Thursday, November 9, 2006

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Flying high

The Tennessee Aviation Hall of Fame will present a special citation to Joe Hawkins, associate professor of aerospace, during the 5th annual Tennessee Aviation Hall of Fame Gala and Induction Ceremony SATURDAY NIGHT at the Tennessee Museum of Aviation in Sevierville. Hawkins will receive the prestigious FAA Award as the National Aviation Maintenance Technician of the Year for 2006. Hawkins made aviation history for himself and for the state as the first Tennessean ever to receive the Technician of the Year honor, which was formally awarded to him in July in Oshkosh, Wisc. The event wil include a reception, dinner, the ceremony, and a silent auction fundraiser. The public is invited to attend.

For more information, contact Robert E. “Bob” Minter, Chairman, Tennessee Aviation Hall of Fame, Inc. at 865-908-9372 or info@tnaviationhof.org

The courtroom comes to the classroom.

Seventy teams from 20 states will ply judges with arguments and motions as they try a make-believe case TOMORROW AND SATURDAY at the MTSU Mid-South Invitational Mock Trial Tournament. Teams will alternate on the plaintiff side and the defense side in a civil suit filed by the parents of a youth rendered comatose by a police officer’s bullet. Was the officer justified? Was he psychologically and emotionally impaired? If he was, did the police department know about his condition and do nothing? Local attorneys are invited to serve as judges to give the students the most realistic critique possible of their techniques as attorneys and witnesses.

For more information or to participate as a judge, contact Dr. John Vile, chair of the Department of Political Science, at 615-898-2695.
jvile@mtsu.edu

Come, let us reason together.

Members of MTSU’s Student Mediation Assocation came home from the National Intercollegiate Mediation Tournament at Drake Law School in Des Moines, Iowa with their arms full of honors. Seven students earned the title of All-American by being named one of the top 10 mediators or attorney-client pairs in the event held November 3 and 4. They are Andrea Borella, Brian Clifford, Robyn Diez, Ashley George, Jordan Sluder, Tessa Swartz, and Marshall Weber. Mediation students practice the skills necessary for helping settle disputes in a non-confrontational manner short of going to a court of law. Students master peacemaking skills and the special skills of an advocate for clients in mediation.

Contact Dr. Clyde Willis, political science, at 615-898-5457.
cewillis@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

READING, WRITING, AND ROCK ‘N’ ROLL--Local music artists Seth Moore, Bo Daddy Bo, Bent Fur and Cuttlefish will join forces from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. SATURDAY at the Boro Bar and Grill, 1211 Greenland Drive, in The Writing Center Rock Show, a fundraiser for the University Writing Center. Under the direction of Dr. Jimmie Cain, English professor and author, the center offers free writing instruction and support for those who seek their help, including online services such as a Grammar Hotline for quick questions and an e-mail drop box and chat room. Admission to the benefit is $5 per person at the door and any additional donations will be accepted inside the venue on the evening of the show. For more information regarding the benefit, contact graduate writing assistant Sarah Hildenbrand via e-mail at skh2t@mtsu.edu or by calling 615-268-7011.

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.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN--While President Dwight Eisenhower gets much of the credit for the creation of the interstate highway system because it happened during his administration, frequently overlooked is U.S. Sen. Albert Gore Sr.’s co-authorship of the Federal Highway Act of 1956, the legislation that made the interstates possible. Dr. Tony Badger, Paul Mellon Professor of American History at Cambridge University and Master of Clare College, Cambridge, will deliver a formal presentation on “Albert Gore Sr., the Interstate Highway Act, and the Modern South” at 7 p.m. TONIGHT in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business Aerospace Building. Badger also is writing a biography of the elder Gore. Dr. Lisa Pruitt, director of the Albert Gore Research Center at MTSU, says, “The late Senator Gore’s papers are a rich source of historical documentation on the highways.” Contact Pruitt at the Gore Center at 615-898-2632 or lpruitt@mtsu.edu

CHICKS AND DUCKS AND GEESE BETTER SCURRY!--Curley, the handsome cowboy, and Jud, the hired farmhand, compete for the affection of the beautiful but hard-to-get Laurey. The plot is familiar to all fans of the American musical theatre. It’s “Oklahoma!,” Rodgers and Hammerstein’s classic creation, as performed by MTSU students as part of the CenterStage Series. “It’s energetic entertainment perfect for the family, but most of all it is important that our students are introduced to a show that has greatly impacted the theater industry,” Dale E. McGilliard, professor of speech and theatre, says. “Oklahoma!” will run at Tucker Theatre at 7:30 each night Nov. 10-11 and Nov. 15-18. Tickets range from $4 to $8 and may be purchased at the door on the evening of the desired performance. For more information, call 615-494-8810, or visit the Department of Speech and Theatre’s Web site at http://www.mtsu.edu/~theatre.