NEWS & CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

Dr. Bill Garris, assistant professor of psychology, was honored as this year’s Faculty Mentor of the Year by the President’s Society at its year-end banquet hosted by Dr. Nancy B. Moody on Tuesday, May 4. During the “Reading of Celebration”, Dr. Garris was recognized as one who exemplifies the true meaning of the faculty role outside the classroom. The President’s Society recognized Garris for his countless hours spent in helping the College complete the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools-Commission on Colleges as the Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) director while honoring his teaching responsibilities.

Dr. Garris was also recognized for his efforts to personally educate each member of the President’s Society about the reaffirmation of accreditation process and the QEP, problem solving with reflective judgment. Due to his dedication, the President’s Society members were able to play a key role in the reaffirmation of accreditation process. His knowledge, along with his positive spirit and uplifting attitude, helped bolster and fortify the Society’s role as campus leaders.

The President’s Society is an elite student organization dedicated to promoting and fortifying the mission of the College. The students serve as ambassadors for the College, serve as hosts for campus visits, participate in leadership and ethics training and assist with campus events.

Tweet This Post

Student excellence in academics and service were recognized during Tusculum College’s annual Honors Convocation Thursday, April 29.

The two top honors for students presented by the College are the President’s Award and the Bruce G. Batts Award. Jarrell NeSmith of Russellville, Ala., was presented the President’s Award and Estefania Chavez, a native of Honduras, was presented the Bruce G. Batts Award.

Nesmith, who graduated in December with a bachelor of arts degree in pre-medicine, had one of the most decorated athletic and academic careers in Tusculum history. He graduated with a 3.87 grade point average and was named to the Tusculum President’s List, Dean’s List and Charles Oliver Gray Scholars List, which recognize academic achievements per semester, throughout his Tusculum career.

The 2008-09 recipient of the South Atlantic President’s Award, NeSmith was only the second football player in the history of the award to earn the conference’s most prestigious honor. He was also named the South Atlantic Conference Scholar Athlete for Football for three straight years, the first three-time recipient in conference history.

This past December, NeSmith was named to the National Football Foundation Scholar Athlete Team and was one of the 16 national finalists for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best in the country for his combined academic success, football performance and exemplary community leadership. He was the only Division II player among the honorees.

NeSmith earned ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American honors for two years and is only the second Pioneer to be a two-time Academic All-American. On the athletic side, he earned All-America honors in 2008 from three organizations for a year in which he posted 67 receptions for 635 yards and seven touchdowns.

He was a national semifinalist for the American Football Coaches Association’s Good Works Team. His service to others during his college career including mentoring students at a nearby elementary school and working with Habitat for Humanity.

Presented in memory of a beloved educator at Tusculum who helped define the college’s civic arts curricular focus, the Bruce G. Batts Award is presented to a student who clearly demonstrates the qualities that reflect the civic arts ideals. This year’s recipient, Estefania Chavez, is a senior political science major with minors in international business, economics and civic engagement. Her commitment to serve others is evident in her campus activities as well as her academic aspirations. Chavez’s aspiration is to become an attorney and work internationally, and she is currently serving as an intern in the state District Attorney General’s office in Greeneville.

Chavez is serving as co-president of the Bonner Leader student service organization this year. She is a dedicated member of the Bonner Leaders, a nationally recognized program that requires all participants to serve at least 100 hours of community service per semester. As a Bonner Leader, she has worked on a project to reduce truancy and drop-out rates in at-risk students and implemented the Bonner mentoring program to work with at-risk middle school students. She has also worked with the English as a Second Language program and tutored Spanish-speaking elementary students.

She has been active on campus in the Student Government Association, serving on several committees to enact change to better campus. She has served as secretary/treasurer of Tusculum’s chapter of the Alpha Chi national honor society and is  a member of the women’s cross country team.

Also presented were faculty, staff and community awards whose recipients were selected by a student vote. Receiving the Outstanding Service to Students Award, a faculty honor, was Leslie Hanneken, an assistant professor of physical education.

In presenting the award, Randy Rumbley, chairman of the board of the Greene County Partnership, said that Hanneken has been described as a “gift to students. A nurturing and supportive educator, counselor and mentor, she has worked diligently to raise the quality of work from her students across all levels. She is admired and respected by her students for her genuine interest in their success, but is a firm believer in accountability in all students. In her three years with the College, she has worked for and with her students in numerous ways, including service projects with the local schools and other community activities that give back, while giving her students an opportunity to practice their classroom-learned skills. She is dedicated, caring, supportive and loved and admired by her students.”

The Staff Award was presented to Chris Lenker, who is head athletic trainer for the college. Lenker directs the overall operation and medical treatment of the student-athletes in the 14 intercollegiate sports offered by the college. “Chris is a role model to students as he demonstrates hard work, dedication and a strong desire to be great at his job,” said Tiffany Colbaugh, president of the Student Government Association, in presenting the award. “He is a mentor to students considering athletic training careers and a key adult influence for many of the student-athletes he works with as they train and deal with injury.”

The Community Award for exemplary service to students was presented to prominent Greeneville businessman and philanthropist Scott M. Niswonger.  In presenting the award Brooke Haymaker, who is vice president of the Student Government Association, noted that Niswonger, a 1987 graduate of Tusculum College, is a leader in philanthropy across the region and the country and has faithfully supported Tusculum College both financially and with the investment of his time in providing leadership and guidance at the highest levels as a respected member of the Board of Trustees.

“His investment into education is unparalleled, and students at Tusculum College, past, present and future are impacted by his choice to support the College, its mission, and in particular its students,” Haymaker said. “With his support, students have access to some of the best academic, residential and athletic facilities in the nation. He led the efforts to revitalize both the student center and the library, to push forward the construction of the student apartments, and his generosity led to the construction of the finest sports facilities in the South Atlantic Conference and beyond.”

Academic Honors
Senior Honor Key Awards were presented to students who have earned a 3.25 grade point average or higher in their major, shown achievement and aptitude in the major, and possess strong character.  The following are the award recipients and their degree programs:

Accounting – Henrique Alves Rodrigues of Salvador, Brazil
Biology  – Brittany Bible of Talbott, Tenn., and Glenn Vicary of Oak Ridge, Tenn.
Environmental Science – Rachel Burchnell of Greeneville, Tenn.
General Management – Tabatha Smith of Greeneville, Tenn.
History - Lynnsey Jett of Jefferson City, Tenn.
K-3 Education – Brittany Barnett of Johnson City, Tenn.
K-6 Education – Candace Babb of Greeneville, Tenn.
Mathematics – Kelsey Longwell of Johnson City, Tenn.
Physical Education K-12 – Whitney King of Sevierville, Tenn.
Political Science – Estefania Chavez of Honduras
Psychology – Lena Eidson-Kelly of Odenville, Ala.
Secondary Education – English 7-12 – April Jones of Kingsport, Tenn.
Special Education – Chris Young of Ringgold, Ga.
Sport Management – Vanessa N. Fyffe of Bellbrook, Ohio
Sport Science – Katherine Shelton of Dandridge, Tenn.
Visual Art K-12 – Katie Bible of Newport, Tenn.

Recognized as Honor Students for having the highest grade point average of their class (all have a 4.0 grade point average) were:
seniors – Danielle Armstrong of Blountville, Tenn., and Simon Holzapfel of Nuremberg, Germany
junior –  Storm Vance of Elizabethton, Tenn.
sophomores – Weston A. Gantte of Dandridge, Tenn., and Derek Murrell of Bulls Gap, Tenn.
freshmen – Jessica L. Britton of Greeneville, Tenn.; Courtney A. Conley of Bristol, Tenn., Kayla N. Durden of Taylor Mill, Ky.; Don D. Maples of Lenoir City, Tenn., and Luis C. Zamora of Santiago, Chile.

Senior members of the Alpha Chi National Honor Society were also recognized. Upperclassmen who are ranked in the top 10 academically of their classmates are invited to join the honor society. Recognized were:
Candace Babb of Greeneville, Tenn.
Eric Barclay of Oak Ridge, Tenn.
Brittany Bible of Talbott, Tenn.
Estefania Chavez of Honduras,
Lena Eidson-Kelly of Odenville, Ala.
Micah Haney of Union Grove, Ala.
Kelsey Longwell of Johnson City, Tenn.
Henrique Alves-Rodrigues of Salvador, Brazil
Ashley Shoults of Newark, Ohio
Glenn Vicary of Oak Ridge, Tenn.

The Alpha Chi Academic Excellence Award presented to the highest academically ranked member of the junior class was presented to Danielle Armstrong of Blountville, Tenn., and Simon Holzapfel of Nuremberg, Germany.

Students who were chosen for the Curtis and Billie Owens Literary Prizes were honored. Students submit original, creative works in the annual writing competition, which were judged this year by award-winning author Patrick Madden. The winners were poetry – Philip Dean of Whitesburg, Tenn.; fiction – Andy English of Greeneville, Tenn.; creative non-fiction – Danielle Armstrong of Blountville, Tenn.; and scriptwriting – David Ronsckevitz of Franklin, Tenn.

The Dr. Shirley Beck Award for an outstanding Master of Arts in Education major was presented to Aundrea Gunter of Afton, Tenn., a teacher at West Greene High School.

The Outstanding Education Student Award was presented to Jonathan Bewley of Morristown, Tenn.

The E.H. Sargent Award in Science was presented to Nate Binder of Maidstone, Ontario. In choosing the recipient, science faculty members consider overall grade point average, total hours in science and variety of areas covered in the sciences.

The Doug Ratledge Environmental Science Scholarship, which is presented to an outstanding Environmental Science or Field Guide/Naturalist major, was given to Jessica Shipley of Greeneville, Tenn.

The Warren Lynn Drain Award was presented to Will Loggins of Crossville, Tenn. A graduating senior determined most outstanding in Business and Economics is presented the award and GPA and achievement are the criteria for the choice of recipient. Loggins was also the president of the college’s Business Club this past year.

The Theatre Award was given to Brian Ricker of Greeneville, Tenn. for his participation and dedication to the theater program at Tusculum College. Ricker has performed as part of 16 Theatre-at-Tusculum productions since high school and is recognized for his abundance of acting talent.

The David Behan Award was presented to Nora Ramsey of Pigeon Forge, Tenn., for her support in advancing theater at Tusculum. Ramsey has been involved in many aspects of the theater program. She has worked backstage helping with sets, manned the box office for numerous performances and assisted in office tasks.

Simon Holzapfel of Nuremberg, Germany, received the TAHPERD (Tennessee Association Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance) Outstanding Major Award. The award winner is also recognized at the association’s annual convention.

Vanessa N. Fyffe of Bellbrook, Ohio, was presented the NASPE (National Association for Sport and Physical Education) Award. The award winner is also recognized at the national convention.

The Pinnacle Award for highest scores on annual comprehensive examinations taken by athletic training education majors was presented to Kimsie Hall of Cleveland, Tenn.

Service Awards
The Service-Learning Award was awarded to students in a Service-Learning Immersion class that traveled this spring to New Orleans to help in the rebuilding efforts in the Lower Ninth Ward. As part of the trip, the students had the opportunity to meet some of the homeowners they were helping and hear their stories. The students learned about patience, the importance of teamwork and carpentry skills such as how to hang dry wall. The award recipients were Ashley Bradford of London, Ky.; Jillian Cunha of London, Ontario; Kimsie Hall of Cleveland, Tenn.; Katrina Larkin of Kingsport, Tenn.; Kelsey Longwell of Johnson City, Tenn.; Elizabeth McDonnell of Memphis, Tenn.; Victoria Neal of Ellenwood, Ga., and David Roncskevitz of Franklin, Tenn.

The Bonner Leaders Program Award was presented to Jaime Sizemore of Greeneville, Tenn., for her high level of commitment to the Bonners program, for her personal integrity and character and for her dedication to serving others whether on the Tusculum campus or in the community.

Sizemore has been an enthusiastic member of the Bonner Leaders. She has worked with Rural Resources, helping to organize and archive the documents and files recovered from a fire that destroyed the organization’s offices as well as classroom and kitchen space. She organized the Service on Saturday program for this academic year and stepped in to help in other programs when needed such as the mentoring program with at-risk students at Greeneville Middle School.

Tweet This Post

Tusculum College’s President’s Society is celebrating its 2009-2010 successes in building student leaders in the civic arts culture of practical wisdom and service to others and looking forward to the year ahead with the naming of new members who have recently been accepted into the organization.

The President’s Society is an elite student organization dedicated to promoting and fortifying the mission of the College. The students serve as ambassadors for the College, serve as hosts for campus visits, participate in leadership and ethics training and assist with campus events.

The current President’s Society students have hosted student tours and assisted with College recruitment efforts and served as tour guides for special guests on campus during Homecoming and other special events.

Nominations for candidates for next year’s program were recently solicited and many excellent candidates were brought up for consideration, said Nicole Martin, admission counselor.

Students who will serve as members of the President’s Society in the 2010-2011 academic year are: Logan Callahan, a sophomore education major from Morristown; Lynnsey Jett, a senior history education major from Jefferson City; Amber Sharp, a junior athletic training education major from Tazewell; Jason Seaton, a junior athletic training education major from Greeneville; Joy Beeler, a sophomore psychology education major from New Tazewell; Sierra Sims, a junior psychology and business major from Danville, Ky.; JohnDavid Howard, a junior accounting and economic s major from Perry, Ga.; Kristin Wonderley, a junior business major from Charlotte, N.C.; Vinton Copeland, a freshman political science major from LaGrange, Ga.; Kimsie Hall, a sophomore athletic training education major from Cleveland; Savannah Ewing, a sophomore business major from Rogersville, and Courtney Bare, a junior education major from Emory, Va.

Copeland, Hall, Ewing and Bare are the new members added to the organization this year.

In addition to their duties as ambassadors and hosts for the College, the students receive college credit for the training courses they are required to attend. These courses include leadership skills, ethics, communication skills and business etiquette programs.

Students also participate in a team-building and goal-setting retreat and take a learning trip to explore business, government or a cultural aspect of an area.

For more information on the President’s Society, contact Martin at 423-636-7300, Ext. 5076 or Becky Tankersley at 5604.

Tweet This Post

This year’s launch party for the Tusculum Review literary magazine featured two prize-winning student readers and nationally-known poet Alex Quinlan and drew a crowd of more than 70 students, faculty, staff and members of the community.

A launch party was held on Thursday, April 29, at the Chalmers Conference Room of the Niswonger Commons on the Tusculum College campus.

The Tusculum Review features fiction and nonfiction writing, poetry, prose and art that is selected from annual submissions from writers and artists from across the country and around the world.

Students featured included Andy English, a senior English major from Greeneville and winner of the 2010 Curtis Owen Prize for Fiction, who read from his Senior Capstone Project. Also featured was Phillip Dean, a senior biology and environmental science major from Whitesburg, who took home the 2010 Curtis Owen Prize for Poetry.

Quinlan, whose work has appeared in previous editions of the Tusculum Review, is also a contributing editor. He is the recipient of the Intro Journals Prize and his poems have appeared in such literary journals at the Tampa Review and Pebble Lake Review.

Quinlan lives in Chattanooga, where he teaches classes in creative writing and humanities in the English Department at the University of Tennessee. He earned a master’s degree in fine arts at Washington University in St. Louis, where he was a post-graduate fellow in poetry.

According to Wayne Thomas, assistant professor English at the College and editor of the Tusculum Review, Tusculum College is one of only a few undergraduate colleges in the United States that offers students the opportunity to work for an international literary journal.

Thomas also thanked the assistant and student editors who helped the 2010 issue of the Tusculum Review become a reality.

The Tusculum Review offers students the chance to learn and refine their skills as reviewers of literature, critics of visual art and editors of the written word. These opportunities provide students with unique qualifications for graduate studies and employment in publishing.

“It is a great experience for them as future writers, editors and publishers,” said Thomas.

Copies of the new issue are available for sale at the Tusculum College bookstore.

Tweet This Post

Tusculum College will be expanding its summer term this year and offering courses that can benefit high school students wanting to get ahead in their college career or college students needing specific classes.

Tusculum’s summer school for 2010 will include two six-week terms. The first session, Term A, will be the week of May 17 through the week of June 21. The second session, Term B, will begin the week of June 28 and run through the week of Aug. 2.

Most of the courses will run one afternoon or one night a week for six weeks with some exceptions, such as activity or mathematics courses.

Offerings include freshman level courses in mathematics (algebra), English, history, computer science, psychology, physical education, art and sociology.

Upper level courses will be offered in business administration, special education, physical education and psychology.

Competitive summer tuition rates are being offered.

For more information about what courses are to be offered in each of the terms, visit the Tusculum College Web site at http://www.tusculum.edu/academics/registrar/ and select the 2010 summer school schedule under the “course listings” heading.

Those interested in attending the summer terms who are not already enrolled in Tusculum need to fill out an admission application, which can be found at www.tusculum.edu. For more information or to register for courses, please contact Jane Allen, Graduate and Professional Studies Coordinator of Academic Advising, at 423-636-5087, ext 5602. Ms. Allen’s office is located in Office G-11 on the ground floor of Virginia Hall.  The office hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Tweet This Post

Tusculum College has received a “2010 Extending the Dream Grant” from the Southern Association for College Admission Counseling to fund an outreach event designed to help high school juniors plan for college and the career market.

The college has been awarded a $2,325 grant to provide funds for materials, transportation support, speaker-related costs and facility expenses for the Junior Conference. The Extending the Dream Grants provide funds for special outreach programs by colleges, such as the Junior Conference that provides access to college resources to both rural and inner city youth.

“We received a record number of qualified grant applications; however the combination of both your grant proposal and presentation really made the difference in helping the committee decide in favor of such a powerful and impactful program,” the award notice from the committee stated.

Jacquelyn D. Elliott, vice president for enrollment management, was interviewed for the grant by the committee at a recent Southern Association for College Admission Counseling conference. Elliott said she wanted to submit a proposal for the grant because its title embodies what the Junior Conference is about, helping making the dream of college accessible. The event is the realization of a long-time idea of Elliott, who also made a professional presentation at the conference about using emerging media technologies in marketing efforts to engage students.

The first ever Junior Conference was held in March on campus and was attended by more than 800 juniors from Greeneville and Greene County. The high school students received personalized expert advice about educational opportunities and careers from area professionals and local company representatives. The speakers as well as others who served as moderators and guides were volunteers, giving of their time to provide their expertise to the youth.

Students had the opportunity to attend two sessions of their choice from the more than 20 offered. Students could choose from sessions such as “Preparing for your College Interview” and “College Lingo and Terminology” as well as from sessions from community representatives such as the Wal-Mart Distribution Center and John Deere Power Products.

Additionally, sessions were also provided on career/professional topics including sport management, nursing, education, athletic training, information technology, medical technology, business, politics and law.

The students began the Junior Conference by being challenged by keynote speaker Nathan Honeycutt to define the story of their lives. Honeycutt, a local architect who was worked on projects ranging from the Georgia Aquarium to high profile developments in the Middle East, gave the students advice on thinking about a career path and encouraged them to begin to prepare now for their future.

The next Junior Conference is planned in the spring of 2011.

Tweet This Post

Walking in the footsteps - or in some cases hiking in the footsteps - of 19^th century British romantic poets brought the era to life for seven Tusculum College students and their professor on a recent trip to London, England.

The students were part of Dr. Sheila Morton’s “19^th Century British Literature” course and spent March 23 through April 1 in London and surrounding areas studying British 19^th century romantic poets. Morton is assistant professor of English at the college.

For 10 days the students took in the sites of the “hub of 19^th Century British poetry,” including visiting the homes of William Wadsworth, Mary Elizabeth Coleridge and John Keats. The group lived and studied in the Lake District, which is in itself a history museum of the poets the group studied, according to Morton.

“The Lake District was quite influential on all the poets and was often almost a character in the poems, so strong was the influence,” she said.

In addition to those whose homes they visited, Lord George Gordon Byron also spent time there and the group visited his home there and his grave site.

Morton also led the students on several day hikes in the areas where Keats was recorded to have hiked.  In his lifetime he recorded more than 600 miles, using the images from those hikes as inspiration for many of his poems.

In addition, to daily readings and taking in the sites, the students also recorded their experiences in reflection journals each day and expressed what they could see themselves in the environment that could inspire such long-lasting poetic works of art.

“We were also able to attend a lecture and a reading by a local poet,” Morton said, “and he focused on how place and connection to place gives birth to great poetry.”

Students who participated included Sabine Azimar and Lelia Heinbach of Greeneville; Danielle Armstrong of Blountville; Joshua Kibert of Speedwell; Brianna Cox of Madison, Ala.; Kenneth Hill of White Pine; and Abby Wolfenberger of New Market.

Morton and the students all felt the trip was a true immersion experience, and Morton is ready to have another opportunity.

“The learning experience was invaluable. It was educational and life experience combined. Of all the classes they have had at Tusculum, this will be one that they remember.”

Tweet This Post

David A. Price has been named director of special events for Tusculum College and will also serve as music director and lead the Pioneer Pep Band, President Nancy B. Moody announced this week.

Price, who has spent the last seven years as director of the Greeneville High School band, will join the College on July 1.

Price will be responsible for organizing, directing and supervising all aspects of special events, as well as major internal campus events. He will be charged with developing and maintaining relationships with persons, groups and organizations in the community and region who utilize the types of facilities the College has to offer.

In addition, he will assist event organizers with logistics and resources during preparation for on-campus events and will promote the College’s existing summer camp offerings and seek to increase the types of camps offered each year.

Price, through his role at GHS, has coordinated the use of high school practice and performance facilities, as well as served as a liaison with the Niswonger Performing Arts Center to ensure successful programming and use of facilities. He will continue to serve on the NPAC Board of Directors as a representative of Tusculum College.

“Tusculum College is pleased to have brought David Price into the Tusculum College family,” said Dr. Nancy B. Moody, president of the College. “With his more than 31 years of active community involvement and his familiarity with facilities and event coordination, he is the perfect match for the position of director of special events at Tusculum.”

Price has also agreed to take on the new role as music director, and direct the Pioneer Pep Band, which was successfully piloted this spring. Price, along with GHS Assistant Band Director Devon Lowe and Chuckey-Doak High School Band Director Jamie Walker, has coordinated the development of the Pep Band at Tusculum.

In his role as music director, Price will handle all aspects of the band from recruitment, direction, supervision and organization. He will oversee practice schedules and organize performances as well. With his expertise in working with performing groups, the College is hopeful that interest in developing additional musical groups may also develop on campus and in the community.

“I am honored and excited to be invited to join the staff of Tusculum College and to be a part of its future growth with Dr. Moody at the helm,” said Price. ”I look forward to working with new and exciting people as the director of special events. I also look forward to developing an outstanding band program with the quality of students that Tusculum attracts.

“It has been an honor to have been a part of the Greeneville City School System for the past 31 years, and I have been blessed to have worked with the children of this community as we opened the world of music for them to explore. I am excited to continue to celebrate music with the family of Tusculum students, faculty, staff and supporters.”

Dr. Moody added, “David has been a loyal volunteer for the past year helping us build our Pioneer Pep Band program. In his new capacity he will have the opportunity to continue to build and foster the young men and women who take part in the program as well as recruit new participants as the program grows.”

Price has been highly decorated throughout his career as an educator, receiving the Greeneville Middle School Teacher of the Year Award and the Greeneville City Schools Teacher of the Year Award twice, in 1988 and 1995. He received the Tennessee School Board Association Award of Excellence for the Greeneville Middle School Program in 1985 and was named Tennessee Education Association Distinguished Classroom Teacher in 1987.

Price has a bachelor’s of science in music education from East Tennessee State University and through his career has participated in numerous instrumental and vocal music clinics and technology workshops.

He is the adult handbell choir director at First Presbyterian Church, an adjudicator for marching band competitions, percussion ensembles and instrumental clinics and a percussionist in the YMCA Community Band.

Previously he has been the director for Kiwanis Kapers, Little Theatre of Greeneville and the Community Handbell Choirs.

Tweet This Post