Friday, November 2, 2007

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

A view from abroad

Have you dreamed of spending a semester abroad, studying language and culture in exotic surroundings? You can do it! With determination, good planning and good advice, you can create your own opportunity to study abroad. Attend a Study Abroad Workshop with MT Abroad Director Jennifer Campbell and students who have studied in Spain, England and France at 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 5, in Room 106 of the Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building. This event is free and open to the public, and refreshments will be provided.

For more information, call 615-898-5759 or 615-898-5645.

Log in

Imagine completing a semester’s worth of computer programming in one afternoon! Two computer programming teams from MTSU and top collegiate programmers from surrounding areas will do just that in an all-out “battle of the brains.” The 32nd annual Association for Computing Machinery Mid-Central Programming regional contest will take place tomorrow, Nov. 3, at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville, Tenn. Top teams will advance to the IBM-sponsored ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest’s World Finals April 8-12, 2008 in Banff Springs, Alberta, Canada. MTSU participants are Joshua C. Kent, David Ells, Brian Robert Williams, William Bridges, David Fiala and Scott Jacob Fulton. Faculty advisers are Dr. Zhijiang Dong and Dr. Sung Yoo.

Call Dong at 615-898-3797 or Yoo at 615-898-5737. Dr. Richard Detmer, chairman of the Department of Computer Science, can be reached at 615-898-2397.

Let’s be reasonable.

MTSU’s mediation team members are celebrating their new status as the 2007 National Intercollegiate Mediation Champions following their performance at an Oct. 26-27 tournament at the John Marshall School of Law in Chicago. MTSU defeated a field of 32 teams including Boston University (second place), the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (third place), and the University of Toledo (fourth place). The goal in mock mediation is the resolution of legal disputes outside the parameters of a courtroom trial. Competition in mock mediation helps students hone their public speaking skills, critical and analytical thinking and peacemaking talents. Dr. Clyde Willis, a professor of political science and director of the mediation program, says MTSU has placed teams in the championship round in six of the last eight years. The national title marks the second time MTSU has won the round; the previous time was in 2000.

Contact Willis at 615-898-5457.
cewillis@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

BONJOUR!--Any student whose summer was no more exciting than spending endless hours lying by the pool frying to a crisp can prepare now for an unforgettable summer 2008. There’s no time like the present to register for the annual general education study abroad program in Cherbourg, France, which will run from June 2 to June 27. At this beautiful port town in the Normandy region of northwest France, students will experience the history, art and culture of the area. “With the general education program, a student can spend four weeks in Cherbourg and in Normandy, and they can begin studying French while they’re there if they choose to, but they don’t have to already know any French,” Dr. Anne Sloan, Assistant to the Provost for International Education, says. Contact Sloan at 615-898-5091 or asloan@mtsu.edu or Jennifer Campbell, Director of International Education and Exchange, at 615-898-5179 or jjcampbe@mtsu.edu.

FEEL THE POWER OF PAINTBALL--A physically and mentally challenging competition open to the public as well as the MTSU community are slated for tomorrow, Nov. 3, to raise money for the MTSU Veterans Memorial. The National Guard Paintball Tournament is set for 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Middle Tennessee Paintball in Spring Hill. There is no entrance fee for the event, but donations are encouraged. To learn more about the National Guard Paintball Tournament, call Staff Sgt. Julius Santini, Tennessee National Guard representative at MTSU, at 615-494-7682 or julius.santini@us.army.mil.

THEIR BODY OF WORK--The Todd Gallery at MTSU will present “Of the Body,” an exhibition of contemporary figurative ceramic works from five artists of national recognition through today, Nov. 2. Dr. Lon Nuell, MTSU art professor and gallery curator, says, “The works to be seen in ‘Of the Body’ represent five unique perspectives that derive from the artists’ personal experiences and interpretations of the human presence in the contemporary world. Within these interpretations five manifestations occur.” The artists whose work will be showcased will include John Donovan, foundations instructor at MTSU. Admission is free and open to the public. Contact Eric Snyder, gallery assistant, at 615-898-5653.

Y’ALL COME TO SEE US WHEN YOU CAN--Officials in the MTSU Office of Admissions say that the Fall Visit Day, which will be held tomorrow, Nov. 3, is full. Nearly 500 prospective students and their family members have registered. Admissions representatives request that prospective students and their families take one of the daily tours offered through Wednesday, Dec. 5. Please note that no tours will be offered Nov. 14-16 (Admission staff will be attending a conference that day.) and Nov. 21-23 (Thanksgiving holiday). The Nov. 3 Fall Visit Day will start at 10 a.m. CDT in the Cope Administration Building. Contact the Office of Admissions at 615-898-2111.

WHEREFORE ART THOU?--MTSU Theatre and Dance will present one of the most famous and beloved of Shakespeare plays, Romeo and Juliet, at 7:30 p.m. tonight and Saturday, Nov. 2-3, and Nov. 7-10 on the stage of Tucker Theatre in the Boutwell Dramatic Arts Building. “This is a true classic that students read in high school and people come to the play knowing,” says Dale McGilliard, the show’s director. “They all come with a different expectation, which adds to the wonderful challenge to producing it.” MTSU alumnus Lane Davies—who has appeared in a wide variety of television series including Married with Children, Scrubs and Seinfeld—will guest star in the role of Capulet. Tickets must be purchased at the door on the evening of the performance. Tickets are $10 for general admission and $5 for MTSU staff and K-12 students. For more information, please visit the speech and theatre department Web site at http://www.mtsu.edu/~theatre.

IT ALL ADDS UP--For the first time, the Department of Mathematical Sciences at MTSU will host a meeting of the American Mathematical Society. Slated for tomorrow and Sunday, Nov. 3-4, the Fall Southeastern Meeting of the AMS will feature keynote addresses from leading mathematicians, along with 16 special sessions that will allow participants to present and learn about a host of research topics. All sessions and keynote addresses will take place in the Business and Aerospace and John Bragg Mass Communication buildings. To date, more than 300 mathematicians from more than 30 states will be on campus this weekend sharing results and ideas on topics ranging from financial mathematics to algorithmic methods in algebra. Research from 12 MTSU math faculty will be presented at the meeting, and nine of the special topic sessions have been organized or co-organized by MTSU math faculty. For more information, contact Dr. Jim Hart, associate professor of mathematical sciences, at 615-898-2402 or jhart@mtsu.edu.

WILL THE MILKY WAY TURN SOUR?--The next MTSU First Friday Star Party is slated for 6:30-8:30 p.m. tonight, Nov. 2, in Room 102 of Wiser-Patten Science Hall. Dr. Eric Klumpe, physics and astronomy, will speak on “Galactic Collisions (Is the Milky Way Doomed?).” There will be an outdoor telescope observing following the lecture, weather permitting. The Star Party is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Klumpe at 615-898-2483 or eklumpe@mtsu.edu.

THEY’VE GOT A LOT OF BRASS--The fourth annual MTSU Brass Performance Clinic, an all-day event sponsored by MTSU’s music school, will culminate with a free and open concert by The Brass Band of Huntsville (BBH) at 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, Nov. 3, in the T. Earl Hinton Hall of the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus. The performance clinic will be open to all high-school students, grades nine through 12. School music teachers and private instructors also are invited to attend and participate. They will attend clinics conducted by MTSU faculty and area professionals, including members of the Nashville Symphony and Nashville recording artists. In addition, a 1:30 p.m. concert will feature the MTSU Faculty Brass Quintet, the MTSU Symphonic Brass Ensemble and the resident, award-winning student ensemble, the Broad Street Brass. For more information, call 615-898-2493 or visit http://www.mtsumusic.com.

HOME WILL HAVE TO WAIT--MTSU students are sponsoring a Habitat for Humanity home. “The Habitat Blitz Build is moving along very nicely and the home is nearly halfway complete,” says Jacqueline Victory, Director of MTSU’s Office of Leadership and Service. “However, some much needed rain stalled some of our efforts and has pushed our dedication back to Nov. 8.” The dedication originally was slated for Nov. 1, at 6 p.m. Volunteers are still needed. The construction site is located at 446 State St. in Murfreesboro, where teams working in two shifts will labor to build a Habitat home for the Bautista family. The five-member Bautista clan has lived with family, in a basement and in public housing over the years, but never truly had a place to call home. Victory says the MTSU Student Government Association has spent two years working to raise the $50,000 needed to build the Habitat home for the Bautistas. Contact Lisa L. Rollins in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919 or lrollins@mtsu.edu.