new major gift from traci and curtis samford establishes geosciences career centerturning dreams into reality for texas a&m geosciences a gift from traci 11 and curtis samford 83 will impact generations of geosciences studentsaug 26 2020traci 11 and curtis samford 83 at kyle field (photo courtesy of the samfords)the samford family celebrating at a texas a&m aggie ring day (photo courtesy of the samfords)making the leap from college graduate to successful professional can be full of challenges from navigating interviews to landing a job to learning a companys culture and transitioning to life after college generations of texas a&m university college of geosciences former students have taken on world-changing careers with unique difficulties and opportunities and now thanks to a major gift from two former students todays aggies will have access to expansive and accessible career preparation services and support a generous recent gift from traci 11 and curtis samford 83 has officially established the traci ‘11 and curtis samford ‘83 geosciences career center which will be a newly renovated physical space in the eller o&m building and will serve as a satellite of the texas a&m career center we are excited for this opportunity to give back to texas a&m curtis samford said this opportunity to help students find a way to the next level in their life after college to take that next step that was very meaningful to us to help contribute to students success the center will be located on the first floor of the o&m building and construction will begin later this year it will also serve as the base of operations for the geosciences associate director of career services who will lead operations of the center i am just grateful beyond words for the vision and generosity of traci and curtis samford said dean of the college of geosciences dr debbie thomas their gift is an investment in the future careers of our students and could not have come at a more critical time a vision for the future geosciences leadership envisioned the center as a powerful way to leverage its strength as a small college providing students with the unparalleled resources to immediately connect the skills and knowledge they gain in geosciences degree programs to their future careers its very clear to me that dean thomas and the colleges faculty and staff care very much about their students and their success samford said as a member of the college advisory council ive been able to see how much the faculty really care not only that but the colleges focus on excellence in education is also inspiringrenderings of the traci ‘11 and curtis samford ‘83 geosciences career centerthe new center will be on the first floor of the o&m buildingroom 109 in the o&m building will be transformed into a highly collaborative facility dedicated to all dimensions of beyond-the-classroom professional development including internship and career placement when planning the new space the college utilized the architectural rendering software sketch up part of the new trimble technologies lab to envision the center's design and concept this partnership with the texas a&m career center paves the way for the college of geosciences to have a dedicated facility and a dedicated associate director within our own space dean thomas explained we are also deeply grateful for the support of provost fierke joe pettibon and the career center executive director samantha wilson for their support of our strategic vision the geosciences career center is also mission-critical to the colleges goal of leading the nation in broadening and deepening participation in the geosciences she said and it will help recruit students by connecting them to intentional pathways to impactful and rewarding careers this partnership with the tamu career center is a game-changing resource for aggie geoscientists and could not have arisen at a more opportune time for our students and their families helping graduates become successful professionals as they partnered with college leadership on the vision for the career center the samfords drew from their experience of helping their sons transition from texas a&m students to successful professionals in new careers as well as their experiences in recruiting college graduates to their companies as seniors are considering their first career move and looking at opportunities its key to look at the culture of a company: will it be a good fit for you curtis said a lot of students after school focus on prestigious companies or the highest-paying positions and they dont spend enough time looking at the culture of the company and is it the right fit for them curtis samford graduated from texas a&m with a bachelors degree in geophysics in 1984 and he now serves as the president and chief executive officer for afg holdings a private equity backed oem serving the oil and gas industry as well as providing products and services to the broader aerospace/defense and industrial markets traci samford graduated from texas a&m in 2011 with a bachelors degree in accounting and was an accountant for anadarko petroleum corporation for several years before retiring their two sons graduated from texas a&m in 2011 and 2013 even once you get hired its important to remember that you still have a lot to learn traci said your degree gets you in the door the connections you make at texas a&m get you in the door all of that prepares you for the job but youre not done learning – you still have to learn how to apply everything you learned at school and make it work in your job dean thomas said that the new career center will be a visible testament to the samfords investment and the colleges commitment to the power of a texas a&m geosciences degree she also credited former geosciences director of development gary reynolds with partnering with the college and the samfords to make this dream a reality for geosciences students aggie geoscientists will forever associate the samfords with the promise that their hard work and passion will connect them directly to an intensely rewarding career by leslie lee 09