– “It was like trying out a new job every day from behind the camera.”
– “We have so many untold stories, and that’s the great part about this show.”
– “Anybody who knows Aggieland knows that there are special people here and we’re happy to be able to share and educate people about what’s going on.”
– “We serve the community, and they’re the voices.”
“Texas A&M Today” — a KAMU-TV original program — aired its second season in Fall 2023. Full of new knowledge, interesting research and heartfelt stories, our goal with this second installment was to give viewers a deep, meaningful glimpse into their favorite university.
You can watch both seasons anytime on PBS.org or our YouTube channel. And starting March 16, we are re-airing each episode from Season 2 on Saturdays at 6 p.m. To celebrate the show going back on air, we asked the crew about their favorite segments and what they learned from the process of making Season 2.
Chelsea Reber ’10
Host of “Texas A&M Today”
Favorite Segment: Texas A&M’s Sensory Lab and Imaginary Maps Collection
The Brazos Valley normally hears Bryan-native and A&M graduate Chelsea Reber on the radio as co-host of “The Infomaniacs” on WTAW. But for us, she stepped in front of the camera to serve as the face of our show.
It was hard for Chelsea to pick her favorite segments from Season 2. Thinking back, the Imaginary Maps Collection story — one of the first segments the crew shot — stands out as a favorite.
“I think that if you’ve watched any kind of television program, read a book or seen a movie, you would probably recognize a map that they have in that collection,” Chelsea said. “It was something that everyone could relate to in some way, and that was really neat.”
Another segment stood out to Chelsea in the same way it may stand out to viewers — trying new foods is always fun!
“I really liked the sensory lab segment because I got to eat!” Chelsea said. “It was really interesting learning about the process that it takes to make food and drink better for the average consumer.”
Although she was born and raised in Aggieland, Chelsea is still learning about her university every day.
“We have so many untold stories and that’s the great part about this show,” Chelsea said. “It’s a good reminder that there are still so many stories to tell.”
Jaime Muñoz ’06
Associate Director of Content Production
Favorite Segment: Nautical Archeology
Jaime Muñoz was born and raised in Corpus Christi, Texas, and graduated from A&M in 2006 with a degree in political science. Before coming to KAMU in April 2021, he worked for H-E-B as a senior media producer.
Jaime’s favorite segment was the nautical archaeology story, which highlighted a special program with nationwide impacts.
“It was pretty cool that the Historical Society of Savannah enlisted Texas A&M for the restoration of the cannons,” Jaime said. “We’re College Station. You would think a coastal team or coastal restoration company would take over that. I thought it was pretty cool that they allow students to … get that hands-on experience.”
This segment involved a bit of traveling for the crew — all the way to Georgia.
“Going to Savannah, the first time getting the team to travel and figure that stuff out was pretty cool,” Jaime said. “Teaching them how to do that, travel with gear, the logistics, hotel stays and all of that.”
As director of “Texas A&M Today,” Jaime’s role involved not only making sure the production team got the perfect shot but also that they became better filmmakers along the way.
“When we’re all on set together and everything’s clicking, that’s kind of my proudest moment,” Jaime said. “It was a lot of hard work especially for a small and mighty team.”
Bobby Etheridge
Multimedia Production Specialist
Favorite Segment: History and Future of Aggieland’s Music Scene
Originally from Killeen, Texas, Bobby is one of our production specialists. The Prairie View A&M grad has been on the KAMU team for three years.
Bobby either filmed or edited almost every story from “Texas A&M Today,” but his favorite segment from Season 2 focused on the legacy of Aggieland’s music scene.
This segment involved a trip to interview half of the music duo Surfaces — Colin Padalecki, a Texas A&M former student whose songs have topped the charts since his departure from Aggieland.
“I enjoyed meeting with Colin and hearing the music he had,” Bobby said. “He’s very chill, he’s super creative and very talented.”
Bobby also visited the race track to showcase the Texas A&M Society of Automotive Engineers.
“That was pretty cool, just seeing them actually race the car that they had,” Bobby said. “I kind of wanted to ask, ‘Hey, could I take it for a ride really quick, just go around the track?’ It was just really fun.”
Bobby says Season 2 taught him how to showcase the human element in all of his projects.
“We’re telling stories about real life people who are doing things that matter and are important,” Bobby said. “And I think that’s something that we can carry into everything we do.”
Christian Hamilton
Production and Content Coordinator
Favorite Segments: Texas A&M’s Biodiversity Collections and Fish Genetics
Christian has been on the KAMU team for almost two years after studying journalism at the University of North Texas and spending three years as a news producer in Texas and Tennessee.
It was a hard choice between all the fantastic stories in Season 2, but the segment featuring the university’s Biodiversity Collections — which included five professors who collect different kinds of natural history specimens — stands out to Christian.
“It was so interesting to talk to the different curators,” Christian said. “[They were all] doing different things but were all very passionate about it.”
Christian worked as lead producer on each story of “Texas A&M Today.” The Fish Genetics segment was another that was special to him.
“[Dr. Gatlin] was so nice, and that was the most producer-y that I felt,” Christian said. “Talking Chelsea through what we needed and asking follow up questions … I felt like I really got to flex my creative producer muscle with that story.”
Christian has multiple upcoming projects outside of “Texas A&M Today” and there is one lesson from the show that he plans to carry with him.
“It was so cool to meet a bunch of people who were passionate about what they do,” Christian said. “It’s our job to bring out that passion and to make things that may seem mundane into things that are really interesting and exciting.”
Zaria White ’23
Program Coordinator
Favorite Segments: History and Future of Aggieland’s Music Scene and Nautical Archeology
Zaria is a Texas A&M former student who started at KAMU in June 2022 as a student production assistant. Originally from Douglasville, Georgia, her first trip to Texas was her move-in day as a freshman Aggie and she went on to study telecommunications and journalism.
Two stories that stood out to Zaria focused on Aggieland’s music scene and Texas A&M’s nautical archeology efforts.
“For the music story, the people that we interviewed were really cool, and I think it’s going to be a really cool piece to look back at,” Zaria said. “With the nautical archeology story, when I rewatch the show, that is the first thing that I see and it’s just so stunning to me. I think that piece just looks really beautiful.”
These stories had a great impact on Zaria and they make her appreciate her alma mater even more.
“If you’re a fan of Texas A&M, a fan of College Station, a fan of Texas, a fan of people doing cool things, then I think you should watch the show,” Zaria said. “Working on the show was like trying out a new job every day from behind the camera.”
Lance Cook ’21
Multimedia Production Specialist
Favorite Segment: Honey Bee Research
Lance recently left KAMU for an opportunity at Florida State University and we wish him the best. Originally from Austin, he worked at KAMU for almost three years after studying telecommunications at A&M.
Lance filmed in a lot of unique environments as part of the “Texas A&M Today” production team, but one in particular was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“I really liked the honey bee research segment because it was just really cool getting to film for it and being in the bee suit,” Lance said. “At first I was nervous to get stung, but then I was like ‘Oh okay, they’re friendly.’”
Lance also appreciated the experience that filming in Savannah gave him and the production team.
“Traveling for the nautical archeology piece was a cool chance to see how Aggies aren’t just making a difference in College Station, and we really got to show that,” Lance said.
Lesley Henton ’96
Director of University Relations
Favorite Segment: Nurse-Family Partnership
From San Diego, California, Lesley graduated from Texas A&M with a degree in journalism, then worked for local media before taking on the role of Director of University Relations. Lesley worked as an associate producer for “Texas A&M Today.”
Lesley’s favorite segment from Season 2 highlights an impactful program from the Texas A&M School of Nursing. She believes it is filling “such a critical need in the community” and was incredibly touching to her as a mother.
One of Lesley’s favorite parts of the segment was meeting 2-year-old Rakhi and her family.
“She’s just so smart and sweet and cute, and you could tell that she was benefiting from the nurse that came over,” Lesley said. “To get to meet the parents and talk to them about how the program has impacted their lives and their family, it was all just very moving.”
Learning more about special programs like the Nurse-Family Partnership is just one reason why viewers should tune in to Season 2.
“There’s really magical things that are going on here at the university,” Lesley said. “Anybody who knows Aggieland knows that there are special people here … and we’re happy to be able to share and educate people about what’s going on.”
