Dr. Philip E. Johnston, Dean of Belmont University’s School of Pharmacy (BUSOP), announced today that he has completed the hiring process for the necessary faculty/staff team for the 2008-09 academic year. Anticipating a full first class of 75 students, the BUSOP program currently has ten full-time faculty members in place, all of whom boast impressive credentials in education, research and practice.
Johnston said, “Given the immense shortage of pharmacists across the country, finding such a qualified and committed group of faculty members for our first cohort makes a tremendous statement about the quality and potential of our Pharmacy+ program as well as the significant support we’re receiving from the administration and community. Our incoming students couldn’t find better educational resources than what they’ll receive from their faculty mentors.”
In addition to having faculty in place, BUSOP has also begun a new marketing campaign with a newly-produced, 30-second TV spot that highlights both the imperative need for pharmacists as well as the unique offerings of Belmont’s Pharmacy+ program. (A four MB .mov file of the spot can be e-mailed upon request). Billboards and radio spots can also be expected to appear throughout the region soon.
School of Pharmacy Introduces Faculty Team for First Year
Student Athletes Reach New Heights in the Classroom for Fall 2007
The Belmont University Department of Athletics recently announced that its student-athletes had one of their most successful semesters in the classroom since the program moved to NCAA Division I.
For the 2007 fall semester, Belmont had a department grade point average (GPA) of 3.254, which is the highest GPA for the fall semester in the department’s Division I era. The fall 2007 GPA is also among the top-three highest GPAs recorded by the department in both the fall or spring semesters behind a 3.288 in the spring of 2002 and 3.273 in the spring of 2005. Also, every Belmont team had a team GPA of over 3.0 for the first time in the Division I era. The top three sports in terms of team GPA are Women’s Cross Country (3.619), Women’s Golf (3.538) and Men’s Golf (3.503).
In addition, nearly 72 percent of Belmont student-athletes earned a 3.0 GPA for the fall semester. This percentage is nearly six percent higher than the fall semester of 2006. Both the women’s cross country and women’s golf team had all of their members post a 3.0 GPA for the fall semester.
“Our student-athletes work extremely hard on the court, course, and field, as well as the classroom,” said Renee Schultz, Belmont Athletic‘s Academic Coordinator. “They optimize what it means to be a student-athlete day in and day out. I couldn’t be more proud of them; they have earned this honor.”
Not only were Belmont student-athletes successful in the classroom, they also garnered success on the field as well this past fall. Belmont won two conference championships (men’s and women’s cross country), saw Lauren Weaver become the second Belmont female runner to compete at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, and for the first time, witnessed all five Belmont fall sports qualify for their respective Atlantic Sun Conference Tournament .
“I am very pleased by the performance of our student-athletes in the classroom during the past semester,” said Mike Strickland, Belmont Director of Athletics. “It is because of their hard work and desire to do well in their studies that we are able to produce this achievement. I also appreciate the work of our coaching staff, who emphasize academics on a day-to-day basis with their student-athletes, as well as to our academic support staff, who work hard to give our student-athletes the tools to become successful in the classroom.”
Slay Published in Maryland Bar Journal
Cheryl L. Slay, the newest addition to the Curb College Music Business faculty, published an article in the January 2008 issue of the Maryland Bar Journal titled “MySpace or Whose Space Is It?” The article discusses the Digital Millennium Copyright Act as it applies to web site operators, including statutory framework, court interpretations, guidance to legal practitioners and recent litigation. Slay is a Business Law attorney with a particular focus on Intellectual Property and entertainment industry matters. Her professional credits also include extensive experience in managing and advising public sector programs on matters ranging from consumer protection and privacy to equal employment and administrative law, and her previous teaching experience includes courses at The University of Baltimore School of Law, The University of Maryland School of Law and The Maryland State Bar Association. For more information on Slay, visit http://www.slaylaw.com.
Hall of Fame Alumnus Discusses ‘A Christian Perspective on Race’
Alumnus and Athletic Hall of Famer Alaric (Al) Allen graduated from Belmont in 1996 after an outstanding basketball career and began working in mortgage banking. Allen and his wife Jude volunteer with an inner-city ministry, and he also serves as the executive director of Pass the Salt, a marketplace ministry that encourages Christians to be Jesus in their jobs. Allen has published two books, A Father’s Epistles and The Salt Journal, but his talk focused on the root causes of racism and the impact of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Introduced by Coach Rick Byrd, Allen began by acknowledging all the supposed sources of racism—economic, social, cultural, moral and civil rights issues—before confirming that the real root is a spiritual problem. “The problem is not racism, it’s rejection,” Allen said. “We were created, every single one of us, to be a child of God, but everything this world tells us says otherwise. It’s a spiritual problem, and the world can’t solve a spiritual problem.”
Pointing to John 4, Allen illustrated how Jesus accepted the woman at the well despite her position in the culture as a woman, a Samaritan and a sinner, freeing her from the bondage of rejection. In a similar fashion Allen recalled an experience in his own life that reminded him, “My heritage has nothing to do with skin. My heritage is as a son of God… I celebrate Martin Luther King not as a black man or a great American. I celebrate him as someone who looked at the impossible and went after it. He dreamed a dream that was God’s dream, and he lived, sacrificed and died for it.”
AES Hosts Acclaimed Rock Producer Michael Wagener
The Belmont Audio Engineering Society (AES) chapter recently hosted Michael Wagener, a highly acclaimed producer and engineer who has worked with Motley Crue, Ozzy Osborne, Queen and Janet Jackson, to name a few. The Q&A session was attended by more than 40 students. Pictured from left to right are: Greg McGinnis, student AES chapter president; Wagener; student AES vice president Ethan Kaiser; and AES secretary/treasurer Nick Spezia.
Nashville Shakespeare Festival Begins 20th Season with ‘Hamlet’ at Troutt Theater
The Nashville Shakespeare Festival kicks off its 20th anniversary season this weekend with a winter production of Hamlet in Belmont University’s Troutt Theater. The production, the Festival’s first public winter production since 2002 and its first as a professional theater in residence at Belmont, “promises to be friendly to first-time viewers and intriguing to the seasoned Shakespeare fan,” said Hamlet director Denice Hicks.
The cast, which includes four Belmont students in addition to seven professional actors, will present their characters such that each is focused on helping Hamlet tell his story. This is the first time that the Festival has worked with Belmont on a production, and by making the Troutt Theater its new winter home, the Festival will be able to further its mission of not only entertaining, but also educating.
“We have partnered with several universities and colleges across the mid-South,” explained the Festival’s executive director, Nancy VanReece. “However, Belmont is the first winter home for a consistent collaboration as a theater in residence. We are already planning for 2009 and 2010 programming there.”
“We are honored to be among the other professional companies using this beautiful facility,” added Hicks, “and we are excited to incorporate the Belmont students and faculty into our production.”
Belmont University theater department chairman Paul Gatrell designed the set, adjunct professor and Tony Award-winner Franne Lee is the costume designer and MTSU professor Anne Willingham is responsible for the lighting design. Performances, beginning Jan. 17, will be held Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2:30 p.m., through Feb. 2. For more information or to purchase tickets, call the Nashville Shakespeare Festival at (615) 255- 2273 or visit www.nashvilleshakes.org.
Senior Journalism Student Named 2008 Chips Quinn Scholar
Senior journalism major Jeannette Ceja was recently named a 2008 Chips Quinn Scholar, a distinction awarded to only 20 students nationwide each year. The Chips Quinn program is sponsored by the Freedom Forum and provides internships, training and scholarships to college students of color who are pursuing careers in print journalism. The program offers special support and encouragement that will open doors to news careers and bring greater diversity to the nation’s daily newspaper newsrooms.
Chips Quinn Scholars spend two weeks in Washington, D.C., for training, experiential learning and mentoring by news veterans. The Freedom Forum then matches nominees with participating newspapers from across the country for paid internships. Upon Ceja’s return from Washington, she will spend ten weeks reporting and editing at The Tennessean newspaper.
“Jeannette is truly an exceptional student and we are thrilled that she has earned such a prestigious award,” said Dr. Sybril Bennett, Director of the New Century Journalism program and academic advisor and mentor to Ceja. “She has taken advantage of every opportunity to be successful and we are honored that the Freedom Forum and the Tennessean are recognizing her hard work in such an extraordinary way.”
COBA Faculty to Be Published in Journal, Textbook
Drs. Howard Cochran, Richard Churchman, Mark Schenkel and Jennie Carter Thomas recently received word that their article on “Identifying the Essential Managerial Characteristics of Successful Venture Capital Investments Among Small to Midsize Technology Enterprises Within Mainland China” will be published in Insights to a Changing World journal on March 15, 2008. In addition, Dr. Thomas and Dr. Harry Hollis will have their case and experiential exercise on “Driving Forces in the Field of Ethics” published in the 2008 edition of the Understanding Management textbook (published by Southwestern).
Dansby Named A-Sun Player of the Week
On the heels of his inspired effort in hostile surroundings, Belmont Basketball junior Shane Dansby has been named Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Week. The versatile wing player turned in his finest performance in a Bruin uniform Saturday afternoon, scoring 23 points and grabbing 12 rebounds in Belmont’s dramatic 99-91 double overtime victory at rival Lipscomb. The Pegram, Tenn. native recorded new career-highs in points (23), field goals (10), field goal attempts (16), three-point field goals (3) and minutes played (44). Moreover, he was one rebound shy of tying his career-high. The Murray State transfer has become an offensive mainstay for Belmont, scoring in double figures in all 14 game appearances for the Bruins this season. Dansby was also named to the Dr. Pepper Classic All-Tournament Team in December following outstanding performances against Wright State and Murray State. He leads Belmont in rebounding (5.6 rpg) and is second in scoring (13.4 ppg).
ACPE Authorizes Next Step for School of Pharmacy Accreditation Application
The American Council on Pharmaceutical Education (ACPE) informed Belmont University leadership today that its application package, which was presented to the council at last week’s Board of Directors meeting in Tampa, satisfies all established criteria, paving the way for ACPE to schedule a site visit on campus between mid-March and early April. ACPE is the official regulatory body that accredits all colleges of pharmacy in the United States, and the early spring site visit will be the last hurdle Belmont’s School of Pharmacy (BUSOP) must clear before seating its first class in August 2008.
Belmont’s School of Pharmacy Dean Dr. Phil Johnston, who was one of the key university leaders to present the BUSOP application to the accreditation council, said, “Our meeting with the accreditation council went very well, and we are gratified to have reached this milestone. Our faculty is now hard at work preparing our academic program and our facilities. We are all very excited about the opportunity we have to serve the people of Tennessee by training professional pharmacists to serve in their communities.”
Belmont Provost Dr. Dan McAlexander, who also attended the council meeting in Tampa, noted, “It was clear from the accreditation council’s comments on Friday that Belmont’s School of Pharmacy made a strong impression with its submission. This process only increases our confidence that we will welcome our first pharmacy students to campus this fall.”
