved the $203,404,327 in funding for Alabama’s first year of the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) after receiving the state’s official award number from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on Dec. 29, 2025.   The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) will be administering the federal funds for the five-year program, which seeks to improve the quality and accessibility of rural health care across the state.   “W

Troy University’s Start Your Business (SYB) Program was recently named one of the top 17 work-based learning programs in Alabama by the Alabama Office of Apprenticeship.  Start Your Business is a comprehensive program designed for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients. The program consists of 20 classes broken into five modules on entrepreneurship, business basics, marketing, finance, and professionalism.   The program, which is part of the Sorrell Colle

Students in the Sorrell College of Business proposed their latest innovations during the 2025 IDEA Bank Business Idea Pitch Competition.  The pitch competition was founded in 2023 and consists of an eight-week-long program over the fall semester. The program contains four training sessions, a workbook to track progress and document ideas, and mentorship pairing.  At the end of the training, students pitch their ideas to a panel of judges for a chance to win seed funding for t

Troy University held an orientation for new or transferring students on Monday, just two days before the beginning of the spring semester.  The event, called Last Chance IMPACT, is a one-day orientation where new students are shown around campus, introduced to their interested departments and allowed time to browse through the options for clubs, organizations and other involvement opportunities. This event is similar to the two-day IMPACT freshman orientation over the summer,

Last semester, a year after being asked to delay his retirement, Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins, Jr. agreed with the Board of Trustees on a retirement date – the end of 2028.   “Serving as Chancellor has been nothing short of the greatest blessing for me and my family,” Hawkins said. “When we arrived here in 1989, we knew this community was special.  “Since the university’s founding in 1887, Troy consistently redefined itself and adapted to the needs of its people. What began as

An update to Troy’s original shuttle app is now in place, bringing improvements for students who rely on the shuttle service. Trip Shot, Troy’s Transportation Services new shuttle app, will help students track the location of shuttles and request rides throughout the day.  Before, students would have to wait and guess the timing of shuttles arriving. Now, Trip Shot will provide that information automatically.  “It'll definitely benefit them with just everyday routes and stuff