Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

The play’s the thing

Amy Dolan, a Broadway actress who also serves as the national education and outreach coordinator for the Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), will present an interactive session titled “Equity’s Student Outreach Seminar” at 4:30 p.m. TODAY in Room 123 of the Cason-Kennedy Nursing Building. “Students will experience a dynamic presentation and candid, honest descriptions of Amy’s experiences in the entertainment industry,” Jeff Gibson, speech and theatre, observes. Dolan’s work includes touring with the national company of “Grease,” in which she played Rizzo and performing the role of Anytime Annie in the Broadway revival of “42nd Street,” among many other productions in professional theaters across the country and in Europe.

Contact Gibson at 615-898-5916.
jsgibson@mtsu.edu

A shot in the arm

With the flu season on the way, the MTSU School of Nursing will work with Health Services to offer flu shots to faculty, staff and students from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Nov. 7, 8 and 9, Rick Chapman, director of Health Services, says. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends vaccination against influenza in October or November, since flu season can begin as early as October and last as late as May. Injections of flu vaccine will be administered in Room 109 of the Cason-Kennedy Nursing Building for a fee of $23 each payable by cash or check. Appointments may be made by e-mailing Linda Lawrence at lawrence@mtsu.edu. No phone calls, please. Walk-ins will be worked in around scheduled appointments.

For more information (but not to make an appointment), contact Health Services at 615-898-2988.

Caution! Teachers at play!

In the current issue of the “Atlantic,” Clive Crook argues against a college degree as a job-entry requirement in several fields, including preschool teacher? I understand experts disagree over whether a two-year degree is sufficient or a four-year degree is necessary to be a good preschool teacher. Dr. Ann Campbell, elementary and special education, comes down on the side of a full four years of college preparation. “Teachers need training to plan, write lesson plans, schedule, evaluate the effectiveness of the programs, etc.,” Campbell says. “There can certainly be a place for persons who have associate degrees in carrying out the daily routines of the classroom, but the planning, preparation and evaluation of the program needs to be done by someone who has more than ‘on the job’ training.”

Contact Campbell at 615-898-2321.
acampbel@mtsu.edu


TR EXTRA

DYNAMISM AND SENSITIVITY--Masaaki and Chikako Tanaka, two distinguished Japanese artists, will display their word through Friday, Nov. 3 in the Todd Gallery at MTSU. A reception for the Tanakas is slated for 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. SATURDAY in the gallery. The receptions are free and open to the public. “(Masaaki Tanaka) is a master in the use of the paper stencil technique of screenprinting, the process by which colors and shapes are layered onto paper and coalesce, after many applications, into the finished image,” Dr. Lon Nuell, professor of art, says. By contrast, Nuell says Chikako Tanaka’s work is “fanciful, ethereal in some instances, suggesting the dream-like imagery of the surrealists.” Contact Nuell at 615-898-5653 or 615-898-2505 or lrnuell@mtsu.edu

A WHOLE NEW WORLD--Your children can be transported to Japan, China and Indonesia without flight reservations. A new exhibit at the Discovery Center enables youngsters to play dress-up with sarongs and kimonos, view animated superhero Astro Boy or learn about Japanese folklore on a 20-inch DVD player, construct their own colorful kites, make origami figures, work challenging tangram puzzles, stage their own hand puppet theatre and hold Japanese tea parties. The interactive exhibit is made possible by generous donations from Toshiba, Nissan, the Foreign Ministry of Japan and the Japan-U.S. Program of MTSU. The Discovery Center is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $5 for anyone age 2 and up. Contact Steve Hoskins at the Discovery Center, 502 SE Broad Street, Murfreesboro, at 615-890-2300.

WHAT’S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT?--To dramatize how dating violence traumatizes the lives of young adults, the June Anderson Women’s Center and Women 4 Women, a student organization, will present “It’s Love, Isn’t It?” from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. TOMORROW in the Keathley University Center Theatre. The original play, written and produced with ABC grants from Allied Arts of Chattanooga and the Tennessee Arts Commission and directed by Dr. Ayne Cantrell, professor emeritus, follows the travails of a female college freshman whose boyfriend has jealousy and anger management issues. “It’s Love, Isn’t It?” is free and open to the public and is part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month at MTSU. For more information, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193 or jawc@mtsu.edu

CURRY FAVOR WITH A DANCE MASTER--Sample some savory footwork with guest dancer Ivan Pulinkala next week. The director of dance at Kennesaw State University, Pulinkala will present a lecture on “The Sensuality of Indian Movement” from 9:10 a.m. to 10:05 a.m. FRIDAY in the University Honors College Ampitheatre. The lecture is free and open to the public. Pulinkala will teach a modern dance class and work with members of the MTSU Dance Theatre to produce a show at 10:15 a.m. SATURDAY in Room 140 of the Fairview Building following a Dance Theatre class. According to his online biography, Pulinkala, a New Delhi native, has served as the choreographer-in-residence for Delhi Music Theatre and was named among the 25 Indian artists of the Millennium in the December 1999 issue of India Today magazine. Media welcomed. Contact Kim Neal Nofsinger, director of MTSU’s dance program, at 615-904-8392 or nofsinge@mtsu.edu
To request interviews, contact the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919.

“AMERICA’S HISTORIAN”--Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough will speak on “Qualities of Leadership” at 7 p.m. TONIGHT in Tucker Theatre. The author of highly acclaimed biographies of John Adams and Harry Truman, McCullough’s latest title, 1776, entered The New York Times’ bestseller list at the top in June. “David McCullough is often regarded in academic circles as ‘America’s Historian,’ an unofficial title now embraced by a growing number of the country’s reading public as well,” Dr. John McDaniel, dean of the College of Liberal Arts, says. The lecture is free and open to the public, but seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis. A 15-minute question-and-answer session will be followed by an 8 p.m. book signing in the theatre lobby. For more information, contact Connie Huddleston, events coordinator, at 615-494-7628.