Cheryl Carr, associate dean of the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business, visited students at Huntington Beach High School in California and presented an overview of programs in the Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business.
The student audience was comprised of students studying a range of entertainment industry topics including music production, music performance, songwriting and video production.
Professor of English Dr. Eric Hobson was the featured speaker at the Leesburg Public Library in Leesburg, Florida on March 6. His talk, titled “David M Newell’s 1931 Brazilian Adventure, Part 2,” focused on the pivotal role that the Florida writer, illustrator and filmmaker played in the 1931 Matto Grosso Expedition’s creation of the first documentary movie filmed on-location using sound-capture cameras. This is known as the world’s first “on-site talkie documentary.”
Hobson went on to screen the film, “Matto Grosso, the Great Brazilian Wilderness (1933).” The film was prefaced by an introductory presentation and followed by a moderated question-and-answer session.
Proclamation celebrates international tennis event at Belmont, honors Davis Cup Team USA by encouraging citizens to wear patriotic colors Friday
Nashville Mayor David Briley recently declared Friday, April 6, 2018 as Davis Cup “Red, White & Blue Day” in Nashville in honor of this weekend’s international tennis event at Belmont University’s Curb Event Center. The proclamation notes that Davis Cup is widely considered the World Cup of Tennis and is the largest international team competition in sport with approximately 135 nations competing each year. Citizens throughout the city are encouraged to don their patriotic red, white and blue on Friday in celebration of the first day of competition for Team USA.
“Nashville is honored to host the Davis Cup for the first time since 1978, and I know Belmont University will be a tremendous site for these matches between the U.S. team and Belgium,” Mayor David Briley said. “Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard to make this extraordinary tennis showcase possible here.”
The USTA announced in February that Belmont University was selected as the host site for the 2018 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Quarterfinal between the United States and Belgium, April 6-8. The event represents the first time Davis Cup competition has come to Nashville in 40 years.
Katrina Adams, USTA chairman of the board and president, said, “The USTA is incredibly excited to bring Davis Cup tennis to Belmont University and the City of Nashville. This proclamation exemplifies the enthusiasm that the community has shown for the sport, and we are excited to cheer Team USA on this weekend in front of such incredible tennis fans.”
The best-of-five match series between the U.S. and Belgium begins on Friday with two singles matches and Saturday’s schedule features the pivotal doubles match. The final day of play on Sunday features the two “reverse singles” matches. All matches are best-of-five tiebreak sets; the first country to win three matches wins the tournament. A revised schedule for Sunday may take place if a team clinches in the third or fourth match. The USTA and United States Davis Cup Captain Jim Courier announced March 21 that world No. 11 Jack Sock, No. 14 Sam Querrey, No. 17 John Isner, No. 53 Ryan Harrison and No. 54 Steve Johnson, will represent the U.S. in the Quarterfinal.
Belmont University President Dr. Bob Fisher said, “I want to thank Mayor Briley for honoring Team USA in this fashion and for supporting the Davis Cup competition being brought to Nashville. An event of this magnitude and prominence once again places the city on a world stage and demonstrates what an impressive sports town Nashville has become. Moreover, this furthers Belmont’s commitment as an institution to bring world-class events to our students so they can enjoy a broad and vibrant educational experience.”
The USTA has partnered with Belmont University, the Nashville Sports Council, and the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corporation to bring this event to the city. Local sponsors include Enterprise Solutions, Wyatt Johnson Automotive Group, and PepsiCo. Tickets are still available for this weekend’s competition at www.usta.com/daviscup.
Belmont’s men’s and women’s tennis student-athletes joined the U.S. Davis Cup Team yesterday to lead a Net Generation kids’ clinic with approximately 80 local youth. Net Generation is the USTA’s new unified youth initiative to inspire the next generation of tennis players.
The U.S. Davis Cup Team members Jack Sock, Sam Querrey, Ryan Harrison and Steve Johnson along with Captain Jim Courier were all on hand to teach tennis drills and assist the young players with their form. Courier said, “It was a wonderfully organized event. The kids were very enthusiastic. A lot of good young players out there… The Belmont teams, male and female, were out running the program, assisting with the USTA. There was a lot of really nice energy there… It was a nice little diversion for the team to get away from the practice courts and the intensity there, have some fun with the local kids.”
Davis Cup: Net Generation Event
Earlier today, our tennis teams helped Team USA at the United States Tennis Association – USTA (Official) Net Generation Kids Clinic at Centennial Sportsplex #TeamUSATennis (?: Ben Sherrill)
Posted by Belmont University on Tuesday, April 3, 2018
March has been a busy month for chemistry outreach with both high school students in the Middle Tennessee area and Belmont students.
Belmont’s Department of Chemistry and Physics hosted its third annual guided-inquiry chromatography workshop for high school chemistry students. Event organizer and Assistant Professor of Chemistry Education Dr. Danielle Garrett held two workshops on campus during March. During these workshops, 41 students, from 10 schools had the opportunity to participate in hands-on science in “Sweet Sweet Chemistry: A Chromatography Challenge.” After a mini-lecture and discussion covering relevant background information and experimental techniques, each student worked to extract dye from candy and determine the most effective solvent system for achieving the best separation of colors in the dye mixture.
“These events give the students the opportunity to work independently, experience a full extended lab period, and engage in experimental techniques that they may not have the opportunity to explore in high school,” Garrett said. “Plus, they are just plain fun!”
Garrett was also approached by Ode Gyamfi, Belmont student and resident assistant, about hosting a “Fun with Science!” program for residents of Potter Hall. During the event, Garrett led students in separating ink pigments using chalk chromatography and in making floam, bouncing putty and dry ice bubbles. Gyamfi wanted to organize this event because she wanted the residents of Potter Hall to view science as something that can also be fun. “A lot of residents are always complaining about the science work they have to do for class, and I wanted this program to serve as a way for them to have fun with science without the serious learning part of it,” Gyamfi said. “It’s always so interesting to see the different passions and perspectives of people in the science world.”
The Women in Science (WIS) student organization also recently hosted their 3rd “Spa Day” event. Students were invited to take a few minutes to reflect and relax during this busy time of the year. Based on the natural properties of the ingredients, such as the exfoliating properties of brown sugar and green tea, the antioxidant benefits from olive oil and the skin tightening properties of egg whites, WIS officers Crystal Lemus, Maddy Clarke Williams, Bailey Bergmann, Shaoyun Yang, Aditi Buch and Claire Holden led participants in making two natural exfoliating scrubs and a facial mask.
“The WIS officers always work so hard to find interesting and engaging activities to share with the Belmont community,” Garrett, who serves as the WIS faculty advisor, said. “Their motivation, strong organizational skills and powerful leadership skills have not only helped make their events a success, but also make them wonderful role-models for other students.”
Crystal Lemus, a third year honors neuroscience major, recently attended and presented research at the 44th annual Naff Symposium at the University of Kentucky in Lexington. The symposium included many speakers including Vanderbilt University’s Dr. David Cliffel who led a talk titled “Electrochemically Instrumenting Organs on a Chip,” The University of Utah’s Dr. Shelley Minteer who spoke on “Enzymatic Bioelectrocatalysis: From Metabolic Pathways to Metabolons” and The University of Texas at Austin’s Dr. Richard Crooks who led a session on “Quantitative Electrohemical Detection of Analytes at Sub-Picomolar Levels using a Simple Paper Sensor.”
Lemus presented her poster on microfluidic devices that manipulate water pressure at the nano level to separate microspheres as well as yeast cells. “My research primarily focused on a way to simplify the production of microfluidic devices in order to increase access to college students,” she said. “It is always engaging to hear about other such projects going on such as the electrochemical detection using a simple paper sensor.”
While she is not pursuing academic research as a career, Lemus said she thoroughly enjoys the research process and describes it as the “creation of new knowledge.” After her graduation from Belmont, Lemus plans on attending medical school and hopes to be involved in public health.
Students from Belmont’s graduate sports administration program along with undergraduate students in a sports public relations course were invited to the Curb Event Center Monday night for a panel discussion on the upcoming Davis Cup Quarterfinal event being held on campus April 6-8. To open the evening, Assistant Professor of Sport Science Dr. Ted Peetz emceed a panel discussion featuring USTA Managing Director of Major Events J. Wayne Richmond, Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher and Belmont Men’s Basketball Head Coach Rick Byrd.
Richmond, a Belmont alumnus, shared his journey from being a Smyrna, Tennessee native who thought college was out of the question to his current role as an executive with USTA. He began by crediting late Belmont President and Chancellor Dr. Herbert Gabhart who knew the Richmond family from church and enabled his Belmont education to be possible. “This place changed by life,” Richmond said, adding, “I hit my first tennis ball on this campus.”
After tracing his career through positions with Converse, Adidas, the ATP and USTA, Richmond advised the students of an important lesson he’s learned along the way: “If you’re going to work in the sports business, always bring free stuff.” He then handed out Davis Cup hats to the students in attendance who could answer Davis Cup trivia, later providing hats for all in attendance.
Coach Byrd and Dr. Fisher then shared the story of how Davis Cup came to Belmont, following a phone call from Richmond to determine if the weekend was available and if the tennis court would fit in the arena. Byrd, a fan of tennis himself, quickly measured the arena floor to see if the Curb Event Center could qualify as a Davis Cup site, and Dr. Fisher was quick to affirm the idea.
As the students began to ask their own questions about the event, a surprise guest arrived to join the festivities. Jim Courier, Team USA Davis Cup Captain, is former world No. 1 professional tennis player who won four Grand Slam titles during his career. When asked about the most memorable match of his career, Courier recounted the one he said changed the course of his life, winning his first Grand Slam title at the 1991 French Open where he played a tough five-set match against his former tennis academy roommate, Andre Agassi.
Currently a tennis analyst and commentator for a number of outlets and a competitor in the Champions Series, Courier also recalled his former Davis Cup experiences as a player. “You have many moments in your life that you’ll never forget… These are moments this weekend that myself and the players on the floor will never forget. I remember all of the matches I played in Davis Cup. I remember all of the places I went representing the United States. These are really sacred moments for athletes.”
Below is a time lapse video of the Davis Cup Court being constructed inside the Curb Event Center. The Davis Cup Quarterfinal by BNP Paribas begins Friday, April 6 at 4 p.m. Tickets are available at usta.com/daviscup.
Belmont students were recently recognized at Cheekwood’s Volunteer Appreciation Day for having contributed more than 500 hours of service in 2017. The University was one of two organizations in the community, the other being the Herb Society of Nashville, who received this recognition.
Image (L to R): Cheekwood’s Volunteer & Community Engagement Manager Amy Walter with Director of Service Learning at Belmont Tim Stewart.
Following a nationwide search, Belmont University’s College of Pharmacy has announced that Dr. Erin Behnen has been named as Associate Dean of Assessment and Academic Affairs. Behnen will begin her appointment in June.
Coming to Belmont from her current role as Assistant Provost for Academic Innovation and Effectiveness at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, Behnen has worked in many roles during her 13 years on SIUE’s campus. Prior to her time in the Provost’s Office, she served as the University’s School of Pharmacy’s Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs and Assessment Coordinator and directed the School’s Drug Information and Wellness Center.
Behnen earned her B.S. and Pharm.D. degrees from St. Louis College of Pharmacy and is a board certified pharmacotherapy specialist. She completed a drug information specialty residency at The University of Tennessee in Memphis where she gained experience at the Southern Poison Center and UT Family Medicine Clinic. She has served as an officer for the Drug Information Practice and Research Network through the American College of Clinical Pharmacy.
In her new role on Belmont’s campus, Behnen will serve as the academic officer of the College of Pharmacy. She will be responsible for programmatic leadership, personnel administration and planning and development for the College’s assessment and academic endeavors and will serve as part of the leadership team within the College.
Behnen said, “I am really looking forward to joining the Belmont University College of Pharmacy. The College is doing so many great things that I am excited to be a part of and to contribute to make even better.
Dean of the College of Pharmacy Dr. David Gregory said, “We are very excited to have Dr. Behnen join our team. She brings expertise in assessment and academic affairs from a University level that will advance the College of Pharmacy in these critically important parameters. More importantly, her kind and energetic personality is a perfect fit for our culture in serving others to the best of our abilities.”
Faculty and students from Belmont’s College of Health Sciences and Nursing were recently invited guests for a presentation and small group discussion at the Metro Health Department. As part of the new ‘Conversations on Health in Nashville’ speaker series, Senior Vice President of Healthy Communities at The California Endowment Dr. Tony Iton spoke about the impact that where you live has on individual health.
More information on this event can be found here.
Image (from L to R): Dr. Cathy Taylor, dean of the Gordon E. Inman College of Health Sciences and Nursing; occupational therapy doctorate students Karon Uzzell-Baggett (Class of 2019) and Leah Carlisle (Class of 2018); Dr. Iton and Dr. Sanmi Areola, Metro Public Health Department deputy director
