Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Making a fashion statement

MTSU’s Eta Kappa Chapter of the Gamma Sigma Sigma national service sorority will present its second annual Prom Dress Collection Drive from Monday, Feb. 15 through Saturday, Feb. 27. Drop off your prom dresses at Holiday Cleaners, 911 Memorial Blvd. in Murfreesboro, for distribution in March to high school junior and senior girls in Rutherford and Williamson counties who are on the free/reduced lunch program. Dresses must be from 2002 to the present, must be dry-cleaned and on hangers, and must be prom dresses, formal gowns or fancy party dresses. Garments that were purchased before 2002 or have not been dry-cleaned, wedding dresses, casual or semiformal clothing and tuxedoes are unacceptable.

To make an appointment for dropping off a dress, or to make a monetary donation, contact Claressa Johnson at 615-427-1816.
claressa0467@hotmail.com

Short-sighted?

Trijicon, a manufacturer of rifle scopes, is issuing removal kits to take their encoded Bible references off their products. The company stamped Bible verses onto its products, like “JN812,” a reference to John 8:12, which states, “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’” The revelation was an embarrassment to the Pentagon because the U.S. armed forces used Trijicon’s products. Dr. Rami Shapiro, an adjunct professor of religion and an ordained rabbi, finds the news amusing. Sarcastically, he says, “What a shame. If it were up to me, I’d make the quotes more explicit. In this way, if the hardware is captured by people of a different faith, they may refuse to use the weapons for fear of violating their own faith.”

Read Shapiro’s blog at http://rabbirami.blogspot.com
rabbirami@gmail.com

Guns and the governor’s race

Among the candidates for governor, positions vary on public access to the names of people who have permits to carry handguns. Jim Kyle and Kim McMillan favor full access with Social Security numbers and addresses deleted. Mike McWherter, Ron Ramsey, Bill Gibbons and Bill Haslam favor access but not a searchable database on the Web. Zach Wamp does not support publishing the records. Dr. Larry Burriss, journalism professor and First Amendment expert, says, “Access to government records is about the only way citizens have of keeping track of what their government is doing. Last year, the Tennessee Press Association honored Governor Bredesen for his efforts at improving the public’s access to government information. With another election in the near future, candidates need to provide detailed explanations of their positions on citizens’ access to the citizens’ information.”

Contact Burriss at 615-898-2983.
lburriss@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

LEARNING FROM THE LANDSCAPE--MTSU history students produced the exhibit “Listening to the Landscape: The Stories of Stones River National Battlefield,” which is on display at Linebaugh Public Library, 105 W. Vine St. in Murfreesboro, through March 9th. The exhibit highlights the changes that occurred on the battlefield landscape prior to the Civil War through the present. One of the four exhibit panels highlights the African-American community known as “Cemetery.” It formed around Stones River National Cemetery after the Civil War. Linebaugh also will feature books that are related to the exhibit. “Listening to the Landscape” is sponsored by Eastern National, the Public History Program at MTSU, the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area and Stones River National Battlefield. Contact the Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area office at 615-898-2947 or the MTSU Department of History at 615-898-2536.

SAVING SOUTH SUDAN--GLOBAL, an MTSU student organization, will hold a bake sale for the New Sudan Education Initiative, from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. tomorrow, Feb. 10, the second floor of the Keathley University Center. New Sudan Education Initiative is a nonprofit organization “focused on increasing secondary education access, business training, and gender equity development. Our education enrichment programs are primarily targeted for young women in South Sudan,” according to its Web site, www.nesei.org. The GLOBAL organization at MTSU “strives to develop, foster and nurture diversity and tolerance within our campus community and provide intellectual training and outlets to aid well-informed, culturally tolerant global student citizens,” states the Global Studies Web site (http://www.mtsu.edu/global/GLOBALSO.shtml). For more information, call 615-494-7744 or send e-mails to jrw6m@mtsu.edu or keh3v@mtsu.edu.

SOMEDAY YOUR PRINTS WILL COME.--The Todd Hall Art Gallery will present “PRINTS: Through the Collector’s Eyes,” an exhibition that brings together a wide variety of original prints, Feb. 16 through March 4. An opening reception for the show will be held one day prior to its official opening, 6-8 p.m. Monday, Feb. 15, in the campus-based gallery. The public is encouraged and invited to attend this free event. Among the works that will be displayed are wood engravings, etchings, lithographs and screen prints, all of which are primarily from area collectors. “Included are prints from the 17th to the 21st centuries with work by famous artists as well as those who are less known,” says Christie Nuell, exhibit curator and MTSU art professor. The gallery is open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 9 a.m.-noon on Fridays. Call Eric Snyder, gallery curator, at 615-898-5653 or esnyder@mtsu.edu.

“CELLULOID HEROES NEVER REALLY DIE.”—RAY DAVIES--Two MTSU students are semifinalists in the second annual “Oscar Correspondent Contest.” Nicki DeCroce, a junior journalism major from Nashville, and Tony Holt, a senior electronic media production major from Maryville, combine for one of ten teams hoping to win a chance to interview the stars on the red carpet at the 82nd annual Academy Awards on Sunday, March 7, in Los Angeles. The video DeCroce and Holt made can be viewed at http://oscars.mtvu.com. Visitors to the Web site may vote for their favorite teams once each day through the deadline of tomorrow, Feb. 10.

APPLAUSE FOR THE PLEAS AWARD--Dr. Dwight E. Patterson, associate professor of chemistry at MTSU, has been named as the 2010 winner of the John Pleas Faculty Recognition Award as part of the university community’s celebration of Black History Month. A reception in honor of Patterson will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. tomorrow, Feb. 10, in the Tom Jackson Building’s Cantrell Hall on the MTSU campus. Presented since 1996, the Pleas honor is given to a minority faculty member who has made significant contributions to the university and community. He or she must have excelled in research, instruction, publications and/or service to the university. The recipient also must have demonstrated a commitment to MTSU’s African-American students. Contact Dr. Adonijah Bakari, director of African-American Studies, at 615-898-2536 or abakari@mtsu.edu.

HOME IS WHERE THE ART IS.--“Ramblings and Dwellings,” a joint exhibit of work by husband-and-wife artists Ken and Libby Rowe, is on display in MTSU’s Todd Art Gallery now through today, Feb. 9. An award-winning figurative sculptor, Ken’s “Ramblings” feature small-scale ceramic sculptures with a narrative bend and a whimsical nature. “His sculptures rely on a strong sense of humor and are often viewed as sardonic and quirky,” says Eric Snyder, gallery curator. In “Dwellings,” Libby’s current photographic work, she explores the emotional state of dwelling through the construction and photographing of small sculptural houses. The exhibit is free and open to the public. The Todd Gallery is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Admission is free. Call Snyder at 615-898-5653 or esnyder@mtsu.edu.

HOME IS WHERE THE VOLUNTEERS ARE.--MTSU students are building a second Habitat for Humanity home for a Rutherford County resident. Building dates will include Wednesdays, Fridays and some Saturdays. There will be two shifts per day—in the morning from 8:30 a.m. to noon and in the afternoon from noon until 4 p.m. The home dedication is tentatively scheduled for Thursday, March 25. The Office of Leadership and Service is rounding up volunteers from student organizations for this humanitarian effort. The future resident’s family also will be helping to build their home, and Central Middle School and Jason’s Deli are pitching in. Media welcomed. Good photo opportunities throughout the construction process. For more information, contact Jackie Victory at 615-898-5812 or mtleader@mtsu.edu.