Belmont University announced today that its academic and professional business programs are partnering to launch an innovative new blog designed to highlight emerging business trends in the U.S. and abroad. Titled “Strictly Business,” the new interactive Web forum represents a joint initiative of Belmont’s College of Business Administration units, including the Undergraduate School of Business, The Jack C. Massey Graduate School of Business and the Scarlett Leadership Institute.
Over 20 faculty members, administrators and area business leaders are already committed to adding content on the new blog project, with contributors ranging from a newly-minted Ph.D. faculty member from Duke University to the former CEO and chairman of the board of Brentwood-based Tractor Supply Company. Massey Graduate School Associate Dean Joe Alexander said, “We have a very talented group of business experts within the Belmont academic and professional communities who are actively engaged in our educational mission. With this new tool, though, we expect to have far greater opportunities for learning across the various business disciplines and in bringing academics and professionals together within a common learning platform.”
Following a pilot phase of initial testing, the blog was opened to the general public on Dec. 1, and content has already been posted on a variety of current topics ranging from “exclusive branding techniques in fashion” to “social lending” to “perspective on how to improve CEO accountability,” among many other topics. Visitors to the blog are not only able to read about these issues but can then share their own comments that may support or in some cases disagree with the original authors’ position. The end result is an opportunity for active dialogue on current business topics of interest. Strictly Business can be viewed at http://forum.belmont.edu/business/.
Business Programs Officially Launch ‘Strictly Business’ Blog
CEMB Hosts Industry Presentation
The Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business hosted a demonstration of Logic Studio and Apogee Symphony System Thurs., Dec. 6 at the Sony Building, located at 34 Music Square East. Teaming up with VintageKing Audio in Nashville, Apogee Electronics & Apple presented two Logic Pro 8 sessions demonstrating the software’s current suite of Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) recording applications. The afternoon provided local industry professionals and Belmont Audio Engineering Society (AES) students an in-depth look at how Apple has managed to satisfy its current user base and market an attractive software package to new users as well.
Acklen Entertainment Launches Classic Southern Rock Band
Last week, Belmont University’s student-run Acklen Entertainment released its first CD, Brothers of the Southland, a compilation of great southern rock standards and new titles. As a preview of the self-titled album, the star-studded southern rock band Brothers of the Southland made its only scheduled area performance at the historic Exit In on Nov. 29 for a single release party that was also produced by Acklen.
An outstanding collection of mature and amazing musicians, the band brings together legendary southern rock performers Jimmy Hall (Wet Willy Band), Henry Paul (The Outlaws/BlackHawk), Steve Gorman (Black Crows/Jimmy Page), Dan Toler (Allman Bros/Dickey Betts), Mike Brignardello (Giant) and Jay Boy Adams (Texas Blues Solo Artist). This Acklen CD project also includes guitar and vocals from the late George McCorkle (Marshall Tucker Band) and features Bo Bice of “American Idol” fame.
School of Sciences Hosts Local High School Students
High School Physics Day was recently held on campus as 20 students from Cheatham County High School visited Belmont’s School of Sciences department for chemistry and physics demonstrations and two hours of lab experience. The students performed lab experiments alongside Belmont students and Belmont faculty members Dr. Robert Magruder, Dr. Christian Thomas, Dr. Scott Hawley and Dr. Steve Robinson.
Dr. Fisher to Co-Chair Mayor’s Project for Student Success
Nashville Mayor Karl Dean today announced the members of Project for Student Success, a 40-member group convened to develop action steps to reduce the dropout rate of students in area public schools. The project includes parents, students, education professionals from all levels, government officials, and members of neighborhood groups, faith-based organizations, non profits and the business community. Vice Mayor Diane Neighbors and President of Belmont University Bob Fisher will serve as co-chairs.
“I have had numerous conversations with both the vice mayor and President Fisher about reducing the dropout rate and they share my deep desire to give every student that comes through our public school system a chance to have a future and to be a productive citizen in our city,” Dean said.
Four sub-committees of the project will each focus on one of the key factors research has shown to contribute to students dropping out of school: chronic poor academic performance, student risk factors, lack of family or parental support, and community risk factors. Recommendations will be presented to the Mayor’s Office by June 2008.
CMT Music Awards to Be Held at Curb Center for Third Straight Year
Country music’s biggest stars will once again rock Nashville’s Curb Event Center at Belmont University when the “2008 CMT Music Awards” premieres live on Mon., April 14, 2008 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CMT and CMT.com. 2008 marks the third time that the CMT show and its live red carpet pre-show will be broadcast from Belmont University, and the announcement comes on the heels of recent news that the Curb Event Center will host the 2008 Town Hall Presidential Debate in October.
The CMT Music Awards program remains country music’s only fan-voted award show. The first round of nominees will be announced Tues., Feb. 5, and fan voting will begin on CMT.com. Final nominees will be announced in early March. The awards show and related programming garnered an impressive 9.1 million viewers for last year’s premiere, and more than 31.6 million different total viewers saw repeated airings of the “2007 CMT Music Awards.”
McFadden Selected for ACIS National Team
This semester American Collegiate Intramural Sports (ACIS) launched the “ACIS Campus Rep Marketing Internship” program on more than 50 campuses, offering students at participating universities the chance to earn college credits while gaining brand marketing experience with Fortune 500 companies such as P&G, GM, Nike, Philips, Microsoft and many more. Belmont senior Reid McFadden, a Communications Studies major and an intern with the Beaman Student Life Center, was recently selected to the 2007 ACIS Campus Rep Nationals Team, winning a trip to New Orleans Dec. 27-Jan. 1 to assist the ACIS Team at the Pontiac ACIS Flag Football Nationals. McFadden was one of only five campus reps from around the country chosen to participate in nationals.
Free Will Baptist Bible College Joins Belmont’s Nursing Consortium
Free Will Baptist Bible College has joined the Partners in Nursing Consortium, a long-term partnership between Belmont University, HCA’s TriStar Health System and other select Tennessee colleges and universities that seeks to address the growing shortage of registered nurses in Tennessee.
Through this consortium Free Will Baptist students who are accepted into the program will earn an Associate’s of Science of Biology degree in two years at Free Will Baptist and will then transfer to Belmont, where all of their credits will apply toward a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Initially, eight spots will be reserved in Belmont’s nursing program for Free Will Baptist students, with the first cohort to begin in fall 2009. For their clinical experiences students in this program will have the opportunity to work within the HCA’s TriStar Health System hospitals as well as other local clinical agencies.
Belmont University Provost Dr. Dan McAlexander said, “We are delighted to welcome Free Will Baptist Bible College to the Partners in Nursing Consortium, knowing they will bring well-equipped students to a program that is playing a vital role in efforts to meet the growing need for nurses in Tennessee and the nation.”
Gwaltney, Crowder Featured on DVD
The Baptist Center for Ethics (BCE) recently announced the release of a 13-minute DVD, “The Nazareth Manifesto,” that explores Luke 4:18-19 and features insights from Dr. Darrell Gwaltney, dean of the School of Religion, and Dr. Stephanie Buckhanon Crowder, assistant professor in the School of Religion.
Gwaltney, Crowder and several Baptist pastors will be studying the text together from various ethnic and cultural perspectives when various Baptist groups from across North America gather together in Atlanta in January. The DVD costs $12 and is available for order at the BCE Web site. Other Luke 4 resources offered by BCE include a free, online Bible study, The Agenda: 8 Lessons from Luke 4. The resource includes a student’s and leader’s guide authored by prominent North American Baptists, and a Bible study commentary authored by the faculty of the School of Religion at Belmont University.
McKay, Baruzzini Receive Awards from Diversity Forum
On Nov. 29 at an event at Opryland Hotel, Director of Human Resources Sally McKay and Director of Organizational Development Deborah Nunn Baruzzini received awards of appreciation from the Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum Advisory Council for their work in organizing the Forum’s quarterly meeting this past spring. The March 6 meeting was hosted by Belmont University in the Frist Lecture Hall of the Gordon E. Inman Center and featured a keynote presentation by Toni Riccardi, CEO of RED, a consulting firm providing diversity and inclusion consulting, coaching and training. Riccardi, a retired partner from PricewaterhouseCoopers where she served as PwC’s first Chief Diversity Officer, spoke on “The Challenges of Change and Inclusion.”
Jacky Akbari, founding chair of the Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum, said, “Sally McKay and Deborah Nunn Baruzzini bring leadership and insight to the Middle Tennessee employer community in many ways. We are especially privileged to have them lend support to the Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum. As the demographic population of our community evolves, the HR practices change to reflect the community and constituency we serve. We appreciate and recognize their contribution.”
The Middle Tennessee Diversity Forum is designed for senior leaders of large organizations in Middle Tennessee who seek to benchmark their organizations’ internal diversity initiatives and develop an understanding of how “best practice” companies excel in diversity. Sponsors of the Forum include HCA, Society of Human Resource Managers, Nashville Career Advancement Center, Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce and Deloitte & Touche.
