The 2010 ACM Mid-Southeast Conference was held in Gatlinburg Nov. 11-12. Belmont senior Cameron Behar gave a presentation on “Visualizing Graphs through Software.” Dr. William Hooper and Dr. Joyce Crowell gave a talk titled “An Applet Package for CS0.” Cameron’s presentation earned him Honorable Mention honors. His presentation was fourth out of the 23 undergraduate student presentations from institutions such as University of Alabama, Austin Peay, UT Martin, Tennessee Tech, Furman University, East TN State, Jackson State, Columbus State, Samford University and MTSU.
Senior Presents at ACM Mid-Southeast Conference
Belmont Alumna Named Congressman’s Chief of Staff
Kim Rudolph, an alumna of Belmont’s Master of Business Administration program, was recently named the new Chief of Staff for Congressman Andre Carson. Rudolph will oversee Carson’s offices in Washington, D.C. and Indianapolis.
Previously, Rudolph served 10 years as chief of staff for Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick of Michigan. Recently, the Congressional Tri-Caucus, a coalition comprised of the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, named Rudolph Outstanding Chief of Staff for 2010.
Al-Shamma Presents at Theatre Research Annual Conference
Dr. James Al-Shamma, Department of Theatre and Dance, presented a paper at the American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference in Seattle in November. In his paper, he analyzed the preparation and presentation of food in Belmont’s Spring 2010 Senior Capstone production of José Rivera’s Brainpeople.
Occupational Therapy Student Publishes Article in OT PRactice
Amanda L. Cobb, an occupational therapy doctoral student, had an article published in the Nov. 29 issue of OT Practice. The article, titled “Plotting Next Steps: Transitions for Adults with Developmental Disabilities,” provides two case studies of how occupational therapy helps individuals with developmental disabilities find meaningful occupation and greater independence. Amanda co-wrote the article with Melissa Y. Winkle, President of Dogwood Therapy Services.
Lumos Travel Award Winner Selden Recounts Ghana Experience
May 2010 Belmont graduate Abby Selden returned to campus recently to offer a presentation on her experiences in Ghana. Selden is the first recipient of a Lumos Student Travel Award, which is a grant given annually to help students embark on a travel experience that will give them a different cultural perspective of some aspect of the social sciences: visual, performing and/or linguistic arts; or to enhance an artistic, scientific or teaching skill or talent.
Selden said, “Living, volunteering and traveling in Ghana was a truly eye-opening and rewarding experience. I learned so much, and I am so grateful to the Lumos Foundation for giving me this opportunity.”
Belmont Board of Trust member Cynthia Leu, who also serves as president of the Lumos Foundation, funds the award, which was first established last year. She said, “I am thrilled that Abby Selden was the first recipient of the award. Her deep curiosity, thoughtfulness, open minded approach, organizational skills, ability to adapt to challenging and unfamiliar situations, and desire to learn about another culture firsthand through experience allowed her to make the most of her time in Ghana. I have no doubt that Abby’s three months in Ghana challenged her in a profound way, and changed her perspective significantly. I am thrilled Lumos was able to make her adventure possible.”
While in Ghana as part of the Projects Abroad program, Selden volunteered with other young adults from around the globe and served at both a local orphanage and a school in the rural countryside. In addition to the lack of electricity or running water, Selden said she learned to quickly adjust to all kinds of challenging circumstances. “Transportation was terrifying for the most part, but you get used to it… Taxis would cram in as many people as possible.”
The Mission of the Lumos Travel Award is to allow young adults to learn about the world in a practical and challenging way, by enabling students to become involved in a local community for an extended period of time. As Lumos Travelers engage with new places, new people and new ideas, they will take important steps to discover their skills and abilities as they gravitate to those things which will give meaning to their lives.
Leu added, “It is my hope that the Lumos Travel Award mission of ‘travel with a purpose’ will become a defining experience in the lives of those students who are award recipients. What they see, do and learn while on their ‘working adventure’ will cause them to return home with a different perspective on the world, and will inform their future choices as they become active citizens in their own communities.”
Click here to learn more about the Lumos program and here to view Abby Selden’s Ghana blog.
Robinson Analyzes Hockey Player’s Shot
Dr. Kevin Robinson, professor in the School of Physical Therapy, recently analyzed the shotmaking ability of Nashville Predators hockey player Shea Weber, applying science to his on-ice skills. The study was reported in a recent article, “Shea Weber and the Science of Slap,” in Canada’s National Post, which you can read by clicking here.
Belmont Takes Part in National Study of Information Literacy Assessment
Belmont University is one of only five institutions nationwide selected to participate in the RAILS (Rubric Assessment of Information Literacy Skills) project during the 2010-11 academic year. RAILS is based at the Syracuse University School of Information Studies led by Assistant Professor Megan Oakleaf. The three-year project seeks to measure information literacy skills of college students and is funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. RAILS is designed to help librarians and academic faculty develop and test rubrics that evaluate student learning and information literacy.
“Previously, librarians have been relying on tests to assess student work and skills and not looking at their research papers and projects,” Oakleaf said. “There are limitations on what you can test, and students aren’t always motivated to really work hard on a test that doesn’t impact their grade.”
Over the three-year grant period, Oakleaf will travel to 10 different universities to meet with 10 librarians or faculty members at each school. During the first year of the grant, Belmont University will be represented by Jenny Rushing, coordinator of reference services. Jenny was selected from librarians attending the ACRL Assessment Immersion Program, an intensive professional development experience focused on building librarian capacity to assess student learning. Jenny will participate in extensive rubric training and then organize librarians and academic faculty on their campus to assess student work samples.
“We also need to identify the characteristics that will make librarians and faculty members good evaluators of student work so that we can develop training for them,” Oakleaf said.
Barnes Chairs and Moderates PR Day
Susan Barnes chaired and moderated a session on November 12, at Public Relations Day in Knoxville, sponsored by the University of Tennessee College of Communication and Information and the Volunteer Chapter of PRSA, that featured Wendell Potter, senior fellow with the Center for Media and Democracy and a contributor to the Huffington Post. The topic was credibility in health care public relations.
Bowles, Stover Present Papers
Dr. Sarah Bowles and Dr. Andrea Stover from the Department of English attended the South Atlantic Modern Language Association in Atlanta on November 6. Dr. Bowles presented her paper “The Coal Miner’s Daughter Stands by her Man: Country Music and Second-Wave Feminism.” Dr. Stover’s presentation was titled “Writing Against Time: Exploring Issues of Temporality in the Diaries of Virginia Woolf and Sei Shonagon.”
Nursing Students Win Project Blossom Award
Belmont nursing students, along with associate professor Dr. Beth Youngblood, were awarded the 6th Annual Project Blossom Award by the Metro Department of Health. They received the award for serving as event planners and prenatal care teachers in the Teen Conference, for pregnant teens in the Davidson County school system, and the Incredible Baby Shower project.
Project Blosson is an initiative from the Governor’s office to decrease the state’s infant mortality rate. The award is given for playing a major role in “saving babies and eliminating perinatal disparities in Nashville and Davidson County.”
The Belmont group received the award at Nursing Excellence Night on Nov. 15 following the induction on new Sigma Theta Tau members.
