Belmont’s College of Law’s Student Bar Association sponsored a team of 17 law students to participate in the 24th annual Hands on Nashville Day on Saturday, September 19. The students volunteered at Madison Middle Prep and completed various projects around the school including painting hallways and classrooms, planting a garden for a life skills class, cleaning the gymnasium and painting a mural.
Will teach graduate courses, direct new Belmont Center for Improvement of Educational Systems
Belmont announced today that Dr. Jesse Register, former superintendent of Metro Nashville Public Schools (MNPS), will be joining the University in a newly created position: Distinguished Professor of Educational Leadership. A well-known name among educators in Middle Tennessee and beyond, Register will be teaching graduate education courses while also spearheading the development of the new Belmont Center for Improvement of Educational Systems. The center will be a think-tank, a training institute site and an incubator to discover ways to restructure schools at the district level using collaborative, community-based approaches. Register is anticipated to officially join Belmont Oct. 1.
Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher said, “For 125 years, this campus has been dedicated to education as a source of transformation for individuals and communities. We aspire for greatness not only in our education programs here at Belmont but also to see excellence fostered in school systems locally and beyond. Adding someone of Dr. Register’s caliber to our faculty and to direct this new center will prove to be an incredible investment in tomorrow’s education leaders as well, I believe, as a strong step toward finding resources to aid in improving school systems nationwide.”
Register noted, “Belmont University, under the leadership of President Bob Fisher, has shown tremendous growth as one of the great universities in the South, and it is an honor to be invited to join the faculty. This offer is a great opportunity! I look forward to teaching in the leadership program and to being a member of the faculty that will strategically plan the growth of the education department at Belmont. I am also very excited to have the opportunity to develop a center to support the improvement of educational systems in our region. Building capacity for systemic reform in education is critical as we strive for continuous improvement in our state and country.”
Nashville Mayor-Elect Megan Barry, who participated with Register in Leadership Nashville several years ago, joined today’s press conference, noting, “Belmont is always at the forefront of putting forward new and innovative ideas for what Nashville needs. With the addition of Dr. Register, I think it’s really exciting… I know what his commitment to education has been and will continue to be. He always wanted our children to have access to the best public schools.”
Through his position as director of the Belmont Center for Improvement of Educational Systems, Register will work to address the issues that school systems face as they seek reform, utilizing collaborations among higher education, business/industry investment, faith/work initiatives and civic and legislative policy-makers. In addition, as a faculty member in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences (CLASS), Register will be teaching Master of Education courses in Organizational Structures and Change.
Register served as superintendent of the Metro Nashville Public School district from 2009 until his retirement this past summer. Under his leadership, MNPS experienced administrative and educational improvements, including an increase in high school graduation rates and job satisfaction among teachers as well as a closing of the achievement gap among a diverse group of students. Dr. Register earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English and a Master of Education Degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and a Doctorate in Education Administration from Duke University. He was awarded an Advanced School Administrator’s Certificate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, completed the Superintendent’s Executive Program at the University of North Carolina and completed three years training in the Change Leadership Program at Harvard University.
CLASS Dean Dr. Bryce Sullivan said, “The questions we’re asking in Nashville are being echoed by countless school systems across the country … ‘How can we use all available resources to provide the best education for our children?’ Dr. Register proved in his six-plus years leading Metro schools that he can provide innovative leadership in that arena, and I’m excited to see what visionary direction he brings to both Belmont’s education programs and to broader school systems.”
Education Department Chair Dr. Mark Hogan added, “Our partnerships with public, independent and charter school teachers and administrators strive to help families and the children of those families get the education that will enable them to flourish. This means changing the way we have traditionally approached teacher education. Dr. Register’s commitment to this vision creates a great fit with our Education program.”
Belmont University’s College of Pharmacy recently competed in the American College of Clinical Pharmacology’s (ACCP) Clinical Pharmacy Challenge. Pharmacy students Henry Lim(P4), Sarah Ayers(P4) and Anna Whitwell(P3) participated in the team-based event.
Teams of three students compete against other schools and colleges of pharmacy in a quiz bowl format. This year, a total of 108 teams from across the country competed and Belmont’s team made it to the third round of the competition, consisting of the top 32 teams in the country.
Belmont mathematics students saw great success on the passing of their professional actuarial exams this summer. Mallory White, senior mathematics major, passed the Actuarial Exam FM/2 on her first try in June. Elly Fell, junior mathematics major, passed the Actuarial Exam P/1 on her first try in July. Both exams have a pass rate of less than 50 percent. There is a series of nine exams required for full status as an actuary.
Actuaries work in the insurance and financial sectors and specialize in analyzing the financial impact of risk and uncertainty. Belmont University’s Belmont Actuarial Students Society, led by Mathematics Professor Dr. Daniel Biles, is an organization for students interested in pursuing the actuarial sciences.
Assistant Professor of Chemistry Dr. Duane Hatch and Ryan Agh and Ambrose Rice, two Belmont students, did research at the Los Alamos Laboratory this summer. Hatch worked at the lab for more than two and a half years, beginning in May of 2002 as a graduate research assistant while he worked on his Master’s degree from Tennessee Tech University.
An article recently appeared in the Los Alamos National Laboratory Alumni Link Newsletter regarding Hatch and his summer research.
Belmont alumna and soprano Tina Milhorn Stallard received the 2015 Encore Award and presented a recital program on Sept. 17 in McAfee Concert Hall. Stallard graduated from Belmont as a Presser Scholar in 1996, earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and is an alumnus of the University of Kentucky. Stallard is currently an associate professor of voice at the University of South Carolina, where she teaches applied voice and vocal pedagogy.
Stallard has performed with the Shanghai Philharmonic Orchestra and members of the Beijing National Ballet Orchestra, Zagreb Chamber Orchestra, Plovdiv Philharmonic Orchestra, Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra, Lexington Philharmonic Orchestra, Johnson City Symphony, Louisville Orchestra, South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra and Bowling Green Western Symphony. In June 2011, she made her Lincoln Center debut as soprano soloist in Timothy Powell’s Incarnation Mysteria.
The Encore Award was created to honor a School of Music alumna or alumnus for achievement in the field of classical music. Previous recipients include Clifton Forbis, Daniel Weeks, Dan and Sherrie Lawhon, Teresa Cheung, Alfredo Colman, Travis Cottrell and Greg Walter.
Biology Professor Dr. Darlene Panvini and senior biology and environmental science major Lindsay Millward spoke at the Tennessee Women in Green (TWIG) meeting on September 11. Their presentation, “Doing Biology: A Philosophy for Mentoring Students,” covered ways in which students are involved in research, professional development and civic engagement.
“We Do Biology” describes the philosophy of the Department of Biology at Belmont. Getting undergraduate science students involved in research, community service and professional organizations includes catching earthworms, cleaning streams and presenting posters at conferences. Panvini and Millward shared examples of how actively mentoring science students prepares them for graduate schools, careers and civic engagement. The talk also described Belmont’s sustainability initiatives.
Junior business major Jacob Brody is receiving praise for his song-by-song play-along cover of Kanye West’s entire discography, filmed in one attempt.
Belmont hosted The Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce’s official beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month on Tuesday, September 15. The event served as the organization’s special announcement of key strategic partnerships in education, financial literacy, health & wellness, arts, culture, civic engagement and business. The kick-off included a Proclamation by Nashville Mayor Karl Dean, recognizing Hispanic Heritage Month.
The NAHCC undertakes the largest, most comprehensive and inclusive local and regional recognition of the month every year from September 15 to October 15. The organization’s month-long program includes training sessions and discussion panels on population growth, Hispanic women entrepreneurship trends, Hispanic purchasing power and economic impact, art, music, and networking events.
The NAHCC also announced that its partnership with music rights management leader BMI will continue this year with a special roundtable event on music industry insights. This is geared to highlight opportunities within Latin music’s diverse community in Nashville and beyond, where songwriters and publishers can navigate, network and thrive creatively in the music community.
To close the month-long festivities, the NAHCC will host its 11th Annual Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration and Business and Community Excellence Awards with the theme, “Hispanic Population Growth and How it Impacts Our Economy“ on Thursday, October 15, at the Nashville City Center. The event will include a reception with special guest speakers, live musical performances and culinary sampling.
Carol Smith, liberal studies major in Belmont’s Adult Degree Program, recently published a children’s book titled, Little Chris and his BIG Imagination Go To The Beach, with her 8-year-old son.
A book signing will be held on Sunday, September 20 from 3 – 5 p.m. at 509 Lentz Dr., Madison, Tennessee, 37115.
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