Christy Titus Archives - Reynolds College Blog

Missouri State University’s Judith Enyeart Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities (RCASH) held its fourth annual Judy Awards May 2, 2025, at The Old Glass Place.

Two women standing at podium during ceremony. — Jennifer Murvin and Dr. Judith Martinez hosted the 2025 ceremony.

The event honors the legacy of Judith Enyeart Reynolds by celebrating the achievements of faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends within the RCASH community.

RCASH Associate Dean Dr. Jake Simmons opened the ceremony, followed by hosts Dr. Judith Martinez and Jennifer Murvin, who announced the 2025 winners. RCASH Dean Dr. Shawn Wahl then presented the Dean’s Awards.

Mock Trial students recognized

For the first time, the Judy Awards recognized a student organization for its achievements. Missouri State’s Mock Trial Team, from the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, received the Dean’s Champion Award.

“The Mock Trial Team is the first student group being recognized with a Judy Award,” Wahl said, adding that the team competes at regional and national levels.

“I am especially proud of our students who compete against larger public and private universities,” he said.

Two staff members merit recognition

Another first this year was to recognize two Staff Impact Award recipients instead of one. The awards went to Christy Titus of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice and James Chang from the Department of English.

“The Staff Impact Awards recognize outstanding Reynolds College staff who focus on building and maintaining conditions of excellence for students and faculty,” Wahl said. “Christy and James are both deserving of this special recognition.”

English department wins award of distinction

The awards ceremony concluded with the Department of English receiving the Dean’s Award of Distinction for excellent performance as an academic unit over the past year.

“The English Department continues to raise the bar with high quality research and teaching innovation, including graduate program expansion,” Wahl said. “In addition, the department maintains robust dual credit offerings.”

Awards commemorate Reynolds’ legacy

Named in honor of Reynolds, a dedicated staff member and role model for many years in the English department, the Judy Awards cover a variety of contributions to the college, ranging from traditional awards in teaching, research and service to those that recognize collaboration and other efforts that highlight the pillars of the University’s public affairs mission.

Except for the Dean’s awards categories, winners were nominated either by their peers or self-nominated, then selected by representatives from each academic department serving on the Judy Awards selection committee.

Expanded training, smaller groups for 2024 camp

According to assistant professor Dr. Samantha Tjaden, camp organizers used what they learned from the 2023 camp to base the 2024 experience on what students want to learn.

“We have added more hands-on experiences to our camp from last year,” Tjaden said. “For example, we were very lucky to have Springfield Police Department investigators come share their experiences with our campers this year. We have also evolved the blood spatter component of our camp to include Luminol.”

“Both years that we have had the CSI camp have been an amazing experience but—like anything—we are learning and adapting to the needs of our campers,” she added.

Teacher explains a procedure to a student

Kamina Andrisevic listens as Dr. Tjaden explains fingerprinting techniques.

Ideas for 2025 camp in the works

Tjaden is not only one of the camp faculty instructors, she also serves on the planning committee with fellow camp instructor Dr. Michael Kyle. Tjaden lends her professional expertise and assists with content delivery and development.

“Professors Kyle and Tjaden are superb at connecting and building rapport with high schoolers, and they both have a wonderful ability to explain complex aspects of forensics in very down-to-earth ways,” said Dr. Brett Garland, head of the criminology and criminal justice school.

Camp organizers are already planning more techniques and topics for 2025, according to Garland.

“I’m looking forward to us integrating more on the search and seizure and interrogation side—since both are critically important to successful investigations—and maybe running interactive scenarios in those areas,” he said.

Fourth annual Judy Awards celebrate Reynolds College excellence