Tuesday, May 9, 2006

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

See Spot Run!

Runners, walkers and their dogs will jog, trot and pant for a good cause in the See Spot Run 5K event starting at 8 a.m. Saturday, May 13, on the west side of Peck Hall near the starting line. Proceeds will benefit MTSU’s goal of building a house for Rutherford County Habitat for Humanity. Registration will begin at 6:30 a.m. The entry fee is $15 and includes awards, t-shirts and doggie bags for all participants. The course is certified, flat and fast. This event is sponsored by Raider Habitat, Eta Sigma Pi, MTSU Alumni Relations, and the Office of Student Organizations & Community Service.

Contact the Office of Alumni Relations at 1-800-533-MTSU (6878) or via http://www.mtalumni.com/.

Middle East minor

Subject to the approval of the Tennessee Board of Regents, MTSU will begin offering an interdisciplinary minor in Middle East Studies in the fall semester. This minor is a precursor to the establishment of a Middle East center at the university. “The center, in addition to serving students on campus, will promote greater understanding of the Middle East throughout the region,” Dr. Allen Hibbard, English professor and chair of the Middle East Center Steering Committee says. “Ever since the tragic events of September 11, 2001, a growing interest has been brewing among MTSU students in particular and the public in general in the Middle East culture, geography, religions, languages, and politics,” Dr. Saleh Sbenaty, professor of engingeering technology and industrial studies and adviser to the Muslim Students Association, adds.

Contact Hibbard at 615-898-2665
ahibbard@mtsu.edu
or Sbenaty at 615-898-2966.
ssbenaty@mtsu.edu

Down in the dumps with the mumps

Although the mumps is thought of as a childhood illness, the largest mumps outbreak in the U.S. in the past 20 years erupted in December 2005 among college students in the Midwest. “College students are a particularly susceptible population because they interact with large numbers of people on a daily basis and tend to travel often, spreading the virus to other susceptible populations,” Dr. Marcie Castleberry, internal medicine specialist, says. “The main reason for the outbreak is undervaccination of the population.” Castleberry says the MMR vaccine provides 80 percent immunity against mumps with one dose and 90 percent immunity if two doses have been administered.

Contact MTMC’s Kim Reynolds at 615-284-6468 or Dr. Castleberry at mcastleberry@mmclinic.com.

TR EXTRA

SAVE THOSE TICKETS!—Due to illness, “Fresh Air” radio show host Terry Gross was notable to fulfill her previously scheduled commitments at MTSU. Her appearance has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 19. Marc J. Barr, electronic media communication, says new tickets will not be printed. Therefore, people with the original April 17 tickets are encouraged to keep them for the September event. For more information, contact Barr at 615-898-5118 or at mjbarr@mtsu.edu.

DON’T HIT THE CHOO-CHOO!—THURSDAY—If you’re in the Chattanooga area on May 11, you might want to join MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee, Director of Athletics Chris Massaro and MTSU head coaches Rick Stockstill (football), Kermit Davis (men’s basketball) and Rick Insell (women’s basketball) at Creeks Bend Golf Club, 5900 Hixson Pike in Hixson. An 11 a.m. lunch will precede a 12:30 p.m. golf scramble. Following the golf, a reception will be held at 5:30 for MTSU alumni and friends. The charge is $75 per person for the entire event or $10 for just the reception. For more information, contact the MTSU Office of Alumni Relations at 1-800-533-6878. Media welcomed.

NEW WEB LOGS

We’ve made some changes on the News and Public Affairs website that will make your job a little easier. These changes won’t replace the mail, faxes and e-mails for those who prefer to get their information that way. The changes will be in addition to those methods. We now post TODAY’S RESPONSE and our NEWS RELEASES in a web log (blog) format. Links to TR and the news releases will be in the right column of the NPA website, http://mtsu20.mtsu.edu:880/redirect?http://www.mtsunews.com/.
One of the advantages of using the blog format is that the media will have an expanding, searchable archive of MTSU expert opinion and MTSU news releases. Thanks in advance for visiting these new features. If you have comments or questions, please contact John Lynch, director of marketing technologies, jlynch@mtsu.edu, 615-898-5591.

VIDEO UPLINK

TV stations, if you need video from an event at MTSU, interviews with MTSU experts, or other specific video from the MTSU campus, please call 615-898-2919 or email news@mtsu.edu. With sufficient advanced notice, we have the capability to uplink video to stations with digital decoding equipment, or we can make arrangements to deliver tape or DVD to you.