|
|
 |
Spreading the word
 |
MAN ON A MISSION—Humanitarian
and former NBA star Manute Bol encourages students to “write
your congressmen, your senators, the President, the governor”
about worldwide inaction on genocide in his native country, southern
Sudan, during a meeting with Dr. Doug Heffington’s “Introduction
to Cross-Cultural Experiences” Global Studies class. MTSU’s
South Sudanese Student Organization helped bring Bol to campus March
22 and 23 to raise awareness of the plight of the central African
nation. For more information on how to help, go to www.manute-bol.com.
photo by Ken Robinson |
‘Tennessee’s Best’ – Plan accents
academic quality
Click to enlarge |
click to enlarge |
| ADS UNVEILED—MTSU’s
Department of Publications and Graphics designed these two ads for
the new “Tennessee’s Best” recruiting campaign. |
by Doug Williams
MTSU has begun looking into its future and has determined it needs to
“raise the bar” to fulfill its unique role in higher education
in Tennessee, said President Sidney A. McPhee.
“As we approach our centennial, we are taking this opportunity to
look at our past, our future and what this university means to the state
of Tennessee,” McPhee said.
“Three semesters ago, MTSU became the No. 1 choice of undergraduate
students in Tennessee. We have a number of signature programs, and the
yearly economic impact MTSU provides to the regional economy is nearly
$700 million.
“We plan to become the university known to be more concerned about
issues regarding retention, student advising and graduation rates than
national rankings. Our goal is not only to provide the best faculty and
programs, but also to take a very active role and responsibility in seeing
that students are successful in their college careers,” the president
continued.
“During the next five years, before our centennial celebration, Middle
Tennessee State University is dedicated to being Tennessee's best comprehensive
university.”
For much of the last decade, MTSU ranked as the No. 1 choice of valedictorians
and salutatorians in the Midstate. Last year, MTSU's entering freshman
class averaged 22.3 on the American College Test (ACT), which is above
state and national averages.
But those scores are not enough, according to McPhee. Currently, MTSU's
retention rate for students completing their freshman year is 73 percent,
and the graduation rate is 43 percent. Both numbers need to improve if
MTSU is to be the best public university in Tennessee, he said.
This heightened emphasis on academic quality is central to the university's
10-year academic master plan, said Provost and Executive Vice President
Dr. Kaylene Gebert.
“The Academic Master Plan places an emphasis on recruiting students
of high academic promise and the faculty's deep commitment to excellence
in teaching,” Gebert said. “One of the reasons that students
come to MTSU is the faculty's willingness to be involved with every student
and to have high expectations.
“Increasing the retention and graduation rates will certainly be
a challenge, but [it is] one that I feel our faculty is capable of handling.”
For the past two years, MTSU's admissions office has been restructuring
its enrollment management plan, said Dr. Bob Glenn, vice provost of enrollment
management and vice president of student affairs.
“MTSU has had a healthy growth pattern during the past decade, and
we are now taking measures to manage our enrollment,” Glenn said.
“Because we now have higher expectations for our students, we have
increased our admissions requirements. Our goal is to provide access to
students who have a serious desire to receive a quality education.”
The university has produced a series of broadcast and print ads and will
contact students through direct mail to make them aware of MTSU's desire
to increase academic performance. The campaign to recruit the top students
in the state will be called “Tennessee's Best. “
Total enrollment at MTSU for fall 2004 was 22,322, which included 20,288
undergraduates and 3,143 first-time freshmen. Ninety-eight percent of
entering freshmen qualified for the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship
Program.
Raider Reps’ spirit energizes campus tours
‘TO THE WEST IS THE JUB’—Raider
Rep Ashley Dove, in white and blue jacket, leads a campus tour group
of parents and prospective students.
photo by Ken Robinson |
by Randy Weiler
Senior Chris Carnett loves being a Raider Rep, helping prospective students
and their parents and friends feel at home when they take a campus tour.
“I’ve been doing it two, two-and-a-half years,” Carnett,
an aerospace (pro pilot) major from Memphis, said. “I always enjoy
the opportunity to meet new people.
“I tell people things I wish they’d (MTSU tour guides) told
me or showed me when I first came to campus.”
Carnett said high school juniors and seniors feel intimidated when visiting
a large campus, especially one with a fall enrollment of 22,323, and deciding
on their educational home for the next four or five years.
“The kids are still a little bit scared and nervous,” he said.
“It can be so different than high school. It’s hilarious to
watch the interaction between children and parents.
“It’s important to chill ‘em out and show everything
we have to offer. I try to get them comfortable and then hit them with
some of the big things we have.”
Carnett is only one of 50 Raider Reps working under the guidance of Kris
Hawkins, assistant director, admissions, who is in the midst of recruiting
future Raider Reps.
“We have quite a few applications in at this point,” Hawkins
said. “We will do interviews at the March and will continue into
April.”
Actually, current students can apply year-round online by going to the
Web site at www.mtsu.edu/~reps.
Hawkins said she also is considering “setting up in KUC right outside
the Grill and catching people we aren’t catching, and maybe advertising
in Sidelines.”
She said that she hopes future Raider Reps will exhibit the same enthusiasm
that the current group has for promoting MTSU.
“We’ve got a really good group of students right now,”
she said. “We took in a couple of freshmen at the end of last year
(fall semester). We usually don’t take freshmen, but the ones we
took are really excited about giving tours.
“I have been so impressed for them to be able to do this so well.
They are involved with other things, but they’re anxious to give
tours. It has been good for the reps we already have. The freshmen are
the young blood—about getting other people excited.”
Spring becomes a busy time for the Raider Reps and admissions office.
Thousands of high-school students visit during the TSSAA girls’ and
boys’ state basketball tournaments, and another large batch of prospective
students visit during their school systems’ spring breaks.
“It’s just wild,” Hawkins said. “Everybody wants to
come and visit. We encourage people to make early reservations, and we
try to keep tour groups at 20 (people) or less. Fridays and Mondays are
the busiest days for us. It’s easier for people to get off from work
and take long weekends (to visit).”
Hawkins said she highly encourages current students and MTSU faculty and
staff to talk to the tour groups.
“We encourage any kind of positive comments to welcome those tour
groups,” she said.
“In our evaluations (received from visitors),” she added, “people
are impressed with MTSU and with the faculty. The housing renovations,
especially Sims and Beasley halls, are exciting to people. People are
excited about MTSU.”
To become a Raider Rep, students must complete an application (online
or brought to CAB 208). They will interview with Hawkins and sometimes
with tour coordinator Betty Pedigo and student workers and then go through
a training process.
Raider Reps are asked to give four tours for a total of approximately
eight hours of work per semester.
For more information, contact Hawkins (khawkins@mtsu.edu) by calling 615-898-5330
or Pedigo (bpedigo@mtsu.edu) at 615-898-5670.
Faculty and staff may also nominate Raider Reps by e-mailing candidates’
names and qualifications to Hawkins.
For the Record
Meeting challenge of growth, quality is centennial
key
McPHee |
As MTSU approaches its centennial, we are taking this opportunity to
look at our past, our future and what this university means to the state
of Tennessee. In its earliest days, MTSU was a teachers’ college,
and we still educate more teachers working in our state than any university.
Now, almost 100 years later, MTSU has grown in size, in the scope of its
academic mission and has significantly improved the quality of its academic
program offerings. If one walks through the quadrangle next to Peck Hall,
there are mature trees, some grown from walnuts gathered at Mount Vernon,
George Washington’s home in Virginia. Like those trees, MTSU has
matured, filling a unique role in this great state of Tennessee.
There are many reasons why I believe this is the case.
For over a decade, our enrollment growth has been unmatched by any university
in the state. Our enrollment currently stands at 22,000-plus students
enrolled in a wide range of programs from undergraduate to doctoral levels.
Three semesters ago, we became the No. 1 choice of undergraduate students
in the state of Tennessee.
MTSU has a number of signature programs, including accounting, aerospace,
recording industry, equine studies, industrial/organizational psychology,
business, teacher training, mass communication, historic preservation
and biotechnology. These programs have garnered national and international
recognition.
Our research efforts are increasing with excellent results. We will continue
to cultivate this important area because research is an organized and
systemic way for faculty and students to find answers to new questions.
Taking part in research helps make MTSU a vital partner with business
and industry.
MTSU is an economic engine for Middle Tennessee and spending associated
with the university produces thousands of jobs and millions of dollars
for the local economy. The yearly economic impact MTSU provides to the
regional economy is nearly $700 million.
For much of the last decade, MTSU has been the leader in educating the
best and brightest students in Middle Tennessee and has ranked as the
No. 1 choice of valedictorians and salutatorians.
The university has put a new emphasis on recruiting national achievement
finalists and national merit finalists. Our Honors College provides these
talented students with the atmosphere of a small select college and provides
an education that rivals many of the top private schools.
The university’s academic master plan for the next decade calls for
a focus on enhancing academic quality, forging partnerships with business
and industry and creating a student-centered environment.
During the next five years, before our centennial celebration, Middle
Tennessee State University is dedicated to being Tennessee’s best
comprehensive university.
We hope to become the university known to be more concerned about issues
regarding retention, student advising, and graduation rates than national
rankings. Our goal is not only to provide the best faculty and programs,
but to also take a very active role and responsibility in seeing that
students are successful in their college careers.
Dr. Sidney A. McPhee is president of Middle Tennessee State University.
Apigian named top business prof
by Tom Tozer
Apigian |
Dr. Charles Apigian, assistant professor, computer information systems,
has been elected “Outstanding Professor in the College of Business,”
a recognition sponsored annually by Gamma Iota Sigma, the honorary insurance
fraternity. Only juniors and seniors were eligible to vote.
In a letter of commendation to Apigian, senior Paige Shipp, GIS president,
wrote that his selection was indicative “of a sincere interest in
students and of efforts to provide them with a relevant and contemporary
educational experience. It is an expression of appreciation for service
to our college and its student body.”
“Dr. Apigian is devoted to the students and his profession,”
added Dr. Ken Hollman, Martin Chair of Insurance and GIS faculty adviser.
“He is well prepared, current in his field and relates extremely
well to today’s student.”
“I would like to thank the students who voted for me,” Apigian
responded. “I truly love what I do, and I hope that shows in the
classroom.”
Apigian’s teaching philosophy may explain, in part, his popularity
among business students. He is an advocate of bringing real-world experience
into the classroom to teach the skills that will give students a competitive
advantage in industry.
“I feel it my obligation and pleasure to go beyond basic topics and
help students develop the necessary skills to be successful in today’s
business environment—skills such as time management, working in groups,
critical business decision making and responsibility,” he stated.
Apigian has a bachelor’s degree from Bowling Green (Ohio) State University
and master’s from Wayne State University (Detroit). He received his
doctorate from the University of Toledo (Ohio). Before coming to MTSU
in 2002, he was vice president of Concord Precision, an auto supplier
in Detroit.
“The students in our fraternity and I feel that naming an outstanding
professor each year is a way to provide psychological encouragement to
the faculty for doing a good job,” Hollman said.
Patterson earns ’05 Pleas Award
by Randy Weiler
AWARD WINNER — Dr. John Pleas presents
Dr. Pat Patterson, chemistry, with the John Pleas Faculty Award for
outstanding teaching, research and public service.
photo by Ken Robinson |
Dr. Pat Patterson is the recipient of the 2005 John Pleas Award for outstanding
teaching, research and public service.
Patterson, associate professor, chemistry, received the honor March 15
at the Alumni Center from the African-American History Month Committee
.
“I’m not a national figure,” said Patterson, a member of
the College of Basic and Applied Sciences faculty, in accepting the award.
“I enjoy teaching. I enjoy working with people. I enjoy having fun.
I do ordinary things”
“I always watched my mentors,” added Patterson. “If it
worked for them, I’d try it. I’m always watching people. I want
to grow and learn more.”
One of her nominators was Dr. Earl Pearson, chair, chemistry, who said,
“Dr. Patterson was hired to develop an expertise in science education
and to teach the physical science methods course for elementary and middle
school science teachers. Her course is highly sought out by students and
generally fills very quickly.
“She has a hands-on, minds-on approach to teaching. Students prepare
to teach while in her class and leave the course with materials that make
the first teaching assignment easy. Dr. Patterson has developed new materials
and an innovative approach to this course.”
Pearson, an educator for five decades, said Patterson “engages students
better than anyone I have observed. Her classes are filled with student
activity, questions and teamwork. She is a model teacher.”
“Dr. Patterson has and continues to go beyond the call of duty in
the areas of service, education research and teaching,” Barbara Knox,
program coordinator, Tennessee Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation,
wrote in her recommendation of Patterson.
Patterson, whose husband, Dwight, also is an associate professor in chemistry,
has been an associate professor since Aug. 1, 1998. She has been involved
in many community and university service projects, including charter member
and secretary of the Tennessee Science Olympiad Board of Directors, MTSU
Science Olympiad regional director since fall 2001 and faculty adviser
for the MTSU National Science Teachers Student Chapter. In August 2002,
she received the MTSU universitywide award for excellence in teaching.
The John Pleas Faculty Award, first presented in 1996 to MTSU’s Dr.
John Pleas, professor of psychology, is awarded to a minority faculty
member who has set a standard of excellence and contributed in significant
ways to the university and community.
Music faculty, guests plan April 6 recital
by Tim Musselman
Samis |
MTSU adjunct faculty cellist Michael Samis and seven other assisting
artists will present a free concert at 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 6. in the
Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
Samis said the recital by music faculty and guest artists will explore
several points along the historical journey of the dance.
“The first half juxtaposes two dance suites—one of Matthew Locke
for four viols from the pinnacle of 17th century English consort music
and one of Johann Sebastian Bach for solo cello,” he explains.
Samis says the program will continue with “Pampeana” for cello
and piano by Alberto Ginastera, which imitates the native rhythms and
dances of the Pampas region of the composer’s homeland, Argentina.
Concluding the recital, the performers will feature one of Mozart’s
three final “cello” string quartets. These works are known as
such because of their pioneering use of the cello as a melody instrument,
notes Samis, who adds that these pieces also “find the dance form
at its height of polish and refinement.”
“The grouping of these four pieces, each in its unique style, reminds
me of how profoundly the evolution of dance and dance form has affected
the motion and power of music over the centuries,” he adds.
The April 6 recital will also feature MTSU music faculty members James
Douglass (piano) and Sarah Cote (viola), as well as guest performers Zeneba
Bowers (violin), Keiko Nagayoshi (violin), Sarah Page (viola da gamba),
David Vanderkooi (viola da gamba) and Christopher Stenstrom (viola da
gamba).
For more information, please contact the music school at MTSU at 615-898-2493.
Children’s literature program grows up
 |
MAKING PLANS—Master’s candidate
Rachel Robinson, left, discusses the upcoming children’s literature
conference with Drs. Ellen Donovan, center, and Martha Hixon. The
sixth biennial event, sponsored by MTSU, is set March 31-April 2 in
Nashville at the Doubletree Inn.
photo by Ken Robinson
|
by Laura Beth Jackson
Some say that folklore, fairy tales and happily-ever-afters are for kids.
But ask Drs. Martha Hixon, Ellen Donovan or Jennifer Marchant and they’ll
tell you another story.
These three teachers aren’t your parents’ English professors.
All three teach courses in children’s literature at MTSU along with
their other literature classes, and on Thursday, March 31, through Saturday,
April 2, they will be directing the sixth biennial Modern Critical Approaches
to Children’s Literature (MCACL) conference sponsored by MTSU.
There are five to 10 universities in the nation that offer programs in
children’s literature, and it is more of a novelty than a normality
for university English departments to have professors who are certified
in children’s literature.
While MTSU does not offer graduate degrees in children’s literature,
the English department offers three separate undergraduate courses, including
“Children’s Literature,” “Adolescent Literature”
and a special topics course.
“A History of Children’s Literature” is offered to grad
students, and as of this fall, a second graduate course will be offered
in special topics. An increasing number of English students also are writing
their master’s theses on children’s books.
“We have always taught children’s literature in our department,”
Donovan, director of lower-division English, said. “I was hired because
of the demand for the courses. Dr. Tim Wolfe was hired to develop the
program. We realized that we were an unusual institution because of all
of our interests in the field.”
Hixon, who received her doctorate in children’s literature from the
University of Southwestern Louisiana, noted that studies in children’s
literature have developed primarily in the last 20 years. Schools like
Hollins University in Virginia began offering courses in children’s
lit and encouraged others to do the same.
Hixon also said that with books like the Harry Potter series, more people
are beginning to stand up and take notice of the potential of children’s
literature.
“‘Harry Potter’ gained national recognition for children’s
literature,” said Hixon. “Because of its phenomenal success,
people pay more attention to children’s literature. More celebrities
think they can write a children’s book. ‘Harry Potter’
even caused the New York Times to establish a separate best sellers list
for kids.”
But just because children’s books have come to the forefront of pop
culture doesn’t mean that the classes are just “kiddy lit.”
“Most people tend to not think of children’s lit as literature,”
said Marchant, who received her doctorate in children’s literature
from Illinois State University. “It’s marginalized like female
writers and color literature. It is literature, and it has an enormous
impact on how we think and on our culture.”
“I want my students to take children seriously as readers,”
added Donovan. “It’s not just a pragmatic, aesthetic and human
endeavor so we can see what we can offer children. It’s to respect
the book that gives them complex aesthetic and psychological experiences.”
Marchant said that every semester, she gives skeptical students a quick
reality check as to the impact of children’s literature in culture.
“I say, ‘How many of you really believe that one day your prince
will come?’” she laughed. “I always see a bunch of hands
start slowly creeping up.”
Rachel Robinson, an English graduate student, is currently writing her
master’s thesis on themes in Lois Lowry’s books “The Giver,”
“Gathering Blue” and “The Messenger.” Robinson said
that she finds children’s literature fascinating because of how it
shapes the way people think.
“Everyone has read something as a child that made them who they are,”
she said. “I’m interested in how children’s lit molds the
imagination and how we are helping or harming that.”
Robinson noted that the scholarly approach to children’s literature
that she has learned at MTSU has been especially important to her, and
it’s something that she hopes to pursue in a doctoral program.
“[The professors] are really good scholars in their field,”
she said. “They’ve helped expose me to different aspects of
children’s lit and scholarship in the field. There’s not a lot
out there. If you’re researching an author of children’s literature
or something on children’s literature, there’s nothing on it.”
The emphasis on applying academic literary theory to children’s literature
is the focus of the MCACL conference, which will be held at the Doubletree
Inn in Nashville. Begun by former MTSU professor Wolfe in 1993 and continued
by Donovan, it stands out among other conferences of its kind as an opportunity
for scholarly critical study in children’s lit.
Only three other major conferences dealing with children’s literature
occur during the year, and they generally tend to be more pedagogical
in nature.
“We are the only totally scholarly and academic children’s lit
conference,” said Donovan. “Teacher conferences usually use
children’s literature for curriculum, teaching children to read and
discussing the more literary and aesthetic aspects for children. To me,
that’s just one aspect of it.”
At the MCACL, there are no children’s authors or illustrators present
as the special guests. Instead, the conference consists of the presentation
of approximately 96 papers with time allowed for discussion between author
and audience. Guest speakers are literary theorists and specialists in
children’s books.
With the growing popularity of the conference and the addition of new
children’s literature classes, MTSU is filling a unique niche in
the realms of academia. But Donovan, Marchant and Hixon say they realize
that the support and enthusiasm from colleagues and the head of the English
department, Dr. William Connelly, have made their work a success. This
year, several MTSU English faculty, including Drs. Patricia Baines, Robert
Peterson and Bené Cox, will be presenting papers at the conference.
For more information on the conference, visit the Web site at www.mtsu.edu/~english2/mcac.htm.
IT Conference celebrates 10th year
by Randy Weiler
The MTSU Instructional Technology Confer-ence celebrates its 10th anniversary,
growing “to a truly international conference,” Barbara Draude,
ITD’s director of Academic and Instructional Technology services,
said.
“In 2004, we had several participants from outside the country,”
Draude added. “Last year, we dropped the ‘Mid-South’ part
of the name and are calling it the Instructional Technology Conference
because it has more of a global draw to it.
“We have consistently brought in nationally and internationally known
keynote speakers so that people who come stay abreast of newer things
in educational technology.”
This year’s IT Conference, which is being called “Building Communities
of Learners,” will be held April 3-5 primarily in the Keathley University
Center, McWherter Learning Resource Center and the Telecommunications
Training Center. The Doubletree Hotel will be the site for the 7 p.m.
banquet on Monday, April 4.
“This conference is oriented in faculty-to-faculty presentations—people
showing how to use instructional technology in their classrooms,”
Draude said.
“It’s a combination of presentations and hands-on workshops.
Not only are they talking about IT, but they are physically learning how
to use some of the new technologies.”
Van Weigel, professor of ethics and economic development at Eastern University
in St. Davids, Pa., will deliver the banquet address.
Earlier that day, at 8:15 a.m. on April 4, Phillip Long, director, Learning
Outreach, Massachusetts Institute of Technology iCampus, will be the featured
speaker.
At 8:15 a.m. on Tuesday, April 5, Tracy Mitrano, director, IT Policy and
Law Program at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., and co-director, EDUCAUSE/
Cornell Institute for Computer Policy and Law, will be the featured speaker
on the final day of the conference.
“We always try to invite speakers to talk about the application of
instructional technology in higher education, and how universities and
colleges set standards and policies to implement technology for their
institutions,” Draude said. “Phil will talk about new technology,
Tracy will talk about policy and Van is a faculty member who can address
practical issues integrating new technology into teaching.”
Draude added that the conference “continues to be a wonderful opportunity
for MTSU faculty, 100 of whom will receive free registration to continue
their expertise in instructional technology.”
Three hundred to 400 people are expected to attend the conference, Draude
said.
For more information, call 615-904-8111 or visit www.mtsu.edu/~itconf.
‘Dynamics of Elderly Caregiving’ to tackle
critical family issues
by Tom Tozer
It’s an obvious yet elusive premise: The future of effective caregiving
for the elderly in this country hinges upon how much we truly care about
them.
If we care enough, then we will earmark adequate funds, provide dependable
transportation, devise cost-effective ways to adapt living environments,
utilize assistive technologies and respond to the ever-increasing demands
of our older citizens. If we’re brave enough, we’ll even go
with them on an exploration of their spirituality.
We’ll love them to death.
MTSU will join other agencies in the community to sponsor the 11th annual
Dynamics of Elderly Caregiv-ing Conference, 8:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Friday,
April 8, at the St. Clair Street Senior Center in Murfreesboro.
The theme will be “Creating the Future: The Challenge of Caring for
Older Adults.”
Ed Barlow, nationally renowned futurist and president of his own company,
Creating the Future, Inc., will be the keynote speaker.
Breakout sessions will address the latest innovations in caregiving for
older adults.
Other speakers will discuss the challenges of managing older adults, need
for assistive technologies, legal planning and providing transportation
services, among other topics.
The conference fee is $50 per person, which includes materials, snacks
and lunch. To register, call 615-898-5950.
In addition to MTSU, other sponsors include St. Clair Street Senior Center,
Middle Tennessee Medical Center, NHC Healthcare Center, The Alzheimer’s
Association, AARP, Odyssey Health Care, Greater Nashville Area Agency
on Aging and Disability, Veterans Administration, Tennessee Valley HealthCare
System: Alvin C. York Campus and the Rutherford County Council on Aging.
5 art majors honored
MTSU again wins ‘lion’s share’
at 2005 Addys
by Lisa L. Rollins
Five students majoring in art at MTSU received prestigious ADDY honors
for their creative work in graphic design from the Nashville Advertising
Federation (NAF) during a Feb. 25 ceremony at The Frist Center for the
Visual Arts in Nashville.
Each year, the NAF, the local chapter of the American Advertising Federation,
sponsors an awards competition for regional ad agencies and design firms,
and student participation is encouraged. In turn, each year MTSU art students,
with the mentoring and assistance of MTSU art faculty members, compete
in this contest.
MTSU students submitted 20 entries in three categories of this year’s
competition, winning gold and silver in all three categories. Those MTSU
students garnering top ADDY honors are:
• Bryan Kemp of Lebanon, Tenn., winner of Best Design and the Gold
Award in Sales Promotion Packaging for “Industrial Strength,”
a typography booklet. Kemp’s Best Design honor was one of the top
five awards presented at the contest, and he took this honor from a pool
of more than 500 entries.
• Neely Catignani of Knoxville, winner of the Gold Award in the category
of Interactive CD/DVD for “Obsessive Compulsive Disorder,” an
informational CD on the illness.
• Colleen Seigo of Chapel Hill, Tenn., and Ben Rickard of La Vergne,
Tenn., winners of the Gold Award in the Illustration category for “Winter
Syntax,” a collaborative book illustrating the poem of the same title.
• James Walters of Murfreesboro, winner of the Silver Award in the
Brochure/Annual Report category for “Red Hand Annual Report.”
“For the last few years, MTSU art department graphic design majors
have taken the lion’s share of the student division awards,”
said Barry Buxkamper, associate professor of art, regarding MTSU student
participation in the event.
“Being recognized by nationally renowned designers/jurors is a great
incentive for a student preparing to enter the workplace. Although they
are students, the work they do parallels (by categories) that of working
professionals in the competition.”
Nursing faculty donate textbooks to aid tsunami-ravaged
libraries
by Maria A. Smith
Who can forget the Dec. 26, 2004, headlines that highlighted the devastation
in India and Sri Lanka—thousands injured, thousands missing and hundreds
of thousands left homeless?
This vivid picture of death and destruction was unimaginable to most of
us in the United States. The tsunami and earthquakes not only destroyed
homes and businesses but devastated educational institutions as well.
Nursing educational programs were no exceptions, and at a time when there
is a critical shortage of nurses worldwide. MTSU School of Nursing faculty
and members of the Xi Alpha Chapter of Sigma Theta International (nursing
honor society) are working to rebuild the libraries for their fellow nursing
faculty and students who suffered through the loss of institutional and
personal educational nursing books in India and Sri Lanka.
An aggressive campaign was undertaken to solicit nursing textbooks from
faculty and chapter members during the month of February. This resulted
in a total collection of 165 books and 392 journals. School of Nursing
faculty and organization members willingly parted with 15 boxes of the
latest books and journals to give to this worthwhile campaign.
United Parcel Service has offered free warehousing and transportation
of this material from the United States to India. The financial burden
of hundreds of pounds of textbooks and journals would be out of reach
for nursing faculty and the members of the organization without the humanitarian
efforts of UPS.
These books and journals are desperately needed to facilitate the continued
education of nurses in these countries. It is only through the efforts
of everyone that we can hope to help these nursing faculty and students
return to their path of nursing education and help fill the void left
by this catastrophic world event.
Maria A. Smith is a professor in the School of Nursing.
GIS Team #2 takes top Quiz Bowl honors
by Tom Tozer
Gamma Iota Sigma (GIS) Team #2 took first place in the 15th annual Middle
Tennessee State University Scotty Tucker Quiz Bowl competition, co-sponsored
by the GIS Insurance and Phi Kappa Phi Honorary fraternities.
Players on the winning team, trumping a field of 15 other campus clubs
and organizations, were Andriy Koval, Argie Miller, Chans Mysay-phonh
and Jared Stiefel. The Raiders for Rationalism team, composed of Jessica
Causey, Levi Collins, Ben Neals and Timmy Gibson, placed second; and the
team representing the Financial Management Association—Calvin Curd,
Anthony Keller, Thomas Swindle III and Joe Yount—came in third.
The GIS #2 team received a cash prize of $175. The awards for the second-
and third-place finishers were $75 and $50, respectively.
Anne Roquette, a senior majoring in mathematics, emceed the event, which
was staged in the TV studio in the Learning Resources Center.
“The Quiz Bowl is an excellent opportunity for students to celebrate
the intellect—the kind of activity and in a venue of which there
are too few at MTSU,” said GIS adviser Dr. Kenneth W. Hollman. “We
had excellent participation this year. Some of the brightest MTSU students
competed.”
Dr. Raholanda White, BMOM, serves as Phi Kappa Phi adviser.
Scrapbook event benefits Relay for Life
from Staff Reports
Experienced and new scrapbook enthusiasts are invited to MTSU Scrapbook
Day, 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. Saturday, April 9, in KUC 322.
Registration is $15. A portion of the fee, along with a portion of the
Creative Memories Inc. product sales that day, will be donated to the
American Cancer Society (ACS).
The event is an ACS fund-raiser for the MTSU Administrative Services Relay
for Life team. Relay for Life is set April 29-30 at the Oakland High School
football field.
For more information about Scrapbook Day, contact Deborah Roberts (droberts@mtsu.edu)
at 615-898-5781 or Bettye Adams (badams@ mtsu.edu) at 615-898-5016.
3 noted chemists set to appear at MTSU
by Randy Weiler
Three leading national women in science—Valerie Kuck, Ann Nalley
and Jeannette Brown—will appear at MTSU for either National Women’s
History Month (NWHM) or the chemistry department’s annual Golden
Goggles Award.
Kuck (pronounced Cook) will discuss “The Stature of Women in Chemistry:
Are Women Reaching Parity With Men?” at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, March
31, in Davis Science Building Room 100 as part of National Women’s
History Month activities. Kuck is considered a national expert on gender
and the chemistry discipline.
Nalley, president-elect of the American Chemical Society (ACS), will be
recognized on Thursday, April 7, as this year’s Golden Goggles Award
recipient, Dr. Andrienne Friedli, associate professor, chemistry, said.
Nalley will be introduced and speak at 7 p.m. in Wiser-Patten Science
Hall Room 102. This will follow a 6 p.m. reception and student research
poster displays from 5 p.m. until 6 p.m. in the laboratories across from
Room 102.
Brown, a chemist and educational consultant, will discuss the history
of African-American women in the chemistry discipline at 11:30 a.m. Thursday,
April 14, in DSB 100 in the next-to-last NWHM activity.
“We’re really delighted to see three wonderful women in chemistry
coming to talk to us,” Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross, associate professor,
chemistry, said of the visiting speakers.
Iriarte-Gross said Kuck will “talk about the importance of mentoring
for women in science or any women going into graduate education.”
She added that Nalley “will be our first female Golden Goggles recipient”
and “one of the few women to be president of the American Chemical
Society. She’s a strong proponent of women in science and women in
chemistry.”
Iriarte-Gross said Brown “just won an award for encouraging minorities
in the chemical sciences. She will talk about her book, ‘History
of African-American Women Chemists,’ and the women who aren’t
often recognized.”
While visiting Middle Tennessee, Kuck will speak to the Nashville Chapter
of ACS on Wednesday, March 30, at Cumberland University, and Brown will
address the same organization on Thursday, April 14, at Fisk University.
For details about the visits by Kuck and Brown, contact Iriarte-Gross
(jiriarte@mtsu.edu) by calling 615-898-904-8253. For Golden Goggles information,
contact Friedli (afriedli@mtsu.edu) by calling 615-898-2071 or Dr. Preston
MacDougall (pmacdougall@mtsu.edu) by calling 615-898-5265.
Lady Raiders
Two-time Sun Bowl Champs
 |
Off to the dance—Lady Raider Tia Stovall, center,
holds a basketball denoting her 1,000th career point, scored against
the University of Louisiana-Lafayette March 8 in the Lady Raiders'
second straight Sun Belt Conference Championship win in Denton, Texas.
Joining her in celebrating are teammates Krystle Horton, far left,
and Lakira Boyd, center left, along with fan Ashley Brewer, right.
The Lady Raiders enjoyed Selection Sunday at Corky's Restaurant in
Murfreesboro, learning that they were a No. 12 seed for the NCAA Championships
and would face North Carolina State in their first match. Middle Tennessee
defeated N.C. State 60-58, but fell to No. 4 seed Texas Tech 80-69
in the second round on March 21. Middle Tennessee ended the 2004-05
campaign with a 24-9 record, equaling the second most wins in a season
by a Lady Raider team. The most wins ever recorded were 26 by the
1982-83 squad. Also reaching the 24-win mark were the 1995-96 team
and last year's 2003-04 club. The 48 wins over the past two seasons
mark the most victories in a two-year span in Lady Raider history.
photo courtesy MT Athletic Media Relations |
Midstate executives to take over classes April
1
by Tom Tozer
|
Hawks
|
Approximately 50 executives from the region will take over morning classes
at MTSU on Friday, April 1, for what has become one of the university’s
most significant events, linking textbook wisdom to the trenches of the
real-world workplace.
The 14th annual University Takeover/ Executives-in-Residence program at
MTSU, sponsored by the Jennings A. Jones Chair of Excellence in Free Enterprise,
is the largest event of its kind in the southeast, according to event
organizers in the Jennings A. Jones College of Business.
Area CEOs, business owners, entertainment executives and media personalities
will meet with 10:15 a.m. and 11:20 a.m. classes to share their experiences
and answer questions from students on subjects ranging from job interviewing
to climbing the corporate ladder.
“The Executives-in-Residence program provides an opportunity for
our students to interact with some very dynamic executives in Middle Tennessee
and gives them a chance to see some of the theory they’re being taught
in actual practice,” said Dr. Jim Burton, dean of the Jones College
of Business. “The classroom experience will also give visiting executives
an opportunity to know more about the quality of the students that we’re
making available to them as future employees.”
Following the morning classes, there will be an invitation-only luncheon
at 12:15 p.m. in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building.
The special luncheon speaker will be Cliff Hawks, vice president and general
manager of the Nashville Superspeedway since the summer of 2000. Hawks
was responsible for the opening and marketing of the racing attraction
owned by Dover Motorsports, Inc.
In his current role, he oversees the development and operations of the
facility, which is the venue for two NASCAR Busch Series races, the Indy
Racing League and the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series. A native of Humboldt,
Tenn., Hawks graduated from David Lipscomb University. He previously served
as associate director in the Nashville Mayor’s Office of Economic
Development and special assistant to the mayor for boards and commissions.
During the luncheon, Dean Burton will present Andrea Loughry with the
Joe M. Rodgers Spirit of America Award, which is given to a businessperson
who has demonstrated the best of the spirit of America through significant
contributions in government, education and/or civic and charitable organizations.
Ambassador Rodgers is former holder of the Free Enterprise Chair and an
avid supporter of higher education.
Loughry is a business advocate with CAVBiz Solutions and Miller &
Loughry Insurance & Services, Inc., both members of the Cavalry Banking
Financial Family in Murfreesboro. She serves as a University of Tennessee
trustee and chairs the Academic Affairs and Student Life Committee in
her church.
She is a charter member of Leadership Rutherford, founding member of both
Tennessee Leadership and the Middle Tennessee Chapter of World Future
Society, and has also served as a tenured assistant professor at MTSU.
The list of visiting executives includes:
Nancy Allen, Rutherford County mayor; Circuit Judge Don R. Ash; J. Hunter
Atkins, Bank of Nashville president and CEO; Tom Boyd, senior vice president,
Bank of America; Barry Campbell, human resource manager, Paymaxx Inc.;
G. Edmond Clark, FedEx Trade Networks president and CEO; Judy Cline, Lee
Hecht Harrison senior vice president-general manager; Nellie Ward Cole,
chief financial officer, McKendree Village, Inc.; Chip Crunk, president
and CEO, R.J. Young Co.; Don Culwell, Magnetic Dreams Inc. executive vice
president;
Gary Cunningham, The News/GCA Publishing Inc. president and publisher;
Roger Denton, vice president, human resources, Centext Construction Healthcare
Group; Tammie Dodge, art director, NewsChannel 5; Mark Eddy, HCA vice
president, internal audit; Darrell Freeman, Zycron Inc. president and
CEO; H. Lynn Greer, president, Greer Investment Company; Sharon Horton-Jenkins,
forensic quality assurance manager, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation;
Allen Howell, CEO, Corporate Flight Management; Roland Jones, principal,
The Roland Jones Company; Chris Karbowiak, vice president, public affairs,
Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc.;
Dan Keen, assistant vice president, ASCAP; Al Kirwan, president, MarketTrends,
Inc.; Bob Lamb, principal broker, Bob Parks Realty; Commissioner Kevin
Lavender, Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions; Andrea Loughry,
principal, Miller & Loughry Insurance and Services; Al Mance, executive
director, Tennessee Education Association; Dr. H. Lee Martin, managing
member, Clarity Resources LLC; Paul Martin, chief managing member, Clarity
Resources LLC; Harlan Mathews, senior member, Farris Mathews Branan; Russell
McDonald, superintendent, CSX Transportation;
Bill Mooningham, partner, Ernst and Young LLP; Lee Moss, chairman and
CEO, MidSouth Bank; Charles Myatt, regional president, First Tennessee
Bank; G. Ron Nichols, vice president-operations, State Farm Insurance;
W. Keith Phillips, senior vice president, Morgan Stanley; Chuck Phillips,
plant manager, General Mills-Pillsbury; Mark Pirtle, president, Mark Pirtle
Automotive; Bill Rawnsley, president, Procon Products; Donald Reeves,
president, SCSI Business Solutions, LLC; Raul Regalado, president and
CEO, Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority;
Mike Sandler, partner and co-founder, Neill-Sandler Automotive Group;
Deb Strickland, senior vice president of patient care services, Middle
Tennessee Medical Center; James Sweeney, vice president-retail banking,
Cavalry Banking; Earl Swensson, chairman of the board, Earl Swensson Associates;
Kim Vella, vice president, human resources, Tractor Supply Company; David
Wellborn, vice president-wealth and investment management, SunTrust Bank;
Chase Whitaker, director of Internal Audit, HCA-Hospital Corporation of
America; Andy Womack, State Farm Insurance; Courtney Yates, Keller Williams
Realty; and Shirley Zeitlin, CEO, Shirley Zeitlin and Company Realtors.
People Around Campus
Musical dad balances work, study, family
by Gina K. Logue
MULTI-TASKING GUY—MTSU senior John Salaway,
shown in this recent publicity photo, juggles life as a recording
industry major, second-generation musician, businessman and full-time
family man.
photo submitted |
With a recording and promotions company to run, a music store to manage,
drums to play, classes to attend, bills to pay and a daughter to raise,
senior John Salaway could be forgiven for shelving a project or two now
and then.
The 27-year-old recording industry major and founder of DefKat Music (www.defkatmusic.com)
is now drumming for Allen Brown and the Long Hard Ride. A summer tour
will take the country band to New England, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania
and Virginia.
The opportunity forced Salaway to leave Vinyl Soup, a Phish-like group
that managed to get its song “Lightfuse” into regular rotation
on XM Satellite Radio’s “Unsigned” program.
“With school, working full-time, having a child, you only have a
few nights a week that you can devote to some things,” Salaway says.
Born in New York and raised in Florida, Salaway is the son of a Verizon
employee who played the drums on the side. Having a son at a young age
forced Dad to think less about music and more about money, but his passion
never waned.
“My dad had this huge 10-piece Ludwig drum set with double bass drums
and everything set up in the basement,” Salaway says. “Most
drummers back then would put pillows in the bass drums to muffle the sound.
And I would crawl in there and fall asleep inside his bass drums when
I was real small.”
John dated Darcey Downing in Florida for two years before the pleasant
surprise of Elizabeth Love Salaway came into their lives May 23, 2002.
The unpleasant aftermath was a year-long split for John and Darcey. John
managed condos on the beach in Florida and raised Elizabeth, sending her
to her mother two days a week.
Now John is trying to keep one foot on the ground and the other on the
drum pedal. Armed with an associate’s degree in music from Manatee
Community College in Bradenton, Fla., Salaway and his family moved to
Murfreesboro soon after finding out about MTSU’s recording industry
program.
Darcey works in a restaurant and John manages Music World on South Church
Street to keep food on the table.
He credits Dr. James Piekarski, associate professor, and Hal Newman, assistant
professor, with expanding his creative database and understanding his
harem-scarem lifestyle.
“Those guys are guys who have been on the road,” Salaway says.
“They’ve all toured and they know what it’s all about.”
The next generation of Salaways is proving to be quite an inspiration.
John already has written and recorded a song about Elizabeth, “God
Is In Your Eyes,” under his solo moniker, Brother John. And she might
give her father a run for his money someday.
“When she was a baby, my whole family named her Janis, after Janis
Joplin, because she could just W-A-A-A-A-H! … We knew right away
she’s got some lungs.”
Although not yet enlightened by either the music or recording industry
programs, Elizabeth’s song stylings have mellowed somewhat.
“Every night when she’s going to bed, she hums herself to sleep,”
Salaway says.
“She’s just humming these little melodies. I don’t really
know what it is, but she’s got these little songs going on in her
head.”
|
|
