Monday, September 20, 2010

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

A broken Trojan

Reggie Bush may be giving his 2005 Heisman Trophy back to the New York Athletic Club, but he’s not admitting any guilt for the recruiting violations that tainted his alma mater, the University of Southern California. Should the trophy go to the runner-up, Vince Young? Dr. Colby Jubenville, coordinator of the master’s degree program in sport management at MTSU, says, “I will leave that decision and the legacy the committee wants to leave to them. However, to me, the real issue is that this question defines the reality of college sports today. This crossroads for Reggie and the Heisman Trophy personifies just how blurry college athletics has become and the consequences of the current model we have in place.” The Sun Belt Conference’s Real Sportsmanship program was developed by Jubenville and MTSU’s Center for Sport Policy and Research.

Contact Jubenville at 615-898-2909.
jubenvil@mtsu.edu

The seal of approval

The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi recently recognized the campus chapter at MTSU as a Chapter of Excellence. MTSU received the award at the organization’s national biennial convention last month in Kansas City, Mo., for its efforts in recognizing and promoting academic excellence in all fields of higher education and engaging the community of scholars in service to others. By receiving this distinction, MTSU’s chapter is recognized as a thriving organization that meets frequently, holds annual initiations and applied frequently for Phi Kappa Phi’s select scholarships, grants and fellowships. Phi Kappa Phi is the nation’s oldest, largest and most selective all-discipline honor society.

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

From our overseas correspondent

As technological developments revolutionize communication with unprecedented speed, MTSU is offering a new International Media Studies minor beginning in the current fall semester. This study track is designed to provide students with an understanding of how various types of media are used around the world. It will offer textual analyses of media messages and audience interpretations, including insight through audience ethnographics. Dr. Richard Pace, professor of anthropology, helped develop the minor with Dr. Robert Spires, professor of electronic media communication. Some of the courses that can be taken for successful completion of the minor include Global News and World Media Cultures, Media and Emotions in Global Perspective and Anthropology of Music.

Contact Pace at 615-904-8058.
rpace@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

IF YOU YEARN TO LEARN—“Adventures in Learning,” the annual mini-school for adults age 50 and above, will take place from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. today, Sept. 20, Sept. 27 and Oct. 4 at First United Methodist Church, 265 W. Thompson Lane in Murfreesboro. The purpose of the event, which is planned by an interfaith coalition, is to provide a program by and for older adults in which they can share knowledge, talents and skills for lifelong learning and personal growth. As usual, retired and active MTSU faculty will play prominent roles in the event. A highlight will be “Mount and Mountain,” a dialogue between Dr. Rami Shapiro, adjunct professor of religious studies and an ordained rabbi, and Dr. Michael A. Smith, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Murfreesboro. This class will be based on online conversations Shapiro and Smith conducted about the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount. To register, or for more information, contact Mary Belle Ginanni at 615-895-6072.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK/A WONDERFUL TOWN—MTSU’s Baldwin Photographic Gallery is proud to play host to “New York, September 11” by world-renowned photographic cooperative Magnum Photos through Oct. 18. This stunning exhibition of 39 rare photographs began touring the nation five years after the terrorist attacks on the United States. These pictures capture images as they happened—many from an intimate, street-level perspective. Also included are beautiful photos of the World Trade Center twin towers before their fall. The Baldwin Gallery is in the McWherter Learning Resources Center. Exhibitions are free and open to the public. Hours are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and on Saturday from 12-4 p.m.

THE LATEST FROM THE DISMAL SCIENCE--Dr. David Penn, professor of economics and director of the Business and Economic Research Center at MTSU, will deliver a midstate/regional economic update to the Rotary Club of Nashville at about 12:30 p.m. today, Sept. 20, at the Wildhorse Saloon, 120 Second Avenue North in Nashville. For more information, call the BERC at 615-898-2610 or the Rotary Club at 615-781-2900.