The Teaching Center, with support from the Office of General Education, organized a group of 10 Belmont faculty members who traveled together to the annual Teaching Professor Conference in Atlanta, May 29-31. Belmont conference participants, from six different colleges, included the following graduate and undergraduate faculty members: Cathy Hill (Business and FYS), Ann Coble (Religion and FYS), Marnie Vanden Noven (Sport Science), Chris Barton (Biology), Nathan Webb (Communication Studies), Amy Ham (Pharmacy), Marilyn Odom (Pharmacy), Joan Li (Asian Studies and Chinese Language), Renee Brown (Physical Therapy) and Mike Pinter (Mathematics and Teaching Center).
Pinter presented a poster session titled “Two Engaging Activities for Student or Faculty Groups” in which he described the Three-Hat Game (with its counterintuitive outcome), the Dekaaz poetry form (including random generation of form variations), suggestions for using the activities with groups, and the connection for both activities to binary numbers. The conference offered hands-on workshops, plenary sessions with teaching and learning scholars, dozens of concurrent sessions and a variety of poster presentations. Because of the cross-disciplinary nature of the conference, participants had the opportunity to interact with college and university teachers from around the country in explorations connected to promoting enhanced teaching and learning outcomes. Many of the presentations were related to the scholarship of teaching and learning as well as the scholarships of integration and application.
Faculty Attend, Present at Teaching Professor Conference
Mike Curb Receives Historic Preservation Achievement Award
Longtime Belmont supporter and trustee emeritus Mike Curb was honored by the Metro Historical Commission with the highest honor, The Achievement Award, recognizing his commitment to preservation, education and advocacy of Nashville history.
Mayor Karl Dean presented the award to Curb during the Metro Nashville Historical Commission’s 40th Annual Preservation Awards at the Nashville Downtown Public Library on May 19. Curb was chosen because of his work in preserving Historic RCA Studio B, the Quonset Hut, the RCA Building, RCA Studio A and Music Row.
In his introduction of Curb, Commission member and Belmont Professor of Music Business Don Cusic stated that “Nashville is known as Music City U.S.A, Music Row is the heart of Music City, and Mike Curb is the heart of Music Row.”
In addition to his strong influence in the greater Nashville community, Curb’s contributions to Belmont have also led the University to name both the Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business and the Curb Event Center in his honor.
Student Performs on Vans Warped Tour
Belmont junior and singer/songwriter James Morris will be returning to the Vans Warped Tour for the July 1 Nashville date at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds and will be making appearances at the Project Connect Nashville tent. Morris previously performed during Vans Warped Tour’s 2012 west coast leg.
The release of Morris’s 4th album, “Catch Fire,” has recently been announced by Red Plate Entertainment. The album includes the song “The World Will Be Ours” featured in the film “Playing Party Politics,” one of the selected short film finalists in the Cannes Film Festival. The album is available now on iTunes.
To follow Morris’s musical journey, click here.
Murphree Gives Presentations and Leads Labs for Elementary School Children
Belmont Professor of Biology Dr. Steve Murphree recently gave two talks about insects in nature to the home schooled children at Whole Heart Primary School (WHP) in Nashville. WHP provides weekly hands-on enrichment classes for their kindergarten – 6th grade children.
Following those presentations, Murphree, again this year, was one of the demonstrators at the Sam Davis Home Days on the Farm event and presented a talk titled, “Insects and Disease in the War Between the States.” This very popular living history event is attended by almost 1,000 elementary school students each day and features more than 20 demonstrations. It lets the visitors find out what life was like in the 19th century.
On May 27, Murphree led two student Home School Science Discoveries labs, with 24 children each, entitled “Learning About Brains (Dissection Lab).” The labs were held in the Wedgewood Academic Center building and were for children entering grades 6-12.
Fox Co-Authors Chapters in Mathematics Education Textbook
Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Education Dr. Ryan Fox recently co-authored 10 chapters in a new textbook titled, Mathematical Understanding for Secondary Teaching. The textbook publisher said, “The work described in this volume takes a sometimes-neglected approach, focusing on the dynamic nature of mathematical understanding rather than on a stable description of mathematical knowledge, and on mathematics for secondary teaching rather than mathematics for teaching at the elementary level. The work reported in Mathematical Understanding for Secondary Teaching: A Framework and Classroom-Based Situations is a practice-based response to the question of what mathematical understandings secondary teachers could productively use in their teaching.”
For more information, click here.
Mathematics and Computer Science Students and Alumni Participate in Hack Tennessee
The Hack Tennessee event, recently held in Nashville, gathers software developers, visual designers and product managers from across the country to invent new web platforms, mobile apps and electronic gadgets over 48 uninterrupted hours. One of the largest events of its kind, hundreds of products have emerged from Hack Tennessee’s 1,000+ attendees, making it the southeast’s premier destination for the creative class to connect, grow and contribute. Their ‘community of makers’ works tirelessly with primary, secondary and university educators to support the exposure of Tennessee students to STEM careers through events and on-campus mentoring.
Dr. Glenn Acree, professor of mathematics and computer science, has been working with Hack Tennessee Co-Founders Brendan Wovchko and Avery Fisher and Jon Staples of Code for Nashville to increase the number of undergraduate participants from area colleges and universities to engage with the local developer community.
Several Belmont students and alumni were involved in the event. Max Shenfield (mathematics, 2014) worked on a team with Kevin Huber (mathematics, 2015) and three others to make a virtual reality tower defense game. Tron themed, the game allows players to battle in real time and destroy opposing player’s minions. Geoff Gross (computer science, 2015) played a big role in Brigade Pulse, a real time visualization tool of Code for America brigade activity across the country.
Caleb Gregory (mathematics, 2013) also joined the participants. Gregory said, “It was great seeing the possibilities for what I could be working on and gathering more information about. I was excited to see how easy collaboration and teamwork in this community are, and how quickly bonds were formed among teammates.”
Marlee Stevenson (computer science and AET, 2015) worked on a team project called Cycledelic, a kaleidoscopic and psychedelic unicycle riding game made for the Oculus Rift VR platform. “It was a huge learning process this time around. I joined a project in which I knew nothing and I came away from the weekend with a new skill and new desire to learn. Every person at the Hackathon wants to learn something new and teach what they know. I felt that I was able to do both of these things this weekend.” Stevenson’s team won the Hacker’s Choice Award, an award voted on by all hackathon participants after presentations. Each team member received an engraved hammer as a trophy.
Belmont Holds International Country Music Conference
The International Country Music Conference was recently held at Belmont University. The annual conference, under Co-Chairs Don Cusic and James Akenson, hosts country music scholars for three days of presentations and panel discussions.
During this year’s event, there were presenters from Japan, Norway, Germany, England, Canada and Australia. The Belmont Award, given for the Best Book on Country Music during calendar year 2015, was presented to Barry Mazor for his book, Ralph Peer and the Making of Popular Roots Music. The Chet Flippo Award, sponsored by Rolling Stone Magazine for excellence in country music journalism, was given to Jewly Hight.
Pictured, left to right, are James Akenson, Barry Mazor, Jewly Hight, Bevel Dunkerley (Senior Editor, Rolling Stone Country) and Don Cusic.
Perkins Participates in Belmont in Hollywood Program
Motion pictures major sees career in film storytelling as reminder of beauty in life
Rising senior and motion pictures major Lindsey Perkins is currently studying abroad in London, but her return flight will not take her to the comforts of home. Rather, she will be traveling to Hollywood, where she will spend June and July learning the ins and outs of the film industry through the university’s new Belmont in Hollywood program.
Students participating in the program will stay together while completing internships providing hands-on industry experience. Perkins’s internship will involve analyzing scripts and working on the ground floor in the industry. She will also take the Media Makers course, and participate in a weekly dinner with an industry professional. Additionally, students will attend festivals displaying soon-to-be-released film equipment, like cameras and lenses.
Perkins described her excitement, as well as her nerves, for this unique opportunity as an invaluable chance to get a first hand look into her future career. “The experience is a once in a lifetime thing that gives such a unique and special opportunity to really jump into the film industry… It’s forcing me to be brave and adventurous and learn a whole new level of trusting God, and as hard as that is, it’s the most beautiful thing to be in the midst of. I’m so excited to be in the heart of the movie industry and give all I’ve got to being an intern and a student. It will be full to the brim of learning, growing and adventures.”
Cannonier Quoted in Harvard Business Review’s Daily Stat
Assistant Professor of Economics Dr. Colin Cannonier was recently quoted in Harvard Business Review’s The Daily Stat, a daily electronic newsletter that provides quick facts and figures in an easily digestible format.
Cannonier provided information in HBR’s coverage of the U.S.’s Family Leave Act in The Daily Stat’s article “Family Leave Act in U.S. Increases Women’s Probability of Giving Birth.” Cannonier provided statistics on the frequency of births among women who are eligible under the Family and Medical Leave Act, versus those who aren’t.
For more information, click here.
Belmont University Hosts First Nashforward Mayoral Debate
Belmont University and The Tennessean, with broadcast partner WSMV-TV, presented the first of two Nashforward debates, the city’s premiere Mayoral Debate Series, on Thursday, May 21 in Belmont’s Massey Performing Arts Center.
Held in front of a packed crowd of close to 1,000 attendees, the debate featured all seven candidates currently vying for Nashville’s open mayoral seat: Megan Barry, Charles Robert Bone, David Fox, Bill Freeman, Howard Gentry, Jeremy Kane and Linda Eskind Rebrovick. Candidates addressed a variety of topics including leadership experience and style, crisis management and platform stances to ensure voters are well-informed on the issues facing Nashville as they head to the polls in August.
The Nashforward Series also included an opportunity for seven Belmont students to work alongside Tennessean Engagement Editor and event moderator David Plazas to write profiles on each candidate after reviewing a recent interview. Viewing the candidate’s platform with a millennial’s perspective in mind, the student profilers asked questions representing Nashville’s growing millennial population.
