Friday, September 5, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Republicans in the rear view mirror

Dr. Robb McDaniel, associate professor of political science and winner of a 2008 Outstanding Teacher Award from the MTSU Foundation, will reflect on the Republican National Convention at 7 a.m. this Sunday, Sept. 7, on “MTSU on the Record.” The program is hosted by Gina Logue and airs on WMOT-FM (89.5 and wmot.org). McDaniel will comment on the main speeches by U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, former U.S. Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee and others, as well as the stagecraft, policy positions, vetting process and successes and failures of the quadrennial gathering in St. Paul, Minn.

For more information, contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800.

Wall-to-wall jazz

The public grand opening event for “Entering the Modern Era: Murfreesboro’s Jazz Age,” an expanded exhibit, will be from 4-6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 11 at the Heritage Center of Murfreesboro and Rutherford County. “New transportation routes, along with the emergence of educational and medical facilities and industries,” says Melissa Zimmerman, heritage programming specialist for the center, “helped shape the quality of life during this modern era of social change and urbanization.” Supported by the MTSU Center for Historic Preservation, the newly expanded exhibit will be anchored by a six-foot-tall, 20-foot-long mural that recently was completed by nationally recognized artist Erin Anfinson, an assistant professor of art at MTSU, and two students, Emily May-Ragland and Sarah Sullivan.

Call 615-217-8013 or send an e-mail to Jennifer Butt at jbutt@mtsu.edu

The writing on the wall

If an inmate scribbles a message about a judge in pencil on his cell wall, can he be accused of making a threat? That’s the issue decided in favor of the state and against the prisoner by a Wisconsin state appeals court recently in State v. Ridley. The prisoner wrote, “Joe Ridley will f--- and kill Judge Hassin,” then signed his name and wrote the date. David Hudson, adjunct political science professor and First Amendment Center scholar, says this goes against a higher court precedent. “In Watts v. United States (1969), the U.S. Supreme Court first recognized the true-threat exception to the First Amendment but said that certain kinds of hyperbole did not apply,” Hudson says. “In Watts, a young man protested the draft and told a crowd: ‘If they ever make me carry a rifle, the first man I want to get in my sights is L.B.J.’—referring to then-President Lyndon Baines Johnson. The Supreme Court deemed this statement a kind of ‘political hyperbole,’ not a true threat.”

Contact Hudson at 615-727-1600.
dhudson@fac.org

TR EXTRA

A LONG AND SUCCESSFUL RUN--MTSU track and field coach Dean Hayes will be inducted into the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA) Hall of Fame on Wednesday, Dec. 17, at the USTFCCA convention in Phoenix, Ariz. Hayes, who has been at MTSU since 1965, has led the Blue Raiders to 29 Ohio Valley Conference titles, 14 Sun Belt championships, and 18 NCAA Top 25 finishes. He has been named OVC Coach of the Year 15 times and Sun Belt Coach of the Year 12 times, including a run of 10 straight titles from 1977 to 1986. His fellow coaches voted him NCAA Outdoor Coach of the Year in 1981. In addition to coaching at the World University Games and other international events, Hayes worked as an assistant at the Summer Olympics in Seoul in 1988 and a referee at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Contact MTSU Athletic Communications at 615-898-2968.

CLAP FOR THE WOLFEMAN--The late Dr. Charles K. Wolfe, professor emeritus of English at MTSU and cultural historian, will be inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame at an Oct. 2 ceremony at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. Wolfe, who passed away in 2006, was a respected scholar of both country music and bluegrass and the author of more than a dozen books, including The Music of Bill Monroe, co-authored with Neil Rosenberg and published in 2007. Wolfe also was one of the faculty members who came up with the idea for a Center for Popular Music at MTSU. Paul Wells, director of the center, says of Wolfe’s induction, “It’s a well-deserved honor. Charles really made some great contributions to the history and literature of bluegrass music. … He wrote about what he loved, and he loved what he wrote about.” Contact Wells at 615-898-2449 or pwells@mtsu.edu.

WELCOME TO THE HALL, Y’ALL!--Five former MTSU greats in their respective sports will be inducted into the Blue Raider Hall of Fame tomorrow, Sept. 6. The ceremony will take place at 3:30 p.m. at the Kennon Sports Hall of Fame prior to MTSU’s football game against Maryland. Jerry Beck (basketball), Joe Campbell (football), John DoDoo (track and field), Paul Goebel (tennis) and Kelly Holcomb (football) will be enshrined. Previous Hall of fame classes have been limited to three inductees, but this year’s class was expanded to five due to the number of nominees and votes received by the Hall of Fame committee. Contact Athletic Communications at 615-898-2450.

MICKEY MOUSE MEANS BUSINESS--MTSU and the Jennings A. Jones College of Business are pleased to present Disney Institute’s professional development program, the “Disney Keys to Excellence,” to the greater Nashville community. The event will be held from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, at the Sheraton Downtown Nashville, 623 Union Street. “Participants will discover Disney success stories and learn about management philosophies and behind-the-scenes operations that have made the Disney Parks and resorts a benchmark for businesses around the world,” says George Aguel, senior vice president for Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. “MTSU is preparing young men and women to become ethical, entrepreneurial successes in the business world, and the Disney Keys program is clearly in sync with our educational philosophy,” says Dr. Jim Burton, dean of the Jones College of Business. Members of the media are welcomed to attend at no cost by presenting press credentials. Photography of any slides or presentation-specific material will be prohibited; otherwise, photography will be permitted. Organizers will help arrange on-site interviews with session presenters/facilitators, if requested. Contact Tom Tozer, 615-898-2919 (ttozer@mtsu.edu) in advance to register attendance.

LOSING … AND LOVING IT--Faculty and staff at MTSU will embark on a 12-week Wellness Program again this semester at the Campus Recreation Center. However, there’s a twist this time. Participants will have an opportunity to opt into a “Biggest Loser” competition, which will include weekly weight and body fat percentage calculations for each team. The team’s cumulative results will be posted in the Rec Center, but individual statistics will remain confidential. There will be weekly personal challenges for that week’s pounds lost to count in the final week. The team that loses the most body weight percentage by the end of the program will receive a prize to be announced during the semester. The winning individual also will receive a prize. The registration deadline has been extended to Friday, Sept. 12. Contact Jerry Langham at 615-898-2104 or jlangham@mtsu.edu.

Note to Media: As you can imagine, we receive a lot of requests for photos, especially headshots of faculty experts. In some cases, those requests come late in the day, and while we try hard to accommodate all requests, we are hard-pressed to do a quick turnaround as the day wears on. As a general rule of thumb, any photo request that comes in at 3 p.m. or later may not be fulfilled until the following day. We will give it our best effort, with no guarantee. Please plan accordingly. We are most appreciative.