NEWS & CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

As temperatures in East Tennessee drop below freezing, the idea of traveling South is most appealing, but for six members of the Tusculum College faculty, there is more on their agenda than sunny skies and warmer temperatures as they embark on a trip to the Central American country of Belize in February.

Robin Fife, assistant professor of social science at the College, is coordinating the trip that includes Dr. Katherine Stone, assistant professor of mathematics and geology; Robin Tipton, assistant professor of chemistry; Dr. Geir Bergvin, director for the Center for Global Studies; Dr. DiAnn Casteel, associate professor of education, and Dr. Tom McFarland, associate professor of business administration.

According to Tusculum College’s Interim President Dr. Russell Nichols, one of Tusculum’s highest academic priorities is the advancement of opportunities for students to have one or more international experiences before graduation.“It is envisioned that all Tusculum students and faculty, in five years, will be assured of that opportunity, regardless of their financial ability, and this goal has been embraced by faculty, students and Trustees,” said Nichols.

The Center for Global Studies was formed in spring 2008, with the mission to “enhance the capacity of individuals and organizations to address local and global challenges through building relationships with communities, institutions of higher learning and organizations globally.”

“Our first step in meeting these new college goals regarding international travel and experience is getting the faculty to travel and become familiar and motivated to bring that aspect into their courses,” Fife said.

Fife has led student trips to various parts of Belize on four different occasions and will work with the faculty on this venture to specifically relate their visit to a personal goal for the courses they teach.

She added that Belize is an ideal setting for an international experience for faculty, staff and students of Tusculum College. Only three and ½ hours from the U.S., it is an English speaking country with diverse cultures that offers authentic real world work and learning experiences. Belize is located on the Caribbean coast between Mexico and Guatemala.

Each of the traveling faculty and staff participating on the visit to St. Ignacio, Belize, will be researching international opportunities in their own field of expertise and looking for ways to incorporate a learning experience in the country into their current educational curriculum.

Bergvin, as director of the newly-created Center for Global Studies, will be looking at the overall international experience and for ways to provide cross-over experiences among the disciplines and student experiences.

Casteel will be developing a possible practicum site opportunity for education students at the College, with plans to integrate teaching and research opportunities for undergraduate students in junior and senior level courses. This program would introduce education faculty and students to multi-cultural aspects of the country and southern region of Belize.

Through living and teaching in Belize, pre-service teachers should develop a level of cultural literacy that will enhance their ability to strengthen academic achievement levels for a diverse population of children in their own classrooms.

McFarland will be meeting with economic development officials about the possibility of having majors visit Belize for international business experience. If the program is developed, students would learn how to develop, implement and monitor strategic, marketing and/or operational plans during their study of Belize. According to McFarland, this applied business opportunity will give students a chance to learn about both the Belize culture and economy.

Tipton will be looking at ways to integrate a visit into her environmental sciences course as a service learning project, and Stone will be researching internships and undergraduate research opportunities. Plans are to create an Environmental Science Service-Learning course that will meet the objectives of a service learning graduation requirement, while specifically focusing on environmental issues that will provide field experience and develop skills necessary in these fields of study.

“We hope to provide the faculty with an understanding of the educational, environmental, economic and social needs of Belize and to develop partnerships that will result in opportunities for integration into future courses, internships and undergraduate research,” Fife said.

Fife will continue with her trips to Belize and will bring her students back later this year. “We try to connect students to their fields of study through their service projects while we’re there,” Fife said. “Everything we do in Belize is to enhance and build on what students have learned in the classroom and provide them with an opportunity to experience the world in a way they might not otherwise have the chance to do.”

As an added element for the trip, Fife is working with Tusculum View Elementary School on a partnering project with the Belize schools. Students at Tusculum View are collecting school supplies as a service project and will send the items with the Tusculum faculty to be distributed to public schools in need in Belize.

In addition, Tusculum View art students will send drawings of Tennessee habitats and animals with the Tusculum College students traveling to Belize in March, who will then bring back drawings from the Belize children of their rainforest habitat and local animals which are very different, Fife said.

The trip is coordinated by Proworld Service Corps., an organization that specializes in international experiences for students and mission workers focused on sustainability. Fife also hopes to strengthen the College’s relationship with ProWorld, which has broad connections to the southern Belize community. According to Fife, these relationships will give Tusculum College faculty and students opportunities to develop and execute both academic and service learning projects connected to their fields of interest.

ProWorld has staff that lives in the community and help to provide long-term consistent development of projects for a broad spectrum of student learning, she said.

Ousainou Njie, who graduated from Tusculum College in December, is shown working in Belize. Njie was part of a previous Tusculum College student service learning and international travel experience.

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Twenty students in the Tusculum College Honors Program gathered with faculty members recently for a “book discussion and pizza party.” The group discussed the controversial book, “In Defense of Elitism” by William Henry III.

The book advocates a return to a stronger sense of personal responsibility and recognition that while individuals may all be equal in the eyes of the law, they have quite different abilities, a fact that needs to be acknowledged and adapted to.

Ron McCallister, director of the School of Arts and Humanities, led the discussion. The Honors Program plans to hold additional book discussion events in the future.

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On Monday evening (Jan. 26), the Tusculum College English Student Organization hosted its third annual Burns Supper to celebrate the birthday of Scottish poet Robert Burns. Students and English Department faculty enjoyed a traditional Scottish meal while students read selections of Burns’ poetry. Burns, an eighteenth century Romantic poet, is widely considered the national poet of Scotland and is celebrated worldwide. The Tusculum event followed the order of a traditional Burns Supper that begins with the reading of Burns’ “Selkirk Grace,” includes the “piping and cutting of the haggis” and concludes with the singing of perhaps Burns’ most well known work, “Auld Lang Syne.”

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With the popularity of cooking television programs, the apron is making a big come back in American kitchens, and the Doak House Museum will soon be offering an opportunity for cooks to make and personalize their own waist aprons.

The museum, located on the Tusculum College campus, will offer three waist-apron making workshops in February. Workshops will be held Thursday, Feb. 12; Saturday, Feb. 14; and Wednesday, Feb. 18. Each workshop will be 10 a.m. to noon with light refreshments and an “apron fashion show” to follow from noon to 1 p.m.

Individuals looking for a fun activity to get out of the house and escape the winter blues, those wanting to learn a new skill or perhaps make some special gifts for family or friends can find what they are seeking at this workshop. Groups and clubs are also welcome to reserve an entire time slot.

All supplies and instruction will be provided as part of the workshops. The cost for the workshop is $20 per person with advanced registration.. Proceeds from the workshops will benefit the educational programs of the Doak House Museum.

Reservations are required, and tickets will be sold on a first-purchased, first-served basis. Tickets at the door will be $25, if available.  Please call 423-636-8554 for ticket information.  No refunds will be given.

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Participation in a cross-discipline research project has resulted in three faculty members at Tusculum College receiving individual grants from the Appalachian College Association of $2,500 for each professor participant.

Dr. Amy Colombo, assistant professor of English; Dr. Brian Pope, associate professor of psychology, and Dr. Tom Harlow, assistant professor of psychology, have been working on a collaborative research project as part of the UNC Asheville Partnership for Undergraduate Research. The project, which encourages the development of faculty/undergraduate research, provides the grants to those participating, as well as offers a chance for participants to see their research published.

“The University of North Carolina at Asheville has really been a leader in the efforts to increase undergraduate research opportunities,” said Colombo. “They are recognized as an institution that is leading the efforts to provide more of these opportunities.”

As a result, UNC Asheville has not only developed the granting mechanism that the Tusculum professors were recipients of, but also developed an online research publication as an outlet for the undergraduate research projects to be published.

“When our research projects are complete, we, along with our student participants, will have the opportunity to present at the UNC Ashville Conference in the fall,” said Pope. “At that point, we will also be able to submit our research for publication in the Research Journal.”

“We are very proud to have our faculty recognized for the work they do, and also pleased that they are making an impact with research projects with undergraduate students. This provides our students an opportunity that is not available at many other undergraduate institutions,” said Dr. Kim Estep, Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs.

According to Harlow, being involved in this project with ACA and UNC Asheville “will not only help faculty with tenure and scholarship, but allow the College to emphasize the strengths it has in instructing undergraduates.

“We can do hands-on, long-term instruction of undergraduates in research that is not prevalent in many colleges or universities today.”

The focus of the faculty-student research project will be “What Are the Effects of Looking on the Bright Side,” Pope said, and the research will involve all three instructors as well as four student collaborators. Students include Lena Eidson-Kelly, Danielle Armstrong, Amanda Kyker and Megan Ownby.

“This is a collaborative effort with social sciences and humanities, as well as with faculty and students,” Harlow said. “We hope this will inspire other faculty to engage other departments and work more collaboratively on research projects with our students.”

Tusculum College, the oldest college in Tennessee and the 28th oldest in the nation, is a civic arts institution committed to developing educated citizens distinguished by academic excellence, public service and qualities of Judeo-Christian character. About twenty-four hundred students are enrolled on the main campus in Greeneville and four off-site locations in East Tennessee. The academic programs for both traditional-aged students and working adults served through the Graduate and Professional Studies program are delivered using focused calendars whereby students enroll in one course at a time.

From left, Tusculum professors Dr. Amy Colombo, Dr. Brian Pope and Dr. Tom Harlow recently received notice that their participation in an undergraduate research project had resulted in grants from the Appalachian College Association. (Tusculum College photo)

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A film crew working on behalf of the Nashville Film Festival was on the Tusculum College campus this week taking footage of the people and places that relate the history of the annual event.

Mark Compton, executive director of the Southern Appalachian International Film Festival, was on the Tusculum Campus with a film crew Sunday and Monday of this week. Compton was coordinating the visit for representatives of the Nashville Film Festival in the making of a documentary to celebrate its 40th anniversary this year.

According to Compton, the footage shot at the College will be used in a retrospective on Mary Jane Coleman, who founded the festival, which was once known as the Sinking Creek Film Celebration and was held on the Tusculum College campus.

Coleman managed the event with the help of several Tusculum faculty and staff for several years before the event grew in scope and was moved to Vanderbilt University in Nashville. Those being interviewed for the film included former Tusculum College Professor Wess duBrisk, current Director of Arts Outreach Marilyn duBrisk, Professor Emeritus of Art Clem Allison, as well as husband of Mary Jane Coleman, Nat Coleman, and Greeneville Mayor Laraine King.

The festival remained the Sinking Creek Film Celebration until 1997, when the festival was renamed the Nashville Independent Film Festival and then later became the Nashville Film Festival.

The retrospective will focus on Mary Jane Coleman and her efforts to initiate the Sinking Creek Film Celebration, as well as the early years of the festival itself. Coleman, a long-time supporter of the arts, wanted to “create a forum for small, independent films shown in a community setting.” Even after the move to Nashville, Coleman remained the artistic director for the festival through the 1970s and 1980s.

Founded in 1969 (as Sinking Creek Film Celebration in Tusculum), the Nashville Film Festival is one of the longest-running film festivals in the country, This annual film event attracts enthusiastic film lovers from the region and has been praised by filmgoers and filmmakers alike for its unique combination of big city film festival atmosphere and southern hospitality.  With more than 215 films from 38 countries, numerous industry panels and music showcases, the 2008 Nashville Film Festival drew more than 22,000 attendees.

With films crossing all genres from drama, comedy, animation, and family to experimental, foreign, documentaries and short films, the Festival has something for every filmgoer to enjoy.

Chris Massey and Kathy Conkwright, members of a film crew from the Nashville Film Festival, interview former professor Clem Allison, Tusculum College professor emeritus of art, about the history of the Sinking Creek Film Celebration, the original incarnation of the Nashville Film Festival now celebrating its 40th year. (Tusculum College photo)

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Please join us in welcoming our new Student Activities Center now open in the Pioneer Gym!

The Student Activities Center houses the offices of Ms. Stephanie Rhea, Senior Student Life Coordinator and Mr. Mark Persaud, Student Life Coordinator, who manage the programs of Student Activities, Recreational Sports and Residence Life.

In addition to the two staff offices, the Student Activities Center offers an area for students to work on upcoming events using craft resources available. We encourage you to stop by anytime!

The Student Activities Center will be hosting an Open House February 11 at 4 p.m. where you will be able to make your own Valentine. We hope to see you there! More information.

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Director of the Library Jack Smith recently published is 78^th book  which was featured in a news article in the Greeneville Sun. The new book, titled, “The Timberclads in the Civil War — The Lexington, Conestoga and Tyler in the Western Waters,” focuses on the converted riverboats used  as naval vessels on the Western front of the Civil War from 1861-1865.

The 552-page book chronicles the origin, battles and skirmishes of three particular “timberclads,” which were, according to Smith, essentially converted riverboats, which were the majority of Union vessels on inland rivers from July 1861-February 1862.

“It (the timberclads) was the only (Union) naval force for the first six months of the war, so a lot of attention is paid to that period,” including how the three timberclads were initially transported from Cincinnati to Illinois, Smith said in the Sun article.

The complete text of the article can be seen at http://www.greenevillesun.com/story/300914.

The book, published by McFarland and Company, Inc., is available at online and larger booksellers with a hardcover price of $75.  The TC bookstore will have copies available later this week and will be offering a 15 percent discount.

Director of the Library Jack Smith's Newest Book

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The 2009 Theologian-in-Lecture series at Tusculum College will bring a distinguished speaker to the region to discuss the differences between Christian ecumenism and evangelism and how the two can be reconciled.

Dr. Marian McClure, associate director and North America representative of “Edinburgh 2010: Witnessing to Christ Today,” will be the featured speaker for the annual series, co-sponsored by Holston Presbytery and Tusculum College. “Edinburgh 2010: Witnessing to Christ Today,” is the centenary celebration of a pivotal world mission conference that challenged Christians to greater ecumenical and evangelistic collaboration.

In her leadership of the 2009 Theologian-in-Residence lecture, Dr. McClure will explore the reasons for the particular history of Christian divisiveness between the ecumenical and evangelical camps and provide a challenge to continue the work of bridging and reconciling between the two.

In the four sessions of “Ecumenical (And? Or?) Evangelical,” she will explore how the chasm between ecumenical and evangelical formed, what bridges have been built between the two, what divisions still need to be healed and how a reconciliation of the two could make life different in East Tennessee.

Prior to her present position, Dr. McClure directed the Worldwide Ministries of the Presbyterian Church USA. At the beginning of her decade of service, she was introduced as “both evangelical and ecumenical.” As she learned why people wanted to hear both of those adjectives, she found herself serving as a bridging person between two wagon-circling camps.

Currently, Dr. McClure is also on the board of the Overseas Ministries Study Center in New Haven, Conn., serves as adjunct faculty in the Doctor of Ministry program at Louisville Presbyterian Seminary and chairs the Evangelism Committee of the congregation she attends.

Her earned doctorate is in political science from Harvard University, where her Fulbright-funded dissertation research explored the role of the Catholic Church in Haiti during the Duvalier dictatorship years. She then worked for the Ford Foundation more than five years as a grant-making officer living in Mexico and serving both Mexico and Central America. It was then that she responded to God’s call to seminary education and then to ordination to the church work of participation in world mission.

In demand as a lecturer, preacher and facilitator of mission-focused group retreats, Dr. McClure is also a mezzo-soprano church soloist and member of the Louisville Choral Arts Society.

The series takes place on each of the four Tuesdays in February, the 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th. Sessions will be held in the Chalmers Conference Center inside the Niswonger Commons on the Tusculum College campus and will begin at 10 a.m. The series is open to public. There is no admission fee and lunch is provided for participants. Reservations are required and can be made by calling Angie Shipley at 423-636-7319 or 1-800-729-0256 ext. 5319, or e-mailing ashipley@tusculum.edu.

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The Rev. Lester Lattany, a member of Tusculum College’s Board of Trustees, was recognized Saturday (Jan. 17) for his contributions to higher education by a regional heritage group.

Rev. Lattany, who is also an alumnus of Tusculum College, was one of five honorees recognized during the seventh annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Prayer Breakfast, hosted by the Langston Heritage Group at Wesley United Methodist Church in Johnson City. The historical organization is committed to documenting the history of African-Americans in the Northeast Tennessee region.

“There are not enough good things to say about Lester Lattany,” said Mary Alexander, director of the Langston Heritage Group, in presenting the award. Rev. Lattany came to the area from Brunswick, Ga., and “the sky has been the limit for him,” she added.

Rev. Lattany and the other honorees were recognized because of the type of people they are – men who have worked hard and prepared themselves for leadership as well as being men of strong character, Alexander noted.

The president and chief executive officer of the Johnson City Area United Way, Rev. Lattany is pastor of the Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Kingsport. An active community leader, his service to others includes membership on the boards of the United Way of America and Tennessee, the board of Washington County Court Services, and the board of Tri-Cities Christian School.

Rev. Lattany joined the Tusculum Board of Trustees last year. He also serves on the College’s Johnson City President’s Advisory Council. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Tusculum in 1987 and a master’s degree in 1991.

Also recognized by the Langston Heritage Group were Robert L. White who serves on the Tennessee Higher Education Commission; Paul Montgomery who serves on the Tennessee Board of Regents; Dr. Paul Stanton, president of East Tennessee State University; and the Rev. C. Danny Johnson, a member of the Board of Trustees of Milligan College.

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