Belmont student Natalie Newbill was recently chosen as Miss Black Tennessee through an interview process done by the chief executive officer of the Miss Black USA organization.

Passionate about her platform entitled “Be At (R)espect.(I)ntegrity.(S)elf-esteem.(K)knowledge” Newbill says her favorite part about being Miss Black Tennessee is the ability to make a difference in the lives of teenagers.

“I get to take my platform across the state of Tennessee and make an impact. It is so easy for us to get caught up in making appearances, but an appearance is nothing without an impact,” she said. Newbill hopes to use this platform to raise self-esteem in adolescents to dream big and believe in their abilities.

Newbill recently traveled to Washington, D.C. to participate in a red dress photo shoot for the Heart Truth campaign, a national sponsor for Miss Black USA. Through that trip Newbill was then selected to be one of five models in a “I love the brown skin I’m in” shoot.

Newbill hopes to continue her Be At Risk programming with a state-wide rally.

Belmont junior music business major Katelyn Epperly recently sang at First Lady Michelle Obama’s three-day national tour kick-off event. Held in Des Moines, Iowa the event was to celebrate the second birthday of the “Let’s Move” campaign.

An Iowa native and finalist on American Idol in 2010, Epperly said she has made many connections through events and charity work that lead to recommendations for valuable opportunities to perform, such as for the “Lets Move” campaign.

“I’m always appreciative of opportunities like this and everything that the people at HyVee continue to do for me. It’s opened so many doors for me, and I hope more to come,” Epperly said.

Click here to view the rally and Epperly’s performance.

The Belmont University Speech and Debate team was crowned the state champion team at the Tennessee Intercollegiate Forensics Association (TIFA) state tournament, held Feb. 18-19 at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville, Tenn. Overall, the team won first place in individual events, second place in debate, as well as being the top combined team in the state. Below is the list of awards Belmont students received:

Debate:
Eric Schoen – 2nd place varsity debater
Nicole Bright – 6th place varsity debater
Lisa Sekscinski & Matthew Roberts – tied for 7th place varsity debater
Nicole Bright & Lisa Sekscinski – 2nd place debate team
Matthew Roberts & Jenni Gustafson – Semi-finalist debate team

Individual Events:
Extemporaneous Speaking:
Eric Schoen – 1st place
Jenni Gustafson – 3rd place
Matthew Roberts – 4th place
Nicole Bright – 6th place

Persuasive Speaking:
Jenni Gustafson – 1st place
Matthew Roberts – 2nd place

Prose Interpretation:
Eric Schoen – 2nd place

After Dinner Speaking:
Nicole Bright – 1st place
Eric Schoen – 2nd place

Impromptu Speaking:
Eric Schoen – 2nd place
Nicole Bright – 3rd place
Bryan Meehan – 4th place
Jenni Gustafson – 5th place

Informative Speaking:
Eric Schoen – 1st place
Matthew Roberts – 3rd place

Programmed Oral Interpretation:
Eric Schoen – 1st place
Nicole Bright – 5th place

Communication Analysis:
Matthew Roberts – 3rd place
Jenni Gustafson – 4th place

Duo Interpretation:
Eric Schoen/Katie Callaway – 1st place
Nicole Bright/Katie Callaway – 3rd place

Pentathalon – Top Speakers:
Eric Schoen – 1st place
Nicole Bright – 2nd place
Jenni Gustafson – 3rd place

Kallie Callaway – 5th place
Matthew Roberts – 6th place

Final Results:
Debate Team:  2nd place
IE Team:  1st place
Overall Team:  1st place