Belmont University is open today–Monday, February 3–and classes will proceed as scheduled. Because weather and road conditions can vary greatly within our region, students, faculty and staff are urged to use individual discretion when making the decision to travel to campus in snow or icy weather.
Burgin: Be Like Pencil to Find Purpose
Dr. Jeffrey Burgin shared his enthusiasm about Belmont with faculty, staff and students during a motivational message he delivered for Friday’s Chapel in Neely Dining Hall.
“If we can come together, know that something special is going to happen in this place called Belmont University. It’s our purpose and our calling,” said Burgin, who is in his second month as Belmont’s associate provost and dean of students.
“God uses this place in your life to enhance you. How amazing is it that all of you come here to pursue various degrees thinking, ‘I’m going to be a musician. I’m going to be a doctor.’ We all are going to have a different purpose than we may have expected in our lives,” he said.
From the Bible’s two Josephs, Burgin pointed to lessons he has learned regarding purpose. From Jesus’ earthly father Joseph, he gathered that the University’s faculty, staff and administrators are accountable for the way they impact the lives they touch.
Slay Carr Leads Jazz Business Committee
Curb College Assistant Professor of Music Business Cheryl Slay Carr, a member of the Board of Directors of Jazz Education Network (JEN), attended the JEN Board of Directors meeting and annual conference in Dallas, Texas to launch the organization’s Jazz Business committee, of which she is chairman. The new committee will expand the organization’s focus by providing resources and information concerning jazz as a commercial enterprise and general business and legal issues affecting the music business.
Miller Publishes Book
Fortress Press has announced the publication of a new book by Dr. Amanda C. Miller, School of Religion assistant professor, called Rumors of Resistance: Status Reversals and Hidden Transcripts in the Gospel of Luke.
Belmont Announces Schedule for Homecoming 2014 Feb. 3- Feb. 8
Belmont University invites alumni, friends and family to attend Homecoming 2014 Feb. 3-8 for a week’s worth of special events. The week-long celebration, centered on the theme “Destination Belmont: There’s No Place Like Homecoming,” will feature the grand opening of the new Alumni House, two basketball games, a residence hall banner competition for students and a campus-wide pep rally and bonfire. For a complete list of all Belmont Homecoming 2014 events and an opportunity to register, visit http://alumni.belmont.edu/.
Julie Thomas, director of constituency programs in the Office of Alumni Relations, said, “We are excited beyond measure about Belmont’s Homecoming 2014. With the opening of the Alumni House in the heart of Belmont’s campus, it sets the stage for new beginnings as an Alumni Association. An array of events are planned featuring the many talents of our alums, and we look forward to a wonderful time of celebration as we embark on this new chapter.”
Tennessee World Affairs Council Screens ‘Girl Rising’ Documentary
Hosted by the Tennessee World Affairs Council and Belmont University, the landmark documentary “Girl Rising” was screened at a special event featuring Executive Director Holly Gordon on Tuesday. The documentary, directed by Academy Award nominee Richard Robbins, tells the stories of nine extraordinary girls from nine countries, written by nine celebrated writers and narrated by nine renowned actresses. “Girl Rising” showcases the strength of the human spirit and the power of education to change the world. Gordon discussed the film with Ed Gragert of the Global Campaign for Education-US.
“This film gives visual corroboration to knowledge we already have: Educating women and girls has the most optimistic, positive effects on families, communities, and economies worldwide. If to see it is to know it, this film delivers hope; reasonable, measurable, tangible hope that the world can be healed and helped to a better future,” said Academy Award-winning actress Meryl Streep, one of the nine “Girl Rising” narrators.
“The consequences of education for girls in the developing world are tremendous. If, for example, India enrolled just 1 percent more girls in secondary school, its GDP would rise by $5.5 billion. The payoffs are stunning, not just in economic terms but also in the health and welfare of families and communities. One study estimated that child deaths in the Third World would be cut in half if all women had a secondary education, saving three million lives,” said Tennessee World Affairs Council President Patrick Ryan. “This documentary is part of a wider effort to boost the education opportunities for girls around the world. It’s a story and an effort that our community should know about and we’re pleased to be able to bring the film and Ms. Gordon, its Executive Director, to Nashville.”
The Tennessee World Affairs Council is an independent, non profit, educational organization that promotes global awareness through programs and resources in the community, especially in schools. It is one of over 90 independent grassroots organizations in the United States that work through the network of the World Affairs Councils of America. The Council is a membership organization that welcomes volunteers, members and donors to support its work. It is hosted at Belmont University.
Computer Science and Web Development Students Learn from Emma Executive
Belmont Computer Science and Web Programming and Development students are participating in a nine-week Tuesday evening discussion on topics concerning software engineering and web development. The sessions, which began Jan. 21, are led by Alex Ezell, director of technology, at Emma, a company that supports the email marketing efforts of roughly 40,000 businesses, nonprofits and agencies. Two Belmont students are interning at Emma this semester.
The sessions are geared towards students taking Programming II or above and students with coursework or experience in web development. Alumni are encouraged to join us as well. Topics include:
- Virtualization/AWS/Cloudant/Heroku/THECLOUD – other virtual hosting issues
- Practical JavaScript – jQuery, Node, Backbone, Angular, Ember, require
- Django and Flask – using python web frameworks
- Database Concerns
- Data Visualizations
- Source code management and toolset – Github, git, working together
- Scrum and Agile
- Web application structure (12-factor app)
- Soft skills in technology – conflict, criticism, and continuous improvement
Students in the Computer Science and Web Programming and Development are benefiting more and more from Belmont’s ties and collaborations with local technology related businesses and organizations leading to programs such as this, as well as increasing internship and career opportunities.
Curb College Students Provide Support During GRAMMY Week
Last weekend more than 50 Belmont University students received hands on experiential education during one of the world’s biggest music events, the GRAMMYs. Belmont students helped escort acts from all genres of music for both the MusiCares dinner honoring Carole King and the Grammy Awards at the Staples Center.
Belmont University’s student-led organization, Service Corps, specializes in volunteering for industry events such as the CMT Awards, the Sundance Film Festival, the ACM awards and more. But, the GRAMMYS is what Service Corps calls its “biggest event.” This year 22 Service Corps students, along with 30 students in the University’s semester-long Belmont West experiential education program, volunteered to assist during Grammy Week events. As part of their duties, Belmont students escorted various artists during the events including Ed Sheeran, Hunter Hayes, Gavin DeGraw, Anna Kendrick, Nelly and Katy Perry, to name a few.
Dr. Wesley Bulla, dean of Belmont’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business, said, “For more than 10 years, Belmont students have worked the red carpet for the Grammy Awards. One of the most valuable elements of our program is the relevant experience our students receive, providing Belmont students with once in a lifetime experiences–not only to attend an event, but also play a part in making music’s biggest night happen.”
Carter Explores ‘Post Racial Blues’ for MLK Week
A Duke University professor explained the concept of “post racial blues” as a dichotomy between American racism and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s struggle with it during the keynote address for MLK Week. Dr. J. Kameron Carter addressed campus on “Postracial Blues: Notes on Religion and the Twenty-First Century Color Line,” also the University’s theme for MLK Week, in Neely Dining Hall on Wednesday.
“Race is changing. Our engagement with it is changing. One of the new key cultural terms of this transformation is this notion of post racialism, and I am very interested in how this post racialism actually becomes a new form of racism and how theological and religious thought forms are a part of the processes of race.”
Carter examined King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, written while the Civil Rights leader was incarcerated in April 1963.
Whitehouse, Lunsford Publish Article
Dr. Bonnie Smith Whitehouse, professor of English, and Dr. Lauren Lunsford, professor of education, recently had an article published entitled “Empowerment, Empathy and Equipment for Living: A Path Forward as We Integrate the Common Core” in the October 2013 Tennessee English Journal.
