NEWS & CALENDAR HIGHLIGHTS

The Tusculum College men’s basketball team will play its first and only exhibition game of the preseason this Monday night as the Pioneers travel to NCAA Division I East Tennessee State University for a 7 p.m. tip-off from the ETSU/MSHA Athletic Center in Johnson City.
 
The Pioneers return six lettermen, including three starters from last year’s 16-12 squad that finished second in the South Atlantic Conference for a second consecutive year.  Senior forward Rob Troutman (Mt. Washington, Ky.) is Tusculum’s top returning scorer from last season.  Troutman, a Preseason All-South Atlantic Conference Team selection, averaged 9.4 points (27th in SAC) and 4.5 rebounds (20th in SAC) per contest.

Also returning from last season’s starting line-up is point guard Justin Steigerwald (Cincinnati, Ohio) and 6-10 center Tommy Klempin (Reynoldsburg, Ohio).  Steigerwald led the league in assists (5.39 apg/26th in NCAA II) and assist/turnover ratio (2.65/13th in NCAA II).  He played in all 28 games, including 18 starts where he averaged 3.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 56.9 percent from the floor.  Klempin played in all but one game, including 17 starts as the Pioneers posted an 11-7 record in those outings.

Monday’s game will be a homecoming for sophomore guard Dionte Grey as the Johnson City, Tenn. native played his prep career at Science Hill High School.  Also returning from last year’s roster are sophomores J.D. Miller (Versailles, Ky.) and Anton Tuz (Mykolair, Ukraine), and redshirt freshman guard Ryan Slusher (Knoxville, Tenn.).

Seven newcomers will be on the Tusculum roster this season, including Matt Darnell (Stafford, Va.), Daniel O’Conner (Taylor Mill, Ky.), Sean Rowe (Tyrone, Ga.), Larry Smith (Indianapolis, Ind.), Kevin Vest (Dayton, Ohio), Tyler Vittetoe (Luttrell, Tenn.) and Brett Williams (Oviedo, Fla.).

Monday will be ETSU’s second and final exhibition game as the Buccaneers posted a 96-61 win over Carson-Newman College on Tuesday.  In that game, the Bucs used a 23-0 first half run, sparked by senior guard Mike Smith, who finished with a game-high 25 points against the Eagles.

ETSU posted a 20-15 record last year, while capturing its second straight Atlantic Sun Tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for a second consecutive season.

Tusculum fans unable to make the trip to Johnson City can follow the game on-line via video and live stats at www.etsubucs.com.

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English majors Katherine Pittser and Zack Smith, presented their senior capstone projects Tuesday evening (Nov. 2) in the first program of the 2010-11 Tusculum College Humanities Series.

Pittser, a resident of Cosby, presented “Newspapers: A Dying Era?” that examined reasons why newspapers are in a period of decline. Smith, a native of Granville, Ohio, presented “Stimulus Money and the Local School System” that detailed how federal “Race to the Top” funds are being used in the Greeneville and Greene County school systems.

In her presentation, Pittser presented current scholarship about the decline of the newspaper industry. Print media has been affected by technology as members of Generation Y chose to get their news from the Internet rather than a printed newspaper, as past generations have, she noted, and this decline of readership has led to less advertising revenue making it hard for newspapers to financially survive.

Two major reasons for the downfall of print media are the corporate purchase of smaller newspapers by larger newspapers to eliminate competition and journalism schools failing to adequately prepare future journalists for Internet newspapers and magazines based on citizen journalism, Pittser said.

A staff writer at the Newport Plain Talk who is also responsible for the editorial content and design of a publication aimed at tourists visiting Cocke County, Pittser pulled from her own experiences to explain the effect of the control of smaller newspapers by larger ones. She noted that as smaller newspapers are purchased by larger entities, the control of these papers is often far from the communities served by the newspapers. Providing local news is a key in the survival of newspapers, Pittser noted, as individuals discover that the newspaper is the best source of community news.

Some universities have closed their journalism schools, she said, seeing the profession as declining. However, Pittser argued, journalists will continue to be needed to provide the basic, objective reporting that will be essential by the online publications of the future.

Smith, who is the editor-in-chief of the Pioneer Frontier student newspaper, explained that his capstone project combined his interest in economics and writing. Smith detailed how the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009 provided $100 billion in funds to improve education for children of all socio-economic backgrounds and how the funds provided to the local school systems have been used.

In distributing the funds, the federal government used existing programs to provide the funds to school systems as well as distributing some of the funds in a competitive manner through the “Race to the Top” program. Funds were provided through the existing Title I program, which serves low-income students, and two parts of the existing IDEA program, one of which provides direct services to children with disabilities and the other provides services to their families. Formulas are used to determine how much school systems receive of these funds, Smith explained.

Tennessee was one of two states selected to receive the first round of funding in the competitive “Race to the Top” program. “First to the Top” is the state’s plan to invest the $500 million grant received through “Race to the Top.” The state plan focuses on improving student performance in five areas: adopting higher standards and assessments to prepare students to succeed in college or the workplace; building systems that use data to measure student growth and success in a way that helps teachers and principals improve instruction in the classroom; finding, retaining and rewarding the most effective teachers and principals; turning around the lowest-performing schools; and creating a unified strategy to strengthen science, technology, engineering and mathematics education.

In Greene County, funds will be used to provide professional development to teachers in the reading program and provide resources to strengthen science, technology, engineering and mathematics programs, Smith noted. The Greeneville School System will be using funds to provide additional resources to its English as a Second Language program. Both school systems will be using funds to improve technology infrastructure and resources. Smith noted that the school systems are being careful in how they are allocating the funds to not cause future budgetary issue since the stimulus money will not be a long-term allocation.

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Jeremy Johnston has been chosen as “Student of the Month” for November at Graduate and Professional Studies Tri-Cities Center.

Johnston is a graduate student in the Master of Arts in Education: Curriculum and Instruction program for K-12 classroom teachers. He is scheduled to complete his coursework in April of 2011, and has maintained a 4.0 graduate Grade Point Average.

Johnston received his Bachelor’s degree from The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in Secondary Education, and his Associate’s degree from Northeast State Community College. He is currently a science teacher at Rogersville Middle School, where he also leads the Warriors as a dedicated Head Football Coach.
Johnston has a passion for excellence in education, and has a positive, winning attitude. One of his instructors said he is an exceptional speaker and presenter who is consistently pleasant and professional. He is a team player and a true example of excellence.

As a determined and hard-working student, Johnston is capable of anything he desires. He always gives 110 percent, and Tusculum College is proud to have him in the graduate program.

Johnston and his wife, Staci, reside in Surgoinsville, TN, with their four children: Logan-12, Hayleigh-10, Korbin-3, and Piper-2. In his spare time, Jeremy enjoys golfing, fishing, and camping. He is also an avid University of Tennessee Vols fan!

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Theatre-at-Tusculum’s fall musical has become an event that audience members look forward to with great anticipation. After the successes of Wizard of Oz (2008) and Beauty and the Beast (2009), great care was taken by the Tusculum College Arts Outreach staff to choose a real crowd pleaser.

What could be more fun, more joyous, than a Rodgers & Hammerstein musical about a lovely, young English widow, a cantankerous but loveable chauvinist Siamese King, an exotic Burmese slave girl, gorgeous wives, graceful dancers, intimidating guards, melodic priests and a host of other fascinating and colorful characters? And don’t forget the twenty talented and utterly adorable princes and princesses, including two teeny tiny tots who are guaranteed to steal your heart away!

Beginning this weekend, an outstanding cast of more than 100 will bring “The King and I” to the stage in the auditorium of the Annie Hogan Byrd Fine Arts Building. Performance dates are November 5-7 and 11-14. The Thursday, Friday and Saturday performances will take place at 7 p.m. with the Sunday matinees on November 7 and 14 at 2 p.m.

The cast includes 10 Tusculum students and 12 working on the set or assisting in the box office.  The leads will be portrayed by Will Maddux as the King, a role he portrayed as a high school student in a production by an Arts Outreach group, and Angela Willis as Anna Leonowens. The play is a family affair for the Willis family. Angela’s father, Michael Willis, a security officer at Tusculum, is playing a ship’s captain while her sister, Kassandra, is portraying Tuptim and her brother Walter has a singing priest role.  And her brother, Nathan, is working on the set.

The cast also includes many veterans of Theatre-at-Tusculum productions including Robbie Poteete as Lun Tha, Amy Durand as Lady Thiang, Andrew Fisher as Louis, Joshua Davis as The Kralahome and Seth Holt as Sir Edward Ramsey.

This fabulous and glittering show, “The King and I” has unexpected depths. Adopted from “Anna and the King of Siam” by Margaret Landon, the story tells of how Anna Leonowens and her young son Louis arrive at the Royal Palace of King Phra Meha Mongut to teach the royal children in the 1800s.

Political problems facing a small country and all the complications and cruelty of slavery are addressed. One of the highlights of the show includes a beautiful “ballet” entitled “Small House of Uncle Thomas” which has been adapted from Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Choreographed by Kim Berry, this charming Siamese dance with accompanying chorus, will charm all who see it.

The show is directed by Tusculum Colleges’ Artist-in-Residence and Director of Arts Outreach Marilyn duBrisk. Angie Clendenon is music director, Frank Mengel, set design, Barbara Holt is weaving her magic to create more than 120 costumes for the production and Whitney Ball is accompanist. Percussion expert David Price joins the production this year and Jennifer Hollowell is in charge of box office.

Tickets are now on sale and may be reserved by calling 423-798-1620. If you have e-mailed previously for tickets and have not received a reply, please call. The campus is having e-mail difficulties and your e-mail may not have been received. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors (60 and over), and $5 for children 12 and under.

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About 150 people enjoyed ghost stories and legends during “Haints and Boogers” at the Thomas J. Garland Library. The staff of the Library shared ghost stories from Greene County and East Tennessee. Staff members also shared ghost stories from their native states. Popular were the stories from East Tennessee State University and Tusculum College. The staff also shared stories of “Elmer, the Library Gremlin,” who is held responsible for any odd happenings there. After the program, some “spooky” refreshments, prepared by the Library staff, were served.

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Storyteller Pam Courtney, above, performed for students at Ottway Elementary School on Oct. 29. Courtney, who is from Texas, told the students stories from Scotland and Japan as well as some spooky tales for Halloween. Courtney visited Ottway as part of the Doak House Museum’s Teller-In-Residence outreach day. The program is part of a partnership between the museum on the Tusculum College campus and the International Storytelling Center in Jonesborough. Through the partnership, the Doak House is able to host a storyteller on-site for local elementary school children and also to have a storyteller visit a local school each year. The storytellers involved are “Teller-In-Residence” at the International Storytelling Center.

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From $2.40 an hour to $65 an hour, Tusculum College Duke Okes seized the opportunities of education to become a titan in his field.

Founder and president of the APLOMET consulting firm, Okes is the featured speaker for The Alumni Lecture Series: Paths to Success on Wednesday, Nov. 10, at the Wellmont Regional Center for the Performing Arts on the Northeast State Community College’s main campus. Okes received his bachelor’s degree from Tusculum College in 1986 and a master’s degree in 1997. He received his associate’s degree from Northeast State.

The first-ever event brings an outstanding Northeast State graduate back to campus to share his journey to success with current students, fellow alumni and the community.

The event begins at 8 a.m. with a coffee social followed by Okes’ lecture, “The Perfect Economic Stimulus” at 9 a.m. Okes will then spend the day visiting with students in classes around campus. His presentation delves into his knowledge of quality manufacturing and how efficiency can revitalize an entire national economy. Okes speaks to his own path to success from Northeast State to an entrepreneur working around the globe.

Okes was earning $2.40 per hour in 1974 when he enrolled at Northeast State.  His 1976 associate degrees in electronics and mechanical engineering technology propelled him to a new job and more than doubled his paycheck with the TRW company in Rogersville. After nine years with TRW as a quality technician and later quality engineer, Okes formed his consulting company APLOMET in 1985 where he commanded $65 per hour from companies in need of his knowledge services.

An acronym for Applied Logical Methods, APLOMET provides quality systems and organizational management consultation to Fortune 500 companies, family-owned businesses, nonprofits and start-up firms. Okes ranks as one of the most sought-after experts in the global manufacturing industry.  He provides consultation services to companies both large and small in Europe, Asia, the Caribbean and the United Kingdom.

Okes received his bachelor’s degree in business and a master’s degree in adult education from Tusculum College.

Okes speaks of a college degree coupled with personal initiative that gives students the ability to create career opportunities with marketable skills.

Okes wrote the book “Root Cause Analysis: The Core of Problem Solving and Corrective Action” that is now used in quality training courses throughout the country. 

The Alumni coffee social and Okes’ lecture are open to the general public. No registration is required.  For more information contact Greg Walters at 423-354-5120 or gnwalters@NortheastState.edu.

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