Friday, February 15, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

The Jena 6

Students will voice their views on the racially charged situation in Jena, La., in “Reflections on the ‘Jena 6’ Protest: Film and Discussion,” a panel discussion complemented with a film from 4:00-5:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 18, in Room N116 of the Cason-Kennedy Nursing Building. This event is free and open to the public. The topic is the August 2006 incident in which nooses were hung from an oak tree on the grounds of Jena High School. Three months later, six African-American youths were accused of beating a white classmate. The film and panel discussion are sponsored by MTSU’s Black History Month Committee, the American Democracy Project and the MTSU chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).

Contact Dr. Tommy Bynum, assistant professor of history, at 615-898-2760.
tbynum@mtsu.edu

Make it count!

H. Hooper Penuel, Jr., administrator of the Rutherford County Election Commission, and Donna Yates, president of the Tennessee Association of County Election Officials, will answer questions from the audience following the MTSU screening of a documentary about election discrepancies. The MTSU Film Guild will show Uncounted: The New Math of American Elections, a documentary which purports to reveal fraud, cheating and manipulation in the 2004 and 2006 balloting, at 8 p.m., Tuesday, Feb. 19, in Room 221 of MTSU’s Learning Resources Center. The viewing is free and open to the public. The doors will open at 7:45 p.m. Producer/director/writer David Earnhardt will join Penuel and Yates for the Q-and-A.

Contact Justin Stokes, president of the MTSU Film Guild, at 615-663-2811.
jds6h@mtsu.edu

Poetry in motion

Distinguished poet and scholar Nikki Giovanni will speak on “Race in the 21st Century” at 7 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 21, in Room 221 of MTSU’s Learning Resources Center. Her address, an event in MTSU’s continuing observance of Black History Month, is free and open to the public. A Knoxville native, Giovanni is a 1968 alumna of Fisk University in Nashville with a degree in history. A Distinguished Professor of English at Virginia Tech, she holds more than 20 honorary degrees, a life membership and scroll from the National Council of Negro Women and NAACP Image awards for her books Love Poems, Blues: For All the Changes, and Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea. In 2007, Giovanni became the first poet to receive the Carl Sandburg Literary Award for lifetime achievement.

Contact Dr. Sekou Franklin at 615-904-8232
franklin@mtsu.edu
or Luther Buie at 615-898-2987.
lbuie@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

WHAT ITEMS ARE ON YOUR BUCKET LIST?--Dr. Janet Belsky, professor of psychology, will be a guest on “In Your Prime,” a discussion program on NewsChannel5+ (Comcast Channel 50), with host Meryll Rose. Belsky, an expert on issues regarding aging, will discuss setting goals toward the end of one’s life as did the main characters in the recent movie “The Bucket List.” This program will air again at 1 p.m. today, Feb. 15; at noon, tomorrow, Feb. 16; at 6:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 17; and at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 20. For more information, contact the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-2919.

AN ARTIST’S DOZEN--The Department of Art’s second 12”x12” biannual national juried exhibition is on display through Friday, Feb. 22, in The Gallery at MTSU’s Todd Hall. Dave Hickey, nationally acclaimed culture and art critic, served as the juror for the exhibition. More than 200 artists from across the United States submitted more than 600 pieces of work for consideration. There were no media restrictions, and all works were to measure no more than 12” in any direction. Three-dimensional pieces were not to exceed 12” in any direction including the base. Included in the show are the works of Tennessee artists Rocky Horton, Nashville; Arlyn Ende, Sewanee; Dwayne Butcher and Trever Nicholas, Memphis; Melissa Krosnick, Cowan; and Sarah Shebaro, Knoxville. The exhibition is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Lon Nuell at 615-898-2505 or lrnuell@mtsu.edu.

BABY, BABY, BABY--MTSU’s Department of Speech and Theatre will tackle the exciting, frightening and utterly transformational role of parenthood when it presents “Baby,” a musical, at 7:30 nightly Feb. 15-16 and 20-23 at MTSU’s Tucker Theatre. Set in Chicago, the production focuses on three couples who are embarking on one of life’s most amazing journeys—childbirth. Liz and Danny are university juniors who have just moved in together. Pam and Nick, a sports instructor, are having some trouble conceiving. Arlene, already the mother of three grown daughters, is unsure of what to do and contemplating abortion, even though her husband, Alan, is thrilled with the thought of a new baby. Tickets may be purchased at the door on the evening of the performance. Prices range from $5 to $10. MTSU students will be admitted free of charge with a valid ID. Call 615-494-8810 or go to http://www.mtsu.edu/~theatre.

STATE OF THE UNION--MTSU student groups are working to help students at Union University in Jackson recover from the tornadoes of Feb. 5. Several buildings were damaged or destroyed, and 51 students were injured. The MTSU Student Government Association (SGA) will work with Phillips Bookstore, Blue Raider Bookstore and Office Depot to gather school supplies, including pens, pencils, calculators, notebooks, notebook paper, scissors, highlighters, tape, staplers, staples, book bags and white-out. Drop-off areas are designated in the two bookstores. Over the next two weekends, students will travel to Union to deliver these goods. To keep track of Union University’s continuing comeback efforts, go to http://www.uurecovery.com. For more information on MTSU students’ efforts on behalf of Union University, contact SGA President Chassen M. Haynes at 615-898-2464 or sgapres@mtsu.edu.