[255] MTSU closes Jan. 16 for MLK holiday; spring semester begins Jan. 17

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — MTSU will be closed Monday, Jan. 16, in observance of the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday.

The university will reopen at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 17, with all business offices and departments open until 4:30 p.m.

Students and faculty, who have been on winter break, return to begin spring semester classes Jan. 17.

Monday night starting at 6 in the Student Union Ballroom, the MTSU Office of Intercultural & Diversity Affairs will hold a vigil hosted by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. It is a Connection Point extracurricular activity for freshmen and other students.

Motivational speaker and author Derrick Hayes will deliver the keynote address. Don Aliquo, MTSU professor of saxophone and jazz studies, and MTSU’s Generation of Purpose Gospel Choir will perform. Alpha Phi Alpha members will make presentations.

For off-campus visitors seeking directions to the Student Union, a searchable campus parking map is available at http://tinyurl.com/MTSUParkingMap.

During the holiday weekend:

• The James E. Walker Library will be closed Saturday, Jan. 14; open from 2 to 10 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 15; and closed Jan. 16.

• The Student Union will be open from noon to 8 p.m. Jan. 14; closed Jan. 15; and open from noon to 9 p.m. Jan. 16.

• Campus Recreation Center will be open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Jan. 14; open from noon to 6 p.m. Jan. 15; and closed Jan. 16.

[254] Sign up now for new free rape-defense classes at MTSU beginning Feb. 1

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — MTSU’s popular Rape Aggression Defense classes will continue this spring with a new five-week session for safety-conscious women on and around the MTSU campus beginning Wednesday, Feb. 1.

The MTSU Police Department’s newest session of free RAD classes will run Wednesdays from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. through March 1. It’s open to all female MTSU students, faculty and staff, along with the general public.

Organizers say that participants must attend all five Wednesday sessions to ensure that their training is complete. Class size is very limited for this new course series because of increasing community interest, so the department is encouraging participants to enroll as soon as possible.

The Rape Aggression Defense System is a comprehensive program of realistic defense tactics and techniques for women that emphasizes awareness, prevention, risk reduction and avoidance, and progresses to the basics of hands-on defense training.

MTSU’s nationally certified RAD instructors have recently been certified to teach RAD System Aerosol Defense Options, which means class participants also will learn about carrying pepper spray and other aerosol self-defense variants, what to look for when purchasing a self-defense spray and how to use it for protection.

The Rape Aggression Defense program is designed for women age 13 and older with no previous experience or background in physical skills training. Instructors also can accommodate any participant’s physical impairments.

Participants should email their names and contact information to rad@mtsu.edu. Instructors will call or email participants with more details about enrollment and the class location.

For more information about MTSU’s RAD classes, email rad@mtsu.edu.

[253] ‘MTSU On the Record’ takes listeners on journey to ‘Marguerite’s Landing’

MURFREESBORO — An MTSU professor emerita and author of several prize-winning books will discuss her newest publication on the next “MTSU On the Record” radio program.

Host Gina Logue’s interview with June Hall McCash will air from 8 to 8:30 p.m. Monday, Jan. 16, and from 6 to 6:30 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 22, on WMOT-FM Roots Radio 89.5 and www.wmot.org.

McCash’s latest historical novel is “Marguerite’s Landing,” which is based on a real woman who fled with her family to Jekyll Island in the late 1700s as revolution created social upheaval in her native France.

The book’s protagonist, Marguerite du Bignon, is depicted as a plucky woman who endures setbacks and hardship, including the infidelity of her husband, while trying to create a home in a strange new land.

“She was the only woman, aside from her servants, on the island,” said McCash. “She had to come into a brand new culture she knew nothing about, learn a new language, and, I think, weave her way through a very difficult period of time historically.”

McCash is the author of 13 books, including four novels, eight nonfiction works and a book of poetry. She was named Georgia Author of the Year in 2011 and 2013 for her novels.

A former professor of French in the MTSU Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, McCash is a recipient of both the MTSU Foundation’s Distinguished Research Award and Career Achievement Award.

To hear previous “MTSU On the Record” programs, go to http://bit.ly/mtsu-otr.

For more information, contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800.

[252] Insurors of Tennessee group gives $10K to MTSU program

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — A state insurance advocacy group has given a boost to the insurance program within MTSU’s Jennings A. Jones College of Business.

The Insurors of Tennessee, a professional association of independent insurance agents, has given $10,000 to the Jones College’s Martin Chair of Insurance. The gift was presented during the inaugural Martin Chair Advisory Board meeting in December.

Professor Dave Wood, the new holder of the Martin Chair of Insurance, said the funds will help further the objective of establishing a nationally recognized risk management and insurance program in the Jones College.

“That may be in the form of scholarships, funding student and faculty travel to workshops, seminars and conventions, instructional materials, students’ pursuit of professional designations, and similar activities,” he said.

Before coming to MTSU in the fall, Wood served as Joseph F. Freeman Distinguished Professor of Risk Management and Insurance at the Walker College of Business at Appalachian State University. He was previously a visiting professor in the Risk Management and Insurance program at the University of Colorado–Denver and has taught international risk management and finance courses in France and Austria. 

Wood earned his doctorate in business administration from Louisiana Tech University after earning a master’s from the University of Mississippi and his bachelor’s from Delta State University. Before his career in education, he worked as an independent insurance agent.

The advisory board was created “to establish, enhance and reinforce relationships” between the Martin Chair and the insurance community while also helping set and accomplish the chair’s goals and objectives, he said. The board currently has 14 members with a nominating committee that may add additional members.

The board will assist the chair in gaining national and international prominence through members’ actions and expertise, and through the member connections with business, government and community leaders both within and outside Middle Tennessee, Wood added.

The Martin Chair of Insurance was founded by a group of alumni and friends to upgrade and enhance the insurance curriculum at MTSU. It was named in honor of Thomas T. Martin, a Murfreesboro insurance agent and underwriter for almost 60 years.

For more information about the Martin Chair of Insurance within the Department of Economics and Finance, contact Wood at dave.wood@mtsu.edu or visit http://www.mtsu.edu/martinchair/.