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.

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

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.

The 2013 Gabhart Award for Staff Excellence and Service was presented to Senior Director of Curb College Initiatives Sarah Cates during the annual Staff Christmas Breakfast.

Cates is a former Bruin student-athlete, an alumna, a strong advocate for student centeredness and a promoter of the University’s sense of community. As written in her nomination, “She always seeks to do that which is right and uses her faith as a measure for action.”

She is known for fostering community and collaboration among faculty and staff. She has persuaded Curb College staff members to get to know employees in other departments by giving them each $20 of her own money to break bread with colleagues across campus.

It is her responsibility to develop external programs and industry relationships for Belmont students, and she does not stop at 4:30 p.m. She lives out the University mission in her daily life. To help “empower men and women of diverse backgrounds,” she opened her home to provide dinner to Bridges to Belmont students adjusting to life in college. To “engage and transform the world,” she counsels and supports recording artists and their families through Porter’s Call and serves on the NashvilleNext Arts and Culture team using her topical expertise to develop the city’s 25-year plan.

The Gabhart Award for Staff Excellence and Service is the highest honor Belmont University presents to a staff member. It recognizes exemplary commitment and service to the University as well as honors staff members who have demonstrated achievements and contributions of a significant nature.

Computer Technician Chris Wilcoxson gave a presentation at WordCamp Nashville 2013 back in April on building your first WordPress widget. Click here to watch the video of his presentation posted on WordPress’s video training site.

Twenty years after entertainment industry studies adjunct Steve Taylor’s last studio album, he’s taking a sabbatical from film making to record all new music with a new band. The album Kickstarter campaign was fully funded in 36 hours. Click here to watch the video. 

Audio Engineering Assistant Professor Eric Tarr had a manuscript accepted for publication to The International Journal of Audiology.  The title of the article is “Low-frequency signals support perceptual organization of implant-simulated speech for adults and children.” The article discusses how the combination of hearing aids and cochlear implants can be used to improve speech perception for listeners with hearing loss.

Songwriting adjunct Shaun Shankel co-wrote a song that will be used in the show “Nashville” episode No. 214.  The song is called “Who I Am.” In the ABC television show, character Gunnar writes and sings it for Will.

Professor of Music Business Don Cusic received the “President’s Award” from the Western Music Association recently. Cusic was editor of their quarterly publication, The Western Way, for 13 years. Cusic also inducted Louise Massey and the Westerners into the Western Music Hall of Fame while actor and singer Johnny Western inducted Johnny Cash.

Music business adjunct Rob Cheplicki is serving as producer of this year’s ICiT films. ICiT is a local non-profit organization that works with under-served youth at the YMCA, and takes them through a month long screenwriting camp, where they learn how to write and finish a script.  A script is chosen from each group and given to a professional producer and director and turned into a world-class film. Production for both films will be completed by the end of January, and ICiT has partnered with the Nashville Film Festival so that both films will be premiered at the festival in the spring and also have set up TV distribution with NECAT that will broadcast both films on Comcast and Uverse in the spring. This is a life changing opportunity for these youth, who are literally able to have their voice heard for the first time,  and also an incredible opportunity for the Nashville film community to bring original narrative film to life with such powerful backing, and remarkable distribution already in place.