Nancy Gaertner Performing Arts Endowed Scholarship

This endowment was established in honor of Nancy Gaertner, former First Lady of Sam Houston State University, to provide financial assistance to students in the performing arts. In addition to serving as the First Lady of Sam Houston State University for nine years, Nancy Gaertner has provided service to the communities where she and her husband, Jim, have lived. Before her retirement, she taught all subjects in elementary school and worked with all types of students with varying abilities, from struggling readers to gifted math students. However, most years were spent teaching fourth grade math and science. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University at South Bend and took classes at Sam Houston State, Texas A&M University and the University of Notre Dame. Gaertner was chosen as the Curington Elementary School Teacher of the Year (Boerne) in 1989. She also organized and led an environmental club for many years. Under her leadership, the students built a reading garden, a butterfly garden, and implemented a school-wide recycling program, among other environmental activities. She and a co-teacher also piloted a National Geographic program that connected her classroom with classrooms throughout the world. Gaertner had been involved in many Huntsville community activities including the Wynne Home Art Center, CASA of Walker County, Boys and Girls Club, Walk Across Texas initiative, and the American Heart Association, for which she chaired the American Heart Walk. She is on the boards of Friends of the Library, Huntsville Youth Orchestra, and the Huntsville Memorial Hospital. She has volunteered in many university activities such as mentoring at the SAM Center and serving the University Wellness Committee. She helped organize and chaired the “Let’s Talk” event, which has raised thousands of dollars for the university’s Honor College, and the annual Fall Festival for members of the university community and their children, held each year at the Gibbs Ranch. Her hobbies include traveling, music, and fitness activities. She is well known for her love of nature and the outdoors. She is very proud of her family, which includes three children, Scott, Denise and Amanda, and two grandchildren, Riley and Cody.