FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 20, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Department of Psychology, 615-898-2706
(MURFREESBORO, Tenn.)─During the recent student awards ceremony sponsored by the College of Education and Behavioral Science on March 29, 21 students from the Department of Psychology received honors.
The winning students, along with their respective hometowns, are as follows:
·Outstanding Clinical Psychology Graduate Student
Lucretia Bennett of Murfreesboro
Aimee Maglinger of Smyrna
·Elizabeth Wright Psychology Graduate Student Award
Denise Woodie of Hohenwald
·Robert Prytula Memorial Scholarship
Joseph Baker of Murfreesboro
Amber Hasty of Murfreesboro
·Outstanding Graduate Research Assistant Spring 2006
Marisa Shubert of Franklin
·Outstanding Graduate Research Assistant Fall 2006
Jennifer McLain of Murfreesboro
Shannon Riggs of Smyrna
·Outstanding Professional Counseling Psychology Graduate Student
Rebecca Frame of Nashville
·Keith W. Carlson Professional Counseling Scholarship
Kristen Cherry of Nashville
Laura Filtness of Murfreesboro
·Willard A. Kerr Award of Excellence for Outstanding Psychology Graduate Student
Jessica Carr of Murfreesboro
Candice Marshall of Murfreesboro
·Outstanding School Psychology Graduate Student
Casey Brasher of LaVergne
Kristy Watts of Anchorage
·Larry W. Morris Outstanding Senior in Psychology
Courtney Ledford of Cleveland, TN
Terri Proctor of Murfreesboro
·Willard A. Kerr Award of Excellence for Outstanding Industrial/Organizational Psychology Undergraduate Senior Student
Matthew Gilday of Murfreesboro
·Outstanding Quantitative Psychology Graduate Student
Joseph Haas of Murfreesboro
Jessica Waldrop of Murfreesboro
·Outstanding Experimental Psychology Graduate Student
Anna Gaylon of Murfreesboro
─ 30─
Friday, April 20, 2007
358 COFFEE COUNTY NATIVE GARNERS 2007 VAUGHAN SCHOLARSHIP
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 20, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919
Lindsay Shaw Will Receive $1,000 Honor During April 25 Event at MTSU
(MURFREESBORO, Tenn.)—Lindsay Dianna Shaw, a graduate of Coffee County High, has been named as the 2006-07 recipient of the Christine Vaughan Scholarship at Middle Tennessee State University.
“I am very excited and grateful to have been chosen for this scholarship,” Shaw said. “This came at the perfect time because I have just registered for my summer classes and greatly need and appreciate the funds.”
Dr. Bene Cox, chairwoman of Christine Vaughan Scholarship and MTSU English professor, will present the award at MTSU’s Liberal Art's Award Reception beginning at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 25, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building.
Beginning in 1999, the Christine Vaughan Scholarship has been awarded annually to an MTSU undergraduate student from Coffee County who is working toward establishing an excellent academic record while pursuing a major in English, with a minor in education.
“We usually have from eight to 10 English majors who qualify for the $1,000 scholarship,” observed Cox, who added that a small committee then selects qualified students based on academic merit and academic involvement.
A lifelong resident of Manchester, Tenn., the late Vaughan taught in the public schools as well as in the MTSU English department, where she taught Methods and Materials of Teaching English, along with other courses. Additionally, she was an officer in various state and national educational organizations.
The award was established by Vaughan’s colleagues and friends who wished to honor her life and work and is given as a way to continue her practice of encouraging and supporting students who desire to become English teachers, Cox said.
“When I graduate from MTSU, I hope to become an English teacher at Coffee County Middle School,” Shaw said. “I have been substitute teaching in Coffee County since August of last year and absolutely love being able to work with so many wonderful students.”
Holly Denise Bush, the 2001-02 recipient of the honor, also currently teaches in the Manchester City Schools district.
Cox said those interested in contributing to the scholarship may contact the MTSU Development Office at 615-898-2502 or via e-mail at devofc@mtsu.edu or bcox@mtsu.edu.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA—To request an interview with Cox or Shaw regarding the award, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at 615-898-2919 or via e-mail at lrollins@mtsu.edu. A jpeg of Shaw for editorial use also will be available for editorial use upon request after the April 25 ceremony.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919
Lindsay Shaw Will Receive $1,000 Honor During April 25 Event at MTSU
(MURFREESBORO, Tenn.)—Lindsay Dianna Shaw, a graduate of Coffee County High, has been named as the 2006-07 recipient of the Christine Vaughan Scholarship at Middle Tennessee State University.
“I am very excited and grateful to have been chosen for this scholarship,” Shaw said. “This came at the perfect time because I have just registered for my summer classes and greatly need and appreciate the funds.”
Dr. Bene Cox, chairwoman of Christine Vaughan Scholarship and MTSU English professor, will present the award at MTSU’s Liberal Art's Award Reception beginning at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 25, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building.
Beginning in 1999, the Christine Vaughan Scholarship has been awarded annually to an MTSU undergraduate student from Coffee County who is working toward establishing an excellent academic record while pursuing a major in English, with a minor in education.
“We usually have from eight to 10 English majors who qualify for the $1,000 scholarship,” observed Cox, who added that a small committee then selects qualified students based on academic merit and academic involvement.
A lifelong resident of Manchester, Tenn., the late Vaughan taught in the public schools as well as in the MTSU English department, where she taught Methods and Materials of Teaching English, along with other courses. Additionally, she was an officer in various state and national educational organizations.
The award was established by Vaughan’s colleagues and friends who wished to honor her life and work and is given as a way to continue her practice of encouraging and supporting students who desire to become English teachers, Cox said.
“When I graduate from MTSU, I hope to become an English teacher at Coffee County Middle School,” Shaw said. “I have been substitute teaching in Coffee County since August of last year and absolutely love being able to work with so many wonderful students.”
Holly Denise Bush, the 2001-02 recipient of the honor, also currently teaches in the Manchester City Schools district.
Cox said those interested in contributing to the scholarship may contact the MTSU Development Office at 615-898-2502 or via e-mail at devofc@mtsu.edu or bcox@mtsu.edu.
—30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA—To request an interview with Cox or Shaw regarding the award, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at 615-898-2919 or via e-mail at lrollins@mtsu.edu. A jpeg of Shaw for editorial use also will be available for editorial use upon request after the April 25 ceremony.
357 2nd MTSU SPRING PREVIEW DAY WILL BE APRIL 21
Release date: April 19, 2007
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
Admissions contact: Christopher Fleming, 615-898-2237
(MURFREESBORO) — Openings remain for the second of two MTSU Spring Preview Days, which will be held Saturday, April 21, an Office of Admissions official said recently.
Students and parents or guardians interested in attending Spring Preview Day are being directed to admissions’ new registration system, Book-it-Now, said J. Christopher Fleming, associate director in admissions.
Prospective students can schedule a visit at www.mtsu.edu/~admissn/tour by clicking on the “Schedule Campus Tours” hotlink. For more information, call
615-898-5670.
###
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
Admissions contact: Christopher Fleming, 615-898-2237
(MURFREESBORO) — Openings remain for the second of two MTSU Spring Preview Days, which will be held Saturday, April 21, an Office of Admissions official said recently.
Students and parents or guardians interested in attending Spring Preview Day are being directed to admissions’ new registration system, Book-it-Now, said J. Christopher Fleming, associate director in admissions.
Prospective students can schedule a visit at www.mtsu.edu/~admissn/tour by clicking on the “Schedule Campus Tours” hotlink. For more information, call
615-898-5670.
###
356 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL ACCEPTS MOVIE MADE BY MTSU PERSONNEL
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 19, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Bob Pondillo, 615-904-8465, or Gina Logue, 615-898-5081
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL ACCEPTS MOVIE MADE BY MTSU PERSONNEL
“My Name is Wallace” To Be Shown at Prestigious International Cinema Event
(MURFREESBORO) – “My Name is Wallace,” a short film written and directed by a Middle Tennessee State University professor, will be shown at the 60th annual Cannes Film Festival, which is scheduled for May 16 to May 26 in Cannes, France.
The motion picture is slated to be part of the festival’s fourth annual Short Film Corner, which is described on its Web site (http://www.shortfilmcorner.com) as “an essential meeting place between directors and producers from both short and feature films communities, but also a place to discover new talents and to sell your films.”
“Wallace,” the brainchild of Dr. Bob Pondillo, a professor of electronic media communication, tells the tale of a lonely man with social issues who reaches out for companionship through a phone sex line. Several MTSU students and alumni worked on the crew.
The film has been accepted at more than 270 film festivals and has won more than 14 prizes. It is slated for screening at the Nashville Film Festival at 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 24, and at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 Theater, 3815 Green Hills Village Drive in Nashville.
“My Name is Wallace” stars Los Angeles-based actor and XM Satellite Radio host David Lawrence in the title role. Lawrence also produced the movie for about $15,000. Nashville-based singer-songwriter Leslie Ellis plays Tiffany, the phone sex operator. Lawrence will represent the cast and crew at Cannes.
For more information on the Cannes Film Festival, go to http://festival-cannes.fr. For ticket information on the Nashville Film Festival, go to http://www.nashvillefilmfestival.org. To learn more about “My Name is Wallace” and to view the trailer, go to http://www.mynameiswallace.com.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: For color photos of shots from “My Name is Wallace,” or to arrange interviews with Dr. Bob Pondillo and David Lawrence, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Bob Pondillo, 615-904-8465, or Gina Logue, 615-898-5081
CANNES FILM FESTIVAL ACCEPTS MOVIE MADE BY MTSU PERSONNEL
“My Name is Wallace” To Be Shown at Prestigious International Cinema Event
(MURFREESBORO) – “My Name is Wallace,” a short film written and directed by a Middle Tennessee State University professor, will be shown at the 60th annual Cannes Film Festival, which is scheduled for May 16 to May 26 in Cannes, France.
The motion picture is slated to be part of the festival’s fourth annual Short Film Corner, which is described on its Web site (http://www.shortfilmcorner.com) as “an essential meeting place between directors and producers from both short and feature films communities, but also a place to discover new talents and to sell your films.”
“Wallace,” the brainchild of Dr. Bob Pondillo, a professor of electronic media communication, tells the tale of a lonely man with social issues who reaches out for companionship through a phone sex line. Several MTSU students and alumni worked on the crew.
The film has been accepted at more than 270 film festivals and has won more than 14 prizes. It is slated for screening at the Nashville Film Festival at 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 24, and at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 Theater, 3815 Green Hills Village Drive in Nashville.
“My Name is Wallace” stars Los Angeles-based actor and XM Satellite Radio host David Lawrence in the title role. Lawrence also produced the movie for about $15,000. Nashville-based singer-songwriter Leslie Ellis plays Tiffany, the phone sex operator. Lawrence will represent the cast and crew at Cannes.
For more information on the Cannes Film Festival, go to http://festival-cannes.fr. For ticket information on the Nashville Film Festival, go to http://www.nashvillefilmfestival.org. To learn more about “My Name is Wallace” and to view the trailer, go to http://www.mynameiswallace.com.
--30--
ATTENTION, MEDIA: For color photos of shots from “My Name is Wallace,” or to arrange interviews with Dr. Bob Pondillo and David Lawrence, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
355 ETIS OPEN HOUSE WILL FEATURE STUDENT PROJECTS, FACULTY POSTERS
Release date: April 19, 2007
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
ETIS contact: Sally Swoape, 615-898-5009
MTSU ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY/INDUSTRIAL STUDIES APRIL 26 OPEN HOUSE WILL FEATURE STUDENT PROJECTS, FACULTY POSTERS
(MURFREESBORO) — The MTSU Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Studies will hold an open house from 3:30 until 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, in the Tom H. Jackson Building (old Alumni Center).
The open house will be open to the campus community and general public, an event organizer from ETIS said.
The open house will include numerous poster presentations regarding current research projects, student capstone projects and national student team competitions including NASA Moon Buggy, Solar Bike, Mini Baja, Space Elevator, Construction Management Competition and SAE Formula One, said Sally Swoape, an ETIS executive aide.
“The Lead Elimination Action Program and Concrete Industry Management program will have booths,” Swoape said, adding a plug-in hybrid automobile and other project vehicles will be on display.
For more information, call 615-898-2776.
###
Media welcomed.
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
ETIS contact: Sally Swoape, 615-898-5009
MTSU ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY/INDUSTRIAL STUDIES APRIL 26 OPEN HOUSE WILL FEATURE STUDENT PROJECTS, FACULTY POSTERS
(MURFREESBORO) — The MTSU Department of Engineering Technology and Industrial Studies will hold an open house from 3:30 until 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, in the Tom H. Jackson Building (old Alumni Center).
The open house will be open to the campus community and general public, an event organizer from ETIS said.
The open house will include numerous poster presentations regarding current research projects, student capstone projects and national student team competitions including NASA Moon Buggy, Solar Bike, Mini Baja, Space Elevator, Construction Management Competition and SAE Formula One, said Sally Swoape, an ETIS executive aide.
“The Lead Elimination Action Program and Concrete Industry Management program will have booths,” Swoape said, adding a plug-in hybrid automobile and other project vehicles will be on display.
For more information, call 615-898-2776.
###
Media welcomed.
354 YOUR TRASH COULD BECOME A COLLEGE STUDENT’S TREASURE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 18, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081, or Karen Case, 615-898-5087 or 615-427-9411
International, Refugee Students Need Help to Continue Studies
(MURFREESBORO) – Community Assistance for International and Refugee Students (CAIRS) will conduct a yard sale from 8 a.m. until noon Saturday, April 28, at the St. Rose of Lima School gymnasium, 1601 N. Tennessee Blvd., in Murfreesboro.
CAIRS is a not-for-profit organization that helps international students who are at MTSU on student visas or who have come to the U.S. permanently as refugees. Frequently, these students have no family support and work at minimum wage jobs to cover tuition with no money left over for health insurance or groceries.
In the two short years CAIRS has been in existence, the fund has assisted MTSU students from India, Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Turkey with small grants and loans. These modest amounts of money help financially struggling students from countries devastated by war, terrorism, and famine cope with the relatively minor emergencies of American life, such as car breakdowns, stolen books and bikes, and layoffs.
Donations will be accepted from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. on Friday, April 27, at the gym. Volunteers also are welcome to pitch in and help.
For more information, contact Karen Case at 615-427-9411 or kcase@mtsu.edu.
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EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081, or Karen Case, 615-898-5087 or 615-427-9411
International, Refugee Students Need Help to Continue Studies
(MURFREESBORO) – Community Assistance for International and Refugee Students (CAIRS) will conduct a yard sale from 8 a.m. until noon Saturday, April 28, at the St. Rose of Lima School gymnasium, 1601 N. Tennessee Blvd., in Murfreesboro.
CAIRS is a not-for-profit organization that helps international students who are at MTSU on student visas or who have come to the U.S. permanently as refugees. Frequently, these students have no family support and work at minimum wage jobs to cover tuition with no money left over for health insurance or groceries.
In the two short years CAIRS has been in existence, the fund has assisted MTSU students from India, Sudan, Kenya, Ethiopia, and Turkey with small grants and loans. These modest amounts of money help financially struggling students from countries devastated by war, terrorism, and famine cope with the relatively minor emergencies of American life, such as car breakdowns, stolen books and bikes, and layoffs.
Donations will be accepted from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. on Friday, April 27, at the gym. Volunteers also are welcome to pitch in and help.
For more information, contact Karen Case at 615-427-9411 or kcase@mtsu.edu.
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353 FIDO, ROVER AND LASSIE PITCH IN TO HELP SHELTER THE HOMELESS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 18, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Jackie Victory, 615-898-5812
Second Annual “See Spot Run” 5K Event Will Raise Funds for Habitat for Humanity
(MURFREESBORO) – MTSU’s Office of Student Organizations & Community Service will present the second annual See Spot Run at 8 a.m. Saturday, May 12, on campus.
The 5K run/walk will give humans and their canine companions a chance to exercise at the same time. All proceeds, including entry fees, admissions and sponsorships, will go to Habitat for Humanity. The goal is to raise the $50,000 necessary to sponsor a “blitz build,” an intensified construction effort, on campus.
The “blitz build” home will become a way that students can give back to the Murfreesboro community. Jackie Victory, Director of Student Organizations & Community Service, says she is excited about the partnership with Rutherford County Habitat for Humanity.
“See Spot Run will be another step forward in the fundraising efforts at MTSU,” Victory says. “Through a series of events over the course of the past year-and-a-half, we have generated $35 thousand dollars for this event.”
“Last year, we hosted nearly 300 runners from across the Midstate,” Meagan Flippin, MTSU senior, says. “We’re excited about the support we have received from the community for this event.”
The 5K race will feature awards for the top age group finishers and top dogs. Jamie Burns, graduate assistant for the Office of Student Organizations & Community Service, has been working with Eta Sigma Pi in preparation for the event.
“We’ve solicited a number of sponsors, worked to promote the event on and off campus and helped to recruit a number of participants and volunteers for the event,” Burns said. “See Spot Run will be a race unlike any other for the campus and the community. We encourage everyone to come out to enjoy a great event and support an even greater cause.”
Registration will begin at 6:30 a.m. on race day at Peck Hall. Also, registration is available at http://www.mtalumni.com or 615-898-5812. The entry fee is $15 before May 1 and $20 thereafter. Entry fees include T-shirts to the first 250 participants.
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EDITORIAL CONTACT: Jackie Victory, 615-898-5812
Second Annual “See Spot Run” 5K Event Will Raise Funds for Habitat for Humanity
(MURFREESBORO) – MTSU’s Office of Student Organizations & Community Service will present the second annual See Spot Run at 8 a.m. Saturday, May 12, on campus.
The 5K run/walk will give humans and their canine companions a chance to exercise at the same time. All proceeds, including entry fees, admissions and sponsorships, will go to Habitat for Humanity. The goal is to raise the $50,000 necessary to sponsor a “blitz build,” an intensified construction effort, on campus.
The “blitz build” home will become a way that students can give back to the Murfreesboro community. Jackie Victory, Director of Student Organizations & Community Service, says she is excited about the partnership with Rutherford County Habitat for Humanity.
“See Spot Run will be another step forward in the fundraising efforts at MTSU,” Victory says. “Through a series of events over the course of the past year-and-a-half, we have generated $35 thousand dollars for this event.”
“Last year, we hosted nearly 300 runners from across the Midstate,” Meagan Flippin, MTSU senior, says. “We’re excited about the support we have received from the community for this event.”
The 5K race will feature awards for the top age group finishers and top dogs. Jamie Burns, graduate assistant for the Office of Student Organizations & Community Service, has been working with Eta Sigma Pi in preparation for the event.
“We’ve solicited a number of sponsors, worked to promote the event on and off campus and helped to recruit a number of participants and volunteers for the event,” Burns said. “See Spot Run will be a race unlike any other for the campus and the community. We encourage everyone to come out to enjoy a great event and support an even greater cause.”
Registration will begin at 6:30 a.m. on race day at Peck Hall. Also, registration is available at http://www.mtalumni.com or 615-898-5812. The entry fee is $15 before May 1 and $20 thereafter. Entry fees include T-shirts to the first 250 participants.
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352 NEARLY 2,000 GRADUATES SET TO PARTICIPATE IN SPRING COMMENCEMENT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 23, 2007 (DO NOT RELEASE EARLY)
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Office of News and Public Affairs, 615-898-2919
Speaker of the Senate Ron Ramsey & Acclaimed Musician George S. Clinton
Will Serve as Featured Speakers for Dual-Ceremony Graduation Event at MTSU
(MURFREESBORO)—Nearly 2,000 degree candidates are expected to graduate during MTSU’s 95th spring commencement during the university’s upcoming commencement ceremonies, reports Dr. Sherian Huddleston, associate vice provost, Enrollment Services.
On Saturday, May 5, MTSU will again feature dual ceremonies and dual speakers starting at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. in Murphy Center. Of the 1,994 set to graduate, 1,726 are undergraduates and 268 are graduate students, including 229 master’s candidates, 32 education specialist (Ed.S.) degree candidates and seven Ph.D. candidates.
Candidates from the College of Graduate Studies, Jennings A. Jones College of Business, and College of Education and Behavioral Science will receive their degrees in the morning ceremony. That afternoon degrees will be conferred on candidates in the College of Basic and Applied Sciences, College of Liberal Arts, College of Mass Communication, and the College of Continuing Education and Distance Learning, said Dr. Jack Thomas, senior vice provost for academic affairs and chairman of the commencement committee.
Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, who represents Tennessee Senate District 2, will be the guest speaker for the 10 a.m. ceremony. Ramsey, whose district encompasses Johnson and Sullivan counties in East Tennessee, was elected to the senate in 1996 after serving two terms in the state’s House of Representatives. During his time as a state representative, he served District 1 in Sullivan County.
On Jan. 9, 2007, he was elected speaker of the senate by an 18-15 margin, receiving the votes of all GOP senators and one Democratic senator. He is the first GOP senate speaker in 140 years and the first from Sullivan County in more than 100 years.
Prior to his election, he served as majority leader and chairman of the Republican Caucus and also served as a chairman of the Senate Environment Committee.
An avid outdoorsman, Ramsey authored the state’s handgun-carry permit law and sponsored legislation creating the state’s “brownfield” law, which aids Tennessee’s environment by making it easier to redevelop old industrial sites.
A graduate of Sullivan Central High School and a 1978 graduate of East Tennessee State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial technology, Ramsey resides in Blountville with his wife, Sindy, and their three daughters, Tiffany, Sheena and Madison.
When he is not in Nashville, Ramsey is a real-estate broker and auctioneer with his own company, Ron Ramsey and Associates, in Blountville. Among other activities, he is a past president of the Blountville Business Association and a member of Elizabeth Chapel United Methodist Church, where he teaches Sunday School.
George S. Clinton, who began his professional music career as a songwriter, arranger and session musician in Nashville while attending MTSU, will be the featured speaker for the 2 p.m. ceremony.
A native of Chattanooga, Clinton, upon his college graduation, traveled to Los Angeles in pursuit of a career in popular music. He became a staff writer for Warner Bros. Music, with songs recorded by artists such as Michael Jackson, Joe Cocker and Smokey Robinson, among many. Although he continued to work as a music arranger and session player, Clinton secured his own recording deal and released four albums for the record labels MCA, Elektra, ABC and Arista, respectively.
A critically acclaimed artist, Clinton’s many awards include a 2002 Grammy nomination and six BMI Film Music Awards. In addition to writing several concert works and three musicals, his inventiveness and versatility have enabled him to contribute memorable scores to diverse film such as the hit comedy “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery” and its blockbuster sequels, as well as “Mortal Kombat” and its sequel, John Waters’ “A Dirty Shame,” Kevin Costner’s “3,000 Miles to Graceland,” “The Astronaut’s Wife,” and more recently, “Big Mamma’s House 2” and “Deck the Halls,” to name but a sampling. Regarding the upcoming commencement event, Thomas said he wanted to remind all degree candidates of the importance of appropriate dress, decorum and respect for the commencement ceremony.
“We believe this is a very important day in the lives of many people,” Thomas said. “Commencement is a day that families always remember as special. It is difficult to give the ceremony the dignified atmosphere it deserves if people are using air horns or leaving before the completion of the ceremony.”
Additionally, per Thomas, the graduation committee also emphasized that students who participate in commencement will be required to stay for the entire ceremony. The May ceremony should last about two hours. If candidates are planning celebration activities, please be aware of this commitment, he said.
“To make this a special day, it requires cooperation from everyone in attendance,” Thomas said. “We believe it should be a dignified ceremony, which adds to its enjoyment of all in attendance.”
On May 5, the doors to Murphy Center will open at 9 a.m. for the morning ceremony and candidates are expected to be in their assigned areas, dressed in their caps and gowns, no later than 9:30 a.m. For the afternoon ceremony, the doors will open at 1 p.m., and candidates are expected to be in their assigned areas and ready at 1:30 p.m.
Officials report that students who are not in their assigned gyms at the proper times will not be allowed to participate in the ceremony. Because commencement rehearsals are no longer conducted, timely attendance is mandatory for students to receive important instructions.
• For more information about commencement or receiving a degree in absentia, please visit the Records Office Web site at www.mtsu.edu/~records/grad.htm. Questions about graduation may be directed to the Records Office at 615-898-2600.
MTSU SPRING 2007 COMMENCEMENT AT A GLANCE
Who: Approximately 1,994 graduates* (1,726 undergraduates, 268 graduate students)
What: 2007 MTSU spring commencement
When: 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. May 5
Where: Murphy Center on the MTSU campus.
Commencement speakers:
• Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, who represents Tennessee Senate District 2, at 10 a.m. ceremony.
• George S. Clinton, MTSU alumnus and critically acclaimed, Grammy-nominated musician, at 2 p.m. ceremony.
*— Approximate number as of May 5, 2007.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To obtain a jpeg of guest speakers Ramsey or Clinton for editorial use, please call the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at 615-898-2919 or e-mail your jpeg request to gfann@mtsu.edu.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Office of News and Public Affairs, 615-898-2919
Speaker of the Senate Ron Ramsey & Acclaimed Musician George S. Clinton
Will Serve as Featured Speakers for Dual-Ceremony Graduation Event at MTSU
(MURFREESBORO)—Nearly 2,000 degree candidates are expected to graduate during MTSU’s 95th spring commencement during the university’s upcoming commencement ceremonies, reports Dr. Sherian Huddleston, associate vice provost, Enrollment Services.
On Saturday, May 5, MTSU will again feature dual ceremonies and dual speakers starting at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. in Murphy Center. Of the 1,994 set to graduate, 1,726 are undergraduates and 268 are graduate students, including 229 master’s candidates, 32 education specialist (Ed.S.) degree candidates and seven Ph.D. candidates.
Candidates from the College of Graduate Studies, Jennings A. Jones College of Business, and College of Education and Behavioral Science will receive their degrees in the morning ceremony. That afternoon degrees will be conferred on candidates in the College of Basic and Applied Sciences, College of Liberal Arts, College of Mass Communication, and the College of Continuing Education and Distance Learning, said Dr. Jack Thomas, senior vice provost for academic affairs and chairman of the commencement committee.
Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, who represents Tennessee Senate District 2, will be the guest speaker for the 10 a.m. ceremony. Ramsey, whose district encompasses Johnson and Sullivan counties in East Tennessee, was elected to the senate in 1996 after serving two terms in the state’s House of Representatives. During his time as a state representative, he served District 1 in Sullivan County.
On Jan. 9, 2007, he was elected speaker of the senate by an 18-15 margin, receiving the votes of all GOP senators and one Democratic senator. He is the first GOP senate speaker in 140 years and the first from Sullivan County in more than 100 years.
Prior to his election, he served as majority leader and chairman of the Republican Caucus and also served as a chairman of the Senate Environment Committee.
An avid outdoorsman, Ramsey authored the state’s handgun-carry permit law and sponsored legislation creating the state’s “brownfield” law, which aids Tennessee’s environment by making it easier to redevelop old industrial sites.
A graduate of Sullivan Central High School and a 1978 graduate of East Tennessee State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial technology, Ramsey resides in Blountville with his wife, Sindy, and their three daughters, Tiffany, Sheena and Madison.
When he is not in Nashville, Ramsey is a real-estate broker and auctioneer with his own company, Ron Ramsey and Associates, in Blountville. Among other activities, he is a past president of the Blountville Business Association and a member of Elizabeth Chapel United Methodist Church, where he teaches Sunday School.
George S. Clinton, who began his professional music career as a songwriter, arranger and session musician in Nashville while attending MTSU, will be the featured speaker for the 2 p.m. ceremony.
A native of Chattanooga, Clinton, upon his college graduation, traveled to Los Angeles in pursuit of a career in popular music. He became a staff writer for Warner Bros. Music, with songs recorded by artists such as Michael Jackson, Joe Cocker and Smokey Robinson, among many. Although he continued to work as a music arranger and session player, Clinton secured his own recording deal and released four albums for the record labels MCA, Elektra, ABC and Arista, respectively.
A critically acclaimed artist, Clinton’s many awards include a 2002 Grammy nomination and six BMI Film Music Awards. In addition to writing several concert works and three musicals, his inventiveness and versatility have enabled him to contribute memorable scores to diverse film such as the hit comedy “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery” and its blockbuster sequels, as well as “Mortal Kombat” and its sequel, John Waters’ “A Dirty Shame,” Kevin Costner’s “3,000 Miles to Graceland,” “The Astronaut’s Wife,” and more recently, “Big Mamma’s House 2” and “Deck the Halls,” to name but a sampling. Regarding the upcoming commencement event, Thomas said he wanted to remind all degree candidates of the importance of appropriate dress, decorum and respect for the commencement ceremony.
“We believe this is a very important day in the lives of many people,” Thomas said. “Commencement is a day that families always remember as special. It is difficult to give the ceremony the dignified atmosphere it deserves if people are using air horns or leaving before the completion of the ceremony.”
Additionally, per Thomas, the graduation committee also emphasized that students who participate in commencement will be required to stay for the entire ceremony. The May ceremony should last about two hours. If candidates are planning celebration activities, please be aware of this commitment, he said.
“To make this a special day, it requires cooperation from everyone in attendance,” Thomas said. “We believe it should be a dignified ceremony, which adds to its enjoyment of all in attendance.”
On May 5, the doors to Murphy Center will open at 9 a.m. for the morning ceremony and candidates are expected to be in their assigned areas, dressed in their caps and gowns, no later than 9:30 a.m. For the afternoon ceremony, the doors will open at 1 p.m., and candidates are expected to be in their assigned areas and ready at 1:30 p.m.
Officials report that students who are not in their assigned gyms at the proper times will not be allowed to participate in the ceremony. Because commencement rehearsals are no longer conducted, timely attendance is mandatory for students to receive important instructions.
• For more information about commencement or receiving a degree in absentia, please visit the Records Office Web site at www.mtsu.edu/~records/grad.htm. Questions about graduation may be directed to the Records Office at 615-898-2600.
MTSU SPRING 2007 COMMENCEMENT AT A GLANCE
Who: Approximately 1,994 graduates* (1,726 undergraduates, 268 graduate students)
What: 2007 MTSU spring commencement
When: 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. May 5
Where: Murphy Center on the MTSU campus.
Commencement speakers:
• Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, who represents Tennessee Senate District 2, at 10 a.m. ceremony.
• George S. Clinton, MTSU alumnus and critically acclaimed, Grammy-nominated musician, at 2 p.m. ceremony.
*— Approximate number as of May 5, 2007.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To obtain a jpeg of guest speakers Ramsey or Clinton for editorial use, please call the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at 615-898-2919 or e-mail your jpeg request to gfann@mtsu.edu.
351 MTSU’S THE KARG BOYS TO PERFORM ON ‘A PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION’ APRIL 21
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 17, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Tom Hutchison, 615-513-6278 or thutchis@mtsu.edu
Sibling Duo to Compete in Program’s ‘People In (their) Twenties Talent Show’
(MURFREESBORO)—Recent Middle Tennessee State University graduates Rich and Andy Karg have been selected from 500 entries to perform Saturday, April 21, on “A Prairie Home Companion” in the National Public Radio show’s “People In (their) Twenties Talent Show.”
The Nashville duo will compete against five finalists from around the country in a live broadcast heard locally on WPLN 90.3 FM from 5 to 7 p.m. The studio audience and listeners at home will vote during the show, with host Garrison Keillor announcing the winner at the end of the broadcast. At-home listeners can vote online at www.prairiehome.org.
MTSU Recording Industry Professor Tom Hutchison submitted The Karg Boys to the contest.
“They are among the most talented students I’ve ever had,” Hutchison said. “With a retro sound reminiscent of The Everly Brothers, the Kargs are the perfect musical act for ‘A Prairie Home Companion.’ The show’s producers agreed and said how impressed they were with the duo’s talent.”
“These are two boys that epitomize brother-based harmonies,” said music legend Phil Everly, who has collaborated on several of The Karg Boys’ songs. “I love ‘Prairie Home Companion’ and Garrison Keillor, and I told the boys how much they’ll enjoy being with him on the show.”
Currently in its 33rd season, “A Prairie Home Companion” has made the fictional small town of Lake Wobegon part of American popular culture. The show is heard on more than 500 public radio stations nationwide, with a weekly audience that tops 4.3 million listeners.
“I’ve listened to ‘A Prairie Home Companion’ since I was a kid,” said Andy Karg. “It was some of my earliest exposure to Americana music. My father and I saw the show live in Nashville in 2004, and it was so cool. I always thought Rich and I could do something like that.”
Rich Karg, 26, and Andy Karg, 23, have been writing, singing and performing together since 2002, when they were students in the recording industry program at MTSU. Their act has taken them to the 20th Annual South by Southwest Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas, and the Star of Texas State Fair and Rodeo. In 2004, the pair received first prize in the "Class Act" musical performance competition at the National Association of Recording Merchandisers Convention in San Diego, Calif., where they performed in front of several hundred record label and music industry executives.
In 2005, the Karg Boys signed an exclusive, worldwide publishing/artist development deal with Universal Music Publishing Group Nashville. Since signing with UMPG, Rich and Andy have collaborated with some of Nashville’s top songwriters and producers, including Rivers Rutherford ("Real Good Man"), Don Schlitz ("The Gambler"), Byron Hill ("Nothin’ On But the Radio"), Jess Leary ("Where the Green Grass Grows"), Kostas ("Ain't That Lonely Yet"), Phil Everly ("When Will I Be Loved?"), Big Al Anderson ("Unbelievable") and Paul Kennerly ("Young Love Strong Love").
The brothers’ unique musical style and harmony vocals have been influenced by the Everly Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, Dwight Yoakam, the Mavericks, the Beatles and Coldplay. The brothers credit their father, Nashville songwriter Dick Karg, as influential on their songwriting.
“A Prairie Home Companion” can be heard locally on WPLN 90.3, WTML-FM 91.5 in Tullahoma, and WHRS-FM 91.7 in Cookeville. The live broadcast is also available on satellite radio on Sirius channel 134 and XM channel 133.
MTSU’s Department of Recording Industry in the College of Mass Communication is one of the largest and best equipped in the nation. The Rolling Stone College Guide has called it “one of the preeminent music business programs in the country.”
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: For more information, photos and sound clips, visit http://prairiehome.publicradio.org and www.kargboys.com/home.htm. Thanks!
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Tom Hutchison, 615-513-6278 or thutchis@mtsu.edu
Sibling Duo to Compete in Program’s ‘People In (their) Twenties Talent Show’
(MURFREESBORO)—Recent Middle Tennessee State University graduates Rich and Andy Karg have been selected from 500 entries to perform Saturday, April 21, on “A Prairie Home Companion” in the National Public Radio show’s “People In (their) Twenties Talent Show.”
The Nashville duo will compete against five finalists from around the country in a live broadcast heard locally on WPLN 90.3 FM from 5 to 7 p.m. The studio audience and listeners at home will vote during the show, with host Garrison Keillor announcing the winner at the end of the broadcast. At-home listeners can vote online at www.prairiehome.org.
MTSU Recording Industry Professor Tom Hutchison submitted The Karg Boys to the contest.
“They are among the most talented students I’ve ever had,” Hutchison said. “With a retro sound reminiscent of The Everly Brothers, the Kargs are the perfect musical act for ‘A Prairie Home Companion.’ The show’s producers agreed and said how impressed they were with the duo’s talent.”
“These are two boys that epitomize brother-based harmonies,” said music legend Phil Everly, who has collaborated on several of The Karg Boys’ songs. “I love ‘Prairie Home Companion’ and Garrison Keillor, and I told the boys how much they’ll enjoy being with him on the show.”
Currently in its 33rd season, “A Prairie Home Companion” has made the fictional small town of Lake Wobegon part of American popular culture. The show is heard on more than 500 public radio stations nationwide, with a weekly audience that tops 4.3 million listeners.
“I’ve listened to ‘A Prairie Home Companion’ since I was a kid,” said Andy Karg. “It was some of my earliest exposure to Americana music. My father and I saw the show live in Nashville in 2004, and it was so cool. I always thought Rich and I could do something like that.”
Rich Karg, 26, and Andy Karg, 23, have been writing, singing and performing together since 2002, when they were students in the recording industry program at MTSU. Their act has taken them to the 20th Annual South by Southwest Music and Media Conference in Austin, Texas, and the Star of Texas State Fair and Rodeo. In 2004, the pair received first prize in the "Class Act" musical performance competition at the National Association of Recording Merchandisers Convention in San Diego, Calif., where they performed in front of several hundred record label and music industry executives.
In 2005, the Karg Boys signed an exclusive, worldwide publishing/artist development deal with Universal Music Publishing Group Nashville. Since signing with UMPG, Rich and Andy have collaborated with some of Nashville’s top songwriters and producers, including Rivers Rutherford ("Real Good Man"), Don Schlitz ("The Gambler"), Byron Hill ("Nothin’ On But the Radio"), Jess Leary ("Where the Green Grass Grows"), Kostas ("Ain't That Lonely Yet"), Phil Everly ("When Will I Be Loved?"), Big Al Anderson ("Unbelievable") and Paul Kennerly ("Young Love Strong Love").
The brothers’ unique musical style and harmony vocals have been influenced by the Everly Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, Dwight Yoakam, the Mavericks, the Beatles and Coldplay. The brothers credit their father, Nashville songwriter Dick Karg, as influential on their songwriting.
“A Prairie Home Companion” can be heard locally on WPLN 90.3, WTML-FM 91.5 in Tullahoma, and WHRS-FM 91.7 in Cookeville. The live broadcast is also available on satellite radio on Sirius channel 134 and XM channel 133.
MTSU’s Department of Recording Industry in the College of Mass Communication is one of the largest and best equipped in the nation. The Rolling Stone College Guide has called it “one of the preeminent music business programs in the country.”
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: For more information, photos and sound clips, visit http://prairiehome.publicradio.org and www.kargboys.com/home.htm. Thanks!
350 RESEARCH CONSORTIUM INDUCTS MTSU’s KANG AS RESEARCH FELLOW
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 18, 2007
CONTACT: Gayle Claman (703) 476-3415 or via e-mail at gclaman@aahperd.org
(RESTON, Va.)—Dr. Minsoo Kang, an assistant professor in MTSU’s Department of Health and Human Performance, was among 16 candidates recently inducted as research consortium fellows at the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) Convention and Exposition in Baltimore, Md., on March 16.
A member of MTSU’s faculty since 2004, Kang joins approximately 375 fellows in the consortium, a member group of nearly 6,000 research scholars and other members of the AAHPERD who have a strong interest in research.
Research Consortium President Ellen Staurowsky of Ithaca College said attainment of fellow status is one of the most prestigious honors the consortium can bestow on a member. Fellows are selected based on evidence of scholarship, including research presentations and publications.
“Research consortium fellows demonstrate an ongoing commitment to research and a high level of achievement in their field,” Staurowsky said. “Our 2007 class is to be congratulated for this recognition of their scholarship.”
According to its Web site, the AAHPERD is the largest organization of professionals supporting and assisting those involved in physical education, leisure, fitness, dance, health promotion and education and all specialties related to achieving a healthy lifestyle.
An alliance of five national associations, six district associations and a research consortium, the AAHPERD is designed to provide members with a comprehensive and coordinated array of resources, support and programs to help practitioners improve their skills and so further the health and well-being of the American public.
Staurowsky said the mission of the AAHPERD Research Consortium is to advance, promote and disseminate quality research within and across the disciplines and professions served by AAHPERD.
For more information on the consortium, please access www.aahperd.org/research.
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CONTACT: Gayle Claman (703) 476-3415 or via e-mail at gclaman@aahperd.org
(RESTON, Va.)—Dr. Minsoo Kang, an assistant professor in MTSU’s Department of Health and Human Performance, was among 16 candidates recently inducted as research consortium fellows at the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) Convention and Exposition in Baltimore, Md., on March 16.
A member of MTSU’s faculty since 2004, Kang joins approximately 375 fellows in the consortium, a member group of nearly 6,000 research scholars and other members of the AAHPERD who have a strong interest in research.
Research Consortium President Ellen Staurowsky of Ithaca College said attainment of fellow status is one of the most prestigious honors the consortium can bestow on a member. Fellows are selected based on evidence of scholarship, including research presentations and publications.
“Research consortium fellows demonstrate an ongoing commitment to research and a high level of achievement in their field,” Staurowsky said. “Our 2007 class is to be congratulated for this recognition of their scholarship.”
According to its Web site, the AAHPERD is the largest organization of professionals supporting and assisting those involved in physical education, leisure, fitness, dance, health promotion and education and all specialties related to achieving a healthy lifestyle.
An alliance of five national associations, six district associations and a research consortium, the AAHPERD is designed to provide members with a comprehensive and coordinated array of resources, support and programs to help practitioners improve their skills and so further the health and well-being of the American public.
Staurowsky said the mission of the AAHPERD Research Consortium is to advance, promote and disseminate quality research within and across the disciplines and professions served by AAHPERD.
For more information on the consortium, please access www.aahperd.org/research.
—30—
349 MTSU SAYS “SAYONARA, SENSEI” (GOODBYE, TEACHER) TO KAWAHITO
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 17, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081
Pioneer in Developing Good U.S.-Japanese Relations to Call It a Career
(MURFREESBORO) – MTSU’s busiest one-man cultural and educational exchange society will have a somewhat smaller “to do” list as of June 2. Dr. Kiyoshi Kawahito, professor of economics and finance and director of the Japan-U.S. Program, will be feted at a retirement roast at 5 p.m. Monday, April 23, in the Tom Jackson Building.
The future of the program, which has led to greater understanding among peoples in a region where Bridgestone/Firestone, Nissan, and Toshiba are major economic players, remains uncertain.
Kawahito is personally responsible for bringing Music from Japan, an exclusive annual tour of the finest practitioners of traditional Japanese music, to MTSU year after year. He also hosted an annual Japanese New Year’s potluck feast, complete with traditional music, special food and drinks, and guests clad in lovely kimonos.
Not the least of Kawahito’s many contributions to the campus community is the establishment of partnerships with Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, Fukushima University, Saitama University, Nagoya Yakuin University and Kansai Gaidai University in Japan, Yonsei University in South Korea, and Bangkok University in Thailand.
The use of his extensive network of personal contacts has not only made study abroad trips to Asia thrilling and enlightening experiences for students, but it has made those trips less expensive than they would have been if they had been arranged through a consortium. The itineraries were arranged by Kawahito himself, benefiting more than 130 students, and he admits it is the accomplishment of which he is most proud.
“This is not the best in Middle Tennessee,” Kawahito says. “This is not the best in Tennessee. This is not the best in the nation. I believe this is the best in the world. If anyone can show me any better 15-day field study program in Japan, I’ll come over there and study that.”
Now it is time for Kawahito to travel for his own pleasure and relaxation.
“I would like to travel to a few different parts of the world, but at my own pace, not at a very busy and fast-moving pace,” Kawahito says of his upcoming retirement years. He says he also would like to write a history of MTSU’s interaction with the Japanese community over the last 25 years and perhaps organize groups of MTSU alumni in Japan and Thailand.
In 2004, Kawahito was presented the “Gaimu Daijin Sho,” the “Foreign Minister’s Commendation in Commemoration of 150th Anniversary of U.S.-Japan Friendship,” by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Kawahito earned his bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma City University and his master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Maryland.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To arrange an interview with Dr. Kiyoshi Kawahito, please contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081 or gklogue@mtsu.edu.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081
Pioneer in Developing Good U.S.-Japanese Relations to Call It a Career
(MURFREESBORO) – MTSU’s busiest one-man cultural and educational exchange society will have a somewhat smaller “to do” list as of June 2. Dr. Kiyoshi Kawahito, professor of economics and finance and director of the Japan-U.S. Program, will be feted at a retirement roast at 5 p.m. Monday, April 23, in the Tom Jackson Building.
The future of the program, which has led to greater understanding among peoples in a region where Bridgestone/Firestone, Nissan, and Toshiba are major economic players, remains uncertain.
Kawahito is personally responsible for bringing Music from Japan, an exclusive annual tour of the finest practitioners of traditional Japanese music, to MTSU year after year. He also hosted an annual Japanese New Year’s potluck feast, complete with traditional music, special food and drinks, and guests clad in lovely kimonos.
Not the least of Kawahito’s many contributions to the campus community is the establishment of partnerships with Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, Fukushima University, Saitama University, Nagoya Yakuin University and Kansai Gaidai University in Japan, Yonsei University in South Korea, and Bangkok University in Thailand.
The use of his extensive network of personal contacts has not only made study abroad trips to Asia thrilling and enlightening experiences for students, but it has made those trips less expensive than they would have been if they had been arranged through a consortium. The itineraries were arranged by Kawahito himself, benefiting more than 130 students, and he admits it is the accomplishment of which he is most proud.
“This is not the best in Middle Tennessee,” Kawahito says. “This is not the best in Tennessee. This is not the best in the nation. I believe this is the best in the world. If anyone can show me any better 15-day field study program in Japan, I’ll come over there and study that.”
Now it is time for Kawahito to travel for his own pleasure and relaxation.
“I would like to travel to a few different parts of the world, but at my own pace, not at a very busy and fast-moving pace,” Kawahito says of his upcoming retirement years. He says he also would like to write a history of MTSU’s interaction with the Japanese community over the last 25 years and perhaps organize groups of MTSU alumni in Japan and Thailand.
In 2004, Kawahito was presented the “Gaimu Daijin Sho,” the “Foreign Minister’s Commendation in Commemoration of 150th Anniversary of U.S.-Japan Friendship,” by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Kawahito earned his bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma City University and his master’s and Ph.D. from the University of Maryland.
--30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA: To arrange an interview with Dr. Kiyoshi Kawahito, please contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081 or gklogue@mtsu.edu.
348 APRIL 20 AFRICAN-AMERICAN AWARDS SALUTE MTSU STUDENTS, ALUMNI
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 13, 2007
EDITORIAL/EVENT CONTACT: Valerie Avent, 615-898-2718
Local Pastor, Also an Alumnus, is Featured Speaker
(MURFREESBORO)— The Rev. Vincent Windrow, pastor of the Olive Branch Missionary Baptist Church in Antioch and vice president of the Nashville-based Zycron Computer Services Inc., will be the featured speaker Friday, April 20, at MTSU’s annual African-American Awards Ceremony.
The event, which honors both current students and alumni, is scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Tennessee Room of the university’s James Union Building.
The student scholarship awards are held in honor of the late Al Wilkerson (B.S. ’73, M.A. ’79, Ed.S. ’92), who was an MTSU alumnus and former faculty member who helped establish the Office of Multicultural Affairs on campus and the first MTSU African-American alumni organization.
Alumni awards honoring achievement through professional, community, or university involvement will be presented this year to Marine Corps Capt. Vernice G. Armour (B.S. ‘97), the first African-American female combat pilot in U.S. military history, and award-winning musicians- producers-songwriters Cedric (B.M. ’78, M.Ed. ’79) and Victor (B.S. ‘83) Caldwell.
Armour, a Memphis native who also was the first African-American woman on the Nashville Police Department's motorcycle squad, is also an author, motivational speaker and business trainer.
The Caldwell brothers, who operate Caldwell Plus Productions in Brentwood, have worked with artists like Whitney Houston, Donnie McClurkin, Patti LaBelle, Take 6, Yolanda Adams, Brandy and multiple members of the Winans family, winning Grammy, Gospel Music Association and many other awards along the way.
In addition to his ministry and work with Zycron, featured speaker Windrow (B.U.S. ’90, ’91) is a writer, lyricist, avid reader and conference speaker. His list of clients includes State Farm Insurance, Dell Computers, HCA, Captain D's, The Metro School Board and The Tennessee Lottery. He also is an alumnus of American Baptist Theological Seminary and a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Tickets for the celebration will be $10 per person and $5 for students and should be purchased by Monday, April 16, by calling 1-800-533-MTSU (6878) or visiting www.mtalumni.com. Attendees also can mail ticket payments to the MTSU Alumni Association, P.O. Box 104, Murfreesboro, Tenn. 37132.
###
Media welcomed.
EDITORIAL/EVENT CONTACT: Valerie Avent, 615-898-2718
Local Pastor, Also an Alumnus, is Featured Speaker
(MURFREESBORO)— The Rev. Vincent Windrow, pastor of the Olive Branch Missionary Baptist Church in Antioch and vice president of the Nashville-based Zycron Computer Services Inc., will be the featured speaker Friday, April 20, at MTSU’s annual African-American Awards Ceremony.
The event, which honors both current students and alumni, is scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Tennessee Room of the university’s James Union Building.
The student scholarship awards are held in honor of the late Al Wilkerson (B.S. ’73, M.A. ’79, Ed.S. ’92), who was an MTSU alumnus and former faculty member who helped establish the Office of Multicultural Affairs on campus and the first MTSU African-American alumni organization.
Alumni awards honoring achievement through professional, community, or university involvement will be presented this year to Marine Corps Capt. Vernice G. Armour (B.S. ‘97), the first African-American female combat pilot in U.S. military history, and award-winning musicians- producers-songwriters Cedric (B.M. ’78, M.Ed. ’79) and Victor (B.S. ‘83) Caldwell.
Armour, a Memphis native who also was the first African-American woman on the Nashville Police Department's motorcycle squad, is also an author, motivational speaker and business trainer.
The Caldwell brothers, who operate Caldwell Plus Productions in Brentwood, have worked with artists like Whitney Houston, Donnie McClurkin, Patti LaBelle, Take 6, Yolanda Adams, Brandy and multiple members of the Winans family, winning Grammy, Gospel Music Association and many other awards along the way.
In addition to his ministry and work with Zycron, featured speaker Windrow (B.U.S. ’90, ’91) is a writer, lyricist, avid reader and conference speaker. His list of clients includes State Farm Insurance, Dell Computers, HCA, Captain D's, The Metro School Board and The Tennessee Lottery. He also is an alumnus of American Baptist Theological Seminary and a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc.
Tickets for the celebration will be $10 per person and $5 for students and should be purchased by Monday, April 16, by calling 1-800-533-MTSU (6878) or visiting www.mtalumni.com. Attendees also can mail ticket payments to the MTSU Alumni Association, P.O. Box 104, Murfreesboro, Tenn. 37132.
###
Media welcomed.
346 MTSU JAZZ ARTIST SERIES FEATURES SNOOKY YOUNG
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 9, 2006
CONTACT: Tim Musselman, (615) 898-2493
MTSU Jazz Festival Offers Clinics, Professional Feedback for Participants
(MURFREESBORO)— The MTSU Jazz Festival in conjunction with the MTSU Jazz Artist Series will began at 9 a.m. on April 14 in the Wright Music Building (WMB) on the MTSU campus. The concluding Jazz Artist Series concert will feature legendary trumpeter, Eugene "Snooky" Young with the MTSU Jazz Ensemble I at 7:30 p.m. in Hinton Hall of the WMB.
Bringing together outstanding jazz artists, jazz educators, students, and jazz lovers for a full day of performances and educational activities, the MTSU Jazz Festival start with thirty minute performances by high school and college jazz ensembles and combos running throughout the day.
School groups will perform for professional adjudicators and then given a “one-on-one” workshop with one of the visiting clinicians. Designed to help the students expand and improve their jazz skills, the festival will afford each group with audio taped comments from two clinicians and a video tape of their performance.
The clinicians this year include Clay Jenkins of the Eastman School of Music, Don Aliquo, and Jamey Simmons from MTSU, Tom Giampietro from Vanderbilt University and MTSU, Bruce Dudley from Belmont University and Pat Harbison from the University of Indiana at Bloomington.
In addition, the festival will feature a 1:45 pm clinic with Young in Hinton Hall of the WMB.
The festival will conclude with the Jazz Artist Series concert featuring Young and the MTSU Jazz Ensemble I.
"(Young) has been on thousands of records with just about every important jazz artist in the last 50 years," said Aliquo. "His Lyrical trumpet style is well recognized by jazz fans throughout the world."
Young is also known as a master of the plunger mute and has performed since the age of 5 with artists such as Jimmie Lunceford, Count Basie, Lionel Hampton, and Gerald Wilson. He was a founding member of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra and also a part of the Tonight Show Orchestra.
The MTSU Jazz Ensemble I is the top performing large ensemble in the jazz studies program. It features the most experienced student players and concentrates on cutting-edge literature and master works from the big band repertoire. They have toured throughout the region and performed at top collegiate festivals including the Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival.
Tickets for the Jazz Artist Series concert are $15 at the door. MTSU students, faculty and staff will be admitted free with a valid ID.
For more information on the Jazz Festival or any other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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CONTACT: Tim Musselman, (615) 898-2493
MTSU Jazz Festival Offers Clinics, Professional Feedback for Participants
(MURFREESBORO)— The MTSU Jazz Festival in conjunction with the MTSU Jazz Artist Series will began at 9 a.m. on April 14 in the Wright Music Building (WMB) on the MTSU campus. The concluding Jazz Artist Series concert will feature legendary trumpeter, Eugene "Snooky" Young with the MTSU Jazz Ensemble I at 7:30 p.m. in Hinton Hall of the WMB.
Bringing together outstanding jazz artists, jazz educators, students, and jazz lovers for a full day of performances and educational activities, the MTSU Jazz Festival start with thirty minute performances by high school and college jazz ensembles and combos running throughout the day.
School groups will perform for professional adjudicators and then given a “one-on-one” workshop with one of the visiting clinicians. Designed to help the students expand and improve their jazz skills, the festival will afford each group with audio taped comments from two clinicians and a video tape of their performance.
The clinicians this year include Clay Jenkins of the Eastman School of Music, Don Aliquo, and Jamey Simmons from MTSU, Tom Giampietro from Vanderbilt University and MTSU, Bruce Dudley from Belmont University and Pat Harbison from the University of Indiana at Bloomington.
In addition, the festival will feature a 1:45 pm clinic with Young in Hinton Hall of the WMB.
The festival will conclude with the Jazz Artist Series concert featuring Young and the MTSU Jazz Ensemble I.
"(Young) has been on thousands of records with just about every important jazz artist in the last 50 years," said Aliquo. "His Lyrical trumpet style is well recognized by jazz fans throughout the world."
Young is also known as a master of the plunger mute and has performed since the age of 5 with artists such as Jimmie Lunceford, Count Basie, Lionel Hampton, and Gerald Wilson. He was a founding member of the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra and also a part of the Tonight Show Orchestra.
The MTSU Jazz Ensemble I is the top performing large ensemble in the jazz studies program. It features the most experienced student players and concentrates on cutting-edge literature and master works from the big band repertoire. They have toured throughout the region and performed at top collegiate festivals including the Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival.
Tickets for the Jazz Artist Series concert are $15 at the door. MTSU students, faculty and staff will be admitted free with a valid ID.
For more information on the Jazz Festival or any other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
-30-
345 “WALLACE” LOOKS FOR LOVE, KUDOS FROM FILM LOVERS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 9, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081
MTSU Movie Mavens, Professor Craft Independent Film Hit
(MURFREESBORO) – “My Name is Wallace,” an independent movie filmed in Murfreesboro and winner of numerous awards at film festivals worldwide, will be screened at 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 24, and at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at the Nashville Film Festival.
“Wallace” tells the story of an odd, lonely, socially challenged man who looks for love through a phone sex advertisement following the death of his mother.
The film was written and directed by Dr. Bob Pondillo, an associate professor of electronic media communication at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). Many members of the crew are MTSU students or alumni. They include director of photography Matthew Pessoni, cinematographer Scott Pessoni, sound designers Mark Duvall and Dave Wagner, and editor Jessica Berryman.
Murfreesboro’s Carriage Lane Inn, which was built in 1899, served as the home Wallace shared with his mother. The Victorian-style bed-and-breakfast also housed the cast and crew for the two intense days of shooting.
“Wallace” has been entered in more than 270 film festivals, and it has been accepted by 38 of them.
“It’s most encouraging,” Pondillo says of the positive reception for his work. “I’m delighted people find it interesting and entertaining. I think the reason is there’s a little bit of Wallace in all of us.”
David Lawrence, a Los Angeles-based actor and host of “The David Lawrence Show” on XM Satellite Radio, is the executive producer and stars as Wallace. Nashville singer-songwriter Leslie Ellis portrays Tiffany, the phone sex operator. Pondillo has a small role as Wallace’s neighbor, Larry.
Lawrence developed the character in the 1980s for a radio comedy bit titled “The Personals,” a sketch about the tapes of people who just didn’t make the cut at a dating service.
“I think the character was very one-dimensional at one time,” Pondillo says. “You know, when we did the radio thing, it was just a funny voice saying … goofy things.”
--more--
“WALLACE”
Add 1
Lawrence, who spent only $15,000 to make the motion picture, said he poured his funding into the equipment necessary for the crew to make a quality film instead of blowing it on actors’ salaries and incidental expenses.
“To have those tools at their beck and call really makes the difference for them in terms of how well they can produce the film,” Lawrence says. “And I wanted them to have the very best tools possible. And, in Nashville, it is far less expensive to shoot with those good tools available to you because they charge less than they do in Los Angeles.”
Because “Wallace” swept the major awards at the Trail Dance Film Festival in Duncan, Okla., Pondillo and Lawrence won a distribution deal to have their film featured on a compilation DVD that will be rentable at more than 150 Hastings Book Store locations across the country.
A separate DVD totally about “Wallace” ultimately will include not only the movie and interviews with the cast and crew but also a pop-up video version of “Wallace” and a feature that will allow viewers to create their own comic book adventures for the main character. Pondillo says a feature-length version of “Wallace” is in the works, as well.
Pondillo’s initial independent film, “Would You Cry If I Died?,” captured third place in the Best Short category at the Southern Fried Flicks Film Festival in Augusta, Ga., and second place in the Narrative Faculty Video category at the 2006 Broadcast Educators Association Festival of Media Arts.
To order tickets for the showing of “My Name is Wallace,” go to http:///www.nashvillefilmfestival.org. The festival will take place April 19-26 at the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 Theater, 3815 Green Hills Village Drive in Nashville.
For more information about “My Name is Wallace” and to view the trailer, go to http://www.mynameiswallace.com.
--30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA: For color photos of shots from “My Name is Wallace,” or to arrange interviews with Dr. Bob Pondillo and David Lawrence, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION AND FESTIVAL HONORS TO DATE
FOR “MY NAME IS WALLACE”
“Best Short Comedy”—San Fernando Valley International Film Festival, North Hollywood, Cal.;
“Best International Short Film”—Okanagan Film Festival, British Columbia, Canada;
“Best Short Film”—Spokane Film Festival, Spokane, Wash.;
“Best Short”—Muskegon Film Festival, Muskegon, Mich.;
--more--
“WALLACE”
Add 2
“Silver Medal of Excellence for Use of Music in a Short Film”—Park City Film Music Festival, Park City, Ut.;
“Best Short Comedy of the Year”—Gem City Film Festival, Palatka, Fla.;
“Best Actor,” Best Screenplay,” “Best Short Comedy,” and “Best of Fest”—Trail Dance Film Festival, Duncan, Okla.;
“Best Short”—Short Films of India Film Festival, Chennai, India;
“Honorable Mention”—Beverly Hills Hi-Def Film Festival, Beverly Hills, Cal.;
“Special Selection” and “Finalist”—Very Short Movies Film Festival, Hollywood, Cal.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Gina Logue, 615-898-5081
MTSU Movie Mavens, Professor Craft Independent Film Hit
(MURFREESBORO) – “My Name is Wallace,” an independent movie filmed in Murfreesboro and winner of numerous awards at film festivals worldwide, will be screened at 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 24, and at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at the Nashville Film Festival.
“Wallace” tells the story of an odd, lonely, socially challenged man who looks for love through a phone sex advertisement following the death of his mother.
The film was written and directed by Dr. Bob Pondillo, an associate professor of electronic media communication at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU). Many members of the crew are MTSU students or alumni. They include director of photography Matthew Pessoni, cinematographer Scott Pessoni, sound designers Mark Duvall and Dave Wagner, and editor Jessica Berryman.
Murfreesboro’s Carriage Lane Inn, which was built in 1899, served as the home Wallace shared with his mother. The Victorian-style bed-and-breakfast also housed the cast and crew for the two intense days of shooting.
“Wallace” has been entered in more than 270 film festivals, and it has been accepted by 38 of them.
“It’s most encouraging,” Pondillo says of the positive reception for his work. “I’m delighted people find it interesting and entertaining. I think the reason is there’s a little bit of Wallace in all of us.”
David Lawrence, a Los Angeles-based actor and host of “The David Lawrence Show” on XM Satellite Radio, is the executive producer and stars as Wallace. Nashville singer-songwriter Leslie Ellis portrays Tiffany, the phone sex operator. Pondillo has a small role as Wallace’s neighbor, Larry.
Lawrence developed the character in the 1980s for a radio comedy bit titled “The Personals,” a sketch about the tapes of people who just didn’t make the cut at a dating service.
“I think the character was very one-dimensional at one time,” Pondillo says. “You know, when we did the radio thing, it was just a funny voice saying … goofy things.”
--more--
“WALLACE”
Add 1
Lawrence, who spent only $15,000 to make the motion picture, said he poured his funding into the equipment necessary for the crew to make a quality film instead of blowing it on actors’ salaries and incidental expenses.
“To have those tools at their beck and call really makes the difference for them in terms of how well they can produce the film,” Lawrence says. “And I wanted them to have the very best tools possible. And, in Nashville, it is far less expensive to shoot with those good tools available to you because they charge less than they do in Los Angeles.”
Because “Wallace” swept the major awards at the Trail Dance Film Festival in Duncan, Okla., Pondillo and Lawrence won a distribution deal to have their film featured on a compilation DVD that will be rentable at more than 150 Hastings Book Store locations across the country.
A separate DVD totally about “Wallace” ultimately will include not only the movie and interviews with the cast and crew but also a pop-up video version of “Wallace” and a feature that will allow viewers to create their own comic book adventures for the main character. Pondillo says a feature-length version of “Wallace” is in the works, as well.
Pondillo’s initial independent film, “Would You Cry If I Died?,” captured third place in the Best Short category at the Southern Fried Flicks Film Festival in Augusta, Ga., and second place in the Narrative Faculty Video category at the 2006 Broadcast Educators Association Festival of Media Arts.
To order tickets for the showing of “My Name is Wallace,” go to http:///www.nashvillefilmfestival.org. The festival will take place April 19-26 at the Regal Green Hills Stadium 16 Theater, 3815 Green Hills Village Drive in Nashville.
For more information about “My Name is Wallace” and to view the trailer, go to http://www.mynameiswallace.com.
--30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA: For color photos of shots from “My Name is Wallace,” or to arrange interviews with Dr. Bob Pondillo and David Lawrence, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
SPECIAL RECOGNITION AND FESTIVAL HONORS TO DATE
FOR “MY NAME IS WALLACE”
“Best Short Comedy”—San Fernando Valley International Film Festival, North Hollywood, Cal.;
“Best International Short Film”—Okanagan Film Festival, British Columbia, Canada;
“Best Short Film”—Spokane Film Festival, Spokane, Wash.;
“Best Short”—Muskegon Film Festival, Muskegon, Mich.;
--more--
“WALLACE”
Add 2
“Silver Medal of Excellence for Use of Music in a Short Film”—Park City Film Music Festival, Park City, Ut.;
“Best Short Comedy of the Year”—Gem City Film Festival, Palatka, Fla.;
“Best Actor,” Best Screenplay,” “Best Short Comedy,” and “Best of Fest”—Trail Dance Film Festival, Duncan, Okla.;
“Best Short”—Short Films of India Film Festival, Chennai, India;
“Honorable Mention”—Beverly Hills Hi-Def Film Festival, Beverly Hills, Cal.;
“Special Selection” and “Finalist”—Very Short Movies Film Festival, Hollywood, Cal.
344 WARREN COUNTY’S CLAYTON, DEKALB COUNTY’S BERRY EARN TOP NEILL-SANDLER SCHOLARS AT MTSU AWARDS
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
Office of Development contact: Kippy Todd, 615-898-5756
(MURFREESBORO) — Warren County High School senior Crystal Clayton says the “key to my success is using my bad experiences as stepping stones for the future. … Nothing will stop my pursuit of happiness, which is making a positive change in the hearts of children.”
Clayton’s “stepping stones” and “pursuit of happiness” were given a lift April 10 when the McMinnville resident received the $10,000 Ray Danner Scholarship during the ninth annual Neill-Sandler Strive for Excellence Banquet at MTSU’s Tennessee Miller Coliseum Miller Room.
Clayton said her goal is to become a clinical licensed counselor with an emphasis on children. She demonstrates her desire to help children through volunteer efforts with programs like the Kids of the Community project, the Structured Athletics for Challenged Children and Bobby Ray Elementary Star program.
The young woman has been a part of many Warren County High, community and church activities, and already enjoyed a taste of the university by being a two-year member of the MTSU Educational Talent Search group.
Jessica Berry of DeKalb County High School in Smithville was honored with the $7,500 Elizabeth and Sidney A. McPhee Scholarship. Since the start of her freshman year, Berry has endured the divorce of her parents, her mother’s three-year struggle with brain cancer that ended in her death two weeks after Mother’s Day 2006, living alone, working and paying her bills, and rebuilding a relationship with her father.
“I am going to succeed at all of my goals, no matter what I have to do to accomplish them,” she wrote in her essay when applying for a Neill-Sandler scholarship. “I love and miss my Mom terribly, but I know she wants me to succeed, also.”
Recipients of one-time $5,000 Neill-Sandler Scholars at MTSU grants included Kyle Chompooming of Franklin County High School in Winchester; India Clark of Lebanon High School; Chris Ehemann of Tullahoma High School; Lauren Grooms of
— MORE —
Neill-Sandler Scholars/Page 2
Smyrna High School; Chad Howse of Cannon County High School in Woodbury; Melissa McClenney of Shelbyville Central High School; Brittany Nelson of Independence High School in Franklin; and Tosha Stoutenburg of Coffee County Central High School in Manchester.
Each of the students had compelling stories shared in comments by Murfreesboro businessman Mike Sandler of the Neill-Sandler Foundation and in a video presentation by John Lynch and graduate student Seth Alder from the Office of News and Public Affairs.
Scholarships are provided through the Neill-Sandler Foundation and The Danner Company, a Nashville-based business led by Chairman Ray Danner. When this group arrives on campus in the fall, it will mean 95 recipients have benefited since 1999, said Kippy Todd, assistant director for annual giving and donor relations in the Office of Development.
The efforts of Sandler, Danner, businessman Gary Neill of Knoxville and others have helped maintain the scholarship program. Neill, Sandler and Randy Morton of the Neill-Sandler Foundation initiated the program in 1999. An annual Danner Invitational Golf Tournament, held in early October at Hermitage Golf Course in Nashville, helps fund the scholarships. Call 615-604-7171 for tournament inquiries.
For more information about the program, visit mtsu.edu/~devofc/neill-sandler. For information about other scholarships or admission to MTSU, call the admissions office at 615-898-2111 or visit mtsu.edu/~admissn/.
###
Note: High-resolution photos of the scholarship recipients are available by calling Randy Weiler in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919. To schedule an interview with the student(s) from your area, please contact their school’s principal or guidance counselor.
Office of Development contact: Kippy Todd, 615-898-5756
(MURFREESBORO) — Warren County High School senior Crystal Clayton says the “key to my success is using my bad experiences as stepping stones for the future. … Nothing will stop my pursuit of happiness, which is making a positive change in the hearts of children.”
Clayton’s “stepping stones” and “pursuit of happiness” were given a lift April 10 when the McMinnville resident received the $10,000 Ray Danner Scholarship during the ninth annual Neill-Sandler Strive for Excellence Banquet at MTSU’s Tennessee Miller Coliseum Miller Room.
Clayton said her goal is to become a clinical licensed counselor with an emphasis on children. She demonstrates her desire to help children through volunteer efforts with programs like the Kids of the Community project, the Structured Athletics for Challenged Children and Bobby Ray Elementary Star program.
The young woman has been a part of many Warren County High, community and church activities, and already enjoyed a taste of the university by being a two-year member of the MTSU Educational Talent Search group.
Jessica Berry of DeKalb County High School in Smithville was honored with the $7,500 Elizabeth and Sidney A. McPhee Scholarship. Since the start of her freshman year, Berry has endured the divorce of her parents, her mother’s three-year struggle with brain cancer that ended in her death two weeks after Mother’s Day 2006, living alone, working and paying her bills, and rebuilding a relationship with her father.
“I am going to succeed at all of my goals, no matter what I have to do to accomplish them,” she wrote in her essay when applying for a Neill-Sandler scholarship. “I love and miss my Mom terribly, but I know she wants me to succeed, also.”
Recipients of one-time $5,000 Neill-Sandler Scholars at MTSU grants included Kyle Chompooming of Franklin County High School in Winchester; India Clark of Lebanon High School; Chris Ehemann of Tullahoma High School; Lauren Grooms of
— MORE —
Neill-Sandler Scholars/Page 2
Smyrna High School; Chad Howse of Cannon County High School in Woodbury; Melissa McClenney of Shelbyville Central High School; Brittany Nelson of Independence High School in Franklin; and Tosha Stoutenburg of Coffee County Central High School in Manchester.
Each of the students had compelling stories shared in comments by Murfreesboro businessman Mike Sandler of the Neill-Sandler Foundation and in a video presentation by John Lynch and graduate student Seth Alder from the Office of News and Public Affairs.
Scholarships are provided through the Neill-Sandler Foundation and The Danner Company, a Nashville-based business led by Chairman Ray Danner. When this group arrives on campus in the fall, it will mean 95 recipients have benefited since 1999, said Kippy Todd, assistant director for annual giving and donor relations in the Office of Development.
The efforts of Sandler, Danner, businessman Gary Neill of Knoxville and others have helped maintain the scholarship program. Neill, Sandler and Randy Morton of the Neill-Sandler Foundation initiated the program in 1999. An annual Danner Invitational Golf Tournament, held in early October at Hermitage Golf Course in Nashville, helps fund the scholarships. Call 615-604-7171 for tournament inquiries.
For more information about the program, visit mtsu.edu/~devofc/neill-sandler. For information about other scholarships or admission to MTSU, call the admissions office at 615-898-2111 or visit mtsu.edu/~admissn/.
###
Note: High-resolution photos of the scholarship recipients are available by calling Randy Weiler in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919. To schedule an interview with the student(s) from your area, please contact their school’s principal or guidance counselor.
Friday, April 06, 2007
343 ‘DESIGNING FOR THE SEXES’ HOST MICHAEL PAYNE LECTURES AT MTSU
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 6, 2005
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919
Free Tickets Available on First-Come, First-Served Basis, Report Organizers
(MURFREESBORO, Tenn.)—Michael Payne, interior designer and host of the popular HGTV program known as “Designing for the Sexes” will present a free lecture on the MTSU campus beginning at 6 p.m. April 18 in Room 221 of the McWherter Learning Resources Center.
A member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and a certified interior designer in the state of California, Payne—in addition to “Designing for the Sexes”—has been on numerous network television programs and on radio stations throughout the country and has been the featured speaker at various national home shows, design events, museums, conferences, corporate events and charity functions.
Each week on his popular weekly cable design show, Payne provides hope for the "he wants, she wants" design battlefront when he helps couples resolve conflicts as they tackle a home- or room-renovation project.
According to the “Designing for Sexes” Web site, “The program follows the couple in design trouble and witnesses an interior designer's creative approach—including encouraging compromise—to bring their fabulous project to completion.”
Author of a 2003 book titled “Let’s Ask Michael, ” Payne has a furniture design/manufacturing partnership with the Powell Company, which was introduced as the Michael Payne in April 2005 and available in furniture stores nationwide.
Payne, who currently resides in L.A. with his wife, earned a bachelor’s degree in physics and mathematics from Southampton University in England. Then, after 10 years in the computer industry, during which he was transferred from England to the United States, he pursued a career in interior design and graduated from the UCLA interior design program in 1980.
Payne’s local visit, which will include visits to MTSU design classrooms, is sponsored by the MTSU student chapter of ASID as well as the MTSU Distinguished Lecture Committee, the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, Oakland's Historic House Museum. Deborah Belcher, Ken Robinson, Roy Eldon Hoffman and the Department of Human Sciences, including its interior design, textiles merchandising, design, nutrition and food science programs and MTSU’s child and family studies program.
• TICKETS: Payne’s April 18 talk is free and open to the public, but tickets are required and available on a first-come, first-served basis in the Ellington Human Sciences Room 222 and at the St. Clair Senior Center. For more information, please call Deborah Belcher, assistant professor of human sciences, at 615-898-5604 or via e-mail at dbelcher@mtsu.edu.
—30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA: For interview requests with Michael Payne or event organizer Deborah Belcher, or to secure a color jpeg of Payne for editorial use, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919
Free Tickets Available on First-Come, First-Served Basis, Report Organizers
(MURFREESBORO, Tenn.)—Michael Payne, interior designer and host of the popular HGTV program known as “Designing for the Sexes” will present a free lecture on the MTSU campus beginning at 6 p.m. April 18 in Room 221 of the McWherter Learning Resources Center.
A member of the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) and a certified interior designer in the state of California, Payne—in addition to “Designing for the Sexes”—has been on numerous network television programs and on radio stations throughout the country and has been the featured speaker at various national home shows, design events, museums, conferences, corporate events and charity functions.
Each week on his popular weekly cable design show, Payne provides hope for the "he wants, she wants" design battlefront when he helps couples resolve conflicts as they tackle a home- or room-renovation project.
According to the “Designing for Sexes” Web site, “The program follows the couple in design trouble and witnesses an interior designer's creative approach—including encouraging compromise—to bring their fabulous project to completion.”
Author of a 2003 book titled “Let’s Ask Michael, ” Payne has a furniture design/manufacturing partnership with the Powell Company, which was introduced as the Michael Payne in April 2005 and available in furniture stores nationwide.
Payne, who currently resides in L.A. with his wife, earned a bachelor’s degree in physics and mathematics from Southampton University in England. Then, after 10 years in the computer industry, during which he was transferred from England to the United States, he pursued a career in interior design and graduated from the UCLA interior design program in 1980.
Payne’s local visit, which will include visits to MTSU design classrooms, is sponsored by the MTSU student chapter of ASID as well as the MTSU Distinguished Lecture Committee, the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost, Oakland's Historic House Museum. Deborah Belcher, Ken Robinson, Roy Eldon Hoffman and the Department of Human Sciences, including its interior design, textiles merchandising, design, nutrition and food science programs and MTSU’s child and family studies program.
• TICKETS: Payne’s April 18 talk is free and open to the public, but tickets are required and available on a first-come, first-served basis in the Ellington Human Sciences Room 222 and at the St. Clair Senior Center. For more information, please call Deborah Belcher, assistant professor of human sciences, at 615-898-5604 or via e-mail at dbelcher@mtsu.edu.
—30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA: For interview requests with Michael Payne or event organizer Deborah Belcher, or to secure a color jpeg of Payne for editorial use, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu.
342 10 WHO HAVE OVERCOME OBSTACLES WILL EARN NEILL-SANDLER SCHOLARSHIPS
Release date: April 5, 2007 Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
Scholars at MTSU contact: Kippy Todd, 898-5756
10 WHO HAVE OVERCOME OBSTACLES WILL EARN NEILL-SANDLER SCHOLARSHIPS TO ATTEND MTSU APRIL 10
(MURFREESBORO) — Ten Middle Tennessee high-school seniors who have overcome obstacles and become successful in life will be honored for their tenacity Tuesday, April 10, during the ninth annual Neill-Sandler Strive for Excellence Banquet at MTSU. The invitation-only event will start at 6 p.m. in the Tennessee Miller Coliseum’s Miller Room.
The students, who have been nominated by their schools and school systems, have persevered through rough times. Despite their situations, they have performed well in the classroom and on their college entrance examinations, and exhibited leadership skills in and out of school. Some have worked to financially assist themselves and family members.
Scholarships provided through the Neill-Sandler Foundation and The Danner Company, a Nashville-based business led by Chairman Ray Danner, will go to the deserving students who come from the following county school systems: Bedford, Cannon, Coffee, DeKalb, Franklin, Rutherford, Warren, Williamson and Wilson, and Tullahoma City Schools.
This year’s honorees will include:
Jessica Berry of DeKalb County High School in Smithville; Kyle Chompooming of Franklin County High School in Winchester; India Clark of Lebanon High School; Crystal Clayton of Warren County High School in McMinnville; Chris Ehemann of Tullahoma High School; Lauren Grooms of Smyrna High School; Chad Howse of Cannon County High School in Woodbury; Melissa McClenney of Shelbyville Central High School; Brittany Nelson of Independence High School in Franklin; and Tosha Stoutenburg of Coffee County Central High School in Manchester.
One scholarship recipient will receive the Ray Danner Scholarship, which has a $10,000 total award. Another will receive the Elizabeth and Sidney McPhee Scholarship, with a $7,500 total award. The other eight winners will receive a $5,000 scholarship.
Kippy Todd, assistant director for annual giving and donor relations in the Office of Development, said 85 recipients have benefited from the scholarships since 1999.
Todd said the efforts of businessmen Gary Neill of Knoxville, Mike Sandler of Murfreesboro, Nashville businessman Danner and others has helped maintain the program. Neill, Sandler and Randy Morton of the Neill-Sandler Foundation initiated the program in 1999.
For more information about the program, visit mtsu.edu/~devofc/neill-sandler. For information about other scholarships or admission to MTSU, call 615-898-2111 or visit mtsu.edu/~admissn/.
###
Media welcomed.
Note: high-resolution .jpg photos are available. To request a photo, call 615-898-2919.
Scholars at MTSU contact: Kippy Todd, 898-5756
10 WHO HAVE OVERCOME OBSTACLES WILL EARN NEILL-SANDLER SCHOLARSHIPS TO ATTEND MTSU APRIL 10
(MURFREESBORO) — Ten Middle Tennessee high-school seniors who have overcome obstacles and become successful in life will be honored for their tenacity Tuesday, April 10, during the ninth annual Neill-Sandler Strive for Excellence Banquet at MTSU. The invitation-only event will start at 6 p.m. in the Tennessee Miller Coliseum’s Miller Room.
The students, who have been nominated by their schools and school systems, have persevered through rough times. Despite their situations, they have performed well in the classroom and on their college entrance examinations, and exhibited leadership skills in and out of school. Some have worked to financially assist themselves and family members.
Scholarships provided through the Neill-Sandler Foundation and The Danner Company, a Nashville-based business led by Chairman Ray Danner, will go to the deserving students who come from the following county school systems: Bedford, Cannon, Coffee, DeKalb, Franklin, Rutherford, Warren, Williamson and Wilson, and Tullahoma City Schools.
This year’s honorees will include:
Jessica Berry of DeKalb County High School in Smithville; Kyle Chompooming of Franklin County High School in Winchester; India Clark of Lebanon High School; Crystal Clayton of Warren County High School in McMinnville; Chris Ehemann of Tullahoma High School; Lauren Grooms of Smyrna High School; Chad Howse of Cannon County High School in Woodbury; Melissa McClenney of Shelbyville Central High School; Brittany Nelson of Independence High School in Franklin; and Tosha Stoutenburg of Coffee County Central High School in Manchester.
One scholarship recipient will receive the Ray Danner Scholarship, which has a $10,000 total award. Another will receive the Elizabeth and Sidney McPhee Scholarship, with a $7,500 total award. The other eight winners will receive a $5,000 scholarship.
Kippy Todd, assistant director for annual giving and donor relations in the Office of Development, said 85 recipients have benefited from the scholarships since 1999.
Todd said the efforts of businessmen Gary Neill of Knoxville, Mike Sandler of Murfreesboro, Nashville businessman Danner and others has helped maintain the program. Neill, Sandler and Randy Morton of the Neill-Sandler Foundation initiated the program in 1999.
For more information about the program, visit mtsu.edu/~devofc/neill-sandler. For information about other scholarships or admission to MTSU, call 615-898-2111 or visit mtsu.edu/~admissn/.
###
Media welcomed.
Note: high-resolution .jpg photos are available. To request a photo, call 615-898-2919.
341 WIND ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE FEATURES PIECE INSPIRED BY GIRL’S DREAMS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 5, 2007
CONTACT: Tim Musselman, 615-898-2493
April 13th Concert is Free & Open to the Public
(MURFREEBORO)—The MTSU Wind Ensemble will perform a free and open concert at 7:30 p.m. April 13 in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
The group will perform David Maslanka’s A Child's Garden of Dreams, Mike Mower’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra, and John Corigliano’s Gazebo Dances.
John and Marietta Paynter commissioned the first piece, A Child’s Garden of Dreams, for the Northwestern University Symphonic Wind Ensemble.
Regarding this work, Reed Thomas, MTSU director of bands and conductor for the ensemble, said it was taken from a 10-year-old girl’s dreams recorded in "Man and His Symbols" by Carl Jung, a psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology.
Second on the program will be Mower’s concerto, which was commissioned by a group of 12 universities led by the University of Kentucky. The work was premiered in spring o2005. Don Aliquo, director of jazz studies and associate professor of saxophone at MTSU, will perform this piece with the Wind Ensemble.
"Written in three movements, the piece begins with an energetic 7/8 meter presented by the marimba and vibraphone,” Thomas explained. “Eventually, other members of the ensemble are added to the mix until the entire ensemble is playing prior to the soloist’s first appearance.”
The last work of the evening, Corigliano’s Gazebo Dances, will consist of four movements: Overture, Waltz, Adagio, and Tarantella.
"While not a dance, per se, the Overture is dance like in its character," Thomas. noted.
Additionally, Thomas said, “John Corigliano is one of the finest and most widely recognized American composers. Among the dozens of citations, doctorates, and other honors he has received are included all of the most important music awards — several Grammies, a Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 2 (2001), a Grawemeyer for his Symphony No. 1 (1991) and an Academy Award for his score to Francois Girard's 1997 film The Red Violin.”
The Wind Ensemble of MTSU is the premiere performing ensemble for wind, brass and percussion students at the university. These players are quickly becoming recognized as one of the outstanding university ensembles in the U.S. and abroad, Reed said, and invitations have been held to perform in Thailand, Korea, Japan and several European countries.
This concert is free and open to the public.
For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
—30—
CONTACT: Tim Musselman, 615-898-2493
April 13th Concert is Free & Open to the Public
(MURFREEBORO)—The MTSU Wind Ensemble will perform a free and open concert at 7:30 p.m. April 13 in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
The group will perform David Maslanka’s A Child's Garden of Dreams, Mike Mower’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra, and John Corigliano’s Gazebo Dances.
John and Marietta Paynter commissioned the first piece, A Child’s Garden of Dreams, for the Northwestern University Symphonic Wind Ensemble.
Regarding this work, Reed Thomas, MTSU director of bands and conductor for the ensemble, said it was taken from a 10-year-old girl’s dreams recorded in "Man and His Symbols" by Carl Jung, a psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology.
Second on the program will be Mower’s concerto, which was commissioned by a group of 12 universities led by the University of Kentucky. The work was premiered in spring o2005. Don Aliquo, director of jazz studies and associate professor of saxophone at MTSU, will perform this piece with the Wind Ensemble.
"Written in three movements, the piece begins with an energetic 7/8 meter presented by the marimba and vibraphone,” Thomas explained. “Eventually, other members of the ensemble are added to the mix until the entire ensemble is playing prior to the soloist’s first appearance.”
The last work of the evening, Corigliano’s Gazebo Dances, will consist of four movements: Overture, Waltz, Adagio, and Tarantella.
"While not a dance, per se, the Overture is dance like in its character," Thomas. noted.
Additionally, Thomas said, “John Corigliano is one of the finest and most widely recognized American composers. Among the dozens of citations, doctorates, and other honors he has received are included all of the most important music awards — several Grammies, a Pulitzer Prize for his Symphony No. 2 (2001), a Grawemeyer for his Symphony No. 1 (1991) and an Academy Award for his score to Francois Girard's 1997 film The Red Violin.”
The Wind Ensemble of MTSU is the premiere performing ensemble for wind, brass and percussion students at the university. These players are quickly becoming recognized as one of the outstanding university ensembles in the U.S. and abroad, Reed said, and invitations have been held to perform in Thailand, Korea, Japan and several European countries.
This concert is free and open to the public.
For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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340 APRIL 12 MTSU PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE CONCERT SET
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 5, 2007
CONTACT: Tim Musselman, 615-898-2493
Upcoming Performance Free & Open to the Public
(MURFREESBORO) –The MTSU Percussion Ensemble will perform a concert with a wide variety of music at 8 p.m. April 12 in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
“This diverse program will be entertaining for all ages,” said Lalo Davila, assistant professor of percussion at MTSU.
The groups will perform pieces including those for quartet and steel drum, Caribbean, Brazilian and African and pop ensembles.
This concert is free and open to the public.
For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
—30—
CONTACT: Tim Musselman, 615-898-2493
Upcoming Performance Free & Open to the Public
(MURFREESBORO) –The MTSU Percussion Ensemble will perform a concert with a wide variety of music at 8 p.m. April 12 in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
“This diverse program will be entertaining for all ages,” said Lalo Davila, assistant professor of percussion at MTSU.
The groups will perform pieces including those for quartet and steel drum, Caribbean, Brazilian and African and pop ensembles.
This concert is free and open to the public.
For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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336 TRANSFER STUDENT HONOR SOCIETY INDUCTS 100 MEMBERS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 3, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Virginia Donnell, 615-898-5728
In Its Second Year, Tau Sigma Inducts 50 Percent from TBR Institutions
(MURFREESBORO) – MTSU’s chapter of Tau Sigma will induct 100 new members at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 10, in Room 102S in the Business Aerospace Building.
Tau Sigma is a national transfer student academic honor society. Undergraduate students from colleges and universities all over the country who have transferred to MTSU with at least 24 hours and have maintained a 3.5 grade point average in their first semester at MTSU are invited to join.
MTSU’s chapter also inducts members transferring from and enrolled in programs at various satellite campuses. This year, 50 students from other Tennessee Board of Regents community colleges will be inducted into the honor society.
Due to the large number of new inductees enrolled in the MTSU 2+2 Program at Columbia State Community College, an induction ceremony also will be held at Columbia State at 4:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 12, in Hickman 122. These students are enrolled in the Interdisciplinary Studies Program, which allows a student to earn a bachelor’s degree in education toward K-6 certification by completing an associate’s degree at Columbia State and a prescribed series of upper-division MTSU courses offered on the Columbia State campus.
“Our chapter of Tau Sigma is devoted to making the transition to MTSU easier for transfers,” says Stephanie Compton, secretary of the chapter for the 2006-2007 school year. “We are a liaison between the university administration and this growing segment of the school population.”
New officers will be installed on April 10. These officers are: Rebekah Cook of Castalian Springs, president; Rochelle Roberts of Tullahoma, vice president; Crystal Barton of Cordova, secretary; Stacy Lawrence of Nashville, treasurer; and Caroline Odom of Summerville, South Carolina, webmaster. The vice president for the Columbia State 2+2 Program will be elected on April 12.
Additionally, honorary inductees at the April 10 ceremony will include Dr. Sherian Huddleston, Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment Services; Dr. Connie Jones, Chair of Elementary and Special Education; Dr. Henry Means, Associate Professor of Elementary and Special Education and advisor for the 2+2 Program; Chris Haseleu, Chair of Recording Industry; Joe Bales, Vice President for Development and University Relations; Dr. John Lee, Chair of Economics and Finance; Marilyn Wood, Associate
Professor of Recording Industry; Dr. Bob Wood, Professor of Recording Industry; Dr. James Huffman, Chair of Educational Leadership; Terri Johnson, Director of the June Anderson Women’s Center; and Dr. David Foote, Associate Professor of Management and Marketing and Director of Leadership Institute.
Tau Sigma is the only national transfer student honor society. After being granted a charter in 2006, MTSU’s chapter of Tau Sigma inducted 66 members and remains the only chapter of the organization in the state of Tennessee. The organization aims to recognize and promote the academic excellence and involvement of transfer students.
For more information about Tau Sigma, contact Dr. Virginia Donnell at 615-898-5728.
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EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Virginia Donnell, 615-898-5728
In Its Second Year, Tau Sigma Inducts 50 Percent from TBR Institutions
(MURFREESBORO) – MTSU’s chapter of Tau Sigma will induct 100 new members at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 10, in Room 102S in the Business Aerospace Building.
Tau Sigma is a national transfer student academic honor society. Undergraduate students from colleges and universities all over the country who have transferred to MTSU with at least 24 hours and have maintained a 3.5 grade point average in their first semester at MTSU are invited to join.
MTSU’s chapter also inducts members transferring from and enrolled in programs at various satellite campuses. This year, 50 students from other Tennessee Board of Regents community colleges will be inducted into the honor society.
Due to the large number of new inductees enrolled in the MTSU 2+2 Program at Columbia State Community College, an induction ceremony also will be held at Columbia State at 4:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 12, in Hickman 122. These students are enrolled in the Interdisciplinary Studies Program, which allows a student to earn a bachelor’s degree in education toward K-6 certification by completing an associate’s degree at Columbia State and a prescribed series of upper-division MTSU courses offered on the Columbia State campus.
“Our chapter of Tau Sigma is devoted to making the transition to MTSU easier for transfers,” says Stephanie Compton, secretary of the chapter for the 2006-2007 school year. “We are a liaison between the university administration and this growing segment of the school population.”
New officers will be installed on April 10. These officers are: Rebekah Cook of Castalian Springs, president; Rochelle Roberts of Tullahoma, vice president; Crystal Barton of Cordova, secretary; Stacy Lawrence of Nashville, treasurer; and Caroline Odom of Summerville, South Carolina, webmaster. The vice president for the Columbia State 2+2 Program will be elected on April 12.
Additionally, honorary inductees at the April 10 ceremony will include Dr. Sherian Huddleston, Associate Vice Provost for Enrollment Services; Dr. Connie Jones, Chair of Elementary and Special Education; Dr. Henry Means, Associate Professor of Elementary and Special Education and advisor for the 2+2 Program; Chris Haseleu, Chair of Recording Industry; Joe Bales, Vice President for Development and University Relations; Dr. John Lee, Chair of Economics and Finance; Marilyn Wood, Associate
Professor of Recording Industry; Dr. Bob Wood, Professor of Recording Industry; Dr. James Huffman, Chair of Educational Leadership; Terri Johnson, Director of the June Anderson Women’s Center; and Dr. David Foote, Associate Professor of Management and Marketing and Director of Leadership Institute.
Tau Sigma is the only national transfer student honor society. After being granted a charter in 2006, MTSU’s chapter of Tau Sigma inducted 66 members and remains the only chapter of the organization in the state of Tennessee. The organization aims to recognize and promote the academic excellence and involvement of transfer students.
For more information about Tau Sigma, contact Dr. Virginia Donnell at 615-898-5728.
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335 PLAYING BY WHOSE RULES? MTSU LECTURE TACKLES GLOBAL ETHICS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 2, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Thomas Cooper, 615-904-8281 or twcooper@comcast.net
Attorney to Address International Media Behavior at April 10 Event
(MURFREESBORO)—With the Internet reducing the world to the size of your computer monitor and filling it with information both useful and potentially harmful, how can we determine who’s in charge of media? Are there any sort of global regulations, or is it every person for herself?
Tara Giunta, an international media compliance expert and Washington, D.C.-based partner in the corporate department of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, will offer some guidelines in a special guest lecture Tuesday, April 10, at Middle Tennessee State University.
Giunta’s lecture, “Who Will Referee the Global Game: The Intersection of Culture, Gender, Law, and Ethics?”, is scheduled for 1 p.m. in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building on campus. Seating will be limited, so organizers are encouraging attendees to arrive early.
“Tara Giunta travels worldwide to determine how to translate between legal systems and ethical traditions in each culture and country,” said Dr. Thomas Cooper, ethicist-in-residence at MTSU. “Now that he world is reduced to sharing common communication technologies, and now that messages cross boundaries without ‘passports,’ how do we determine which laws and ethical mores apply to which messages?
“Tara is also a coordinator of the women’s executive retreat each year, so she provides an excellent understanding of the relationships among gender, leadership, culture, ethics and law.”
Giunta, who received her doctor of jurisprudence degree at Columbia School of Law, Catholic University, has conducted internal investigations in areas focusing on legal and ethical compliance. She’s spoken about media/telecom ethics at such events as the international Freedom of Information and Privacy Association Conference in Ireland and more broadly about ethical behavior from individual and corporate perspectives.
Giunta advises clients in the telecommunications and information technologies industries on compliance areas such as regulatory and licensing, foreign corrupt practices act, technology transfer and data protection. She represents companies before governmental agencies, including the International Telecommunication Union, the Federal Communications Commission or FCC, the U.S. Departments of Commerce and State, and Congress.
She is a member of the Federal Communications Bar Association, American Bar Association, District of Columbia Bar Association and the Women's Bar Association, Women in Technology, Women in Cable and Telecommunications, Northern Virginia Technology Council and High Tech Council of Maryland. Giunta also is a co-chair of the board of directors of Kidsave International, a nonprofit that works to eliminate institutionalization of orphaned children.
For more information about the lecture, e-mail Cooper at twcooper@comcast.net.
One of the largest programs in the nation, the MTSU College of Mass Communication offers degree concentrations in 14 major areas—ranging from journalism to digital media and media management to recording industry management—and is accredited by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.
###
NOTE: Media needing a color headshot of speaker Tara Giunta should contact the Office of News and Public Affairs via e-mail at gfann@mtsu.edu or by calling 615-898-5385. Thanks!
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Dr. Thomas Cooper, 615-904-8281 or twcooper@comcast.net
Attorney to Address International Media Behavior at April 10 Event
(MURFREESBORO)—With the Internet reducing the world to the size of your computer monitor and filling it with information both useful and potentially harmful, how can we determine who’s in charge of media? Are there any sort of global regulations, or is it every person for herself?
Tara Giunta, an international media compliance expert and Washington, D.C.-based partner in the corporate department of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker LLP, will offer some guidelines in a special guest lecture Tuesday, April 10, at Middle Tennessee State University.
Giunta’s lecture, “Who Will Referee the Global Game: The Intersection of Culture, Gender, Law, and Ethics?”, is scheduled for 1 p.m. in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building on campus. Seating will be limited, so organizers are encouraging attendees to arrive early.
“Tara Giunta travels worldwide to determine how to translate between legal systems and ethical traditions in each culture and country,” said Dr. Thomas Cooper, ethicist-in-residence at MTSU. “Now that he world is reduced to sharing common communication technologies, and now that messages cross boundaries without ‘passports,’ how do we determine which laws and ethical mores apply to which messages?
“Tara is also a coordinator of the women’s executive retreat each year, so she provides an excellent understanding of the relationships among gender, leadership, culture, ethics and law.”
Giunta, who received her doctor of jurisprudence degree at Columbia School of Law, Catholic University, has conducted internal investigations in areas focusing on legal and ethical compliance. She’s spoken about media/telecom ethics at such events as the international Freedom of Information and Privacy Association Conference in Ireland and more broadly about ethical behavior from individual and corporate perspectives.
Giunta advises clients in the telecommunications and information technologies industries on compliance areas such as regulatory and licensing, foreign corrupt practices act, technology transfer and data protection. She represents companies before governmental agencies, including the International Telecommunication Union, the Federal Communications Commission or FCC, the U.S. Departments of Commerce and State, and Congress.
She is a member of the Federal Communications Bar Association, American Bar Association, District of Columbia Bar Association and the Women's Bar Association, Women in Technology, Women in Cable and Telecommunications, Northern Virginia Technology Council and High Tech Council of Maryland. Giunta also is a co-chair of the board of directors of Kidsave International, a nonprofit that works to eliminate institutionalization of orphaned children.
For more information about the lecture, e-mail Cooper at twcooper@comcast.net.
One of the largest programs in the nation, the MTSU College of Mass Communication offers degree concentrations in 14 major areas—ranging from journalism to digital media and media management to recording industry management—and is accredited by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.
###
NOTE: Media needing a color headshot of speaker Tara Giunta should contact the Office of News and Public Affairs via e-mail at gfann@mtsu.edu or by calling 615-898-5385. Thanks!
334 LEADING ISLAM SCHOLAR JOHN ESPOSITO LECTURES AT MTSU
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 2, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu
Talk Explores Resentment, Misunderstanding Between Islam & the West, Hibbard Says
(MURFREESBORO)—Dr. John Esposito will present “Islam and the West,” a free and open lecture, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 18, in the State Farm Lecture Hall (Room S102) in MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building.
A professor of religion and international affairs and founding director of the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, Esposito is a leading scholar on Islam and the Middle East.
Additionally, Esposito is the editor-in-chief of the four-volume Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, The Oxford Dictionary of Islam and The Islamic Word: Past and Present. Among the more than 30 books he has authored are What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam, Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam, The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality? and Islam and Politics.
Dr. Allen Hibbard, English professor and director of MTSU’s Middle East Center, said, “Esposito is widely interviewed or quoted in the media in sources such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and network news stations, NPR (and) BBC … as well as in media throughout Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
“In his provocative, challenging and direct presentations, Esposito explores the nature of Islam’s relationship with the West,” Hibbard continued, “and the resentment and misunderstanding that have characterized this often troubled relationship.”
The April 18 lecture, which received sponsorship from the MTSU Distinguished Lecture Fund, is the third in a series of events sponsored by the new Middle East Center at MTSU this spring. In January, Lilly Rivlin presented her documentary film titled “Can You Hear Me? Israeli and Palestinian Women Fight for Peace,” and in March, Dr. F. Gregory Gause III spoke on “The Iraq War: Causes and Consequences.”
Regarding MTSU’s Middle East Center, Hibbard said its mission, in addition to serving students on campus, is to “promote greater understanding of the Middle East throughout the region.
"A key aspect of the center's mission is an outreach program that would provide area middle-school and high-school teachers (with) opportunities to learn more about the Middle East and incorporate that knowledge in their teaching,” he observed, adding that the center also supports faculty research related to the Middle East."
For more information about Esposito’s upcoming lecture, please contact Hibbard (ahibbard@mtsu.edu) at 615-494-8809 or Chantal Rich, assistant in the Middle East Center, at 615-494-7906 or via e-mail at cfrich@mtsu.edu.
• ATTENTION, MEDIA: Media are welcomed and encouraged to attend this event. To schedule a phone interview with Dr. Esposito beginning April 11, 2007, or to secure a jpeg for editorial use, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at lrollins@mtsu.edu or 615-898-2919.
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Lisa L. Rollins, 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu
Talk Explores Resentment, Misunderstanding Between Islam & the West, Hibbard Says
(MURFREESBORO)—Dr. John Esposito will present “Islam and the West,” a free and open lecture, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 18, in the State Farm Lecture Hall (Room S102) in MTSU’s Business and Aerospace Building.
A professor of religion and international affairs and founding director of the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, Esposito is a leading scholar on Islam and the Middle East.
Additionally, Esposito is the editor-in-chief of the four-volume Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, The Oxford Dictionary of Islam and The Islamic Word: Past and Present. Among the more than 30 books he has authored are What Everyone Needs to Know About Islam, Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam, The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality? and Islam and Politics.
Dr. Allen Hibbard, English professor and director of MTSU’s Middle East Center, said, “Esposito is widely interviewed or quoted in the media in sources such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN and network news stations, NPR (and) BBC … as well as in media throughout Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
“In his provocative, challenging and direct presentations, Esposito explores the nature of Islam’s relationship with the West,” Hibbard continued, “and the resentment and misunderstanding that have characterized this often troubled relationship.”
The April 18 lecture, which received sponsorship from the MTSU Distinguished Lecture Fund, is the third in a series of events sponsored by the new Middle East Center at MTSU this spring. In January, Lilly Rivlin presented her documentary film titled “Can You Hear Me? Israeli and Palestinian Women Fight for Peace,” and in March, Dr. F. Gregory Gause III spoke on “The Iraq War: Causes and Consequences.”
Regarding MTSU’s Middle East Center, Hibbard said its mission, in addition to serving students on campus, is to “promote greater understanding of the Middle East throughout the region.
"A key aspect of the center's mission is an outreach program that would provide area middle-school and high-school teachers (with) opportunities to learn more about the Middle East and incorporate that knowledge in their teaching,” he observed, adding that the center also supports faculty research related to the Middle East."
For more information about Esposito’s upcoming lecture, please contact Hibbard (ahibbard@mtsu.edu) at 615-494-8809 or Chantal Rich, assistant in the Middle East Center, at 615-494-7906 or via e-mail at cfrich@mtsu.edu.
• ATTENTION, MEDIA: Media are welcomed and encouraged to attend this event. To schedule a phone interview with Dr. Esposito beginning April 11, 2007, or to secure a jpeg for editorial use, please contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at lrollins@mtsu.edu or 615-898-2919.
Monday, April 02, 2007
333 STUDENT, FACULTY RESEARCHERS SHOWCASE THEIR WORK DURING SCHOLARS WEEK APRIL 2-6
Release date: March 30, 2007
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
Scholars Week contact: Dr. Andrienne Friedli, 615-898-2071 or afriedli@mtsu.edu
MTSU STUDENT, FACULTY RESEARCHERS SHOWCASE THEIR WORK DURING SCHOLARS WEEK APRIL 2-6
(MURFREESBORO) — Research efforts being conducted by MTSU undergraduate and graduate students and faculty members will be recognized during a fascinating five days of Scholars Week 2007 activities, event organizers said.
Scholars Week will be held April 2-6. Highlights will include:
• Scholars Week Kickoff starting at 11:30 a.m. Monday, April 2, in the Walker Library quad, featuring salsa music and comments from MTSU academic leaders.
• Featured speaker Dr. Lee Martin will discuss “Technomics” at 2:30 p.m. April 2 in the Business and Aerospace Building’s State Farm Lecture Hall. Martin is the son of Paul W. Martin Sr., namesake for the University Honors College Building;
• Documentary filmmaker Rory Kennedy, co-founder and co-president of Moxie Firecracker Films Inc., will speak at 5 p.m. Thursday, April 5, during the College of Liberal Arts Windham Lecture in the BAS State Farm Lecture Hall;
• Friday, April 6, finale featuring the Universitywide Poster and Multimedia Exposition in the James Union Building starting at 12:30 p.m., with awards at 4 p.m.
MTSU’s Colleges of Business (April 2), Basic and Applied Sciences (April 3), Liberal Arts (April 4) and Mass Communication, Education and Behavioral Science and Graduate Studies (April 5) will have their own showcases.
“We are expanding our annual Scholars Day to Scholars Week,” said Dr. Kaylene Gebert, executive vice president and provost. “This expansion reflects the increased involvement of students and faculty in a variety of scholarly and creative activities. Each day will feature one or more colleges. The presentations will vary from panels, to performances, to displays, to discussions.
“We had more than 250 responses to the call for abstracts and have had to divide our poster presentation sessions. Friday April 6, will showcase our undergraduates, graduates and faculty and we hope many students, faculty, and staff will stop by the Tennessee Room to see all the excitement. MTSU has a commitment to academic excellence and the Scholars Week is one manifestation of that excellence. … Scholarship is part of the fabric of MTSU.”
For more information and the schedule of events, visit the Scholars Week Web site at mtsu.edu/~research/scholarsweek_schedule.html.
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Media welcomed.
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
Scholars Week contact: Dr. Andrienne Friedli, 615-898-2071 or afriedli@mtsu.edu
MTSU STUDENT, FACULTY RESEARCHERS SHOWCASE THEIR WORK DURING SCHOLARS WEEK APRIL 2-6
(MURFREESBORO) — Research efforts being conducted by MTSU undergraduate and graduate students and faculty members will be recognized during a fascinating five days of Scholars Week 2007 activities, event organizers said.
Scholars Week will be held April 2-6. Highlights will include:
• Scholars Week Kickoff starting at 11:30 a.m. Monday, April 2, in the Walker Library quad, featuring salsa music and comments from MTSU academic leaders.
• Featured speaker Dr. Lee Martin will discuss “Technomics” at 2:30 p.m. April 2 in the Business and Aerospace Building’s State Farm Lecture Hall. Martin is the son of Paul W. Martin Sr., namesake for the University Honors College Building;
• Documentary filmmaker Rory Kennedy, co-founder and co-president of Moxie Firecracker Films Inc., will speak at 5 p.m. Thursday, April 5, during the College of Liberal Arts Windham Lecture in the BAS State Farm Lecture Hall;
• Friday, April 6, finale featuring the Universitywide Poster and Multimedia Exposition in the James Union Building starting at 12:30 p.m., with awards at 4 p.m.
MTSU’s Colleges of Business (April 2), Basic and Applied Sciences (April 3), Liberal Arts (April 4) and Mass Communication, Education and Behavioral Science and Graduate Studies (April 5) will have their own showcases.
“We are expanding our annual Scholars Day to Scholars Week,” said Dr. Kaylene Gebert, executive vice president and provost. “This expansion reflects the increased involvement of students and faculty in a variety of scholarly and creative activities. Each day will feature one or more colleges. The presentations will vary from panels, to performances, to displays, to discussions.
“We had more than 250 responses to the call for abstracts and have had to divide our poster presentation sessions. Friday April 6, will showcase our undergraduates, graduates and faculty and we hope many students, faculty, and staff will stop by the Tennessee Room to see all the excitement. MTSU has a commitment to academic excellence and the Scholars Week is one manifestation of that excellence. … Scholarship is part of the fabric of MTSU.”
For more information and the schedule of events, visit the Scholars Week Web site at mtsu.edu/~research/scholarsweek_schedule.html.
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Media welcomed.
331 CROCKETT COUNTY FARM JOIN RANKS OF STATE’S CENTURY FARMS PROGRAM
117-Year-Old Cypress Creek Farm Recognized for Agricultural Contributions
(MURFREESBORO)—The Cypress Creek Farm in Crockett County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
Located four miles southeast of Alamo, Tenn., is the Cypress Creek Farm that was founded by Silas E. Emison in 1890. Married to Ann Taylor, the couple had four children -- Ruth, Russell, Don Neil and Malcolm. On 45 acres, the family raised cotton, horses, cattle, chickens and guineas.
In 1964, the children acquired the farm, though Malcolm eventually became the sole owner of the property. Along with his wife, Maggie Lou Goldsmith, the couple had two children, Mac Boyd and Joe Silas. Under Malcolm, who went by the surname Emerson rather than Emison, the family farm mainly produced cotton.
In 1982, the greatgrandson of the founder, Joe S. Emerson, and his wife, Myrtle Rose Leggett Emerson, obtained the farm. Over the years, Myrtle has been active in the community by being a member of the home demonstration club. Along with her grandmother, she won prizes for making rugs from old cotton stockings. In addition, Joe and Myrtle have been members of the Farm Bureau since they married in 1955. The couple went to high school together at Bells High School and they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a trip to Italy.
Today, Joe and their daughter, Milly Ann Hart, manage and work the farm, which supports cotton, soybeans and wheat.
Mrs. Emerson recalls that over the generations, the family has included not only farmers but also school teachers, engineers, business people, and doctors. One ancestor was a founder of the Cypress Methodist Church, she noted, and in the adjacent cemetery, many members of the family are buried.
The Century Farm Program recognizes the contributions of Tennessee residents who have continuously owned, and kept in production, family land for at least 100 years. Since 1984, the Center for Historic Preservation at MTSU has been a leader in the important work of documenting Tennessee’s agricultural heritage and history through the Tennessee Century Farm Program, and continues to administer this program. The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners, or obtain jpeg images of this farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
(MURFREESBORO)—The Cypress Creek Farm in Crockett County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
Located four miles southeast of Alamo, Tenn., is the Cypress Creek Farm that was founded by Silas E. Emison in 1890. Married to Ann Taylor, the couple had four children -- Ruth, Russell, Don Neil and Malcolm. On 45 acres, the family raised cotton, horses, cattle, chickens and guineas.
In 1964, the children acquired the farm, though Malcolm eventually became the sole owner of the property. Along with his wife, Maggie Lou Goldsmith, the couple had two children, Mac Boyd and Joe Silas. Under Malcolm, who went by the surname Emerson rather than Emison, the family farm mainly produced cotton.
In 1982, the greatgrandson of the founder, Joe S. Emerson, and his wife, Myrtle Rose Leggett Emerson, obtained the farm. Over the years, Myrtle has been active in the community by being a member of the home demonstration club. Along with her grandmother, she won prizes for making rugs from old cotton stockings. In addition, Joe and Myrtle have been members of the Farm Bureau since they married in 1955. The couple went to high school together at Bells High School and they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with a trip to Italy.
Today, Joe and their daughter, Milly Ann Hart, manage and work the farm, which supports cotton, soybeans and wheat.
Mrs. Emerson recalls that over the generations, the family has included not only farmers but also school teachers, engineers, business people, and doctors. One ancestor was a founder of the Cypress Methodist Church, she noted, and in the adjacent cemetery, many members of the family are buried.
The Century Farm Program recognizes the contributions of Tennessee residents who have continuously owned, and kept in production, family land for at least 100 years. Since 1984, the Center for Historic Preservation at MTSU has been a leader in the important work of documenting Tennessee’s agricultural heritage and history through the Tennessee Century Farm Program, and continues to administer this program. The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners, or obtain jpeg images of this farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
330 ROBERTSON COUNTY FARM JOINS STATE’S CENTURY FARMS PROGRAM
Strickland Place Farm Recognized for Agricultural Contributions
(MURFREESBORO)—The Strickland Place Farm in Robertson County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
In 1903, Henry C. Strickland established a farm that is located three miles west of White House. Along with his wife, Susie Eidson Strickland, they had one child, Mary Elizabeth Strickland Ford Pepper. On 110 acres, the farm produced tobacco, corn, fruit and Black Angus cattle.
During the late 1920s, Henry built a country store named Strickland Mercantile that sold a wide variety of goods including groceries, tools, radios, refrigerators and even automobiles. While managing the farm and store, Henry, his daughter Elizabeth and son-in-law Winsor Ford also developed an airstrip on the farm and flew airplanes. According to the family, they would take community members on flights on Sunday afternoons for 50 cents.
Elizabeth’s husband, Winsor, and their only child died in 1938. Eventually, Elizabeth married Robert L. Pepper and they had a son named Wesley. Elizabeth became the owner of the farm in 1954. In 1955, Wesley Pepper, grandson of the founder, acquired the property.
Over the years, the farm produced tobacco, hay, Black Angus cattle and supported a poultry business. During the 1950s, the Strickland’s Mercantile was sold. Although the business no longer existed, Wesley and his son David Pepper kept the memory of the store alive by refurbishing the old corncrib on the farm into a replica of the store with merchandise and furnishings from the original store. Per the family, the store has been visited by local groups and tourists.
In 1996, Wesley sold part of the property, including the 1914 house built by the founder, to son, David. Since that time, David and wife Carolyn have restored the house, which is a rare example of molded and rusticated concrete.
Hankins said that today, “Hay is the main crop produced on Strickland Place, which is the 29th certified Tennessee Century Farm in Robertson County.”
The Century Farm Program recognizes the contributions of Tennessee residents who have continuously owned, and kept in production, family land for at least 100 years. Since 1984, the Center for Historic Preservation at MTSU has been a leader in the important work of documenting Tennessee’s agricultural heritage and history through the Tennessee Century Farm Program, and continues to administer this program.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners, or obtain jpeg images of this farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
(MURFREESBORO)—The Strickland Place Farm in Robertson County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
In 1903, Henry C. Strickland established a farm that is located three miles west of White House. Along with his wife, Susie Eidson Strickland, they had one child, Mary Elizabeth Strickland Ford Pepper. On 110 acres, the farm produced tobacco, corn, fruit and Black Angus cattle.
During the late 1920s, Henry built a country store named Strickland Mercantile that sold a wide variety of goods including groceries, tools, radios, refrigerators and even automobiles. While managing the farm and store, Henry, his daughter Elizabeth and son-in-law Winsor Ford also developed an airstrip on the farm and flew airplanes. According to the family, they would take community members on flights on Sunday afternoons for 50 cents.
Elizabeth’s husband, Winsor, and their only child died in 1938. Eventually, Elizabeth married Robert L. Pepper and they had a son named Wesley. Elizabeth became the owner of the farm in 1954. In 1955, Wesley Pepper, grandson of the founder, acquired the property.
Over the years, the farm produced tobacco, hay, Black Angus cattle and supported a poultry business. During the 1950s, the Strickland’s Mercantile was sold. Although the business no longer existed, Wesley and his son David Pepper kept the memory of the store alive by refurbishing the old corncrib on the farm into a replica of the store with merchandise and furnishings from the original store. Per the family, the store has been visited by local groups and tourists.
In 1996, Wesley sold part of the property, including the 1914 house built by the founder, to son, David. Since that time, David and wife Carolyn have restored the house, which is a rare example of molded and rusticated concrete.
Hankins said that today, “Hay is the main crop produced on Strickland Place, which is the 29th certified Tennessee Century Farm in Robertson County.”
The Century Farm Program recognizes the contributions of Tennessee residents who have continuously owned, and kept in production, family land for at least 100 years. Since 1984, the Center for Historic Preservation at MTSU has been a leader in the important work of documenting Tennessee’s agricultural heritage and history through the Tennessee Century Farm Program, and continues to administer this program.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners, or obtain jpeg images of this farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
329 HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR, FORENSICS SCHOLAR TO SPEAK AT MTSU APRIL 12
He avoided Hitler only to confront Jack Ruby, Ted Bundy and other murderers years later
March 28, 2007
CONTACT: Tom Tozer, 615-898-2919
Dr. Nancy Rupprecht, 615-898-2645
MURFREESBORO—As a young boy of 14 in occupied Poland, he, his mother and his sister hid their Jewish identity and walked among the Nazi invaders. In 1943, they escaped from Poland to Slovakia and from there to Hungary—and were liberated in January 1945. In the years that followed, he became a post-war German government expert on Holocaust survivor syndrome. He survived a horrifying childhood only to study the behavior of those who dispense horror.
Emanuel Tanay, M.D., highly esteemed and internationally known forensic psychiatrist and homicide expert, will speak at Middle Tennessee State University at 7 p.m., Thursday, April 12, on “The Psychology of Genocide.” His lecture will take place in the State Farm Lecture Hall in the Business and Aerospace Building and will be free and open to the public. His visit is being sponsored by The MTSU Holocaust Studies Committee.
“We wanted Dr. Tanay's presentation to be free and open to the general public so that as many middle Tennesseans as possible can take advantage of the opportunity to see him,”
Dr. Nancy Rupprecht, professor of history, commented. “How often do you get an opportunity to listen to an internationally respected forensic psychiatrist and also a Holocaust survivor, speak on the psychology of genocide, a topic about which he is uniquely qualified on both a professional and a personal level?”
A clinical professor of psychiatry at the Medical School of Wayne State University in Detroit, Tanay has served as an expert witness in cases involving Jack Ruby, Ted Bundy, Sam Sheppard and Robert Garwood.
While sitting in a jail cell with Jack Ruby in 1964, Ruby once told Tanay that he was “crazier than I am,” because the latter never once thought of committing suicide during those years in Poland when he and his family pretended they were Christians.
“Suicide is surrender,” Tanay told Ruby. Tanay added that he wanted to survive.
A few years later, the U.S. Government sent Tanay to Vietnam during the war there to participate in a court martial and to evaluate marines at Danang Marine Corps Base who were accused of atrocities. In addition, and according to his biographical profile, Tanay has “come to a deep and unique understanding of the belief system behind 9/11.”
Tanay graduated from the University of Munich (Germany) Medical School, completed his internship and residency in Illinois and did post-graduate work at the University of Michigan.
The author of “Passport to Life: Autobiographical Reflections on the Holocaust,” Tanay is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, that body’s highest honor, and he also has received the highest award granted by the American Academy for Psychiatry and the Law. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and past president of the Michigan Psychiatric Society. Also, he was Resident Scholar at the Department of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Stockton College of New Jersey.
Now retired from private practice, Tanay continues to write and lecture throughout the United States.
“Fifteen years ago almost no one knew what function a forensic psychiatrist filled in our justice system,” said Rupprecht. “However, since the “Law and Order” and “CSI” programs began to appear on televisions all over this country, we all have an inkling of how important and vital a role psychiatrists such as Dr. Tanay play in it.”
Dr. Tanay's visit is being co-sponsored by the MTSU departments of history, political science, English, sociology & anthropology, art, philosophy, psychology, Women’s Studies and the Global Studies Program.
####
NOTE: Media welcomed. There is a black and white photo of Tanay on his Web site at http://www.drtanay.com.
March 28, 2007
CONTACT: Tom Tozer, 615-898-2919
Dr. Nancy Rupprecht, 615-898-2645
MURFREESBORO—As a young boy of 14 in occupied Poland, he, his mother and his sister hid their Jewish identity and walked among the Nazi invaders. In 1943, they escaped from Poland to Slovakia and from there to Hungary—and were liberated in January 1945. In the years that followed, he became a post-war German government expert on Holocaust survivor syndrome. He survived a horrifying childhood only to study the behavior of those who dispense horror.
Emanuel Tanay, M.D., highly esteemed and internationally known forensic psychiatrist and homicide expert, will speak at Middle Tennessee State University at 7 p.m., Thursday, April 12, on “The Psychology of Genocide.” His lecture will take place in the State Farm Lecture Hall in the Business and Aerospace Building and will be free and open to the public. His visit is being sponsored by The MTSU Holocaust Studies Committee.
“We wanted Dr. Tanay's presentation to be free and open to the general public so that as many middle Tennesseans as possible can take advantage of the opportunity to see him,”
Dr. Nancy Rupprecht, professor of history, commented. “How often do you get an opportunity to listen to an internationally respected forensic psychiatrist and also a Holocaust survivor, speak on the psychology of genocide, a topic about which he is uniquely qualified on both a professional and a personal level?”
A clinical professor of psychiatry at the Medical School of Wayne State University in Detroit, Tanay has served as an expert witness in cases involving Jack Ruby, Ted Bundy, Sam Sheppard and Robert Garwood.
While sitting in a jail cell with Jack Ruby in 1964, Ruby once told Tanay that he was “crazier than I am,” because the latter never once thought of committing suicide during those years in Poland when he and his family pretended they were Christians.
“Suicide is surrender,” Tanay told Ruby. Tanay added that he wanted to survive.
A few years later, the U.S. Government sent Tanay to Vietnam during the war there to participate in a court martial and to evaluate marines at Danang Marine Corps Base who were accused of atrocities. In addition, and according to his biographical profile, Tanay has “come to a deep and unique understanding of the belief system behind 9/11.”
Tanay graduated from the University of Munich (Germany) Medical School, completed his internship and residency in Illinois and did post-graduate work at the University of Michigan.
The author of “Passport to Life: Autobiographical Reflections on the Holocaust,” Tanay is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, that body’s highest honor, and he also has received the highest award granted by the American Academy for Psychiatry and the Law. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and past president of the Michigan Psychiatric Society. Also, he was Resident Scholar at the Department of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Stockton College of New Jersey.
Now retired from private practice, Tanay continues to write and lecture throughout the United States.
“Fifteen years ago almost no one knew what function a forensic psychiatrist filled in our justice system,” said Rupprecht. “However, since the “Law and Order” and “CSI” programs began to appear on televisions all over this country, we all have an inkling of how important and vital a role psychiatrists such as Dr. Tanay play in it.”
Dr. Tanay's visit is being co-sponsored by the MTSU departments of history, political science, English, sociology & anthropology, art, philosophy, psychology, Women’s Studies and the Global Studies Program.
####
NOTE: Media welcomed. There is a black and white photo of Tanay on his Web site at http://www.drtanay.com.
328 CUMBLERLAND COUNTY FARM JOINS STATE’S CENTURY FARMS PROGRAM
108-Year-Old Homer Taylor Farm Recognized for Agricultural Contributions
(MURFREESBORO)—The Homer Taylor Farm in Cumberland County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
David C. Taylor established the Homer Taylor Farm in 1899. During his ownership, the farm produced corn, potatoes, apples, hay, cattle, sheep, hogs and mules. Taylor fathered 12 children.
The next owner of the land was his son, Spencer Zachary Taylor, who acquired the farm in 1947. Married to Siddie Taylor, the couple had nine children—Homer, Dorothy, Raymond, Kenneth, Roscoe, Clyde, Reba, Clarice and Prentis. The family continued to diversify by including tobacco, strawberries, bell and pimento peppers and beans.
In 1955, the grandson of the founder, Homer Taylor, obtained the farm. Homer served in the U. S. Army and was stationed in Korea. He worked as a mason in Cumberland County and laid brick for many buildings such as the Cumberland High School, the Homestead, Pineview and Woody Schools, First Methodist Church, the Christian Church, the Cumberland County Bank, the Hills Department Store and numerous houses.
Homer and wife Laura, who passed away in 1994, had two children, Danny and Deborah, who live in Cumberland County. His brothers, Clyde and Prentis, also live near the farm on which they were reared.
Homer continues to work the land and lives on the farm with his wife, Doris. Currently, the farm produces corn, potatoes, apples, cattle, hogs, hay, beans, pepper, watermelons and tomatoes. According to the family’s records, the watermelons produced on the farm have won blue ribbons at the county fair for the last three years.
Hankins said the Homer Taylor Farm is the one of 12 certified Century Farms in Cumberland County.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today, the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners or secure jpegs of the farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
(MURFREESBORO)—The Homer Taylor Farm in Cumberland County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
David C. Taylor established the Homer Taylor Farm in 1899. During his ownership, the farm produced corn, potatoes, apples, hay, cattle, sheep, hogs and mules. Taylor fathered 12 children.
The next owner of the land was his son, Spencer Zachary Taylor, who acquired the farm in 1947. Married to Siddie Taylor, the couple had nine children—Homer, Dorothy, Raymond, Kenneth, Roscoe, Clyde, Reba, Clarice and Prentis. The family continued to diversify by including tobacco, strawberries, bell and pimento peppers and beans.
In 1955, the grandson of the founder, Homer Taylor, obtained the farm. Homer served in the U. S. Army and was stationed in Korea. He worked as a mason in Cumberland County and laid brick for many buildings such as the Cumberland High School, the Homestead, Pineview and Woody Schools, First Methodist Church, the Christian Church, the Cumberland County Bank, the Hills Department Store and numerous houses.
Homer and wife Laura, who passed away in 1994, had two children, Danny and Deborah, who live in Cumberland County. His brothers, Clyde and Prentis, also live near the farm on which they were reared.
Homer continues to work the land and lives on the farm with his wife, Doris. Currently, the farm produces corn, potatoes, apples, cattle, hogs, hay, beans, pepper, watermelons and tomatoes. According to the family’s records, the watermelons produced on the farm have won blue ribbons at the county fair for the last three years.
Hankins said the Homer Taylor Farm is the one of 12 certified Century Farms in Cumberland County.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today, the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners or secure jpegs of the farm for editorial use, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
327 LINCOLN COUNTY FARM JOINS STATE’S CENTURY FARMS PROGRAM
103-Year-Old Towry Farm Recognized for Agricultural Contributions
(MURFREESBORO)—The Towry Farm in Lincoln County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
Located eight miles southwest of Fayetteville, the Towry Farm was founded by George Higgins Towry in 1904. Married to Elizabeth Hopkins Towry, the couple had seven children. The family raised row crops, dairy cattle and beef cattle.
Wiley Kelby Towry acquired his parents’ farm in 1939. He and his wife, Inez Washburn Towry, had sons Wayne and Weldon. This generation continued to raise livestock and a variety of crops.
“As on many Century Farms, a school once stood on this farm and there was also a sorghum mill,” Hankins said.
In 1992, the grandson of the founder, Jerry Weldon Towry, acquired the property. Today, he continues to work the land and raises horses, beef cattle and row crops as did his ancestors over a century ago.
Hankins said the Towry Farm joins 21 other certified Century Farms in Lincoln County.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
—30—
ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
(MURFREESBORO)—The Towry Farm in Lincoln County has been designated as a Tennessee Century Farm, reports Caneta S. Hankins, director of the Century Farms program at the Center for Historic Preservation (CHP), which is located on the MTSU campus.
Located eight miles southwest of Fayetteville, the Towry Farm was founded by George Higgins Towry in 1904. Married to Elizabeth Hopkins Towry, the couple had seven children. The family raised row crops, dairy cattle and beef cattle.
Wiley Kelby Towry acquired his parents’ farm in 1939. He and his wife, Inez Washburn Towry, had sons Wayne and Weldon. This generation continued to raise livestock and a variety of crops.
“As on many Century Farms, a school once stood on this farm and there was also a sorghum mill,” Hankins said.
In 1992, the grandson of the founder, Jerry Weldon Towry, acquired the property. Today, he continues to work the land and raises horses, beef cattle and row crops as did his ancestors over a century ago.
Hankins said the Towry Farm joins 21 other certified Century Farms in Lincoln County.
The Tennessee Department of Agriculture (TDA) began the Tennessee Century Farm Program in 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial. Today the TDA provides a metal outdoor sign, noting either 100, 150 or 200 years of “continuous agricultural production” to Century Farm families.
To be considered for eligibility, a farm must be owned by the same family for at least 100 years; must produce $1,000 revenue annually; must have at least 10 acres of the original farm; and one owner must be a resident of Tennessee.
“The Century Farmers represent all the farm families of Tennessee,” Hankins said, “and their contributions to the economy, and to the social, cultural, and agrarian vitality of the state, both past and present, is immeasurable. Each farm is a Tennessee treasure.”
For more information about the Century Farms Program, please visit its Web site at http://histpres.mtsu.edu/histpres. The Center for Historic Preservation also may be contacted via mail at Box 80, MTSU, Murfreesboro, Tenn., 37132, or by telephone at 615-898-2947.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA: To interview Hankins or the farm’s owners, please contact the CHP directly at 615-898-2947.
326 APRIL 5 MARKS FINAL CHAMBER WINDS CONCERT OF PERFORMANCE SEASON
Free April 5 Concert Highlights Two Seldom-Performed Works, Thomas Says
(MURFREESBORO)—The MTSU Chamber Winds will perform its final concert of the season at 8 p.m. April 5 in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
“For the final concert of the Chamber Winds season, I have chosen two terrific works that do not receive many performances and will introduce strings into the mix for the first time,” said Dr. Reed Thomas, MTSU director of bands and conductor of the group.
The group will perform Octet by Franz Joseph Haydn, The Easy Winners by Scott Joplin, with arrangement by Gunther Schuller, and Symphony for Brass and Timpani by Herbert Haufrecht.
Thomas said Haydn’s Octet is based on mid-18th century Europe when a wind octet consisting of pairs of oboes, clarinets, horns and bassoons proved the ideal medium for aristocratic social events.
Per Thomas, Joplin’s The Easy Winners was discovered in the ‘70s as a set of seven ragtime compositions, or “rags,” for instruments that had not been attributed to Joplin because of their unique instrumentation. After the origin of the pieces was researched, it was determined that Joplin had indeed written these for this ensemble of winds.
Thomas noted that Haufrecht’s Symphony for Brass and Timpani was written as a meditation on war and peace and is scored for the traditional orchestra brass section with timpani.
"The three movements are all related through the use of material derived from an bass line introduced at the outset of the first movement," Thomas said.
The MTSU Chamber Winds is a highly select group of musicians within the McLean School of Music dedicated to the study and performance of wind literature from the Renaissance period to the latest compositions.
The April 5 concert is free and open to the public.
• For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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(MURFREESBORO)—The MTSU Chamber Winds will perform its final concert of the season at 8 p.m. April 5 in the T. Earl Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
“For the final concert of the Chamber Winds season, I have chosen two terrific works that do not receive many performances and will introduce strings into the mix for the first time,” said Dr. Reed Thomas, MTSU director of bands and conductor of the group.
The group will perform Octet by Franz Joseph Haydn, The Easy Winners by Scott Joplin, with arrangement by Gunther Schuller, and Symphony for Brass and Timpani by Herbert Haufrecht.
Thomas said Haydn’s Octet is based on mid-18th century Europe when a wind octet consisting of pairs of oboes, clarinets, horns and bassoons proved the ideal medium for aristocratic social events.
Per Thomas, Joplin’s The Easy Winners was discovered in the ‘70s as a set of seven ragtime compositions, or “rags,” for instruments that had not been attributed to Joplin because of their unique instrumentation. After the origin of the pieces was researched, it was determined that Joplin had indeed written these for this ensemble of winds.
Thomas noted that Haufrecht’s Symphony for Brass and Timpani was written as a meditation on war and peace and is scored for the traditional orchestra brass section with timpani.
"The three movements are all related through the use of material derived from an bass line introduced at the outset of the first movement," Thomas said.
The MTSU Chamber Winds is a highly select group of musicians within the McLean School of Music dedicated to the study and performance of wind literature from the Renaissance period to the latest compositions.
The April 5 concert is free and open to the public.
• For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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325 DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER RORY KENNEDY DELIVERS LECTURE APRIL 5
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 25, 2007CONTACT: College of Liberal Arts, 615-494-7628
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER RORY KENNEDY DELIVERS 16TH ANNIVERSARY WINDHAM LECTURE AT MTSU ON APRIL 5
Windham Lecture, Related Film Screenings Free & Open to Public
(MURFREESBORO)—Documentary filmmaker Rory Kennedy, co-founder and co-president of Moxie Firecracker Films Inc., will help MTSU‘s Windham Lecture Series celebrate its 16th anniversary by delivering this year's lecture at 5 p.m. Thursday, April 5, in the State Farm Room of the Business and Aerospace Building. In preparation for her visit, two of Kennedy's films, American Hollow and A Boy's Life, also will be shown from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily Tuesday through Thursday, March 27-29, in the Keathley University Center Theater on campus The screenings are free and open to the public.
Kennedy, one of the nation's most prolific independent documentary filmmakers, will speak on “The Camera Doesn’t Lie” during her appearance at MTSU. Her work has tackled some of our most pressing social concerns in her work, including poverty, domestic abuse, drug addiction, human rights, AIDS and mental illness, and have garnered numerous awards and been featured on HBO, A&E, MTV, Lifetime, The Oxygen Network, Court TV, TLC and PBS. Her most recent film, The Ghost of Abu Ghraib, recently premiered on HBO. Through her films, Kennedy aims to illuminate larger social issues by telling the stories of everyday people. Kennedy's film American Hollow, an award-winning documentary about an Appalachian family caught between century-old tradition and the encroaching modern world, premiered to critical acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival, was broadcast as part of HBO's America Undercover series and received a Non-Fiction Primetime Emmy Award nomination. Kennedy directed and produced A Boy's Life, a heartbreaking and dramatic portrait of the troubling forces that have shaped the life of a seven-year-old boy from an impoverished region of Mississippi, touching on drug abuse, family dysfunction and religion. She also directed and produced Pandemic: Facing AIDS, which follows the lives of five people living with AIDS and which ultimately connects audiences with the heartache and triumph of living under the extreme conditions of the disease. Her other films include Epidemic Africa, Fire in Our House, Juvies, The Changing Face of Beauty, Travelers, Different Moms, Healthy Start, The Nazi Officer's Wife, Sixteen and Girlhood. Kennedy is a committed social activist and human rights advocate. She has been a member of the board of directors for a number of nonprofit organizations, including the Legal Action Center and the Project Return Foundation. She served as chairwoman of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation Associate Trustees Program and continues as a member of the board. She was a member of the 1999 Presidential Mission on AIDS in Africa. Kennedy initiated and helped develop the Teacher Transfer Program between the U.S. and Namibia after her work at the Dobra Resettlement Camp. She has also been a member of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Human Rights delegations in South Africa, South Korea, Japan, El Salvador and Poland, and she is a graduate of Brown University with a bachelor of arts degree in women's studies.
About the Windham Lecture Series
The Windham Lecture Series in Liberal Arts was established by William and Westy Windham through the MTSU Foundation. Dr. William Windham was a member of the MTSU faculty from 1955 to 1989 and served as chairman of the Department of History the last 11 years. Westy Windham (1927-1991) earned a master's degree in sociology at MTSU and was the founder of Great American Singalong.
The inaugural Windham Lecture in 1990 featured Drs. Dan T. Carter of Emory University and Dewey W. Grantham of Vanderbilt University, who spoke on “The South and the Second Reconstruction.” Since then, the Windham Lectures have addressed topics spanning from American music to presidential rhetoric to gambling to U.S. foreign policy, to name a few.
The Windham series is sponsored annually by the College of Liberal Arts, with the assistance of the assorted departments within the college.
• For more information, please contact the College of Liberal Arts at MTSU at 615-494-7628.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA—To secure a jpeg of Rory Kennedy for editorial use, please e-mail your request to Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at lrollins@mtsu.edu or call 615-898-2919.
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKER RORY KENNEDY DELIVERS 16TH ANNIVERSARY WINDHAM LECTURE AT MTSU ON APRIL 5
Windham Lecture, Related Film Screenings Free & Open to Public
(MURFREESBORO)—Documentary filmmaker Rory Kennedy, co-founder and co-president of Moxie Firecracker Films Inc., will help MTSU‘s Windham Lecture Series celebrate its 16th anniversary by delivering this year's lecture at 5 p.m. Thursday, April 5, in the State Farm Room of the Business and Aerospace Building. In preparation for her visit, two of Kennedy's films, American Hollow and A Boy's Life, also will be shown from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily Tuesday through Thursday, March 27-29, in the Keathley University Center Theater on campus The screenings are free and open to the public.
Kennedy, one of the nation's most prolific independent documentary filmmakers, will speak on “The Camera Doesn’t Lie” during her appearance at MTSU. Her work has tackled some of our most pressing social concerns in her work, including poverty, domestic abuse, drug addiction, human rights, AIDS and mental illness, and have garnered numerous awards and been featured on HBO, A&E, MTV, Lifetime, The Oxygen Network, Court TV, TLC and PBS. Her most recent film, The Ghost of Abu Ghraib, recently premiered on HBO. Through her films, Kennedy aims to illuminate larger social issues by telling the stories of everyday people. Kennedy's film American Hollow, an award-winning documentary about an Appalachian family caught between century-old tradition and the encroaching modern world, premiered to critical acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival, was broadcast as part of HBO's America Undercover series and received a Non-Fiction Primetime Emmy Award nomination. Kennedy directed and produced A Boy's Life, a heartbreaking and dramatic portrait of the troubling forces that have shaped the life of a seven-year-old boy from an impoverished region of Mississippi, touching on drug abuse, family dysfunction and religion. She also directed and produced Pandemic: Facing AIDS, which follows the lives of five people living with AIDS and which ultimately connects audiences with the heartache and triumph of living under the extreme conditions of the disease. Her other films include Epidemic Africa, Fire in Our House, Juvies, The Changing Face of Beauty, Travelers, Different Moms, Healthy Start, The Nazi Officer's Wife, Sixteen and Girlhood. Kennedy is a committed social activist and human rights advocate. She has been a member of the board of directors for a number of nonprofit organizations, including the Legal Action Center and the Project Return Foundation. She served as chairwoman of the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation Associate Trustees Program and continues as a member of the board. She was a member of the 1999 Presidential Mission on AIDS in Africa. Kennedy initiated and helped develop the Teacher Transfer Program between the U.S. and Namibia after her work at the Dobra Resettlement Camp. She has also been a member of the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Human Rights delegations in South Africa, South Korea, Japan, El Salvador and Poland, and she is a graduate of Brown University with a bachelor of arts degree in women's studies.
About the Windham Lecture Series
The Windham Lecture Series in Liberal Arts was established by William and Westy Windham through the MTSU Foundation. Dr. William Windham was a member of the MTSU faculty from 1955 to 1989 and served as chairman of the Department of History the last 11 years. Westy Windham (1927-1991) earned a master's degree in sociology at MTSU and was the founder of Great American Singalong.
The inaugural Windham Lecture in 1990 featured Drs. Dan T. Carter of Emory University and Dewey W. Grantham of Vanderbilt University, who spoke on “The South and the Second Reconstruction.” Since then, the Windham Lectures have addressed topics spanning from American music to presidential rhetoric to gambling to U.S. foreign policy, to name a few.
The Windham series is sponsored annually by the College of Liberal Arts, with the assistance of the assorted departments within the college.
• For more information, please contact the College of Liberal Arts at MTSU at 615-494-7628.
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ATTENTION, MEDIA—To secure a jpeg of Rory Kennedy for editorial use, please e-mail your request to Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at MTSU at lrollins@mtsu.edu or call 615-898-2919.
324 MTSU DANCE THEATRE READIES TO DELIVER ANNUAL SPRING CONCERT
Dancers Will Perform Works by Guest Choreographers Badu-Younge & Chang
(MURFREESBORO)—MTSU Dance Theatre will present its annual Spring Dance Concert at 7:30 nightly April 19 -21 at MTSU’s Tucker Theatre.
Kim Neal Nofsinger, director of the dance company, said, “This semester's concert features work by international guest artists and has dances from several dance genres. Seven company members will perform guest artist Zelma Badu-Youunge's ‘Crash,’ a humorous work showing the a unique group of individuals whose lives intertwine on the street.”
Nofsinger said Badu-Younge is a specialist in West African dance who incorporate traditional movement in a contemporary framework.
The spring concert also will feature "Ash Wind" by Chung-Fu Chang, a native of Taiwan.
“ This lush, beautiful work provides an insight into the fraility of life and is influenced by an Asian aesthitic in its visual poetry,” Nofsinger remarked.
Tap, jazz and modern works choreographed by faculty members Elaine Husted, Nancy Ammerman and Nofsinger will complete the concert.
“These dances range from traditional to contemporay artisitc viewpoints and incorporate the 40 members of MTSU Dance Theatre,” Nofsinger said, regarding the company whose members represent a variety of majors from across campus.
Students selected for the this ensemble are required to enroll in technique classes, attend Saturday morning classes and rehearse a minimum of three hours per week for each piece they are dancing.
“The dedication of these students is evident within the quality of the concert that will be presented,” the director observed.
• TICKET INFO: Tickets for the Spring Dance Concert may be purchased at the door on the evening of the performance. Ticket prices range from $4 to $8. MTSU students will be admitted free of charge with a valid ID.
For more information please call (615) 494-8810 or visit the department’s Web site at www.mtsu.edu/~theatre.
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(MURFREESBORO)—MTSU Dance Theatre will present its annual Spring Dance Concert at 7:30 nightly April 19 -21 at MTSU’s Tucker Theatre.
Kim Neal Nofsinger, director of the dance company, said, “This semester's concert features work by international guest artists and has dances from several dance genres. Seven company members will perform guest artist Zelma Badu-Youunge's ‘Crash,’ a humorous work showing the a unique group of individuals whose lives intertwine on the street.”
Nofsinger said Badu-Younge is a specialist in West African dance who incorporate traditional movement in a contemporary framework.
The spring concert also will feature "Ash Wind" by Chung-Fu Chang, a native of Taiwan.
“ This lush, beautiful work provides an insight into the fraility of life and is influenced by an Asian aesthitic in its visual poetry,” Nofsinger remarked.
Tap, jazz and modern works choreographed by faculty members Elaine Husted, Nancy Ammerman and Nofsinger will complete the concert.
“These dances range from traditional to contemporay artisitc viewpoints and incorporate the 40 members of MTSU Dance Theatre,” Nofsinger said, regarding the company whose members represent a variety of majors from across campus.
Students selected for the this ensemble are required to enroll in technique classes, attend Saturday morning classes and rehearse a minimum of three hours per week for each piece they are dancing.
“The dedication of these students is evident within the quality of the concert that will be presented,” the director observed.
• TICKET INFO: Tickets for the Spring Dance Concert may be purchased at the door on the evening of the performance. Ticket prices range from $4 to $8. MTSU students will be admitted free of charge with a valid ID.
For more information please call (615) 494-8810 or visit the department’s Web site at www.mtsu.edu/~theatre.
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323 MTSU'S MARCIN BELA PRESENTS EVENING OF ORIGINAL COMPOSTIONS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 25, 2007CONTACT: Tim Musselman, 615-898-2493
Free April 3 Faculty Recital Features Guest Instrumentalists, Vocalists
(MURFREESBORO)—Marcin Bela, MTSU professor of music, will present an evening of original compositions for small combos and vocalists at 8 p.m. April 3 in the Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
Along with Bela (piano and vocal), guest vocalists Lisa Harkness and Suzanne Klock, as well as instrumentalists Adam Agati (guitar), Elliott Lopes (drums) and Russell Wright (bass) of the Nashville jazz trio Bind in the Void also will perform.
Additionally, MTSU faculty members Jamey Simmons (trumpet), Todd Waldecker (clarinet), Deanna Little (flute), Mike Jorgensen (violin) and Sarah Cote (viola), along with MTSU graduate student Mike Jenner (saxophone,) will perform in various configurations as the Bela compositions dictate.
“The program will consist of several large through-composed pieces, as well as improvised interludes,” Bela remarked.
"The texts for my compositions come from various time periods and parts of the world— from Polish medieval sacred poetry to letters of Japanese kamikaze pilots, from East European folk ballads to William Butler Yeats, from Crusader Epics to wall writings of Soviet political prisoners, and are usually sung in original languages," he added.
Bela described his as a fusion of cabaret, jazz, folk and classical genres, while noting that adds the stage presence and the unique combination of Harkness and Klock’s voices are the critical component of his music.
Bela, Harkness and Klock have collaborated since 2004 and performed with groups ranging from classical music ensembles to jazz orchestras.
The April 3 recital is free and open to the public.
For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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Free April 3 Faculty Recital Features Guest Instrumentalists, Vocalists
(MURFREESBORO)—Marcin Bela, MTSU professor of music, will present an evening of original compositions for small combos and vocalists at 8 p.m. April 3 in the Hinton Music Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus.
Along with Bela (piano and vocal), guest vocalists Lisa Harkness and Suzanne Klock, as well as instrumentalists Adam Agati (guitar), Elliott Lopes (drums) and Russell Wright (bass) of the Nashville jazz trio Bind in the Void also will perform.
Additionally, MTSU faculty members Jamey Simmons (trumpet), Todd Waldecker (clarinet), Deanna Little (flute), Mike Jorgensen (violin) and Sarah Cote (viola), along with MTSU graduate student Mike Jenner (saxophone,) will perform in various configurations as the Bela compositions dictate.
“The program will consist of several large through-composed pieces, as well as improvised interludes,” Bela remarked.
"The texts for my compositions come from various time periods and parts of the world— from Polish medieval sacred poetry to letters of Japanese kamikaze pilots, from East European folk ballads to William Butler Yeats, from Crusader Epics to wall writings of Soviet political prisoners, and are usually sung in original languages," he added.
Bela described his as a fusion of cabaret, jazz, folk and classical genres, while noting that adds the stage presence and the unique combination of Harkness and Klock’s voices are the critical component of his music.
Bela, Harkness and Klock have collaborated since 2004 and performed with groups ranging from classical music ensembles to jazz orchestras.
The April 3 recital is free and open to the public.
For more information on this and other events in the McLean School of Music, please visit www.mtsumusic.com or call 615-898-2493.
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320 CELEBRATION OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS WILL BE HELD APRIL 13
Editorial contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-2919
4TH ANNUAL MTSU PRESIDENT’S CELEBRATION OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS WILL BE HELD APRIL 13
(MURFREESBORO) — MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee and the MTSU Alumni Association extend a public invitation to attend the fourth annual President’s Celebration of Excellence.
The event will be held Friday, April 13, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building.
This dinner event and awards presentations, which are held each spring, honor students, alumni, faculty and friends of the university for their outstanding accomplishments and service to MTSU.
Various Student Government Association, Division of Student Affairs, Blue Raider Athletics, MTSU National Alumni Association, MTSU Foundation and Office of the President awards will be presented.
The cost to attend is $20 per person. Dress will be business attire. Please R.S.V.P. by Friday, April 6.
For more information and reservations, call 1-800-533-MTSU (6878) or visit mtalumni.com.
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Media note: More information about the awards and the list of recipients will be provided to you at a later date.
4TH ANNUAL MTSU PRESIDENT’S CELEBRATION OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS WILL BE HELD APRIL 13
(MURFREESBORO) — MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee and the MTSU Alumni Association extend a public invitation to attend the fourth annual President’s Celebration of Excellence.
The event will be held Friday, April 13, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building.
This dinner event and awards presentations, which are held each spring, honor students, alumni, faculty and friends of the university for their outstanding accomplishments and service to MTSU.
Various Student Government Association, Division of Student Affairs, Blue Raider Athletics, MTSU National Alumni Association, MTSU Foundation and Office of the President awards will be presented.
The cost to attend is $20 per person. Dress will be business attire. Please R.S.V.P. by Friday, April 6.
For more information and reservations, call 1-800-533-MTSU (6878) or visit mtalumni.com.
###
Media note: More information about the awards and the list of recipients will be provided to you at a later date.
319 WOMEN’S CENTER SPOTLIGHTS BULLYING IN THE WORKPLACE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Mar. 23, 2007
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Terri Johnson, 615-898-2193, or Dr. Gloria Hamilton, 615-898-5745.
Intimidation, Disrespect, Envy, Marginalization Demoralize Workers, Cut Productivity
(MURFREESBORO) – “Bullying in the Workplace: How to Recognize It and Tips on How to STOP IT!” will be the topic of a presentation in the June Anderson Women’s Center’s continuing Career/Professional Development Brown Bag Series at 12 noon Tuesday, April 3, in the SunTrust Room of the Business Aerospace Building.
Dr. Gloria Hamilton, professor of psychology, and Terri Johnson, director of the June Anderson Women’s Center, will speak on a subject about which concern is growing among employees and employers alike.
A poll released March 21 by the Employment Law Institute reveals that nearly 45 percent of American workers claim to have experienced workplace abuse. A lobbying effort to bring about legal changes, http://www.bullybusters.org, claims that 12 states have introduced 26 versions of its proposed healthy workplace bill since 2003.
The Workplace Bullying Institute (http://www.bullyinginstitute.org), a non-profit think tank, defines workplace bullying as “repeated, health-impairing mistreatment comprised of one or more of the following: 1) verbal abuse; 2) threatening, intimidating conduct; 3) work interference, undermines legitimate business interests.”
A Web site created by the institute’s founders, Dr. Gary Namie and Ruth Namie, http://www.workdoctor.com, says, “Bullying is 3 times more prevalent than illegal, discriminatory harassment. Bullying ignores race, gender, age, religion. Current harassment laws and policies do NOT cover 75% of bullying incidents.”
Hamilton notes that the American Psychological Association (APA) has created a Psychologically Healthy Workplace Program to give employers guidelines on how to create better working environments. The program offers numerous resources, including a quarterly newsletter, a listing of upcoming events, and articles and research abstracts at http://www.phwa.org.
“They (the APA) have identified workplaces in the United States that stand apart in creating a psychologically healthy environment for workers,” Hamilton says.
Bullying can occur among employees or between employer and employee. The Workplace Bullying Institute states that it “(a) is driven by perpetrators’ need to control the targeted individual (s); (b) is initiated by bullies who choose targets, timing, place,
and methods; (c) escalates to involve others who side with the bully, either voluntarily (or) through coercion; and (d) undermines legitimate business interests when bullies’ personal agendas take precedence over work itself.”
“It affects the bottom line in several ways,” Hamilton says. “When workers are unhappy or marginalized, it carries over to consumers or the people who deal with the organization.”
According to http://www.workdoctor.com, the estimated potential annual cost to an average Fortune 500 company in lost productivity (more than $8,000,000), turnover (more than $16,000,000), litigation (minimum legal expenses $104,000 per case with settlements ranging from $225,000 to $1.4 million), and disability (more than $114,000 with an estimated 18 percent of cases involving bullying) means bullies are too expensive to keep on the payroll.
“Sometimes those enabling the status quo are so reluctant to change that things do get pushed to the legal stage,” Hamilton says. “It’s always better if change occurs in a collaborative fashion, but it doesn’t always happen that way.”
The bring-your-own brown bag luncheon is free and open to MTSU staff, administration, faculty and students, as well as the public at large. Sign-ups are highly encouraged. For more information, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193.
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EDITORIAL CONTACT: Terri Johnson, 615-898-2193, or Dr. Gloria Hamilton, 615-898-5745.
Intimidation, Disrespect, Envy, Marginalization Demoralize Workers, Cut Productivity
(MURFREESBORO) – “Bullying in the Workplace: How to Recognize It and Tips on How to STOP IT!” will be the topic of a presentation in the June Anderson Women’s Center’s continuing Career/Professional Development Brown Bag Series at 12 noon Tuesday, April 3, in the SunTrust Room of the Business Aerospace Building.
Dr. Gloria Hamilton, professor of psychology, and Terri Johnson, director of the June Anderson Women’s Center, will speak on a subject about which concern is growing among employees and employers alike.
A poll released March 21 by the Employment Law Institute reveals that nearly 45 percent of American workers claim to have experienced workplace abuse. A lobbying effort to bring about legal changes, http://www.bullybusters.org, claims that 12 states have introduced 26 versions of its proposed healthy workplace bill since 2003.
The Workplace Bullying Institute (http://www.bullyinginstitute.org), a non-profit think tank, defines workplace bullying as “repeated, health-impairing mistreatment comprised of one or more of the following: 1) verbal abuse; 2) threatening, intimidating conduct; 3) work interference, undermines legitimate business interests.”
A Web site created by the institute’s founders, Dr. Gary Namie and Ruth Namie, http://www.workdoctor.com, says, “Bullying is 3 times more prevalent than illegal, discriminatory harassment. Bullying ignores race, gender, age, religion. Current harassment laws and policies do NOT cover 75% of bullying incidents.”
Hamilton notes that the American Psychological Association (APA) has created a Psychologically Healthy Workplace Program to give employers guidelines on how to create better working environments. The program offers numerous resources, including a quarterly newsletter, a listing of upcoming events, and articles and research abstracts at http://www.phwa.org.
“They (the APA) have identified workplaces in the United States that stand apart in creating a psychologically healthy environment for workers,” Hamilton says.
Bullying can occur among employees or between employer and employee. The Workplace Bullying Institute states that it “(a) is driven by perpetrators’ need to control the targeted individual (s); (b) is initiated by bullies who choose targets, timing, place,
and methods; (c) escalates to involve others who side with the bully, either voluntarily (or) through coercion; and (d) undermines legitimate business interests when bullies’ personal agendas take precedence over work itself.”
“It affects the bottom line in several ways,” Hamilton says. “When workers are unhappy or marginalized, it carries over to consumers or the people who deal with the organization.”
According to http://www.workdoctor.com, the estimated potential annual cost to an average Fortune 500 company in lost productivity (more than $8,000,000), turnover (more than $16,000,000), litigation (minimum legal expenses $104,000 per case with settlements ranging from $225,000 to $1.4 million), and disability (more than $114,000 with an estimated 18 percent of cases involving bullying) means bullies are too expensive to keep on the payroll.
“Sometimes those enabling the status quo are so reluctant to change that things do get pushed to the legal stage,” Hamilton says. “It’s always better if change occurs in a collaborative fashion, but it doesn’t always happen that way.”
The bring-your-own brown bag luncheon is free and open to MTSU staff, administration, faculty and students, as well as the public at large. Sign-ups are highly encouraged. For more information, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193.
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