Belmont senior Chris Driggers is on the team bringing the Methodist Church to iPhones. Driggers, a computer science major, is a full-time intern this summer for United Methodist Communications (UMCOM), which handles the communication, public relations and marketing needs of he United Methodist Church. According to Chris, “The great thing about being an intern as part of the Technology Team at UMCom is getting exposed to a wide variety of web technologies.”
Danny Mai, director of technology at UMCOM, is a double Belmont alumnus, earning his B.S. in Computer Science with a minor in Religion in 1995, and his M.B.A. in 2004. Since joining UMCOM, Danny has welcomed many Belmont students for internships, including Stuart Childs (2008) and Zane Colgin (2009).
Computer Science Major Interns for United Methodist Communications
Hooper Presents Paper
Dr. William Hooper, associate professor of computer science, recently presented a paper to the Intellectbase International Consortium Academic Conference in Nashville. Intellectbase International Consortium (IIC) is a professional academic organization dedicated to advancing and encouraging quantitative and qualitative (including hybrid and triangulation) research practices. Dr. Hooper’s paper titled “A Process for the Study and Teaching of Machine Languages” appears in the proceedings of the conference and has been submitted for publication.
Belmont Student Nominated for VH1 Do Something Award
Massey graduate student Alecia Venkataraman was recently nominated for a VH1 Do Something Award for her work with the nonprofit organization Make It Beautiful, Inc. The Do Something Award recognizes people 25 and younger who are committed to social change.
Alecia founded Make It Beautiful, Inc. after marrying an abusive husband and escaping with only $50 to her name. Make It Beautiful leads empowerment campaigns across the country and helps people overcome adversity. ,
In addition to working with Make It Beautiful, Alecia also serves as owner and C.E.O. of the digital production studio 1STOPdigital and volunteers for the Global Advocacy Initiative.
To view Alecia’s nomination profile, click here
Volleyball Reaches New Heights for Academic Excellence
On the heels of its most distinguished academic year in program history, Belmont Volleyball will receive the 2009-10 Team Academic Award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA). The Bruins posted a team grade-point average (GPA) of 3.54 – which included a spring semester team GPA of 3.65. Both represent new program standards since Belmont joined the Atlantic Sun Conference in 2001.
“To attain this level of success at a school as academically challenging as Belmont is an outstanding achievement,” head coach Deane Webb said. “I believe it is a rare and valuable combination to succeed off the court while excelling on the court at the level we have the last four years.” Click here for more on this story.
Nashville Teaching Fellows Holds Opening Ceremony
The Nashville Teaching Fellows (NTF) program hosted an Opening Ceremony for their 2010 Summer Institute. NTF is a program in which highly qualified teachers are placed in high need Nashville schools with the goal of increasing student test scores and making a difference in the lives of children. Belmont is the university partner for the fellows, and representatives of the School of Education were on hand to support the opening celebration. Dr. Trevor Hutchins, Dr. Sammy Swor, Dr. Annette Little, Andrea McClain and Misty Wellman all were present to meet the new cohort of close to 100 fellows.
The celebration began with a film highlighting the experience of a few fellows from the first cohort, how fellows affect their students and Belmont’s role in the program. The film was created by Rebecca Banaszak, a fellow from the first cohort, at the request of Dr. Swor. Dr. Jesse Register, superintendent of Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (MNPS), was the keynote speaker and the program was closed by two talented MNPS students. Sebastian Jones, a student at Hunters Lane High School and Darius Teasley, a recent graduate of Stratford High School, recited SLAM Poetry (a combination of writing and performing poetry) describing what it’s like to grow up in their neighborhoods and what a teacher did to make a difference in their lives. Both young men received standing ovations.
Pyschology Alumnus Authors Textbook
Daniel Corts, Belmont psychology alumnus, is the author of a forthcoming textbook (Prentice Hall) called An Introduction to Psychological Science. His co-author is Mark Krause of Southern Oregon University. After graduating from Belmont in 1992, Dan obtained his Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and is now an associate professor of psychology at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. He was also recently elected the Midwestern Regional Vice President for Psi Chi, the National Honor Society in Psychology.
Hutchins Wins Writing Award
Sandra Hutchins (English) won the Leo Love Award for fiction given annually by the Taos Summer Writers Conference, selected by professors and graduate students at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque. She will be a featured guest and writer during the conference this July and is also featured on the conference Web site.
Belmont Media Studies Students Win International Video Award
A team of Belmont students won a 2010 International Telly award in the student category for their video documentary, From Dream to Reality: The Nashville Zoo.
The Belmont team includes producer Kevin Heim; writer Pierce Greenberg; video editor/music coordinator Jessica Wardwell; and photographer/interviewers Katie Chow, Brittany Hodges, Alysa Meisterling and Chelsea Reed. The journalism students did all of the research, photography, interviewing, writing and editing in producing the eight-minute documentary. Music major Alex Belcher composed and performed all music used in the piece. Rich Tiner, Associate Professor of Media Studies, provided the narration.
The welcome video was a project for Stephan Foust’s Journalism Practicum II class in partnership with the Nashville Zoo. “This was a great opportunity to have students practice their skills and create something useful for the Zoo,” said Jim Bartoo, Marketing and Public Relations Director for the Nashville Zoo. “The class did a nice job, and I applaud the Telly’s recognition of their efforts.”
The Telly Awards honor creative excellence in student and professional videos. The 31st annual Telly Awards received more than 13,000 entries from all 50 states as well as several countries around the world. The award-winning video is on the Nashville Zoo’s homepage. To view the video, click here
Belmont Joins Nashville Bar Association to Honor Attorneys in Nashville Sit-in Trials
The Nashville Bar Association, Napier-Looby Bar Association and the Nashville Bar Foundation celebrated Law Day 2010 on Tues., June 15 by honoring the local attorneys who defended the rights of the lunch counter sit-in demonstrators in Nashville courts in 1960. SunTrust Bank was the Title Sponsor; Belmont University’s newly announced College of Law served as the Event Sponsor; and U.S. District Court’s Library and Miscellaneous Fund was the Supporting Sponsor.
This Law Day, Nashville attorneys commemorated the 50th anniversary of the date on which Nashville’s lunch counters were officially desegregated and the dedication of local attorneys who, despite public criticism and opposition, assured that the protestors had access to the justice system. It is a rich legacy of access to justice which has added much to our wonderful city.
“Almost all of the lawyers representing the demonstrators have passed away, and we believe that Chief Justice A. A. Birch, and George Barrett may be the only surviving lawyers of the defense team to now receive the recognition they so deserve for defending justice in the face of unfavorable public opinion,” said Jonathan Cole, president of the Nashville Bar Association. “These lawyers placed their professional reputations, lives, and even their families at risk in taking on the cases which at the time polarized the city of Nashville.”
Belmont president Dr. Bob Fisher made remarks and introduced Mayor Karl Dean at the Law Day luncheon in remembering these outstanding lawyers who fearlessly undertook representation of the civil rights protestors and the contribution that they made to assuring access to justice for everyone.
Belmont University’s newly announced College of Law was the event sponsor for Law Day. Jeff Kinsler, the founding dean of Belmont’s College of Law, said, “Belmont University College of Law is honored to sponsor this event. Justice Birch and Mr. Barrett are role models for all lawyers and law students.”
Bennett Quoted in Our Sunday Visitor
Dr. Sybril Bennett was recently quoted in a story on Nashville flooding in Our Sunday Visitor, the weekly publication of a Catholic not-for-profit organization.
