Friday, May 30, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

A man of honor

Dr. John Vile, chair of the Department of Political Science, officially will become dean of the University Honors College July 1. Vile will replace Dr. Phil Mathis, who is slated to retire June 30. “(Vile) is an exemplary academic, an involved university and community citizen, and a man with a wonderful laugh,” Gebert says. “Dr. Vile will be an exceptional honors dean, and we are delighted to welcome him to this new role.” Vile says, “I directed an honors thesis this year and am looking forward to working with students on a one-to-one basis. I’ve always had an open door policy in political science that I plan to take with me to the Honors College.” Dr. Clyde Willis will assume the role of interim dean of political science.

Contact Vile at 615-898-2596.
jvile@mtsu.edu
Contact Gebert at 615-898-2880.
kgebert@mtsu.edu

Child custody

The issue of how society should deal with juvenile offenders remains a thorny one. In a paper he presented in March at the National Association of Black Political Scientists’ annual conference, Dr. Sekou Franklin, political science, assessed the juvenile justice reform movement, which has made some progress in Louisiana, Maryland and New York City. “Despite these victories, the (movement) still has a long way to go,” Franklin writes. “Reforms are slow to come by and many states and localities continue to implement ‘get-tough’ and zero-tolerance policies that have a disproportionate impact on poor youth and youth of color. Furthermore, despite federal mandates encouraging states to reduce racial disparities in their systems, disproportionate minority confinement is still a major problem.” To hear Franklin discuss this subject in more detail, tune in to “MTSU On the Record” at 7 a.m. this Sunday, June 1, on WMOT-FM (89.5) or at http://www.wmot.org.

Contact Franklin at 615-904-8232.
franklin@mtsu.edu
For more information about “MTSU On the Record,” contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
gklogue@mtsu.edu

Camp capers

MTSU Campus Recreation kicks off its youth camp season Monday, June 2, to help keep young people healthy and fit this summer. The Summer Youth Sports Camp, which will run each week through Friday, Aug. 1, is for boys and girls seven to 13 years old. It will feature a variety of sports, leisure and fitness activities between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tuition for each weekly session is $150 with lunch or $125 if campers bring their own lunches. Swim Camp also begins June 2 and runs for four two-week sessions through July 25. The camp for swimmers ages 8 to 17 is set from 1 to 2 p.m. daily. Each two-week session costs $25 per participant, and swimmers may register for one session or all four.

For more details, visit http://www.mtsu.edu/~camprec or call 615-898-2104.

TR EXTRA

“LANGUAGE IS THE DRESS OF THOUGHT.”—SAMUEL JOHNSON--MTSU’s annual Summer Language Institute will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. June 16-20, June 23-27 and July 28-August 1 at the University School of Nashville. Languages to be taught will include Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Scottish Gaelic, Arabic and Spanish Levels 1 and 2. The innovative teaching methods used at the institute, are designed to teach students a second language the same way they learned their first—by relating vocabulary to movement and learning grammar through storytelling. Students are completely immersed in the language from the first day of instruction in a fun environment. “I can now tell people who regret never having studied a language or who had a bad experience that it is not too late,” says Dr. Shelley Thomas, MTSU associate professor and institute founder. Contact Thomas at 615-898-5757 or
shthomas@mtsu.edu.

“ENGLAND SWINGS LIKE A PENDULUM DO.”—ROGER MILLER--The Fab Four, miniskirts and go-go boots, the “mods” versus the “rockers”—If you’re looking for a fun and informative course to take this summer, MTSU is offering British Popular Culture from 10:10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday July 7-August 7. This English course, taught by Dr. Jill Hague, will look at the development of popular culture in the United Kingdom after World War II, focusing on innovations in music, film and drama. Students will examine the cultural, historical and political contexts of the 1950s, the phenomenon of “Swinging London” and the Beatles in the 1960s and the rise of punk culture in the 1970s. Contact Hague at 615-904-8123 or ahague@mtsu.edu.

NOW YOU’RE TALKING MY LANGUAGE!--In a recent guest editorial in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, William Scott wrote, “Arabic language programming should be readily available to us in the United States. Reading books or computer screens does nothing to improve aural comprehension, especially since written Modern Standard Arabic differs so much from the various dialects spoken throughout the Arab world.” This summer, MTSU will offer courses in Modern Standard Arabic from 10:10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday in two separate sessions—June 2-July 3 and July 7-August 8. Students will learn the Arabic script/alphabet, common useful vocabulary and basic grammatical structures. At the end of the sequence, students will be equipped with basic survival skills such as ordering food, booking hotel rooms, describing their daily lives, understanding and giving directions, etc. For more information, Kari Sue Neely, assistant professor of foreign languages, at ksneely@mtsu.edu.

THE LAND OF ENCHANTMENT--You can spend part of your summer examining the fascinating Native American history and prehistory of the Southwest and get geography or history credit for it at MTSU! The class is titled “Geography of Native Americans” and will be conducted for the 15th consecutive year by Dr. Doug Heffington, professor of historical geography and director of the Global Studies Program. “The class focuses on the examination of the human/land relationships between the native peoples of New Mexico and their natural environment,” Heffington says. “Most of our base camp is in the small colonial village of Truchas, which dates to the mid-1700s with its blend of Genizaro, Mestizo and Hispano cultures. The trip/course starts July 21st and takes about nine days to complete.” The cost is approximately $400 per student and includes transportation, two meals a day, lodging and entry fees. Contact Heffington at 615-898-5978 or jheffing@mtsu.edu.

LOOKS LIKE A HOMICIDE, HORATIO--Is your child itching to learn how forensic investigators examine crime scenes and ferret out the clues that solve real world mysteries? This summer’s “CSI: MTSU”, which will run from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on June 11-13, is a three-day program designed for students entering the 10th, 11th and 12th grades in Rutherford and surrounding counties. The students will be presented with a re-creation of an actual crime scene. They will be trained in the processes of collecting evidence, including DNA, fingerprints, hair and fibers, simulated blood splatter and shoe prints. Young people will explore the career possibilities in forensic science, understand a “real life” reason to tackle higher level math and science courses, and develop skills in teamwork, seeing and understanding details, critical thinking and presentations. The program is co-sponsored by the Forensic Institute for Research and Education (FIRE) and MTSU’s College of Continuing Education and Distance Learning. For more information, contact Eve Shockley at 615-898-5530 or eshockle@mtsu.edu.

“BLESSED ARE THE CRACKED FOR THEY SHALL LET IN THE LIGHT.”—GROUCHO MARX--How do you see God? Do you see the Almighty as a man, a woman, an ambiguous force of nature? These are questions to be explored this summer as Dr. Bob Pondillo, electronic media communication, teaches “Images of God in the American Media” from July 7 through August 8 at MTSU. Pondillo and his students will pursue the subject by examining television programs ranging from “Family Guy” to “Joan of Arcadia” and movies like “Oh, God” and “The Last Temptation of Christ.” Pondilo says, “We’ll have an intellectual discussion and a cosmological discussion and a theological discussion—a discussion, not make it a time to convert people or anything like that. Let’s just talk and try to understand.” Contact Pondillo at 615-904-8465 or pondillo@mtsu.edu.

ALMA MATER MATTERS--Registration has been extended to June 10 for MTSU’s Alumni Summer College, a two-and-a-half-day even full of fun, fellowship and presentations on local topics June 25-27. Faculty, staff and other experts who are slated to speak include Dr. Lisa Pruitt, director of the Gore Center, on “A Century of Service: The History of MTSU”; Dr. Rhonda Hoffman, associate professor of equine science, will introduce attendees to the latest research and technology in the horse world; and alumni Gloria Christy (’71) and Bill Shacklett (’73) will discuss the technical world of photo restoration. Also on tap are a trip to the Grand Ole Opry, dinner at Caney Fork Fish Camp and a scavenger hunt. Contact Rhonda Wright at 1-800-533-6878 or rwright@mtsu.edu.