Dr. Edgar Diaz-Cruz, assistant professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical, Social & Administrative Sciences, presented at the Preventive and Occupational Medicine Grand Rounds at the Meharry Medical College on Sept. 18. The audience composed primarily of physicians and medical researchers attended the presentation titled “The Role of the Health Care Provider in the Management of Dietary Supplement Use.” As part of his appointment in the department, Diaz-Cruz has responsibility of providing coursework in natural products and assists in the development and maintenance of the Belmont University medicinal garden.
Diaz-Cruz Presents at Medicine Grand Round
Hall Receives Human Resource Scholarship
Kesleah Hall, Belmont University’s Student Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) chapter president, received the James House Williamson Scholarship Award on Sept. 17 at the annual Tennessee Society for Human Resource Management conference at the Gaylord Opryland Conference & Exposition Center. The James House Williamson Scholarship Award provides financial support for students in the general human resources management and related fields of study. The recipient of each year’s award is selected by the SHRM Chapter of the State Conference’s host city.
Corporate Communications, Honors Student Publishes Article
Belmont student John Thomas Faircloth published an article, “The ‘Climate’ is Changing in Washington,” in the September 2013 issue of Financial Executive. The piece explores the potential short and long-term impacts of President Barack Obama’s climate change initiative released in June. Writing the article was part of his summer internship for the Government Affairs Office at Financial Executive International, a membership organization for senior-level financial executives in Washington D.C. Faircloth is a junior Honors student majoring in corporate communications and minoring in political science
Trowbridge Challenges Communication Educators to Embrace the Shift
In a workshop for the Tennessee Communication Association (TCA), Dr. Kevin S. Trowbridge, assistant professor of public relations, challenged attendees to use social media as a tool to engage students in the classroom and beyond.
The presentation was part of a two-day event held Sept. 13-14, at the Embassy Suites in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Students and faculty from 16 colleges and universities across the state participated in the annual conference. This year’s conference theme was “Student Centered Ideas.”
“With increasing demands for post-secondary institutions to deliver the highest quality educational experience in the most efficient and least expensive way, the concept of ‘student-centeredness’ can be misconstrued as a trend that perpetuates a simple consumer mentality toward higher education,” Trowbridge said. “However, as faculty, we must break this misconception and remember that being student-centered is central to our calling as educators.”
The presentation suggested how new technologies have promoted a shift of expectations for engagement for individuals and organizations, including colleges and universities. With an increasing array of social media tools, educators can engage their students in learning through platforms with which digital natives are most regularly engaged, Trowbridge explained.
For nearly 10 years Trowbridge has been studying the effects of social media on the ways individuals communicate with one another as well as with organizations.
In another session at the conference, Trowbridge and Dr. Christie Kleinmann, associate professor of communication arts at Lee University, offered best practices for using client-based. The title of their presentation was “Designing the Best for Both Worlds: Student-Centered Learning through Client-Based Service.”
The Tennessee Communication Association is a professional organization for communication scholars, faculty and students who seek to improve communication education and encourage communication research.
Teaching Alumna Honored as News 2 ‘Teacher of the Week’
Mary Beth Carroll, a Master of Arts in Teaching alumna, was honored as the News Channel 2 “Teacher of the Week.” The segment aired during the evening news on Sept. 12 and again on the morning news on Sept.13. Carroll is a first grade teacher at Lipscomb Elementary in Williamson County. Parents at the school nominated Caroll for the award as she “nurtures students and makes class educational and fun.” Click here to view the video.
Webb Publishes Science Curriculum Book for Elementary Educators
Laura Webb, a Master of Arts in Teaching alumna (’03) and adjunct faculty in the Department of Education, co-wrote a book entitled “Doing Science in Morning Meeting.” The book supports the work of the Northeast Foundation for Children, a not-for-profit educational organization and developer of the Responsive Classroom® approach to teaching, which fosters safe, challenging, and joyful elementary classroom and schools. The book features activities that incorporate science into the four components of the Morning Meeting method, which include greeting, sharing, group activity and morning message. The goal of the book is to deepen students’ science learning while getting students excited about science. Webb is a Responsive Classroom® consulting teacher and workshop leader and teaches science methods courses and supervises teacher interns for the Belmont University Department of Education. Click here for more information about Webb’s book.
Belmont Celebrates Annual Humanities Symposium Sept. 22-30
Students ‘encounter others’ through panel discussions, writing workshops, lectures, service
Belmont University hosts its 12th annual Humanities Symposium next week, featuring authors, poets, researchers, philosophers and professors from across the country.
Centered on the theme “Encountering Otherness,” the Belmont 2013 Humanities Symposium will occur Sept. 22 through 30 and parallels the 2013-14 University theme of “Through the Eyes of Others.” The Humanities Symposium seeks to stimulate intellectual conversation through its 31 events, which together will engage in a week-long conversation designed to increase interactions with different cultures, religions, political views and historical understandings to dislodge the default view and open students to broader understanding.
“We have scheduled what might be the most diverse group of speakers we’ve ever had for the 2013 Humanities Symposium, so we are very excited to share the work of our presenters with the Belmont community. We are proud of the fact that we have developed such a wide variety of events as well,” said Associate Professor of English Cynthia Cox, who is chairing the symposium. “In addition to many panels and lectures, this year’s symposium offers two writing workshops, an art exhibit showcasing the paintings of Belmont staff member Tam Mai, a Teaching Center luncheon, an open discussion of relevant philosophical questions, and a day of community service projects coordinated by the College of Arts and Sciences and the Office of Service Learning.”
Among the notable events are a 90-minute poetry reading by CantoMundo Fellow Eduardo C. Corral, a session on using networking opportunities to learn with Peabody College’s Dr. Kevin Leander, a lecture on race by Duquesne University’s Dr. George Yancy, a lecture on using empathy to understand others with Ohio State University’s Dr. Amy Shuman, a talk about Native American history and spirituality with University of Denver Centers for American Indian and Alaska Native Health Research Office Director CeCe Big Crow and a discussion on illegal immigration with Vanderbilt University’s Dr. Robert Barsky. All events are free and open to the public. For more information and to view the full program of events, visit www.belmont.edu/cas/humanities_symposium.
This year the Humanities Symposium also includes six community service projects across Nashville for approximately 120 Belmont students, faculty and staff to practice the theme of encountering otherness from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Sept. 28. Opportunities include working at building fences for outdoor dogs through Music City Hounds Unbound, creating crafts and playing board games with senior citizens at Morningside of Belmont Assisted Living and gardening with homeless women at the Women’s Center of Nashville Rescue Mission.
Renowned Global Strategist Speaks to Students
Renowned global futurist Dr. Parag Khanna spoke to students about re-mapping the global economy during a convocation event Wednesday in Massey Boardroom. Belmont’s Center for International Business hosted the speaker who provided an analysis of the new “geopolitical marketplace” which refers to the dynamic among superpowers to compete for the influence of the “second world.”
“The U.S. is no longer the center of the commerce universe. It is a world of key players,” Khanna said.
These key players include Latin America, Asia and Africa. Khanna explained that America and the rest of the world have started to recognize other markets. He then provided an analysis of emerging market political risk and the maneuverings of Europe, China, India and Russia to capture the loyalty of new power centers.
Smith Article Accepted for Publication
Adjunct professor Amy Smith’s article “Arbitration: Trending in the Business and Legal World, But Is It Trending In Your Business School?” has been accepted for publication in the fall issue of the Southern Journal of Business & Ethics. The Southern Journal of Business & Ethics is listed in Cabell’s Directory, with a 25 percent acceptance rating.
Smith is teaching business law in the College of Business Administration and has taught at Belmont since 2001.
Bulla to Speak at Audio Engineering Conference
Curb College Dean Wesley Bulla will speak on “ABET Accreditation and a Possible Role for the AES” as a panelist on the Education Forum Panel at the 135th Audio Engineering Society Convention in New York. Bulla will also serve on the Education Committee of the P & E Wing of The Recording Academy for the 2013-14 year.
