Thursday, November 6, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Breaking with tradition

Sharon Mitchell-Pierre will be the speaker at the annual Nontraditional Week Dinner, which is slated for 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. tonight, Nov. 6, in Room 322 of MTSU’s Keathley University Center. Mitchell-Pierre, who retired from USAA Life Insurance Company in 2007, is a summa cum laude graduate of the University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Tex., with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. While juggling marriage, motherhood, a career and night school, Mitchell-Pierre also dealt with the deaths of her parents, a home invasion robbery, serious illness and many other challenges. Currently, she is enrolled in the sign language interpreter certification program at San Antonio College.

For more information, contact Dr. Carol Ann Baily at 615-898-5989 or Monique Denney, president of Older Wiser Learners (OWLs) at mdd3f@mtsu.edu.

Short circuit

The Circuit City chain of electronics stores will close 155 outlets by Dec. 31, laying off nearly 20 percent of its work force. Four of the stores targeted for closure (Antioch, Spring Hill, Memphis and Collierville) are in Tennessee. Dr. Don Roy, management and marketing, says, “Circuit City has suffered the same problem that many also-rans encounter: lack of a distinctive brand position. Best Buy has excelled in the areas of product choice, customer service, and employee satisfaction. Wal-Mart has mastered the low price position. Amazon.com has product selection and customer interactivity as key strengths. Circuit City simply does not stand out in a competitive landscape.”

Contact Roy at 615-904-8564.
droy@mtsu.edu

TERRA Firma

Dr. William Canak, MTSU professor of sociology, will discuss the Tennessee Employment Relations Research Association (TERRA) at 7 a.m. this Sunday, Nov. 9, on “MTSU on the Record” with host Gina Logue on WMOT-FM (89.5 or wmot.org). TERRA is slated to hold its 11th annual conference Nov. 19-21 at the Lakeside Club and Wingo Inn at Arnold Air Force Base in Tullahoma. A chapter of the Labor and Employment Relations Association, TERRA encourages labor relations practitioners and academics to share their knowledge about industrial relations and human resources for the betterment of both the workplace and the community.

Contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800.

TR EXTRA

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.

GET YOUR KICKS ON ROUTE 66.--Noted photographer Tom Mallonee’s exhibit, “Evidence of Passing: Vanishing Points along an American Road,” opened recently and will be displayed until Dec. 4 in the Baldwin Photographic Gallery in MTSU’s McWherter Learning Resources Center. Tom Jimison, electronic media communication professor and gallery director, says Mallonee “has pursued large-format black-and-white work since 1979 and often has chosen subjects which stray from conventional notions of western landscape, yet still embrace decisive composition and meticulous printing techniques such as this 14-year project of bypassed sections of Route 66.” Exhibitions are free and open to the public. The gallery is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and from 6 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. on Sundays. The gallery will be closed Nov. 27-29. For information, call 615-898-2085.

FOLLOW THE SUN—Dr. Eric Klumpe, physics and astronomy, will talk about “The Solar Cycle” in the First Friday Star Party at 6:30 p.m. tomorrow, Nov. 7, in Room 102 of MTSU’s Wiser-Patten Science Building. Outdoor telescope viewing will follow the lecture if weather permits. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Klumpe at 615-898-2483 or Dr. Charles Higgins at 615-898-2483.