Pam Parry (Communication Studies) will present “research in progress” on Oct. 9 at the annual meeting of the American Journalism Historians Association in Tucson. She will present “Prescription for News: An Analysis of the Eisenhower Administration’s Medical Disclosure Policy,” which is one chapter of her dissertation. Parry is a doctoral candidate at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg.
Sport Science Instructor Co-Authors Book
Tiffany Breeding, Adjunct instructor with the Sport Science Department, and her husband Stewart Breeding, have written a book titled Limitless: Overcoming Life’s Challenges and Realizing Your Ultimate Potential. Limitless is an exploration of the intricate components of the human experience. The authors present their personal enhancement program, MEPS™, which is a fusion of exercise science, psychological theory, and spiritual tradition that promises to be the program that will lead one to never before reached levels of personal achievement. In Limitless, the principles of sport periodization, which are used by the world’s most elite athletes, are uniquely adapted to help one develop not only physical performance, but also mental, emotional, and spiritual potential.
Scholar Communities Celebration
Scholar Communities is a program in the College of Arts and Sciences in which a faculty member and from four to five students work over the summer on scholarly activities. Students receive six hours of course credit for participation in the scholar community. The communities meet regularly as a research team and hold social activities that are designed to bring about a spirit of community. A celebration dinner was held on August 28th for this year’s participants. The faculty advisors included Lori McGrew (Biology), John Niedzwiecki (Biology), Glenn Acree (Mathematics and Computer Science), and Ken Spring (Sociology). Rachel Risgby (Chemistry) was the Summer Scholars Director through the summer of 2010, and Lori McGrew will be leading the program during the next academic next year.
The research topics pursued by the 2009 Scholar Communities included:
Explorations in Graph Theory: Crossing Numbers and Visigraph
Cameron Behar, Reid Huffman, Joe Hutchinson, David Potter, Dr. Glenn Acree, Department of Mathematics & Computer Science
Characteristics of Learning in Zebrafish
Steven Avers, Taylor Andrew, Taylor Beazley, Katy Parsley, Dr. Lori McGrew, Department of Biology
Behavioral Ecology: Tradeoffs in a Dangerous World
Caleb Binkley, Amy Fehrmann, Mark McFarland, Atinuke Osinusi, Dr. John Niedzwiecki, Department of Biology
Applied Social Theory: Community-Based Research at the Maddox YMCA
Felicia Black, Daniel Chapdelaine, Allison Hurst, Carlin Lawroski, Austin Sauerbrei, Dr. Ken Spring, Department of Sociology
Belmont Teacher Certification Program at GM Spring Hill
The Department of Education under the leadership of Trevor Hutchins started a one-year teacher certification program this week, with 18 students at the Spring Hill Saturn plant. All of the students are displaced General Motors employees or workers displaced from companies that supplied GM. The program is being funded by a federal grant to retrain displaced workers through the South Central Tennessee Workforce Alliance. Most of the new Belmont students want to teach math at local high or middle schools. The candidates will complete 21 hours of courses in the fall and 15 hours of student teaching in the spring. Many of these students want to continue beyond the teacher certification level and finish the nine hours required for the Master of Arts in Teaching. All of the students are very excited to be starting a new program that will help them become teachers and provide them access to a graduate degree. Four Belmont faculty members will be delivering the coursework and supervising the practical aspects of the program at the GM Spring Hill Training Facility.
Mindel Accepted to Tennessee Teaching Scholars
Alex Mindel, an education intern, was accepted into the Tennessee Teaching Scholars Program scholarship for this year. She will receive a monetary award and in return for her pledge to teach in a TN public (preK-12) school for a year after she graduates.
Giordano Publishes Book Chapter
Dr. Pete Giordano, Professor and Chair, Department of Psychological Science, has recently published a book chapter called “Culture and Theories of Personality: Western, Confucian, and Buddhist Perspectives” in a book called Cross-Cultural Psychology: Contemporary Themes and Perspectives, edited by
Dr. Ruth Ford, Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy, was recently certified as a master trainer for “A Matter of Balance,” a fall prevention program offered through Maine’s Health Partnership for Healthy Aging and the Tennessee Department of Public Health. As a master trainer, Dr. Ford can provide the two-day coach’s training, as well as an eight-week participant workshop for older adults. “A Matter of Balance” offers fall prevention strategies, exercise programs, assertiveness training, identification of personal habits that may lead to falls and home and community environmental assessments. This program is designed to empower older adults to be proactive in preventing falls. Dr. Ford intends to incorporate Occupational Therapy student learning activities, community outreach research and residency placements to expose the students to community-based programs that support healthy aging.
Ford Certified as Master Trainer
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke Visits Belmont to Discuss Piracy
Gov. Bredesen, U.S. Rep. Cooper, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean Join Conversation on Intellectual Property Protection
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke met with music industry representatives yesterday in Belmont’s Maddox Grand Atrium to discuss the Obama Administration’s commitment to global enforcement of laws against intellectual property piracy. Before the town hall event at Belmont, Locke was joined by Congressman Jim Cooper and Nashville Mayor Karl Dean for a tour of “Music Row.”
In addition to the nearly 100 Belmont students in attendance, Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher welcomed more than 300 music industry leaders and special guests to the forum, noting, “The topic today is critical to our students’ future as 2,000 of our students are connected to music.”
Secretary Locke said, “Belmont’s School of Music and Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business offer Americans some of the best education in the music industry so it’s appropriate we are having this discussion here… Copyright laws need to adjust to meet the challenges of the 21st century.”
As “America’s Music City,” Nashville is an important hub in the U.S. music industry and has been deeply hurt by the recent rise in online intellectual property piracy. According to recent statistics, only one in 20 songs downloaded from the internet is done so legally.
Songwriter Rob Crosby said, “I don’t know why they call it file sharing when it’s stealing pure and simple.”
With the advent of the Internet, consumers are spending less on recorded music in all formats, and total revenues for recorded music in the U.S. have dropped in recent years. The loss of revenue has injured the local economy, which supports thousands of jobs and a $4 billion industry annually. The Department of Commerce, supported by the expertise of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), serves as the chief advisor to President Obama on intellectual property issues. Led by Director David Kappos, the USPTO also has an ongoing enforcement effort that provides training for government and private sector officials all over the world.
Belmont Student Represents U.S. at World Youth Conference
Junior Joshua Conner represented the United States at the World Youth Conference in Monterrey, Mexico from Aug. 25 – 27. Conner is one of seven people in the U.S. delegation at the conference, which is co-sponsored by the United Nations.
According to a UN spokesperson, “The main objective of the WYC 2010 will be to create a declaration expressing the world’s youth voices on the conference’s eleven themes: poverty and exclusion, employment, education, technology and innovation, health, gender equality, security, social justice and human rights, sustainable development, international migration, citizen’s participation and global cooperation.”
In addition to his role at the conference, Conner currently serves as a member of the Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth. Governor Phil Bredesen appointed him to the commission which reviews and makes recommendations on legislation before the Tennessee House and Senate and also approves the distribution of federal grant funds related to juvenile justice and child welfare in Tennessee. The Tennessee Commission on Children and Youth is an independent agency created by the Tennessee General Assembly. Its primary mission is to advocate for improvements in the quality of life for Tennessee children and families.
Conner was also a peer advocate at the Oasis Center for Youth and co-chair of the Tennessee Youth Advisory Council, a youth board that advocates for improved policies affecting juvenile justice, foster care and adoption.
Other Members of the U.S. Delegation to the World Youth Conference 2010 are:
• Alejandra Ceja, Chief of Staff for Martha J. Kanter, Undersecretary of Education, US Department of Education
• Frank Fuentes, Assistant Secretary for Children and Families, Administration for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
• Paul Kruchoski, Student, University of Cincinnati
• Erin Mazursky, Youth Advisor, U.S. Agency for International Development
• Bryan Samuels, Commissioner, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
• Paula Uribe, Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State
• Scott Warren, Executive Director, Generation Citizen
DeVries Nominated to Accounting Study Team
Associate Professor of Accounting and Information Systems Del DeVries has been nominated to serve on the Pathways Commission study team to examine the future of higher education in accounting. The commission is a joint effort between the American Accounting Association and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. The commission studies issues such as the shortage of qualified teachers with accounting doctorates, the need to revise the accounting curricula regularly in light of fast-paced business changes, university budget constraints and the need for training in specialized areas to meet professional demands. The Commission will hold its first meeting October 15 – 17 in Washington, D.C.
