Belmont’s annual community night event livens the Curb Event
Center up every year as thousands of local Nashvillians make their way to
campus for a night of family activities, free food and cheering for the Bruins.
The event has become a significant staple on campus for the University to show
the community how much it appreciates their support.
After a dinner of hot dogs, chips and sodas, guests were ushered upstairs for the Men’s Basketball game against Tennessee State University. The Women’s team defeated TSU with a final score of 70-58, and the Men’s Team came out with the same outcome, defeating the Tigers 74-51.
Elements of Community night were made possible through sponsorships from Five-Star Food Service, Pepsi, Nashville Electric Service, Citizens Bank and Grayline.
One event attendee has brought the residents of one of Metro’s
Development and Housing Agency’s communities to the event for the past three
years. Social Service Coordinator John Walker said, “This night gets our
residents out of their own community since most of them do not have
transportation and lets them know that a Greater Nashville exists. It lets them
know that there are other people that think about them, care about them and
would like to enjoy their company,” he said. “This year is fun because I am actually
a TSU graduate and I got to come and watch my school while enjoying Belmont’s
hospitality. But mostly, it’s the experience for the people that I serve. I
hope they come away with a sense of community, a thankfulness for the kindness
of Belmont and a connection to the sporting event between two local schools in
Nashville.”
Bishop Calvin Barlow, Jr. from the Second Missionary Baptist Church opened the game in prayer. The game ball was presented by Metro Council Member-at-Large Sharon Hurt, who is an alumna of both TSU and Belmont and currently serves as the chair of the Metro Council Minority Caucus. Fans cheered the team to victory and were extra excited when the legendary Red Panda performed at half time.
Walker added, “I appreciate Joyce Searcy [Belmont’s director
of community relations] for inviting us, and we will be here next year.”
Belmont celebrated Homecoming February 10 – 15, 2020 with events scheduled on campus throughout the week, providing the opportunity for alumni, students, faculty and staff to come together to celebrate life at Belmont.
For the past few years, the Homecoming celebration has focused on a theme each day of the week.
Mission Monday kicked off the week with a Homecoming Chapel alumni panel (Photo gallery here), an alumni non-profit fair, and open house and O’More College alumni panel in the Leu Center for the Visual Arts. Monday also included the first event in the Jack C. Massey College of Business Legacy Lecture series with Entrepreneurship Professor Jeff Cornwall.
Students were also invited to “Build a Bruin” (Photo gallery here). Other bears dressed for Homecoming by departments and organizations around campus were on display and voted on social media to determine the Best Bear of All. View a photo gallery of all the bears here and the Top 11 bears here. Wonder Bruin (pictured), designed by the Belmont Store, was named the winner.
On T-Shirt Tuesday, students were encouraged to wear merch to represent the student organizations around campus, and there were Homecoming t-shirts handed out, designed by student Abraham Mast (Photo gallery here). There was a gallery talk around the Faculty Art Exhibition in the Leu Art Gallery, which will be on display through February 28. Marketing Professor Jeff Overby presented the second Legacy Lecture on International Business Inventory and Global Awareness Training. The night concluded with a Symphony and String Chamber Orchestra Concert.
Senior leaders serve up a Popcorn Bar for homecoming at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, February 12, 2020.
Wow Wednesday launched with University Staff Advisory Council members handing out free donut holes and coffee to passersby in the Massey Business Center lobby (Photo gallery here.) The Office of Career and Professional Development sponsored a skills studio event focused on “what employers really want.” The Dining Hall featured a “Chef’s Table” with Provost Dr. Thomas Burns and student Ryan Sheldon behind the grill (Photo gallery here.) The afternoon continued to “wow” campus as senior leaders served a popcorn bar, complete with marshmellows, chocolate chips and other decadant toppings (Photo gallery here). The third Legacy Lecture series event featured Director of the Kennedy Center for Business Ethics Boyd Smith. Belmont’s pep band spread spirit as they marched around campus and helped students get excited for the DJ Competition and Dance Party later that night in the Beaman (Photo gallery here).
Thank You Thursday gave students, faculty and staff the opportunity to write thank you cards for their colleagues and peers. Alumni Relations also hosted the Belmont Faithful Thank You Luncheon in Harrington Place Dining Hall for donors who have made consecutive gifts for two or more years (Photo gallery here). Belmont hosted Community Night at the Men and Women‘s basketball games against Tennessee State University, inviting the community to come out for a night of free food, activities and basketball (Photo gallery here).
Rick Byrd speaks as the Curb Vent Center floor is named after him at Belmont University February 15, 2020.
FANtastic Friday began with Homecoming Chapel featuring alumni Luke Putney and Cathy Jennings, discussing overcoming adversity (Photo gallery here). Assistant Professor of Communication Studies Dr. Jeremy Fyke delivered the annual Robert E. Simmons Distinguished Faculty Lecture. The afternoon included the third annual corn hole classic and several baseball and softball games. The night ended with the 8th Annual Homecoming in the Round Concert, featuring Chad Cates, Mike Grayson, Bekah Joel, Kevin Monahan, CJ Solar, Cheryl and Adam Stark, and Anna Vaus (Photo gallery here.)
Homecoming Saturday invited alumni back to campus for reunions, open houses and the Tower Society Reunion, Annual Brunch and Induction Ceremony, celebrating the elite group of alumni from Belmont’s 50-year and earlier classes (Photo gallery here). Presidential scholars gathered (Photo gallery here), the campus community spent time in prayer and thanksgiving to God for the many ways He has blessed the Belmont community, beginning with remarks from Betty Wiseman and ending with a prayer walk around campus (Photo gallery here), and the sounds of the annual Homecoming Carillon Concert could be heard from the Bell Tower.
Belmont Homecoming tailgate at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, February 15, 2020.
Jim ‘n Nicks catered the Tailgate at the Tower before the double header (Photo gallery here). Athletics played a slew of games, including softball against Western Michigan and later Green Bay, Baseball against Kansas and the Men and Women’s basketball teams’ wins against Jacksonville State. Between the basketball games, the basketball court was named after Former Head Coach Rick Byrd (Photo gallery here). The 2020 Homecoming Court was announced during halftime of the Men’s game (Photo gallery here). Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia’s Sinfonian Band performed a concert after the game, and alumni were invited to a Homecoming Social at Chago’s Cantina.
To view a full collection of the Homecoming 2020 galleries, click here.
Sophomore composition major Justin Schwartz has seen firsthand that “music is the universal language.” While attending Ravenwood High School in Brentwood, Tennessee, Schwartz was part of one of the first 20 pilot schools to launch a United Sound program, a national nonprofit organization that provides free music lessons to young adults with special needs. Observing how impactful the program was at his high school, Schwartz knew he wanted to start a United Sound chapter at whatever college he ended up attending.
Arriving at
Belmont last year as a freshman and realizing the University’s focus on serving
others and the community, along with its highly-regarded music programs, he
knew it would be the perfect fit.
“The big thing about United Sound is that its whole goal is inclusion. A lot of times, adults with special needs are kind of forgotten about in the music community. United Sound is part of a larger organization called Music for All that allows music to be for everyone. Through music, everyone is able to be reached,” explained Schwartz. “That’s the beauty of this organization—everybody gets to be included, and the labels that get put on from society don’t matter. When we are at a United Sound meeting, we are going to try different things until we can get it.”
United Sound
started as a high school program, typically involving students enrolled in
special education programs, but it has recently started to expand to the higher
education level at places like the Berkeley School of Music and Auburn
University. However, there were no higher education United Sound programs in
Tennessee. Schwartz approached Associate Professor of Music Dr. Barry Kraus and
Director of the School of Music Dr. Jeremy Lane last year with the idea, and both
agreed the organization would be successful at Belmont.
Schwartz recruited sophomore music therapy major Sofia Valle to be his co-president, and the two brought senior music education major Alex Domeier on board for guidance as the special education club president, tasked with providing a lesson plan for each meeting. “Alex has been instrumental in helping structure our new organization due to his prior experience as a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia and the National Association for Music Education,” said Schwartz.
After months of planning and recruiting its 13 current mentors, Belmont’s United Sound organization finally began meeting in October with young adults with special needs from the local community over the age of 18. Most, if not all, of the Belmont student mentors are music majors, with a mixture of some music education, some music therapy and some commercial music.
Co-President Valle said, “United Sound has been a blessing to be a part of as it reminds me why I am pursuing a music therapy degree. We may be teaching the students how to play an instrument, but they are teaching us valuable life skills and they have so much to offer the world.”
Belmont’s
United Sound organization is currently working with four young adults who are
assigned two to three mentors each. One student is learning rhythmic percussion
(like the snare drum); one is learning mallet percussion (like the glockenspiel);
one is learning the flute and the other is learning saxophone. In each group,
at least one Belmont student mentor is familiar with the instrument they are
teaching.
“One of the
benefits of working with Belmont students is the fact that we have music
education majors who have already taken the instrumental methods class, so that
allows us to have no limits on which of the band instruments we choose,” said
Schwartz. “Instead of telling the student which instrument they’ll be able to
play, we ask them what they’d like to play.”
United Sound provides training for all of the mentors, instrumental method books for the groups to work from, and suggested songs that have been performed successfully in the past. The students picked a piece from that list and will be performing the first-ever United Sound concert in April in conjunction with Belmont’s concert band and wind ensemble.
Dr. Kraus said he is delighted to host a chapter of United Sound on campus. “Belmont seeks to provide opportunities for students to engage and transform the world, and inclusion is a driving force in modern music education. With these ideas in mind, United Sound introduces our instrumental music majors to real world challenges—bringing music education to adults with special needs. Our students have been remarkably vigilant in structuring and staffing this organization on campus, and I’m very proud of their work,” he said. “The United Sound participants will perform with the Belmont Concert Band on April 14, and I look forward to this very special opportunity for them to play in McAfee Hall with a full ensemble.”
Looking ahead, Schwartz would like to see the organization grow with more United Sound students through developing partnerships with local organizations that work with young adults with special needs. As more Belmont students have found out about the club, a lot of students want to join but would not have a young adult to work with. Schwartz also wants to develop more formal partnerships in the community so the organization can continue to thrive after he and the other founding members graduate.
“Belmont puts an enormous emphasis on serving the community and serving others, and I think this club really does serve an otherwise underserved group in the music community,” said Schwartz. “I think we definitely have potential to grow in size because this club really embodies what Belmont is about.”
Luke Putney, presidential scholar and summa cum laude graduate in Music Performance, visited Belmont’s campus once again to share his story of overcoming medical challenges to pursue his musical passions while making a difference in the lives of others through his nonprofit, Instrumental Horizons.
With humor and heart, Putney shared his journey with students. He explained that he began going blind at 11 years old and had his first brain surgery at just 12 years old. Through the years he continued to experience various medical problems. By the time he began his freshman year at Belmont, he was totally blind.
“Blind, but having fun!” Putney said. Despite these adversities, he had a college experience similar to many of his Belmont peers, with opportunities to make new friends, play bass in numerous bands, and study abroad in Spain.
In his senior year at Belmont, Putney started his not-for-profit charity Instrumental Horizons. His nonprofit provides music education and music instruments to socioeconomic depressed groups in the states and around the world, as well as provides music instruments and music therapy to children in hospital systems. The work of this organization has reached marginalized communities locally in Nashville, through partnerships with Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, and globally, through partnerships with Music Works in Cape Town, South Africa.
Soon after his first international trip with his nonprofit following his graduation, Putney experienced what he thought was a migraine, but soon learned was a tumor on his brain. After having surgery to remove the tumor, he had many complications including a stroke and coma, and went through another eight surgeries to save his life.
Patients in recovery in the ICU were encouraged to set goals for themselves. “I chose my goal to be taking instruments and pushing music therapy to a small town in Cape Town, South Africa,” said Putney.
He set out to accomplish his goal. Putney was told he would never be able to walk again, but miraculously, he began taking a few steps. He thought if he could walk a few steps, he could walk a mile and if he could walk a mile, he could walk a marathon. He then set out to walk a marathon, one mile a day for 26 days, during his recovery as he was re-learning to walk and as an opportunity to fundraise for his nonprofit, specifically funding Music Works in Cape Town.
“I wrote ‘Cape Town (I Miss Africa)’ as a song that would be a reward to anyone that made a donation,” said Putney. Putney plans to take a trip to Cape Town soon to present Music Works with the funds raised.
“I believe that God desires that we all use our passions, talents and interests to further God’s kingdom in unique ways, and I try to do that to the best of my abilities,” Putney said. His current medical situation is complicated, but is slowly getting better with each day. His prayer is to ask God to strengthen his body to be a blessing to others and to strengthen God’s kingdom.
On February 9, 2020, the Morton Theatre held the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella South Quarterfinal Competition in Durham, North Carolina. Belmont groups Pitchmen and The Beltones placed first and second and will advance to the semifinal competition.
Pitchmen took the stage with “I Have Nothing” by Whitney Houston and blew the audience away. Lead singer for that song, Chris Wiper, was awarded Outstanding Soloist at the competition. “Good Things Come to Those Who Wait” by Nathan Sykes and “Must Be Hard Being You” by Clark Beckham were also performed by the group.
Concluding the night in lavender and white outfits, The Beltones performed “American Privilege” and “Is This Love” by Allen Stone, as well as “Help Us to Love” by Tori Kelly, accompanied by the Hamiltones.
“I know Pitchmen and I are beyond excited to be moving onto the semi-finals with the Beltones,” said student leader Ben Holcomb. “Both groups brought incredible powerhouse vocal talent to the stage that could only come from Belmont. The Pitchmen owe our success to our fantastic music director, Wilson Smith, for all of his hard work and direction this year!”
Carly Stiver, student leader of The Beltones also shared, “It was such a rewarding weekend getting to share our love and joy for performing with each other to an audience full of family and friends. We had so much fun getting to share the experience with Pitchmen, as well. We feel so blessed to get the opportunity to do it again at semi-finals!”
Belmont’s Office of Leadership Development (BOLD), in partnership with 10 Belmont staff and students from across campus, guides graduate and undergraduate participants through understanding and applying the 7 C’s of the Social Change Model. Each spring, BOLD hosts “Social Change & ME (SC&ME),” an interactive overview of socially responsible leadership. A staff and student team has worked throughout January and February to provide seven options for Belmont students to study and practice the levels of the development in Social Change Model.
The model’s seven values are congruence, consciousness of self, commitment, collaboration, controversy with civility and citizenship. During SC&ME, students rotate through stations including interactive activities that challenge students to learn and practice implementing behaviors related to each of the 7 Cs while collaborating and engaging with each other.
The sessions are facilitated by graduate and undergraduate students who share their leadership lessons to empower students in realizing that they can be socially responsible leaders now, both on and off campus.
One student said, “I learned how to be a good leader, but that I have to take that out in the world to affect positive change. I have to bring self, group, and citizenship together to make a real difference.”
Students most appreciated open conversations, new ways to talk about leadership, the diversity of the presenters and their activities, as well as being able to put their learning into practice.
Graduate Assistant Logan Monday explained, “SC&ME helps students recognize and develop the skills they have to be socially responsible leaders now.”
Kristina Sullivan, a graduating senior and facilitator during SC&ME, noted how awesome it was to watch students learn to implement behaviors that exhibit socially responsible leadership. She said, “It’s amazing to see the kind of development that can take place during a 30-minute experiential learning session.”
Next, students will participate in BOLD’s Leadership Lately with men’s and women’s basketball coaches, Casey Alexander and Bart Brooks. Click here to learn more details about these upcoming events.
Belmont University has announced a new initiative, BULoveU, coming up next week, February 17-21. The week is dedicated to mental and physical wellness, specifically surrounding self-compassion, body image and body positivity. BULoveU is an initiative allowing students to focus on themselves in order to become strong individuals who can support their own well-being and be there for others.
Alyssa Karmia, graduate assistant for group fitness and special events, explained, “A lot of us tend to place ourselves second in our lives to try and be there for others. This initiative provides a space for students to turn that focus inward and work towards feeling strong both internally and externally.”
The week’s programming will include interactive conversations about diet and nutrition, free blood pressure screenings for students, methods for self-care and caring for others, guided meditation and fitness sessions. The last day will feature guest speaker Courtney Grimes, president and founder of Body RenewED, an organization supporting individuals struggling with eating disorders.
The week’s events
include:
Monday, Feb. 17
Coffee with Kara, a dietitian from Sodexo, in Curb Café at 10 a.m.
Blood Pressure Screenings at 10 a.m. in Beaman with nursing and physical therapy students
Hip Hop Dance Party in the group fitness studio at 8 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 18
Mindful Conversation with Dr. Adrianne Sternberg (BOLD) at 10 a.m. in JAAC 1037
Wednesday, Feb. 19
Enneagram and U with Abbi Rodriguez in McWhorter Hall Room 102 at 10 a.m.
Thursday, Feb. 20
Meditation and Masterpieces with Counseling in the group fitness studio at 11 a.m.
International Ride (spin class) with Kayleigh in the group fitness studio at 8 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 21
Body Image and Positivity with Courtney Grimes from Body RenewED at 4 p.m. in the group fitness studio
Yoga with Kristen at 5 p.m. in the group fitness studio
Scribes, The American Society of Legal Writers, recently presented an annual award for the best student-written brief in the country since 1996 to a Belmont Law student team of Allyson Lynch, Paul Madden and Sarah Martin. These students all graduated with the Class of 2019.
To be considered for this award, the brief must have previously won an award at competition. This team won the best regional brief at the National Appellate Advocacy Competition, sponsored by the American Bar Association last year. The top 15 to 20 briefs go to a committee which reads the briefs, deliberates and chooses the top three briefs.
After being entered into the Scribes Writing contest as a result of this win, and being the first entry to represent Belmont University College of Law, the team’s brief was selected as the national winner of the best brief. As a result, the alumni will receive an award at Scribes’ annual CLE in Chicago on April 3, 2020.
Belmont Law Professor and Director of Advocacy Amy Moore said this is a fantastic honor. “Out of all the briefs that won competitions around the nation, ours was the very best,” she said. “What a tribute to our legal writing program, our advocacy program and our hard-working students.”
Previous winners of this award come from schools like Florida State University, Wake Forest University, University of Georgia, Seton Hall School of Law, Case Western Reserve University, South Texas College of Law, Northern Kentucky University, George Washington University Law School, UC Davis, Texas Tech University, William and Mary and Fordham, among others.
In January 2015, The Discovery Center formed its Special Needs Task Force to foster an environment that allows exploration without barriers. Yesterday, it unveiled its brand new “Chill Zone,” a calming room to offer to children and families experiencing distress, funded by a grant from the Nashville Predators Foundation. But, designing such a room required architects, creatives and occupational therapists. That’s where Belmont students and faculty stepped in.
Dr. Teresa Plummer, associate professor of occupational therapy, came in contact with this project during her sabbatical in the fall semester. She provided expertise as an occupational therapist for the “Chill Zone” project and made recommendations for beneficial items to include. Once the ball was rolling, Plummer reached out to Jayme Jacobson, assistant professor of architecture, with the opportunity for interior design students in the O’More College of Architecture, Art and Design to engage with the project. Jacobson immediately adjusted the studio schedule to make it work. With the studio having an inclusive design focus, this provided an extraordinary service-learning opportunity.
“Sometimes our students just need to hear that we believe in them,” shared Plummer. “In action, that means we provide them with opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines in volunteer opportunities. They realize we are all part of the same world, which blurs the line of inclusion. Students are part of the solution. Their gifts to our committee come full circle to reinforce their sense of belonging and understanding. We are one.”
A group of four design students and one occupational therapy student including current students Chloe Burch, Kat Stevens, Brittany Chamberlain and Stephanie Rathlef visited the space for the “Chill Zone” and put together a design proposal incorporating Dr. Plummer’s recommendations and the Discovery Center’s goals. The students assisted with the theme, color, feel and materiality of the room.
After researching design strategies for calming spaces and sensory activities, the group proposed a custom bench design with storage underneath and material selections and services provided at a discounted cost to the Discovery Center.
“It is
especially rewarding for students to see their design work come to life in a
real context, and even more so when it has a positive social impact as it surely
will at the Discovery Center,” said Jacobson. “Dr. Plummer and I both celebrate
real-working learning and social impact. This was an exciting opportunity in
which we were able to contribute.”
Don Cusic, professor of music business, was commissioned by the London Symphony Orchestra to write Programme Notes for the London Symphony’s “Symphonic Gospel Spirit” concert on March 1.
