It's official! Meet MTSU's first Ph.D.

Several years after submitting applications for Ph.D. programs in economics, English and human performance, MTSU became a Ph.D.-granting university this spring--and tomorrow, Beverly Renee Lewis will become the university's first Ph.D. recipient (English). In 1997, Lewis was hired as an adjunct instructor in speech & theatre; in 1998, she was hired for full time in both S & P and in the English dept. The title of her dissertation is "Bred en Bawn in a Brier-Patch: A Study of the African American Trickster Tradition." "I am honored. ... I thank God for directing my path and granting me the strength to persevere," Lewis says. Dr. Don Curry, graduate studies dean, notes that Lewis' dedication and tenacity helped her achieve this accomplishment. Lewis says she has several faculty members and mentors to thank.

Contact Lewis at 615-904-8467.
brlewis@mtsu.edu
and meet her tomorrow, May 10. For comments, contact Dr. Don Curry at 615-898-5897; Dr. Allen Hibbard, Lewis' dissertation adviser, at 615-898-2665; Dr. Larry Mapp, Lewis' critical reader; Dr. William Connelly, English chair, at 615-898-5644; Dr. John McDaniel, liberal arts dean, at 615-898-2534. President Sidney A. McPhee can be reached at 615-898-2622. (A headshot of Lewis is available upon request--615-898-2919.)

Meet another great grad!

Leah Erin Bumbalough will graduate with a B.S. in political science with a law emphasis. A native of Manchester, she works as an intern for the Senate Environment Committee under Sen. Jeff Miller (R-Cleveland). In that role, she researches the law and writes summaries of bills for committee members. She hopes to go to law school. At MTSU, Leah received six top attorney awards from the American Mock Trial Association, the most recent being the All-American Award. She served as president of the Mock Trial team, SGA senator and is a member of Young Republicans and Pi Sigma Alpha.

Contact Leah at 931-723-4025.
leb2a@mtsu.edu
and meet her tomorrow, May 10.

Record number of MTSU grads

More than 1,550 degree candidates will receive their diplomas tomorrow at 10 a.m. in MTSU's Murphy Center, comprising 1,300 undergraduate degrees and approximately 250 graduate degrees. Gov. Phil Bredesen will be the Spring Commencement speaker. During his campaign, Bredesen talked about better management of state government and education. Education is the key to building a stronger economy, he maintains. Bredesen served as mayor of Nashville from 1991 to 1999 and pumped nearly a half-billion dollars into local education.

For more information, contact the NPA office at 615-898-2919.

THIS WEEK'S MTSU AUDIO CLIPS: Go to http://www.mtsu.edu/~proffice/audio/audio_clips.html. SEGMENT 1: A team of MBA students made it to the Silver Round of the George Washington University/KMPG MBA Case CompetitionÑthe first-time an MTSU team has participated. Team members discuss the experience.
SEGMENT 2: MTSU faculty and administrators discuss the newly revised Academic Master Plan. One of the overall goals is to establish MTSU as a national model of building partnerships with business and industry and to focus on student-centered learning.