Thursday, September 18, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Is a picture worth a thousand poll points?

How do political operatives arrange photo opportunities to achieve the most favorable image possible for their candidates? How do news photographers obtain the best shots possible, and how to they avoid being manipulated by the campaign? Chris Harris, professor of electronic media communication at MTSU, will tackle the topic of “Political Imagery” at 7 a.m. this Sunday, Sept. 21, on “MTSU on the Record” on WMOT-FM (89.5 and wmot.org) with host Gina Logue. An experienced photojournalist, Harris has performed hundreds of assignments for TIME, Newsweek and The New York Times. He also has worked as a reporter on investigative teams for TIME and The New York Times.
For more information, contact Gina Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800. If you missed last week’s show, go to http://frank.mtsu.edu/~proffice/podcast2008.html and click on “September 14, 2008.”

Getting nasty with NATO

Russia’s Foreign Ministry yesterday (Wednesday) issued a harsh criticism of NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer’s visit this week to Georgia. A statement from the ministry said the defense alliance was acting on “Cold War-era reflexes” and the trip could only be seen as “encouraging Tbilisi to engage in new reckless ventures.” Dr. Vladimir Ilin, a Fulbright Visiting Scholar at MTSU and a professor of sociology at St. Petersburg State University in Russia, says, “NATO is in a contradictional situation. On the one side, it has to show to the Kremlin that Georgia is outside of Russia’s influence and a friend of NATO, that five days of war didn’t change this geopolitical fact. On the other hand, Georgia is a state overloaded with many conflicts.”

Contact Ilin at vldmr.ilin@gmail.com.

Greetings from Bangladesh

MTSU student Steve Sibley is in Bangladesh to study microfinance, the humanitarian economic methodology pioneered by Nobel Prize-winner and former MTSU professor Muhammad Yunus. The idea is for Sibley, recipient of MTSU’s new Kawahito Scholarship for Experiential World Poverty Studies, not only to learn at the bank, but to live and work among the poor. Sibley’s ride into the capital city from Dhaka provided his first lesson as he encountered beggars on all sides of his cab. He writes from Dhaka, “One man was showing the gnarled black infection on his ankle; another had legs so skinny and useless that he was only able to beg in traffic by walking on his arms.” Upon getting out of the cab at his hotel, he saw “… a three-foot tall pile of trash, from which the rotting food smell was likely emanating. A young boy of approximately 10 years of age was sifting through this pile of rotting trash in search of food or anything else of value.”

“Today’s Response” will provide periodic updates from Steve Sibley, a native of Signal Mountain, Tenn., throughout the semester. For more information about the Kawahito Scholarship, contact Dr. Kiyoshi Kawahito, Adviser to the President and the Provost on Asian Affairs, at 615-898-5751.
kawahito@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

SINGING HER OWN SONG--Dr. Felicia Miyakawa, assistant professor of music at MTSU, will deliver the first Women’s Studies Research Series lecture of the academic year at 3 p.m., today, Sept. 18, in the SunTrust Room of the Business and Aerospace Building. Miyakawa will speak on “Queering the ‘Sometimes’ Trope: Gay Choruses and Gendered Readings of ‘Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child.’” “During this presentation, I will share examples of how this beloved tune has been wrapped into issues of gender identity,” Miyakawa says. “Specifically, I will explore what performances of this song by gay-identified choruses or in gay-themed performance contexts reveal not only about what these particular performance groups value in this song, but also how their appropriations of this song are indicative of a seemingly universal tendency of finding endless troves of personal meaning in the song’s text, music and traditions.” For more information about this and future lectures in the series, contact Dr. Jane Marcellus at 615-898-5282 or jmarcell@mtsu.edu.

MASTERING MATH--Dr. Jeremy Winters, professor of elementary and special education, and Cindy Cliché and Marrie Lasater of Homer Pittard Campus School will present the first of a four-part series examining the new Tennessee math standards that will take effect in 2009-2010 in a professional development program for teachers of grades K-2 at 3:30 p.m. CST (4:30 EST), today, Sept. 18. The program, which will air under the auspices of MTSU’s Satellite and Webcasting Center, will begin with a general overview of the changes and why the changes were made. Then the audience will be engaged in activities that will illustrate the differences between the new and old standards. For more information about this year’s schedule of professional development programs, call 615-898-2737 or send an e-mail to vmoxley@mtsu.edu.

HABLAMOS ESPANOL--MTSU’s celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month is in full swing through Oct. 15 with numerous cultural and informational events on tap. On Wednesday, Oct. 1, Dr. Sidney McPhee, MTSU President, will attend a reception for Hispanic students from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in Room 316 of the Keathley University Center (KUC). On Monday, Oct. 6, Sidelines, the student newspaper, will feature a crossword puzzle with a Hispanic history theme. Prizes will be awarded in KUC Room 326 for the first five correct submittals. Also, ongoing Hispanic Poetry Periods and Latin music experiences will be conducted near the KUC Knoll, and special programming will be shown in dormitory lobbies. WMOT-FM (89.5) will air Latin jazz every Sunday. All events are free and open to the public. For additional information, contact the Office of Intercultural and Diversity Affairs at 615-898-5812.

IN THE EYE OF THE ALUMNI--The MTSU Department of Art is hosting its second biennial exhibition of works by alumni, aptly titled “Alumni 2008,” through Friday, Sept. 26, in Todd Gallery. About 50 pieces representing a variety of media make up the exhibit, which will feature the art of Diane Fox (’86), Glenda Guinn (’85), George Juliano (’69), Rebecca Parker (’04), Jim Poag (’77), Tom Sain (’84), Patricia Tenpenny (’92) and Vicki Terry (’92). “They are active educators in higher education, performance artists or independent artists,” says Eric Snyder, gallery curator. “Their works are seen across the country, internationally in galleries and museums, found in private collections, and seen in regional and national publications.” Located on the first floor of the Todd Building, the Todd Gallery is open from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays and closed on all state holidays. Admission is always free, and exhibits are open to the public. Contact Snyder at 615-898-5653 or esnyder@mtsu.edu.

DO YOU HEAR WHAT I HEAR?--New MTSU Audio Clips and radio-ready stories are on the Web at www.mtsunews.com, your comprehensive source for MTSU information. Click on “MTSU Audio Clips on the right side of the page, and you will be able to hear Dr. Bill Ford, holder of MTSU’s Weatherford Chair of Finance and former President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, offer his perspective on the federal government bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Listen to the views of Dr. Robb McDaniel, associate professor of political science, on the presidential candidates and what they need to do to convince the voters. And there’s an audio commentary by Dr. Larry Burriss, journalism professor and First Amendment expert, on the nature of patriotism. For more information, contact Gina Logue in the Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081 or gklogue@mtsu.edu.

OUTSTANDING IN THEIR FIELD--MTSU’s School of Agribusiness and Agriscience will hold a field day from 4 to 7 p.m. today, Sept. 18, at the former Guy James Farm on Hall Hill Pike, east of campus. Dr. Warren Gill, director of the school, says the event will feature the state agriculture department’s enhancement program, hay-wrapping demonstrations and a new planting of warm season perennials, including Switchgrass, Big Bluestem and a wildlife mixture. “We received an ag enhancement grant to study wrapping hay in plastic to improve the product,” Gill says. “If you put hay up wet, it makes for a slightly improved product. Gill adds that newer hay-wrapping techniques now could help farmers save more money and time than conventional methods. Contact Gill at 615-898-2523 or wgill@mtsu.edu.

MONEY MAKES THE WORLD GO AROUND.--The federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the Bank of America’s agreement to acquire Merrill Lynch, the Chapter 11 filing by Lehman Brothers and other dramatic developments make this year’s MTSU Economic Outlook Conference a must. The conference will take place on Friday, Sept. 26, at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center, 1200 Conference Center Blvd. in Murfreesboro. Dr. James Bullard, President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, will speak at 9 a.m. Dr. David Penn, director of MTSU’s Business and Economic Research Center, will provide the Midstate/Regional Economic Update at 10:30 a.m. Dr. Donald Ratajczak, Regents Professor of Economics Emeritus at Georgia State University in Atlanta, will deliver the luncheon address during the noon hour. For more information, contact Dr. Jim Burton, Dean of the Jennings A. Jones College of Business, at 615-898-2764 or eburton@mtsu.edu.