Former Belmont University men’s basketball player Alex Renfroe has signed a professional contract to play for Latvia VEF Riga. Renfroe, a local product from Hume Fogg High School and an NAIA All-American at Trevecca Nazarene before coming to Belmont, blossomed into one of the most exciting and productive point guards in the nation. After helping the Bruins to signature victories over Cincinnati and Alabama in 2007-08, Renfroe burst on the national scene in the 2008 NCAA Tournament against three-time National Champion Duke. Click here for more on this story.
Monahan Named to Elison Project Board
Dr. Diane Monahan, assistant professor in communication studies, was recently named as a board member of The Elison Project, a nonprofit organization that provides financial grants for the purpose of assisting in the adoptions of special needs children from China.
Murphree Gives Insect Presentation
Dr. Steve Murphree (Biology) gave an invited presentation on Mon., June 29 titled “Insects of the Night: a Summer Nocturne” at the Head of the Sequatchie Valley State Park southeast of Crossville. Click here for more information on the event.
DeVries Receives Best Paper Award
Dr. Del DeVries, assistant professor of accounting and information systems, received the Best Paper Award at the AIS Educator Conference in Colorado Springs in June. The paper, “Ethical Implications of Using Human Resources Information Systems for Cost Management Decisions,” is co-authored with Dr. Harold Roth from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. The paper describes a common business situation where management is engaged in cost analysis and decision making. In the case scenario, the company has extensive data in a human resources information system to support analysis of employee health care costs. Management must decide how to cut medical insurance costs. Students are asked to identify the ethical issues and to evaluate the relevant decision making factors. The information system data availability situation requires consideration of job demands, regulatory requirements and ethical issues relating to honesty, fairness, objectivity and responsibility.
Golfers Earn National Academic Honors
Three Belmont women’s golfers, Lauren Oeser, Laura Dyson, and Kelly Maguigan have been named to the 2008-2009 National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) All-American Scholar Team . This marks the fourth straight season that Belmont has had a women’s golfer named to this prestigious team. The criteria for selection to the All-American Scholar Team are some of the most stringent of all college athletics. Oeser, Dyson, and Maguigan are the only three Atlantic Sun Conference golfers to be given this honor for the 2008-2009 season. Click here for more on this story.
Two Belmont men’s golfers, Danny Amundson and Scott O’Brien, were named Cleveland Golf/Srixon All-American Scholars as the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) announced its 2009 honorees. Amundson and O’Brien were among 108 Division I golfers to earn the honor. Click here for more on this story.
United Methodist Men Hold National Gathering at Belmont
The 2009 tenth national gathering of United Methodist Men is being held July 9-12 at Belmont University.
“We are excited to welcome the UM Men to the Belmont campus,” Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher said. “Their rich tradition of faith, fellowship and community fits perfectly at Belmont, which has been the site of Christian education since 1890. Anytime we can welcome esteemed groups to campus with values similar to Belmont’s, we are honored to do so.”
The Rev. David Adams, top staff executive of the General Commission on UM Men, the agency that plans the event, is a graduate of Belmont. “It is an honor and privilege to partner with Belmont University for our 10th National Gathering of UM Men,” said Adams. “The beauty of the campus and close proximity of the facilities are ideal for this event.”
Alexander Named to Top Coaches List
Belmont University men’s basketball associate head coach Casey Alexander has been ranked among the top Mid Major assistant coaches in the nation, according to CollegeInsider.com. Alexander, who enters his 15th season as a trusted member of head coach Rick Byrd’s staff, was ranked No. 6 in a list of the Top 25 Mid Major assistant coaches. Click here for more on this story.
Van Hatten-Granath Awarded Artist Fellowship
Teresa Van Hatten-Granath, associate professor in the Art Department, has been awarded an Individual Artist Fellowship from the Tennessee Arts Commission. The amount of the Individual Artist Fellowship-Media is $5,000 and is one of the highest honors that can come to a Tennessee artist.
Teresa is becoming well-known for her “Green Bag Lady” project. She started making fabric bags to use in place of plastic and set up a Web site to give the fabric bags away to anyone who promised to use them. Her goal was to inspire artists to think about the ecological impact of their art as well as to produce work that has a direct, positive impact on the environment. This project was recently featured in Her magazine. To read the article, click here.
Belmont in Japan 2009 Returns
The third Belmont in Japan Travel-Study Abroad group returned to the U.S. earlier this month after three weeks of exploring Japan’s history, culture, society and economy both in class and out. The three weeks also provided an opportunity for all participants to get outside their comfort zones as they navigated their way around places such as Tokyo, Kyoto, Nagasaki, Hiroshima and Osaka. They visited historic sites such as Japan’s first capital at Nara and modern ones like the Shinjuku district in Tokyo. They saw Zen gardens at various temples and a Toyota assembly line. The students kept a blog and slideshow detailing their experiences which can be viewed at forum.belmont.edu/japan.
This year’s trip, directed by Dr. Cynthia Bisson (History) and Dr. Marieta Velikova (COBA), emphasized Japan’s history and economy with a special focus on women’s roles in Japan. Drawn from a variety of majors, the 10 students who went were Annalise Emerick, Shannon St-Clair, Ryan McFadden, Aaron Phipps, Brenda Jones, Taylor Martin, Gabrielle Facey, Hunter Wilkinson, James Ruehlmann and James Richard.
Human Resources Staff Accepts Excellence Award
Belmont University’s Office of Human Resources won the 2009 HR Excellence Award in the eighth annual HR Excellence Program hosted by the Middle Tennessee Society of Human Resource Management (MT|SHRM) and the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce. Belmont’s Human Resources staff was recognized at a luncheon last week at the Cool Springs Embassy Suites. Accepting on behalf of Belmont were (pictured l-r) Mandy Hodge, Donna Gwaltney, Deborah Nunn Baruzzini, Sally McKay and Susan Saunders.
Launched in 2002, the HR Excellence Program recognizes organizations in Middle Tennessee with outstanding human resources programs. Businesses are invited to self-nominate for the honor each year and are evaluated on proficiency in five areas: strategy; management practices; employee education, training and development; performance measurement; and employee well-being and engagement. Click here for more on this story.
