NEWS & CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

Members of GLAWPIGT (Great Literature Alive, Well and Playing in Greeneville, Tennessee) recently visited a Tusculum College class for a presentation about improving public speaking skills. The members accompanied Marilyn duBrisk, director of Tusculum College Arts Outreach, as she visited a class taught by Dr. Desirae Matherly, assistant professor of English, to provide pointers about overcoming the fear and nervousness that many feel about public speaking. duBrisk shared information about the importance of clearly enunciating words, varying vocal pitch and speed, showing emotion and knowing the subject to engaging an audience during a speech. The GLAWPIGT students taught the college students a technique to help improve focus, pictured below, and provided examples of engaging presentations in dramatic recitals of poems. GLAWPIGT is a program of Tusculum College Arts Outreach that involves Greeneville and Greene County students in grades 3-12 who meet weekly for a 90-minute session of sharing literature and learning presentation techniques. Members present workshops in area schools each year.

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Tusculum College history majors and minors had the opportunity recently to learn about a career in education from an experienced professional’s point of view. Dr. Charles Griffith, the chair of the Social Studies Department of Science Hill High School in Johnson City, visited with about 15 history and history-education majors on March 24 to give pointers about pursuing a career in education and share his experiences in the classroom. Griffith gave information to the college students about what to expect in the job market if they pursue a career in history education. He gave them tips about how to make the right impression as a student teacher and in a job interview. Dr. Griffith also told the students that a career in education is rewarding, sharing some of his personal experiences in building strong relationships with students and watching them grow.

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Tusculum College students Danielle Armstrong, Phillip Dean, Andy English and David Roncskevitz are the winners of the 2010 Curtis and Billie Owens Literary Awards, annually given to recognize the literary achievements of the college’s creative writing students.

Danielle Armstrong of Blountville won in the non-fiction category for “Mature Realism.” Armstrong is a junior majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing.

Phillip Dean of Whitesburg won the poetry category for his collection of 10 poems. Dean is a senior majoring in pre-medicine.

Andy English of Greeneville was the winner in the fiction category for his story, “Crop Rotation.” English is a senior majoring in English with a concentration in creative writing.

David Roncskevitz of Franklin won the scriptwriting category with his work, “House of Autumn Fire.” Roncskevitz is a junior majoring English with a writing concentration.

Award-winning author and essayist Patrick Madden made the announcement of the winners of the literary competition during a program on March 22. Madden, whose first book won second place in the 2007 AWP (Association of Writers and Writing Programs) Award Series in Creative Nonfiction, was the judge for this year’s competition. The announcement of the award was made after Madden gave the audience of students, faculty and staff a taste of that book, “Quotidiana,” a collection of essays, with the reading of his essay, “Asymptosy.“ Madden, who teachers creative writing at Brigham Young University, is the fourth outside literary figure to judge the competition. Madden’s reading was part of the college’s 2009-2010 Humanities Series.

The literary award was named for Curtis Owens, a 1928 graduate of Tusculum College who went on to a teaching career at what is now Pace University in New York.  He and his wife established the Owens Award at his alma mater to encourage and reward excellence in writing among Tusculum College students.

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From March 17 through March 20 a dedicated group of Tusculum College students majoring in Sports Science and Sport Management worked on their professional development at the 2010 American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) convention in Indianapolis, Ind.

Seniors Vanessa Fyffe of Bellbrook, Ohio; Katherine Shelton of Dandridge, Altorion Reed of Darien, Ga.; Ryan Tallent of Knoxville; Micah Haney of Union Grove, Ala., and Simon Holzapfel of Nuremberg, Germany joined Dr. Kirpal Mahal, professor of physical education, in attending numerous sessions and presentations in the fields of Physical Education, Exercise Science, and Sport Management.

The students attended socials to meet the leaders in their respective fields, explore the range of professions and establish contacts. The exhibitions at the convention also proved tremendous resources as multiple graduate schools, sports companies and researchers provided information about themselves and their products or studies.

Mahal, along with Holzapfel, co-presented a session on Wake-Up Yoga on the morning of March 18, and a second session focusing on breathing-relaxation and Yoga in the afternoon of the same day. According to Holzapfel, although the first session was at 6:30 a.m., 20 dedicated people showed up, whereas the second session was attended by 40 people.

Funding for the trip was provided by Tusculum College. The group thanked the Faculty Development Committee and Dr. Kim Estep, provost and academic vice president, for approving the financing of this project. They also thanked the executive committee of the Physical Education and Sports Majors Club for handling funds from Student Affairs that provided partial financial support for student meals.

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Congratulations Tusculum College!

Tusculum College has been chosen Claiborne County’s favorite college by the readers of the Claiborne Progress.  It was announced on March 10 that Tusculum has received the People’s Choice Award in the category of Best College for 2010, receiving more votes than several other colleges in the area.

Congratulations to everyone for continuing to support the mission of the College, and know that your hard work is recognized by the community.

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Tusculum College’s Dr. Lin Stepp, who has taught developmental and educational psychology, as well as a research writing course at the Tusculum College Knoxville Regional Center, will be on campus Thursday April 22, from 2-4 p.m. for a meet and greet and book signing event.

Stepp has released two of a 12-book Smoky Mountain Series, which have received positive reviews, including a glowing review from Dolly Parton.

According to Stepp, the series is set in the Smoky Mountains, with “The Foster Girls” set in Wear’s Valley. The second book in the series, “Tell Me About Orchard Hollow,” is set in Townsend and is the most recently released.

In the second book, the main character, Jenna Howell, hastily retreats to a rural cabin in Townsend from downtown Manhattan after several shocking events and heartache come her way. Having heard many happy stories about the Smoky Mountains from her friend, Sam Oliver, in New York, Jenna hopes escaping to Sam’s place will help her figure out what to do with the shambles of her life.

On Orchard Hollow Road in Townsend, Jenna meets many new friends, including local artist Boyce Hart. A quick attraction, unwanted by either, sparks between Jenna and Boyce, proving to be both exciting and confusing. With time and space away from New York, Jenna begins to heal and develop confidence and faith.  However, unexpected tragedy forces her to return to New York all too soon - where she has to try out her new-found strengths, resolve the problems in her life and decide on the direction for her future.  Choosing the right course proves to be more difficult than expected - as two very different lives vie with opposite allures for Jenna’s heart.

“The Smoky Mountain series are all contemporary southern fiction - with a generous sprinkling of romance, a dash of suspense, a touch of inspiration and a big dollop of Appalachian flavor,” said Stepp.  “Unlike many series books, each novel is a complete story in itself - with a warm, satisfying ending.  The link in the series is that each book is set in a different region of the Smoky Mountains, giving the reader a visit to those areas around the mountains with each read.”

She added that the books are interwoven in a way in which characters from one book might walk into another book.  For example, a minor character and social worker in “The Foster Girls” becomes the main character in the third book in the series called “For Six Good Reasons.”

“I am fortunate to have nationally-acclaimed artist Jim Gray’s beautiful art work on the cover of all my novels and very grateful to have the praise and support of Dolly Parton for my books,” said Stepp. “My national and regional reviews have been very good - such as the one from the well-known Midwest Review.”

For more information about Stepp and her novels, see her author’s website at www.linstepp.com.

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The Pioneer Sports Network will be broadcasting Tuesday’s quarterfinal game of the NCAA Division II Elite Eight between Tusculum College and top-ranked Gannon University, which tips off at 7 p.m. ET.

The “Voice of the Pioneers” Brain Stayton will describe all the action from the St. Joseph Civic Arena in St. Joseph, Mo. beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET with the Pioneer Pre-Game Show.

Fans can listen to the PSN feed in Greeneville on WSMG 1450 AM and on WIKQ 103.1 FM. The game can also be heard on Greeneville Comcast Cable Channel 18. For fans traveling to St. Joseph, Mo., a live feed will be available at 90.5 FM at the St. Joseph Civic Arena.

The NCAA will be providing free video for all quarterfinal games. Fans can tune into the Tusculum/Gannon matchup at the links provided below.

Live Video: http://all-access.cbssports.com/player.html?code=ncaa&media=174113

Live Audio: http://www.redzonemedia.com/viewschedule.asp?sportID=3&SchoolID=85

Host Institution Missouri Western State University and the NCAA will be providing Live Stats for the game at the following link:

Live stats:

 http://www.ncaa.com/gametracker/launch/gt_wbaskbl.html?event=884750&school=ncaa&sport=wbaskbl&camefrom=&startschool=&

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Essayist and The Tusculum Review Advisory Board member Patrick Madden will read on the Tusculum College campus Monday, March 22.

 The event will begin at 7 p.m. in the Chalmers Conference Room in Niswonger Commons. Admittance is free and open to the public. Arts & Lecture credit is available for students.

 Following the reading, Madden will announce his selections for this year’s Curtis-Owens prizes, an annual award to recognize the literary achievements of the college’s creative writing students.

 Madden is the fourth “outside” judge for the competition, following Playwright David Muschell, Poet Sally Keith and Fictionist Kellie Wells.

Madden was raised in Whippany, New Jersey, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He received his B.S. in physics from Notre Dame in 1993, his M.A. in English from BYU in 1999, and his Ph.D. in English from Ohio University in 2004. He served a mission to Uruguay from 1993-1995 and later returned there as a Fulbright fellow from 2002-2003 to write his dissertation, a collection of travel essays.

 His first book, “Quotidiana,” a collection of essays that won second place in the 2007 AWP Award Series in Creative Nonfiction has been published by the University of Nebraska Press. He has published individual essays in The Iowa Review, Fourth Genre, Hotel Amerika, Portland Magazine and many other journals. In addition, several of these essays have been anthologized in The Best American Spiritual Writing 2007 and The Best Creative Nonfiction vol. 2.

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Three Tusculum College professors recently returned from Salzburg, Austria, ready to move forward with several elements of the college’s international program and prepared to initiate research on some additional elements of that program.

Dr. Geir Bergvin, director of the Center for Global Studies and associate professor of marketing; Dr. Joel Van Amberg, assistant professor of history, and Dr. DiAnn Casteel, associate professor of education, returned in February from the Salzburg Global Seminar in Austria, to participate in an international curriculum development program through a Mellon Fellowship grant program.

“The colleges participating in the program are in a wide range of development of their international programs,” said Bergvin, “And, we found that there was tremendous value in learning about some of the challenges they have encountered along the way.”

Bergvin has been leading the charge to expand international opportunities at the Tusculum College campus since the college declared it a major strategic initiative to increase the number of students who participate in international travel experiences and to internationalize the curriculum to better prepare students for the 21^st Century.

One major item under discussion for Tusculum College is reinstituting a formal language program for its students.

 ”We are researching a variety of alternatives,” said Bergvin, including partnering with another school in order to offer language courses not currently in the Tusculum College catalog.     In addition, Bergvin is hoping that Tusculum will be a pilot school for such a program through an initiative of the Appalachian Colleges Association.

Van Amberg, who has traveled extensively both personally and through his role at the College, said that this seminar allowed the group to see how other colleges are facing budgeting issues and learning how they are moving their programs forward, despite the difficult economic climate.

“Our desire is not to destroy the momentum of the program,” he said. “It is helpful for all of us to be aware of similar situations and see how other institutions are pushing forward.”

“Our time in Salzburg provided an opportunity to interact with others that had similar plans for their students. We were able learn from their experiences, which in turn strengthens our own program. Facilitating international travel for students in our residential and Graduate and Professional Studies programs will bring a new dimension to experiences offered by Tusculum College,” said Casteel.

However, one area where the Tusculum College representatives felt their program was stronger than most was the support and commitment shown by the institution to develop the program.

“We are very fortunate for the support of the Center for Global Studies and its programs. We have received a lot of support from the faculty and the administration of Tusculum College,” said Bergvin.

He added that in addition to strengthening the language program, a second goal of the program is building partnerships with institutions in other countries.

“We have had very positive feedback from institutions in England, Spain and Costa Rica,” said Bergvin.

In the meantime, Tusculum’s international program has begun to see success on campus as more students are inquiring about international travel and study abroad opportunities.

“There seems to be an awakening of the student body,” he added. “It’s very exciting.  Something is happening and it is encouraging. That interest has not been there in the past.”

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Twelve Tusculum College students were inducted into the Alpha Chi National Honor Society during a ceremony before family and friends Wednesday, March 17, in the Chalmers Conference Center on campus.

Alpha Chi members are juniors and seniors who rank in the top 10 percent of their classes academically. Members are admitted to the honor society from all academic disciplines. The invitation to join the honor society, extended by the college’s faculty, recognizes previous accomplishments and provides opportunity for continued growth and service.

Inducted were:
• Danielle Armstrong, a junior from Blountville, Tenn., majoring in English with a creative writing concentration;
• Candace Babb, a senior from Greeneville, Tenn., majoring in human growth and learning, K-6;
• Brittany Bible, a senior from Talbott, Tenn., majoring in pre-pharmacy;
• Emily Broyles, a junior from Chuckey, Tenn., majoring in human growth and learning, K-6;
• Kiarra Ervin, a junior from Chattanooga, Tenn., majoring in business administration with a concentration in management accounting;
• Brandon Gann, a junior from Newport, Tenn., majoring in business administration;
• Devona Hamm, a junior from Adamsville, Tenn., majoring in art and design with a concentration in graphic design;
• Simon Holzapfel, a junior from Nuremberg, Germany, majoring in sports science and sport management;
• Taylor MacDonald, a junior from Toronto, Ontario, majoring in human growth and learning, K-6;
• Jason Seaton, a junior from Midway, Tenn., majoring in athletic training;
• Ashley Shoults, a senior from Newark, Ohio, majoring in political science, and
• Amber Willis, a junior from Fall Branch, Tenn., majoring in human growth and learning, K-6.

Tusculum College President Dr. Nancy B. Moody congratulated the new Alpha Chi inductees on their achievement. “The Alpha Chi honor society shares many of the core values that we here at Tusculum value and display, such as personal integrity, civic responsibility and commitment to continual improvement as a life-long enterprise,” she said. “It is the highest academic honor that Tusculum College offers its students. … Your successes are many and tonight Tusculum College is proud to recognize your hard work, efforts and commitment to excellence.”

Troy Goodale, faculty sponsor for Tusculum’s Alpha Chi chapter, said he was pleased to have the opportunity to be involved with the chapter. Goodale, who is an assistant professor of political science at the college, described how Alpha Chi’s focus and student activities reflect Tusculum’s mission and emphasis on community service.

Zack Smith, president of Tusculum’s Alpha Chi chapter; shared history and information about the honor society. Alpha Chi has been a respected college honor society since its beginning in 1922 and is an active member of the Association of College Honor Societies. The society’s purpose is to promote academic excellence and exemplary character among college and university students and to honor those who achieve such distinction. Its name is derived from the first letter of the Greek words meaning truth and character, and its motto is “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free,” taken from John 8:32 in the Bible.  Tusculum’s chapter was the first one established in the state.

Participating in the induction ceremony were Glenn Vicary, vice president of the Tusculum chapter; Estefania Chavez, the chapter’s secretary/treasurer, and Dr. Melinda Dukes, associate vice president for academic affairs.

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