Friday, January 25, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

For love of rugby

For those who have never seen a rugby scrum, it vaguely resembles one of those NFL piles immediately following a fumble except the players are standing up instead of lying down. An American audience might be intrigued to learn that the players wear no protective equipment, even on the most sensitive parts of the body. Even so, the game has a mental component and employs considerable thought in both the training of players and the execution of strategy. Jeremy Bettle, a 26-year-old MTSU doctoral candidate from Leicester, England, put his educational life on hold to work with USA Rugby, examining videotape of scrimmages and matches and analyzing players to help them improve their skills. With Jeremy’s help, the Americans made it to the World Cup in France in September, playing England, Tonga, Samoa and South Africa, the eventual tournament winner, before being eliminated.

To arrange an interview with Bettle, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
gklogue@mtsu.edu

Upon further review …

MTSU has been named one of the 146 Best Southeastern Colleges by The Princeton Review, which conducts surveys with millions of college undergraduates in hopes of identifying the top schools in each region of the country. “We include schools that we have a high opinion of their academics and overall college experience,” says Jen Adams, Princeton Review student survey manager. “We survey many, many students and guidance counselors before we make our selections. MTSU should be pleased with being part of this group.” To read MTSU’s complete entry in the rankings, visit http://www.princetonreview.com, register for free access and search for “Middle Tennessee State University” in the school search box.

For more information, contact Doug Williams at 615-898-2919.
fdwilliams@mtsu.edu

Scholar Shipp

A dedicated MTSU alumnus and inductee of the Kennon Hall of Fame has donated $50,000 to his alma mater so that a worthy graduate of a Rutherford County high school can fulfill the dream of a college education. The Ken Shipp Endowed Scholarship will be awarded to a full-time student who is working toward a degree, in good standing with the university, and eligible to receive need-based financial aid. The scholarship will be renewable for a maximum of 10 semesters provided the recipient meets the university’s requirements for continuation. Shipp, an Old Hickory native who graduated from MTSU from 1947 with a bachelor’s degree in physical education, played football for the legendary Charles “Bubber” Murphy.

Contact Kippy Todd at 615-898-5756.
ktodd@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

“THE ONLY WOMAN AWAKE IS THE WOMAN WHO HAS THE FLUTE.”—RUMI--
The eighth annual MTSU Flute Festival featuring guest artist Jonathan Keeble will be held Saturday, Jan. 26, with registration beginning at 8 a.m. in the Wright Music Building lobby on the MTSU campus. Guest artist Keeble will give a 2 p.m. recital performance and a 4 p.m. master class in the Hinton Music Hall located in the Wright Music Building. In addition, Keeble will make a presentation titled Making Old Music New: Transforming the ‘Warhorses’ Into Modern Language. “Other flute festival events include a High School Solo and a Junior Solo Competition, which takes place in the morning. Also, area college teachers will be the hosts of a Flute Chat session,” says Deanna Little, festival coordinator and assistant professor of flute. Contact Little at 615-898-2473 or drhahn@mtsu.edu.

SHE’S A MAINIAC--MTSU’s Baldwin Photographic Gallery is pleased to announce the opening of an exhibit titled “MAINE WOMEN living on the land” featuring the works of Lauren Shaw. She photographed, recorded and videotaped 20 women whose livelihoods come either from producing a product or building a community. Shaw’s work is in the collections of the Getty Museum; the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston; the Art Institute of Chicago; and the Library of Congress, among other venues. Shaw will present a lecture, documentary screening and book signing at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 28, in Room 221 of the McWherter Learning Resources Center. A reception will follow in the gallery. The exhibit and the lecture are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Tom Jimison at 615-2085 or tjimison@mtsu.edu.

FIT FOR LIFE--The MTSU Faculty-Staff Health and Wellness Program for the spring semester will begin Monday, Jan. 28, and run through April 11. For a $25 fee, each registrant will get blood testing before and after the 10-week program, fitness testing, nutritional coaching by a registered dietician and an optional session with a “life skills coach.” Dr. Mark Anshel, health and human performance, says, “The main focus of the program is to replace negative habits related to lack of exercise, poor nutrition and other lifestyle choices that compromise your health and quality of life. … Our exercise coaches are either graduate students in the MTSU exercise science program or have extensive experience as a personal trainer.” Contact Anshel at 615-898-2812 or manshel@mtsu.edu.

DIALING FOR DELEGATES--Dr. Michael Nelson, the Fulmer Professor of Political Science at Rhodes College, will present “MTSU’s Super Tuesday Lecture” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29, in the State Farm Lecture Hall of the Business and Aerospace Building. A member of Rhodes’ political science faculty since 1991, Nelson is the author of more than 200 articles published in scholarly journals such as the Journal of Politics and Political Science Quarterly and in periodicals such as Newsweek and The Chronicle of Higher Education. Dr. John Vile, chairman of MTSU’s political science department, says Nelson is considered “the gold standard” when it comes to presidential discourse. “He’s one of the leading presidential scholars in the country,” Vile says. For more information, call 615-898-2534 or 615-898-2351.

THE SEVENTIES’ SCREEN--In the 1970s, Robert Altman, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and other filmmakers responded in passionate but diverse ways to the defining events of a highly charged political era, including Watergate, Vietnam, the emergence of global corporatism and the continued threat of nuclear holocaust. It was a period when the American film industry eagerly absorbed the values of the counterculture, which, in turn, had deeply questioned the seemingly sacred foundations of American society. This semester, Dr. Will Brantley, English, is teaching “American Film in the 70s,” a University Honors College class which explores some of the ways in which the creative community made sense of the so-called “Me Decade.” Screenings include Cabaret, Carrie, The Conversation, The Deer Hunter, Five Easy Pieces, The Last Picture Show, Nashville, and Taxi Driver. Contact the University Honors College at 615-898-2152.