IMPORTANT NOTE: These are the archived stories for Belmont News & Achievements prior to June 26, 2023. To see current stories, click here.

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Belmont Hosts Middle Tennessee Science and Engineering Fair

Hope Buckner
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The Middle Tennessee Science and Engineering Fair (MTSEF), directed by Professor of Biology Dr. Steve Murphree, was recently held on Belmont’s campus.  The event’s 2016 grand prize winners, students from Camden High School, Martin Luther King, Jr. Magnet School and Vanderbilt University’s School for Science and Mathematics, went on to present their research at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (Intel ISEF) in Phoenix, Arizona.

Intel ISEF, a Society for Science & the Public program, is the largest international science competition in the world for high school students. According to the organization’s website, approximately 1,700 high school students from more than 75 countries, regions and territories present research and compete for prizes totaling $4 million.

Alumna Honored with Vanderbilt’s Founder’s Medal

Hope Buckner
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Jessica Walker, a Belmont School of Nursing alumnus, was recently honored as a Founder’s Medalist for Vanderbilt School of Nursing where she graduated with her Master’s of Science in Nursing in Vanderbilt’s Psychiatric-Mental Heath Nurse Practitioner program.

According to the Vanderbilt website, the Founder’s Medals have been given since 1877 to the top graduates from each school at the University, in honor of the awards’ benefactor Cornelius Vanderbilt.

Since being at Vanderbilt, Walker received the American Psychiatric Nurses Association Board of Directors Student Scholarship, served as president of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and was very involved locally as she volunteered at Room in the Inn, NAMI of Davidson County and Renewal House. Currently, Walker is enrolled in Vanderbilt’s Doctor of Nursing Practice Program.

 

Belmont Adds New Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling for Fall 2016

April Hefner
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Belmont Adds New Master’s Degree in Mental Health Counseling for Fall 2016

Program distinct in offering Christian, pastoral understandings of human care

Come this fall, individuals interested in pursuing a career in mental health counseling can begin studies in a unique master’s level program at Belmont University. The Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling (MMHC) degree through Belmont’s College of Theology & Christian Ministry will be distinctive among contemporary counseling programs in that it embodies Christian and pastoral theological understandings of the care of human beings in addressing the depth and complexity of human suffering. The program will offer three specialty tracks: Licensed Professional Counselor; Marriage and Family Therapy; and Clinical Pastoral Therapist.

Program Director Dr. Janet Hicks is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Certified School counselor who has researched and written extensively on child and adolescent counseling including such topics as cyber-bullying, social aggression, self-injury, substance use and abuse and academic achievement. She said, “What sets Belmont’s Mental Health Counseling program apart from other counselor education programs is this integration of Christian resources and scientific perspectives on human nature and development. Our program seeks to guide the forming of professionals who will act with integrity as agents of the ministries of healing and transformation.”

Associate Program Director Dr. Tom Knowles-Bagwell is a Clinical Pastoral Therapist in Tennessee and an ordained minister. In addition, Knowles-Bagwell is certified as a Diplomate in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and is a Certified Sexual Addiction Therapist through the International Institute for Trauma and Addiction Professionals. He added, “During the last 30-40 years the mental health community has gravitated to an understanding of human suffering as merely biology gone awry. But from a Christian theological perspective the ‘suffering of souls’ is understood as surpassing biology alone and extending into intrapsychic, interpersonal, familial, social and spiritual dimensions. This is what makes the pastoral theological approach to the care of suffering persons unique.”

Belmont’s 60 credit hour program, which can be completed in two calendar years with full-time continuous enrollment, is designed to prepare men and women to serve as counselors and psychotherapists in professional mental health settings ranging from community mental health centers to psychiatric hospitals, to faith-based counseling centers, to residential treatment facilities, to private practice. The Mental Health Counseling program is constructed to satisfy the academic requirements for licensure in Tennessee as either a Professional Counselor—Mental Health Service Provider, a Marital & Family Therapist or a Clinical Pastoral Therapist.

Applications to the MMHC require the completion of a Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university with a strong academic record of at least a 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) GPA. Once enrolled, students will select nine electives based on the program specialty they decide to pursue on top of eight required foundation courses, including Foundations of Clinical Practice, Theories of Personality, Diagnosis and Treatment of Mental Disorders, Christian Ethics in the Clinical Encounter, Diversity and Social Justice in the Clinical Encounter, Theories and Methods of Psychotherapy Research, Spirituality and Theories of Human Development and Christian Perspectives on Psychopathology and Human Suffering.

In addition, students are required to complete a practicum and internship consisting of 750 clock hours of counseling and counseling-related activities in an approved site or agency as a part of the program. Normally, students will complete 24 semester hours of course work prior to beginning their practicum experience. Students will be required to pass a background check and show proof of approved professional liability insurance prior to beginning the clinical experience component of the program.

The Mental Health Counseling Program is the only graduate degree program in the College of Theology & Christian Ministry at Belmont University and was established to prepare professional counselors at the master’s level. The degree and specialization programs are preparing for accreditation consideration by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP).

Pharmacy Students Earn Certification to Conduct HIV Testing

Hope Buckner
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Pharmacy Students Earn Certification to Conduct HIV Testing

In an effort to end HIV/AIDS in Tennessee, 17 Belmont University College of Pharmacy students recently volunteered and received intensive training in HIV prevention counseling and testing. The Tennessee Department of Health certified these students who will be using their newly acquired skills to serve communities around Nashville through HIV testing, education and prevention during the annual Walgreens National HIV Testing Days event scheduled for June 23-25.

Dr. Edgar S. Diaz-Cruz is leading the initiative, first started in 2013, and has forged an ongoing partnership between the College of Pharmacy and Nashville Cares, a local non-profit that provides life-saving services to Middle Tennesseans living with HIV/AIDS. Diaz-Cruz said, “I am very proud of our students for volunteering to reach out of their comfort zones to serve the community by bringing attention to HIV/AIDS education. I believe this type of training and personal outreach exposes our students to unique experiences to better serve the public and represent BU.” Since 2013, this partnership has resulted in 44 trained individuals and hundreds of community service outreach hours serving Middle Tennessee.

College of Health Sciences & Nursing and College of Pharmacy Collaborate on Interprofessional Lab Simulation

April Hefner
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College of Health Sciences & Nursing and College of Pharmacy Collaborate on Interprofessional Lab Simulation

Belmont’s School of Nursing and College of Pharmacy recently collaborated to demonstrate and educate students on their crucial roles in preventing medical errors. Collaboration and communication between health care professionals has been identified as one of the most important aspects of reducing errors and Belmont’s collaborative partnerships illustrates the University’s commitment to preparing its students for their careers.

The inaugural pilot program’s coordinator Dr. Anthony Blash, assistant professor in the College of Pharmacy said the collaboration between nurses and pharmacists allows for identification of potential medication errors, furthering the field’s ability to eliminate errors. Some of the technology available at the bedside to prevent errors and promote patient safety includes medication dispensing cabinets, electronic health records, patient identification through electronic scanners and infusion safety software that provides “dose error reduction.” Each of these is utilized in Belmont’s School of Nursing but, prior to this pilot, pharmacy students and nursing had not collaborated in the reduction of medical errors.

(L to R: Drs. Blash and Hallmark)
L to R: Drs. Blash and Hallmark

Blash and Dr. Beth Fentress Hallmark, director of simulation in the College of Health Sciences & Nursing, provided simulation-based education to first-year pharmacy students in pharmacy’s “Introduction to Drug Information and Informatics” course.

“I know this makes a difference in the professional lives of these pharmacy students,” Hallmark said. “The most powerful comment was when one of the students said she did not realize that nursing students knew so much about medication. Dr. Blash said it best when he talked about the ‘us’ vs ‘them’ mentality in healthcare and how it must be a ‘we’ mentality… this is what prevents medical error.”

Several nursing, business and pharmacy faculty participated in this initiative including Sara Camp, Jean Blank, PJ Ambrefe, Victoria Buechel, Dr. Tammy Legge, Dr. David Wyant and Dr. Kate Claussen.

Jack C. Massey College of Business Featured in Huffington Post Article

Hope Buckner
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Belmont’s Jack C. Massey College of Business was recently featured in a Huffington Post article, “Building Social Innovation Hubs Across America,” written by Harvard Professor Teresa Chahine.

Describing Nashville as a “social innovation capital,” Chahine describes her recent visit to Music City, where she was hosted by Belmont Associate Professor of Finance Dr. John Gonas. She discusses the diversity in Nashville, the overabundance of non-profit organizations, the city’s connectivity to the rest of the nation and the success of Belmont’s Enactus chapter’s work with SpringBack Recycling.

 

Schenkel Featured as Expert in WalletHub Article

Hope Buckner
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Schenkel Featured as Expert in WalletHub Article

mark-schenkelAssociate Professor of Entrepreneurship in the Jack C. Massey College of Business Dr. Mark Schenkel was recently included as an expert in WalletHub’s article, “2016’s Best Cities for Hispanic Entrepreneurs.” The article, recently published here, explains that the Hispanic and Latino communities are “expected to make up a third of the entire U.S. population by 2050,” while creating businesses 15 times faster than the national rate. Beyond that, the demographic’s four million businesses have brought in $144 billion in revenu, raising the nation’s 2015 total to $661 billion.

 

The article goes on to rate the best 150 cities in the U.S. for Hispanic entrepreneurs and concludes with Schenkel’s expert interview that discusses the largest challenge Hispanic entrepreneurs face, incentives offered and best practices.

 

Belmont Sends Largest Group of Students Abroad for Maymester, Summer Trips

Hope Buckner
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Belmont Sends Largest Group of Students Abroad for Maymester, Summer Trips

With more than 500 participating, student travelers will study all across the globe

Belmont will break its previous records of students participating in summer study abroad opportunities, including the University’s maymester trips, as 506 students prepare to travel all over the world this summer. With 22 May programs and 9 summer programs, students will spend time in nearly 30 countries including South Africa, Ireland, China, Austria, Greece and Argentina, among others.

The University has an institutional mission to provide students with ways to engage and transform the world, and Office of Study Abroad Director Shelley Jewell argues this means encouraging as many students as possible to take part in study abroad opportunities. “Belmont seeks to graduate students who received a well-rounded education and are competitive in the job market. The university recognizes that we live in an increasingly interconnected world and in order to be successful, students should have awareness not only of our nation, but of other cultures around the world,” Jewell said. “Studying abroad provides a window into other cultures and gives students a competitive edge when job seeking or applying to graduate school.”

Jewell said she and her team set a lofty goal of sending more than 600 students abroad throughout the fall, spring and summer semesters. Including the 506 who will be traveling this summer, a total of 612 students have participated this year. Jewell attributes this success to a number of factors including campus engagement, faculty programming, a new website and most importantly—the office’s student ambassador program. “The greatest advocates to study abroad are those students who have done it themselves—their ability to connect with their peers and encourage participating in programs is so valuable,” Jewell said. “We have so many engaged and outstanding study abroad students who speak so articulately about their programs.”

Though the connection to the University’s mission and the acceptance of a globally-focused mind are major selling points for studying abroad, Jewell said it’s important to understand that the opportunity to spend an extended period of time away from home isn’t something that will likely come around again for many students. “We hear so frequently from college graduates that their biggest regret in college was not studying abroad. So if I can get one message to students and parents it is this—the time to do this is now! We have the resources on our campus to make it happen.”

Flynn-Hopper Partners with Local Schools, Hosts ‘Dig It’

Hope Buckner
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Flynn-Hopper Partners with Local Schools, Hosts ‘Dig It’

Belmont Associate Professor of Education Dr. Rachael Flynn-Hopper recently partnered with two Schools in Sumner County schools, Clyde Riggs Elementary and Portland High School, to develop “Dig It,” a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) day focused around plants. Teacher education candidates in Flynn-Hopper’s Literacy I and II Methods courses assisted with developing lesson plans around literature to teach first graders in Jennifer Bates’s classroom about how plants grow and provide food.

High school students in Brad Kirkham’s class joined in the project by teaching the first graders (and Belmont students!) about the use of a greenhouse to grow plants and provided participants with supplies to grow tomatoes.

IMG_3186The partnership spanned the fall and spring semester and allowed Belmont’s teacher candidates to apply learning from their methods courses through the development of their plans and the lessons they taught. This project also focused on collaboration in the community, service learning and teachers’ work as advocates for schools, families and communities, Flynn-Hopper said. The Belmont candidates received training and materials from Tennessee Ag in the Classroom Representative Chris Fleming.

“The Belmont candidates were able to see how they can develop school and community gardens, teach children about agriculture and its impact on their lives, and design hands on collaborative lessons. These candidates also learned about grants and partnerships with local organizations and across schools as a way to increase prek-12 grade student learning. Clyde Riggs first graders learned about the parts & life cycle of plants, text features of nonfiction books and how to write a summary of facts. They also learned about Belmont and were able to see the importance of going to college to positively impact their own communities,” Flynn-Hopper said. “Students at Portland High School were able to interact with college students and learn more about Belmont. They demonstrated their knowledge and skills by teaching about plants through hands-on activities.”

Flynn-Hopper and Bates will present about the partnership at the National Ag in the Classroom Conference in Phoenix, AZ in June. While there, the duo will share on collaborations between universities and prek-12 schools and how partnerships can positively impact learning for all participants. They will also share their lesson plans, evidence-based strategies that can be incorporated across contact area through the use of quality children’s literature and funding strategies as this project received grants from a variety of places including TN Ag in the Classroom, TN Farm Bureau, CHS and Tractor Supply Company.

 

 

Biology Major Awarded Alumni Association Scholarship

Hope Buckner
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Biology Major Awarded Alumni Association Scholarship

prisha_patelThe Belmont University Alumni Association recently awarded a 2016-17 Alumni Association Scholarship to Prisha Patel. A representative from the Alumni Association said, “We were impressed by [Patel’s] academic achievements, performance in curricular and extra-curricular activities.”

The scholarship is awarded each year to rising seniors who are full-time (minimum of 12 hours per semester) undergraduate students and have successfully completed one semester at Belmont University. Prisha is a senior biology (pre-med) major and is in the process of applying to medical schools.

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