Tuesday, July 2, 2007

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

The liberation of Libby

Many Americans are scratching their heads at President Bush’s commutation of Lewis “Scooter” Libby’s sentence. But Dr. John Vile, chair of the Department of Political Science, says it clearly is within the president’s constitutional powers. “Article II, Section 2 provides that the president ‘shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.’” Vile notes that the controversial move from Bush comes with more than a year-and-a-half of his presidency still left, which is unconventional. Many presidents wait until the end of their terms to make such controversial moves. “This arguably gives those who oppose the pardon a chance to make a campaign issue of the [commutation]—not, of course, in the case of the president, now a lame duck who cannot run for re-election, but in the case of Republican candidates who support it.”

Contact Vile at 615-898-2596.
jvile@mtsu.edu

True GRITS

Openings remain for the Girls Raised in Tennessee Science in-service teachers’ workshop, which will be held from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. Monday, July 9, in the SunTrust Room of the MTSU Business and Aerospace Building. The free workshop for teachers in grades 6-12 will “address the need of encouraging and motivating adolescent girls to seek further education and careers in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields,” said Karen Claud, assistant director of the grant-funded program that goes by the acronym of GRITS. The conference will be sponsored by a College of Continuing Education and Distance Learning public service grant. The College of Basic and Applied Sciences will provide lunch.

To register or attend, contact Claud at 615-504-8587, or e-mail her at kclaud@mtsu.edu

Information superschool

A million-dollar upgrade for high-definition TV equipment will put MTSU’s electronic media communication graduates out front in their profession, thanks to generous donors and matching funds from the university. The 16-year-old EMC facilities in the university’s Bragg Mass Communication Building will be upgraded with the latest HD cameras, monitors and other equipment manufactured by Sony Broadcasting. “This HD studio will return MTSU to the front of electronic media communication education in Tennessee,” says Dr. Bob Spires, EMC department chairman. When the renovated facility reopens this fall, MTSU will become the first university in Tennessee—and one of a mere handful around the country—to educate students with the new digital format.

Contact Spires at rwspires@mtsu.edu
or Gina E. Fann in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5385.

TR EXTRA

THE GRIDIRON GIRLS, WHOSE THEME SONG IS “THANK YOU FOR BEING AN END”--MTSU Head Football Coach Rick Stockstill and the MTSU football staff invite you to join them for the 2007 Ladies Football Clinic on Saturday, July 14 in Murphy Center. The clinic, which will feature seminars on strategy, equipment, training and rules, will run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. with registration slated to start at 8 a.m. Ladies will be encouraged to take part in coaches’ drills and demonstrations. The goal is to provide a fun learning experience. Participants will receive commemorative T-shirts and lunch will be provided. The cost of the clinic is $25 dollars. For the children, the Rick Stockstill Youth Camp for rising 1st through 8th graders will be held June 4-7. For more information, contact Danny Lewis at 615-898-2311.

ROCK, ROLL, AND RECORD—It’s that time again! Registration runs through July 13 for the latest recording workshop for children ages 12-17 at MTSU. The workshop will be conducted by MTSU student Ryan York in the John Bragg Mass Communication Building July 19-Aug. 12. For a fee of $125 per student, York will introduce the youngsters to cassette-four-track recording, digital eight-track, computer recording and electronic music. The workshop is sponsored by the Youth Culture and Arts Center, a project of Youth Empowerment through Arts and Humanities, a nonprofit organization.

For more information, or to enroll, contact York at bororecording@gmail.com.