Belmont University is open today–Mon., Nov. 17–and classes will proceed as scheduled. Because weather and road conditions can vary greatly within our region, students, faculty and staff are urged to use individual discretion when making the decision to travel to campus in snow or icy weather.
Chair of Belmont’s Board of Trustees Honored with Music City Center Terrace Dedication
Marty Dickens, chair of Belmont’s Board of Trustees, was recently honored by the Convention Center Authority and Mayor Karl Dean with the dedication of the Music City Center’s Marty Dickens Terrace. A longtime and influential volunteer of the Center, Dickens was one of the first community leaders to support the project and was instrumental in leading the coalition that fought for the downtown convention space.
“Marty’s vision from the very beginning was to build something that would be great for the city and the people of Nashville, and he worked tirelessly to make that dream a reality,” said Charles Starks, president and CEO of the Music City Center.
Since the Center’s inception in 2009, Dickens has served as chairman of the Convention Center Authority.
“I’m deeply appreciative of this wonderful honor, and Betty joins me in thanking Mayor Dean and the members of the Convention Center Authority for making this possible,” Dickens said. “I’m honored to be part of something that has had such a positive impact on the city of Nashville.”
The terrace is located on the east side of the Music City Center, directly across from the Omni Hotel.
College of Law National Health Law Moot Court Team Brings Home National Championship
Belmont’s College of Law National Health Law Moot Court Team competed against schools from all over the country at the National Health Law Moot Court Competition on Nov. 8 in Carbondale, Illinois. After six rounds of arguments, the team was named National Champions. Comprised of law students Courtney Lutz, Heath Henley and Ben Conrady and led by College of Law faculty member Amy Moore, the team also received commendation for a second place brief. A second team of students—Samantha Simpson, Jordan Kennamer and Parker Brown—made it to the competition’s top 16, the Octofinals, before being beat by their Belmont peers. The Belmont teams were accompanied by Professor Jeffrey Usman and Sean Alexander, a 3L student member of the Board of Advocates and team assistant coach.
Participants in the National Health Law Moot Court Competition hailed from the following law schools: Chicago-Kent College of Law, Drexel University School of Law, Faulkner University School of Law, Georgia State University College of Law, Hamline University School of Law, Indiana University School of Law-Indianapolis, Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Notre Dame Law School, Nova Southeastern University, Saint Louis University School of Law, Seton Hall School of Law, South Texas College of Law, Suffolk University Law School, Texas Tech University School of Law, Thomas M. Cooley Law School, University of California-Hastings College of Law, University of Colorado, University of Maryland School of Law, University of Pittsburgh School of Law, University of Tulsa College of Law and University of Washington School of Law.
“They [the students] faced a constant barrage of difficult questions from practicing attorneys and state and federal judges who were playing the role of the United States Supreme Court for these arguments. The questions required the team members to understand the administrative, disability, employment and healthcare law issues presented by the case with great sophistication and to be able to think on their feet,” Usman said. “Belmont Professor Amy Moore, the director of advocacy for the College of Law, had the students extremely well prepared, not only in terms of their oral advocacy skills, but also to represent themselves and Belmont with great civility.”
The competition, the only one in the nation devoted to health law, is co-sponsored by the Southern Illinois University (SIU) School of Law Center for Health Law and Policy, the SIU School of Medicine’s Department of Medical Humanities, the American College of Legal Medicine and the American College of Legal Medicine Foundation.
Meanwhile, Belmont College of Law’s National Moot Team—comprised of Michael Holder, Travis Brown and Chandler Farmer—competed in Birmingham, Alabama and won both preliminary rounds of oral arguments against Samford University and the University of Alabama before missing the cut to the semi-final round.
College of Law Professor Chosen for TBA Leadership Program
Belmont College of Law Professor and Faculty Adviser for Belmont’s Criminal Law Society and Legal Aid Society, Jeffrey Usman has been selected as one of 37 lawyers from across the state, by the Tennessee Bar Association (TBA), to participate in the 2015 Leadership Law program. This is a six month leadership training program for distinguished young lawyers.
Now in its 12th year, the program is designed to equip Tennessee lawyers with the vision, knowledge and skills necessary to serve as leaders in their profession and local communities. The class will meet for its first session in January, and then spend the next six months learning about leadership in the legal profession, issues in the courts, policymaking in state government and the importance of community service.
Adjunct Professor Challenges Women to Spark a Revolution
Belmont University Adjunct Professor, Alumna and Co-Owner at Worldwide Groove Corporation, Ellen Tift wrote Supermodel Astronaut, a song encouraging women to believe in the power of themselves and take a challenge proclaiming their own worth. Inspired by an increasing amount of negative self-talk among women, Tift wanted to remind women of their internal strength and to recognize the supermodel astronaut within.
According to Tift, supermodel astronauts are all over – women of all ages who are accomplishing big things in their lives can claim the title. “Moms are Supermodel Astronauts, single women who keep bills paid, 12-year-old girls who are true to themselves and do the right thing are Supermodel Astronauts,” Tift said.
As the Ice Bucket Challenge trend was slowing down, Tift said she was inspired to create a video for her song. She envisioned one that would feature everyday women claiming the promise of the campaign, “I am enough.” With Belmont alumni, students, faculty and staff on board, the Supermodel Astronaut video was born.
Journalism Student Receives CMA Close Up Award of Merit
Kelly Brickey, Belmont junior and journalism major, was recently named CMA’s Close Up Award of Merit in journalism recipient, in recognition of her work for CMA Close Up magazine during this summer’s CMA Fest.
Throughout CMA’s week of festivities, Brickey was assigned events to cover including Big & Rich’s opening show, performances at LP Field and a story on the Budweiser Clydesdales. Brickey says the experience was very valuable for her future career, as she was able to learn how to get the right information in a short period of time and turn the story around on an even shorter deadline.
Brickey said receiving the award was unexpected, as the team of journalists she was working alongside was very talented. “I was honored to be a part of an amazing team this year; every one of the other journalists alongside me were brilliant and so innovative,” she said.
Being at Belmont has been a large contributor to her success, Brickey noted. “Being a journalism student at Belmont has completely changed me… I have learned more than I ever thought I could from our media department. They have not only taught me the skills and academics I need to be a successful journalist, but also how to form my own voice and develop the real-life tactics it takes to be a journalist.”
Alumnus Josh Turner Returns to Belmont for Chapel Presentation
J
osh Turner, Belmont alumnus and double-platinum selling country music artist, returned to campus on Wednesday to speak to a packed auditorium of students, faculty and staff. With his most recent single released on iTunes and a new album coming out in Spring 2015, Turner spent his time discussing his hit “Long Black Train,” his family, his faith and his love for Belmont.
During his time at the University, Turner reflected on a walk he took from the Lila D. Bunch library to Hillside, his on-campus apartment at the time. During his walk, he was struck with the idea of a long train and the temptation to hop aboard. The inspiration turned into a night of writing, where he created three of the hit’s verses, as well as the chorus. The next day, he wrote the fourth and final verse. “Long Black Train” would become the song that landed Turner his first record deal.
Throughout his career, Turner said the song has changed lives and pulled people out of very bleak places. It is these stories that continue to remind him of his calling to write and sing country music. He said he feels “obligated to go out there and use the talent God has given me to change people’s lives for the better… The Lord gave me this song, he’s been using it and I think he’s going to continue to use it.”
Chemistry Students Participate in STEM Poetry Slam Competition
Five students from Dr. Kimberlee Daus’s Organic Chemistry I class competed in the Nov. 5 inaugural Middle Tennessee STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) Poetry Slam Competition. The contest, open to area high school and college students, was presented by the Middle Tennessee STEM Innovation Hub, which recently moved to Belmont’s campus.
Students presented poems that explained a challenging STEM concept or inspired young people to pursue STEM-related fields. All poetry was written and performed by the entrant. Daus’s students were invited to enter the contest to address difficult content in organic chemistry.
Students Sydney Gangluff, Angel Brothers, Sarah Cannavino, Miranda West and Kathryn Hook were selected as 5 of the 16 finalists. Hook and West were selected as top winners in the science category. Their entry, entitled “Mechalicious,” explained the difference between SN1 and SN2 reaction mechanisms.
To view their video, click here.
Belmont Included on The Hollywood Reporter’s Top 25 Music Schools
In an article recently published in The Hollywood Reporter, Belmont is noted on a list of the top 25 music schools across the world. Crossing the continent and going as far as Paris, Seoul and London, the articles highlights schools where the “Emmy and Oscar winners of tomorrow are practicing.”
Coming in at No. 24, Belmont’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business is honored for its Nashville connections, as well as its programs in New York and California. Students studying within this program can choose to spend a semester in either city, studying at what the University calls Belmont East or West.
Between the Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business and the University’s School of Music, Belmont offers 15 programs of study, including songwriting, audio engineering, commercial and classical music as well as the school’s most recent edition, music therapy.
To see The Hollywood Reporter’s complete list, click here.
College of Law Professor Presents at Health Law Symposium
Deborah Farringer, assistant professor in Belmont’s College of Law, spoke at Hamline University Law School’s Health Law Symposium, Health Care Reform Implementation in Minnesota: Mission Advanced But Not Accomplished. The symposium gathered regional and nationals experts to explore the “real, outstanding and upcoming law and policy issues relating to the implementation of health care reform.”
Farringer presented her paper, Keeping Our Eyes on the Prize: Examining Minnesota as a Means for Assuring Achievement of the “Triple Aim” under the ACA, which analyzes the regulations governing accountable care organizations under the Accountable Care Act (ACA) and the impact of regulations on academic medical centers. Her paper will be published in the Spring 2015 symposium issue of the Hamline Law Review.
