Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Affirmative counteraction

The ruling in Ricci v. Destefano released yesterday by the U.S. Supreme Court is characteristic of the Roberts Court, says Dr. John Vile, Dean of the University Honors College and Constitutional law expert. “The 5-4 decision, authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy, rested on an interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 rather than directly on the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment,” says Vile. “Kennedy argued that governments needed a ‘strong basis in evidence’ when they use racial classifications, even when such classifications are designed to aid minorities. The majority paid particular attention to the fact that many of those who had taken the test had studied for months; the lead defendant, Ricci, was dyslexic and had to take special measures to prepare for it.”

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

Spanning the globe

In competition with students from universities all across the United States, two more MTSU international relations majors have landed prestigious scholarships that will enable them to nourish their own aspirations while improving others’ futures in far-flung regions of the globe. Murfreesboro native Aaron Shew will celebrate his 22nd birthday in India in July. Shew landed a Critical Language Scholarship to study the Urdu language there this summer. The CLS is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State. Tullahoma’s Patrick Pratt captured a Boren Scholarship from the National Security Education Program to study international relations and Swahili at United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya. “We have students here who are as good as students at any Ivy League university in the United States, hands down,” says Dr. Karen Petersen, political science, who mentored both young men.

For more information, contact Gina Logue in the MTSU Office of News and Public Affairs at 615-898-5081.
gklogue@mtsu.edu

A break in the action

In the week ending June 13, seasonally adjusted weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance totaled 12,454, a decline from 14,041 in the previous week and more in line with previous months. The decrease is attributed to fewer layoffs in manufacturing and trade. Since the first week of January, initial claims have averaged 13,651 per week. Continued claims for unemployment insurance (insured unemployment) increased to 114,696 from 114,492 in the previous week. Insured unemployment has averaged 109,589 since January 1.

Contact the MTSU Business and Economic Research Center at 615-898-2610.

TR EXTRA

CLEAN AND GREEN--How can Middle Tennessee gain nearly 15,000 new jobs? A report from the University of Massachusetts asserts that a $150 billion national investment in a green economy could not only boost the employment picture. It could provide pathways out of poverty for many low-income workers. Dr. Sekou Franklin, political science, is a volunteer for a Nashville-based task force on green jobs. He says mass transit is an important part of the equation. “We need a broader public transportation system that links Nashville to Murfreesboro to Cookeville so that low-income workers can get to work and also to reduce fossil fuels, to reduce people using cars, spending money on gas (and) oil that are released into the environment.” Hear Franklin’s other comments and read the radio-ready stories that accompany them in the latest edition of MTSU Audio Clips at www.mtsunews.com. Click on “Audio Clips” on the right side of the page. Contact Franklin at 615-904-8232 or franklin@mtsu.edu.

A FRESH FEAST--Locally grown produce is available in bounty at the MTSU Farmers’ Market each Friday this summer from 1-5 p.m. in the Horticulture Center off Blue Raider Drive on the MTSU campus. Students enrolled in a vegetable gardening class and members of the Plant and Soil Science Club grow all plants and produce from seed to maturation. “We grow our own transplants in the greenhouse on campus and then transfer them to a quarter-acre plot on the Guy James Farm (off Halls Hill Pike in Murfreesboro),” says Dr. Nate Phillips, professor of horticulture, who began the market last year. While the risk of salmonella and E. coli outbreaks made headlines last year, MTSU’s market was able to offer locally grown products that were guaranteed safe. Contact the Department of Agribusiness and Agriscience at 615-898-2523.

GOING THROUGH CUSTOMS--Running through late July, incoming MTSU students and their families will start familiarizing themselves with their new academic home through the CUSTOMS orientation process. “So many parents and students comment on how friendly folks are and how comfortable they feel about their choice of coming to MTSU,” says Gina Poff, director of New Student and Family Programs. “Although CUSTOMS is a lot of work for the staff and the new students, it really pays off in the end. It is a great way to start off the new journey into MTSU, and the freshmen really get a sense of what it is like to be part of the MTSU community.” Poff says officials expect 50 to 75 more students at each session this summer than in previous years. Contact Poff at 615-898-2454 or gpoff@mtsu.edu.

THE TOUR DU JOUR--MTSU’s Office of Admissions will offer student-led campus tours at 10 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday (excluding holidays) through July 31. The tours are by reservation only. Plenty of openings remain for all of June and July. No tours will be given July 3 because the university will be closed for that holiday. To make a reservation, call 615-898-5670 or visit mtsu.edu/admissn/tour_admissn.shtml and click on “Schedule Campus Tours.” For more information, contact Michelle Arnold at 615-898-5280 or maarnold@mtsu.edu.