Associate Professor of Music Joel Treybig’s seventh article, The Cornet in Wind Band and Orchestra: A Valuable, Viable Instrument, has been peer-reviewed and accepted for publication in the January 2014 International Trumpet Guild Journal (circulated to more than 5,000 members in 56 countries). Treybig’s article delves into the history and design of the cornet, composers’ use of the instrument, the cornet’s subsequent use in wind bands and orchestras, and the viability of the instrument in the present day.
Treybig Published in International Trumpet Guild Journal
Riechert Published in New SAGE Reference
Dr. Bonnie Riechert, chairwoman of the Department of Public Relations, is the author of three articles in the second edition of the Encyclopedia of Public Relations, published recently by SAGE Publications Inc. These include the entries on “Accreditation,” “Information Integration Theory” and “J. Carroll Bateman.” The articles discuss the Accreditation in Public Relations credential, the process of how information affects attitudes and the leadership in ethics advocacy of a leading public relations educator. The two-volume, 1,094-page set is edited by Robert L. Heath. Riechert also authored several articles in the first edition, which was published in 2005.
Faculty Present at 2013 Lilly Conference
Faculty members from the College of Arts and Sciences, the School of Religion and associated with the Teaching Center and the Office of General Education recently contributed four presentations at the 33rd Annual International Lilly Conference on College Teaching. Each of the four presentations is associated with research that flows from ongoing Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) projects and collaborations.
Computer Science Professor Joyce Crowell, Psychological Science Professor Pete Giordano and Religion Professor Steve Simpler presented “Taming the Professor: How Students Manage Professors.” They are members of the Belmont Faculty Improvement Group (FIG) that has worked on a variety of SoTL projects for more than two decades and has presented at several other Lilly conferences. Their 2013 presentation focused on how students try to manipulate such things as course assignments, grading, or due dates. Participants discussed ways to create hospitable classrooms that diminish adversarial relationships while upholding academic standards.
In an interactive panel presentation entitled “Getting Students to Care in the Common Core Classroom: Service Learning as an Engagement Strategy,” English Department faculty members Jason Lovvorn, Linda Holt and Charmion Gustke examined how service learning can be an effective student engagement strategy, particularly for core-curriculum classes. All three faculty members have multi-year scholarly research experiences with service learning pedagogy. As a conference panel, they each offered reflections on how service learning promotes student engagement in the classroom. The presentation provided conclusions and evidence regarding how service-learning outcomes square well with the goals of most core curricula.
Alison Moore and Rachel Rigsby, both chemistry faculty members and general education leaders, presented “How the BELL Core Does Multi-Disciplinary Learning Communities as the First Part of a Sophomore Year Experience.” Their presentation included recent observations from collaborative research that combined administrative and teaching experiences for both faculty members. In addition to laying out the basic framework and signature courses of the BELL Core at Belmont, they identified how learning communities have been incorporated as part of Belmont’s larger Sophomore Year Experience. This session explored both the logistical details of including learning communities in the core curriculum and the pedagogical pieces that make them successful academic experiences.
“Some Effective Activities and Strategies for Ending a Course,” presented by Mathematics and Teaching Center Professor Mike Pinter and Giordano, was designed so that participants would be able to implement ideas immediately as they conclude their fall semester courses. As output from their collaboration on SoTL topics that developed during service for each as Belmont’s Teaching Center director, they have presented regularly at the Lilly Conference over the last decade. To outline the significance of a good course ending, their 2013 presentation included pedagogical, cognitive, emotional and practical considerations for ending a course in ways that promote student learning. After hearing about approaches and activities used in some Belmont mathematics and psychology courses, participants had time to generate their specific course-ending ideas.
At the Lilly Conference, faculty scholars of teaching and learning from across the United States and several international educational institutions share innovative pedagogies and have vibrant discussions about questions and challenges associated with teaching and learning. The theme for the 2013 conference, held Nov. 21-24 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, was “Evidence-Based Teaching and Learning.”
$75K Grant Awarded to Fund Educational ‘Food and Gardening’ Project
Dr. Lauren Lunsford, associate professor of education, and Dr. Darlene Panvini, professor of biology, are serving as co-principal investigators for a project, “Food and Gardening: Growing Partnerships between Science Teachers and English Teachers to Support Instruction,” that was awarded a $75,000 grant from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC). They will work with other Belmont faculty members, including Dr. Sally Barton-Arwood of education, Dr. Kim Daus of chemistry, Dr. Bonnie Smith-Whitehouse of English and Kate McGowan of education to unite English and science teachers to help their students explore text in interactive and fun ways. The project will provide teachers with the professional development and time to plan lessons that utilize hands-on activities like community gardens and classroom kitchens to support the teaching of informational texts. Teachers from Bedford County, Davidson County, Dickerson County, Montgomery County and Franklin City Schools will have the opportunity to participate in workshops this summer and receive continued support in the fall.
West Leads Nashville Chamber’s Education Report Card
Belmont Vice President and Chief of Staff Dr. Susan West was appointed co-chairwoman of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Education Report Card Committee. The Education Report Card Committee provides a community perspective on specific issues and challenges facing Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (MNPS).
“I am honored to have the opportunity to serve the Chamber in this capacity. This appointment reaffirms my commitment to creating the best possible education system that we can envision for our youth and our community,” West said.
The committee reports on overall school system performance as well as a topic selected annually. Most recently, the chamber’s focus area was chartered schools.
The committee, comprised of business and community leaders, conducts interviews, collects data and visits schools before developing findings and recommendations for improvement. The MNPS School Board and administration consider the committee’s findings each year and report specific outcomes of implementing the recommendations.
Urban League President and Chief Executive Officer Patricia Stokes served as co-chairwoman with West. In their roles, West and Stokes played an integral leadership role in the report card process, leading each meeting and ensuring that the committee stays on task to produce the report.
In its 2013 Education Report Card for Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools released on Dec. 16, the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Education Report Card Committee issued five recommendations in the areas of school system performance and Common Core State Standards. The final report was presented to the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, the MNPS School Board and administration, the mayor, the Metropolitan Council.
“The committee believes the district is taking the right course in its commitment to teacher quality, lead principals, school autonomy, quality school choices, and the ambitious goal of being the highest-performing urban district in the country by 2018,” West said in a press release. “When looking at the 2012-2013 school year, however, we find the academic results are mixed.”
Click here to read the recommendations. Click here to read the full report.
Honors, Theatre Students Perform One-Act Plays
Honors students Dallas Woods, Amanda Bell and Brittany Reese performed “When Shakespeare’s Ladies Meet” in the Belmont Theatre and Dance program’s one-act plays directed by junior directing majors last weekend. Woods was the director of the play by Charles George. Bell took the roll of Desdemona from Shakespeare’s Othello, and Reese performed Juliet from the Bard’s famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet. In the play, all of the major heroines from Shakespeare’s tragedies meet in one rollicking stand-off including Portia, Katherine, Ophelia and Cleopatra. The leading ladies give Juliet advice on romantic relationships and her impending marriage to Romeo in a hilarious romp through some of Shakespeare’s most famous lines. Ashley Joye played the roll of Portia from Merchant of Venice, Lauren Knoop played Katherine from The Taming of the Shrew, Morgan Conder played Ophelia from Hamlet, and Grace Kelly Mason played Cleopatra from Antony and Cleopatra.
Junior theatre major John Michael Joiner also directed “Melancholy Play” by Sarah Ruhl.
More Than 400 Students Graduate in Winter Commencement Ceremony
Belmont University held its winter 2013 commencement ceremony for graduate and undergraduate students at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 13 in the Curb Event Center.
Belmont celebrated the graduation of a total of 421 students. During the graduation ceremony, 319 undergraduate and 102 master’s degrees were conferred.
Dr. Robert C. Fisher, president of the University, presided over the event. Dr. Ronnie Littlejohn, professor, director of Belmont’s Asian Studies program and chair of the Department of Philosophy, presented the commencement address. In May Littlejohn was named Belmont’s 2013-14 Chaney Distinguished Professor. The Chaney Distinguished Professor Award, determined on the basis of superior teaching, is presented each year to a faculty member who best represents the vision of the university to be a “premier teaching institution.”
Student Commencement Speaker Jennifer Rutter, who studied political science and Christian ethics, shared her thoughts on pursuing a higher education at a Christian university as well as on studying abroad and going on mission trips through Belmont.
“It has shaped my faith, my thought process, and my worldview in ways I could not have imagined,” Rutter said. “Belmont never forced me to choose either faith or works but instead provided me opportunities to do both faith and works. I got to hear world class speakers in Chapel. I also became part of an evening worship service on campus.”
Additional photos from Winter Commencement as well as a video of the ceremony can be found online.
Nursing Faculty Help Health Sciences Academy with HCA Grant
Two faculty members from the Belmont University School of Nursing recently assisted Hillwood High School’s Academy of Health Sciences in securing a $100,000 grant from the HCA Foundation made on behalf of the HCA/TriStar Family of Hospitals. The School of Nursing is a PENCIL partner with the academy. Belmont faculty and students volunteer time to provide guidance to the school’s administration and career advice to its students. The PENCIL Foundation helps link community resources with Metro Nashville Public Schools.
Dr. Sandy Murabito, assistant professor of nursing, and Sandra Rosedale, clinical placement coordinator, provided significant assistance in writing the grant application. Murabito is the school’s Parent Teach Organization president, and Rosedale serves on the academy’s advisory board.
The grant will be used to fund the design and construction of two state-of-the-art patient simulation laboratories at the academy, giving students the opportunity to simulate and practice a variety of real-world medical procedures and activities such as drawing blood, starting an intravenous, processing patients, labor and delivery support. Skill-based learning activities help to prepare students for future careers in medical and surgical nursing, emergency medicine, physical therapy, rehabilitation and sports medicine and many more health related professions.
Dr. Beth Hallmark, director of patient simulation for Belmont’s Gordon E. Inman College of Health Sciences & Nursing, joins Rosedale on the advisory panel which will guide the project through fruition. Once completed, the laboratories will serve health science students from all Metro Nashville public schools.
As the philanthropic arm of HCA, the mission of The HCA Foundation is to promote health and well-being, support childhood and youth development and foster the arts in Middle Tennessee. HCA has been an Academy Business Partner since 2009 providing student field trips, job shadowing, internships and teacher externships in support of the mission of the Hillwood Health Science Academy.
Henderson Contributes to Dictionary of American Music
Chip Henderson, adjunct instructor of guitar, is a contributor to the Second Edition of the Grove Dictionary of American Music, which was released on Dec. 2. His articles profile guitarists Johnny Smith, Larry Coryell and James “Blood” Ulmer. He also wrote profiles for saxophonist Scott Hamilton and early Jazz bandleader Elmer Snowden. Click here to read The New York Times’ announcement on the updated dictionary
Parker Article, Column in Tennessee Baptist History
School of Religion adjunct faculty member Charles Parker recently published the article “The Effects of the Civil War on the Baptist Churches of Middle Tennessee” in the fall 2013 issue of Tennessee Baptist History, which is devoted to Tennessee Baptists and the Civil War. The magazine also contains his president’s column entitled “War and Peace,” written in his capacity as outgoing president of the Tennessee Baptist Historical Society.
