Friday, October 17, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

A mighty wind

MTSU’s Department of Recording Industry and the College of Mass Communication will welcome the inaugural South East Regional Folk Alliance Music Conference to campus today, Oct. 17, and tomorrow, Oct. 18. “We are expecting between 75 and 100 musicians, songwriters, music business professionals and historians for panels, workshops, concerts and advocacy,” says Charlie B. Dahan, an associate professor of recording industry and conference organizer. The gathering will feature musical performances from artists Cady Finlayson and Elkin Brown, Danny Flowers, Ginny Hawker and Tracy Schwartz, Robby Hecht, Diana Jones, The Smart Brothers, Linda McRae, Anna Wolfe and many, many more.

Contact Dahan at 615-494-7704.
mailto:615-494-7704.cdahan@mtsu.edu

The further adventures of Steve Sibley

In Bangladesh to study poverty, MTSU student Steve Sibley has made friends with a young man named Kamal, an employee of the Grand Prince Hotel in the capital city of Dhaka. Sibley writes, “Having witnessed the conditions in his apartment—no air conditioning, two small bedrooms and a dining area, a communal bathroom and kitchen—I am grateful that Kamal is not a member of the lower class. This confirms Dr. (Kiyoshi) Kawahito’s statement that ‘America’s poor would be middle class in Bangladesh.’ … Kamal desperately wants to get out of his neighborhood and his country. He says, ‘Everyday, I pray to Allah to provide a way out of here.’”
Sibley is the recipient of the initial Kawahito Scholarship for Experiential World Poverty Studies.

To find out more, contact Kawahito at 615-898-5751.
mailto:615-898-5751.kawahito@mtsu.edu

Media mania

“Give them information, and the people can govern themselves,” or so goes the Enlightenment cry that argues for a free, independent press. But does media practice distort the news that citizens need to make informed decisions? Dr. Bob Pondillo, electronic media communication, will examine that question in “News Media Conventions: Do They Harm American Democracy?,” a brown bag luncheon lecture, at noon on Monday, Oct. 20, in Room 129 of the Gore Center conference room in MTSU’s Todd Building. This event is free and open to the public. It’s part of the continuing “Campus Conversations about American Democracy in the 2008 Election” series sponsored by the American Democracy Project.

Contact Dr. Jim Williams at 615-898-2632.
mailto:615-898-2632.jhwillia@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

RACE IN THE RACE--Dr. Sekou Franklin, assistant professor of political science, will discuss “Between Jesse Jackson and Barack Obama: Race Management, Electoral Populism and Presidential Politics” at 3 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 20 in Room 106 of MTSU’s Paul W. Martin Sr. Honors Building. The presentation is the latest in the University Honors Lecture series titled “Politics and the Press: The Relationship Between Government and the Fourth Estate.” For more information, call the Honors College at 615-898-2152.

I WANNA BE FREE--The National Park Service, in cooperation with the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area, will present “Pathways to Freedom,” a fresh look at wartime emancipation, tomorrow, Oct. 18. The day will start at 8 a.m. in the Rutherford County Courthouse with registration and a continental breakfast followed by three speakers beginning at 9 a.m. They will be Dr. Barbara Fields, history professor at Columbia University; Dr. William W. Freehling, senior fellow at the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities; and Dr. Robert E. Hunt, MTSU history professor. In the afternoon, programs will be offered at Stones River National Battlefield and at Fortress Rosecrans in Old Fort Park. Symposium activities are slated to end at about 4 p.m. The registration fee is $10. For more information, call 615-893-9501 or 615-898-2947.

READ ALL ABOUT IT--Dr. Jan Hayes, professor emeritus of educational leadership, and Dr. Kris McCusker, MTSU history professor, will discuss their latest books along with other local authors at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 19, at Linebaugh Public Library in Murfreesboro. Hayes’ recent book is The Split Tongue Sparrow: A Traditional Japanese Folktale. McCusker’s current offering is Lonesome Cowgirls and Honky-Tonk Angels: The Women of Barn Dance Radio. For more information, contact the library at 615-893-4131.

THE SHOT THAT HITS THE SPOT--With the cold and flu season fast approaching, MTSU Health Services will offer flu shots to the campus community at multiple locations on campus. This year, flu shots will be available from 8:30 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 22, in the conference room on the second floor of the Cope Administration Building; and from noon to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 23, in Room 318 of the Keathley University Center. Only cash and checks will be accepted at these locations. From 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 21, Wednesday, Oct. 22, and Thursday, Oct. 23, shots will be available in the atrium of the Health, Wellness and Recreation Center. In the atrium, patients may pay by cash, check, Visa, MasterCard, RaiderFunds, or students may charge their shots to their MTSU accounts. The cost is $15 for students and $20 for faculty and staff. No appointment is required. For more information, contact MTSU Health Services at 615-898-2988.

NO NEED FOR THE TIM RUSSERT MEMORIAL DRY ERASE BOARD (FLORIDA! FLORIDA! FLORIDA!)—MTSU students will prepare and broadcast their own election night roundup live on MTTV, Channel 10, from 8 p.m. to 11 or possibly later, on Election Night, Tuesday, Nov. 4, depending on how close the tallies are. “It becomes more than just an organizational exercise, which is important,” says Dr. Bob Pondillo, who teaches “Electronic Media Production: Election Night News Coverage.” “However, it’s one thing to know how to make great television, but it’s quite another to know how to engage the community.” Although arrangements are subject to revision at a moment’s notice depending on the circumstances, the class is planning on three bases for live shots. The percentages in each race will be displayed at the bottom of the television screen through a black box Associated Press interface device. Contact Pondillo at 615-904-8465 or pondillo@mtsu.edu.

PUTTING IT TOGETHER--“Pulled Resources,” a sculptural collaborative by artists Dan DeZarn and Thomas H. Sturgill, is on display now through today, Oct. 17, at MTSU’s Todd Gallery. The artists have a shared interest in exploring the concerns of contemporary human culture. In the past, they have focused on material usage, commodity, nature and people, and how those ideas intersect, says Eric V. Snyder, gallery curator. “They quickly found that they could construct impressively large, labor-intensive projects in relatively short periods of time and with fairly modest budgets,” Snyder says. Located on the first floor of MTSU’s Todd Building, the Todd Gallery is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays and closed on all state holidays. Admission is free. Exhibits are open to the public. Contact Snyder at 615-898-5653 or esnyder@mtsu.edu.

A WORD IS WORTH A THOUSAND PICTURES--“4 Women 4 Views with Text,” a new art exhibition in MTSU’s James E. Walker Library, features the creativity of three MTSU professors and an MTSU graduate in combining visual and verbal elements, treating visitors to an experience that is at once visceral and intellectual. The works of Assistant Professors Noel Lorson and Kim Dummons, Professor Janet Higgins and alumna Nance Cooley will remain on display through Thursday, Nov. 13, in the Special Collections area on the fourth floor of the library. Viewing is free and open to the public from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Susan Hanson, a specialist with the library, says the works on display are individual entities that emerged from the creative spark of the collaborative experience. “It starts with a word, and it begins to take on a life of its own,” Hanson says. Contact Hanson at 615-904-8503 or shanson@mtsu.edu.

THE GOSPEL TRUTH--Local gospel choirs who want to reach a wider audience are invited to try out for a role in a new independent movie, “The New, True Charlie Wu,” written and directed by Dr. Bob Pondillo, professor of electronic media communication at MTSU. Auditions are slated for Monday, Oct. 20, Wednesday, Oct. 22, and Friday, Oct. 24 from 6-10 p.m. each evening in Studio C on the first floor of the John Bragg Mass Communication Building. “”We’re looking for exciting, uptempo, soulful singers who can project a lot of energy,” Pondillo says. Pondillo is the creative force behind three independent award-winning short films, two of which were accepted at the internationally prestigious Cannes Film Festival in France. To make an appointment for an audition or for more information, contact Veronica Privett at 615-752-7024.

PROMOTE THE VOTE--MTSU students who want to participate in early voting in the 2008 election will be provided with free transportation to the Rutherford County Election Commission Office at One Public Square South in Murfreesboro via Raider Express on six different dates this month. “The American Democracy Project (ADP) registered nearly 1,000 MTSU students to vote in Rutherford County this fall, so now we are shifting our attention to education all our students about the candidates in this election and making sure that everyone who needs a ride to vote has one,” says Dr. Jim Williams, coordinator of the ADP. The schedule for the free rides, all of which embark from in front of the James Union Building, is online at www.mtsu.edu./~amerdem.For more information, contact Williams at 615-898-2632 or jhwillia@mtsu.edu.