Monday, November 30, 2009

Applications for May Graduation Due

Today at Belmont Central. Remember, too, that Priority Registration will be open until December 11.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Grad Students Present in Chattanooga


Story by Mallory Matyk
Photos by Stephen McElroy


On October 16th and 17th, four English graduate students attended the Second Annual Graduate Student Conference on Literature, Rhetoric and Composition at UT-Chattanooga. Kyllikki Persson presented “Defending Rhetoric: Opening Academic Discourse through Classical Thought”; Stephen McElroy presented “The NFL on Regional Radio and National Television: A Comparative Linguistic Analysis”; Molly Barger presented on the Shakespeare panel with “Hal and the Redemption of a Prince”; and Mallory Matyk presented on the contemporary literature panel with “Chick Lit: Highbrow Literature or Perfectly Plucked Eyebrow Literature.”

The Belmont contingent attended various panels and also explored the city of Chattanooga, dining at local eateries and visiting the incomparable Tennessee Aquarium. On Friday evening, the students were treated to an engaging keynote speaker, Dr. Noel Polk of Mississippi State University, who displayed original Faulkner manuscripts of The Sound and the Fury, complete with notes from the author and editors. (With regards to Faulkner’s burgeoning stream-of-consciousness, one editor scribbled, “I don’t get this.” Further down the page, he added, “Same here.”) Overall, the trip was a success. The group is looking forward to submitting abstracts for the spring conference, and they encourage fellow graduate students to do the same. (For submitting abstracts or requesting information, email the conference administrators at xialpha.utc.conference@gmail.com.)

Monday, November 23, 2009

Author Lisa Klein Coming to Belmont



(submitted by Dr. James Wells): Dr. Lisa Klein, author of the young adult novels, Ophelia and Lady Macbeth’s Daughter, will be on campus next week. I encourage you all to attend the three following events associated with her visit. All should be enriching experiences.

Wed. Dec. 2, 10:00, Wheeler 209: The English Club and Sigma Tau Delta will host a discussion of Ophelia led by Dr. Wells in Wheeler 209. All are welcome, but the experience will be more valuable if you’ve read this fine book in advance. Academic Lecture convo.

Thursday, Dec. 3, 5:30, LCVA 117: Lisa Klein will give a professional talk on the field of writing young adult fiction. Q&A session to follow. Personal/Professional Growth convo.

Friday, Dec. 4, 10:00, LCVA 117: Lisa Klein will read from her work. Q&A session will follow. Culture and Arts convo.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Order Your English Club T-Shirt by Friday


(submitted by English Club President Carly Escue): Whether or not you've managed to make an English Club meeting, we'd like for all English majors, minors, and speakers to get in on our "Let's Get Textual" shirt order! The shirt options are a colored T-shirt ($6), colored long sleeve T-shirt ($8), or a colored hooded sweatshirt ($14).

THESE PRICES ARE ONLY GUARANTEED IF WE CAN GET OUR ORDER IN BY FRIDAY.
The Writing Center has agreed to serve as a payment depot for us. Here's what you need to do if you want a shirt.

1) Take the appropriate amount of money (cash or check made out to Carly Escue) to the writing center.
2) The wooden box full of empty envelopes is on top of the filing cabinet on the back wall. Put your money in an envelope, along with a piece of paper with the following information:

Your name, phone number, and email address
Type of shirt (t-shirt, long sleeve t-shirt, or sweatshirt)
Shirt color (go to the following site for color options: http://www.sanmar.com/sanmar-servlets/CatalogBrowser?productId=2000&top=Y)
Image color (white or black depending on the color shirt you pick)
Size (S-XL are the standard sizes; please include one extra dollar for every extra X)

3) Write your name on the outside of the envelope. Seal it. Put it in the box. Exit the writing center.

In order to get the prices I've listed above, our order needs to be in by Friday November 20. I'll be picking up the box at around 3:00pm that day. Oh yeah, also register to graduate by Friday (if that applies to you).

We need to have 24 shirts in order to place an order, so tell your friends! Also, what a great Christmas present for your mother!

Friday, November 13, 2009

Roxanne Mountford Lecture


(from the Campus Calendar) Next Wednesday (November 18) at 10:00 in the Leu Art Gallery (in the Library), Roxanne Mountford, associate professor of English and Writing Program Director at the University of Kentucky, will give a lecture entitled "Rhetorical Performance and Religious Authenticity: The Case of Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson (1890-1944)" Professor Mountford's talk will explore the tensions between rhetorical performance and authenticity in American public life by examining the press accounts of the preaching of evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson. In the 1920s and 1930s, McPherson was one of the most famous individuals in America. Her sermons are described by observers as "supernatural whoopee," complete with props, costumes, and unparalleled style of delivery. She built a 5,000-seat temple in Los Angeles at a time when women ministers were still exceedingly rare. Religious authorities since St. Augustine have argued that the effectiveness of the sermon trumps all other considerations, including the moral standing of the preacher. But the spectacle McPherson loved raised questions of authenticity with the American press, and journalists ultimately brought down her career by tirelessly investigating her moral standing.

Langston Hughes famously namechecked McPherson in his controversial 1932 poem, "Goodbye Christ" (for which McPherson's followers famously harrassed Hughes during his 1940 tour promoting The Big Sea).

Academic Lecture convo credit will be offered for undergraduates.

English Club Meeting

The English Club met Friday at 10 in Wheeler. Announcements included attending the Sigma Tau Delta Conference (submission deadline: November 20); getting a group together to see The Road; and ordering the new English Club "Let's Get Textual" t-shirts (expect an email from Carly Escue on this great deal).

The meeting wrapped up with the Fall Apples to Apples competition: congratulations to winner Sarah Gaskin, who took home the coveted Trout Apple Trophy.

Spoken Word Poetry Workshop

(from the Campus Calendar): By combining education, arts, and youth leadership, spoken word has become one of the most innovative literacy development tools over the past decade. Teens have been voting for spoken word programs with their feet by showing up to spoken word workshops, opens mics, showcases, and poetry slams around the country. Spoken word poetry is a visceral experience which competes with television, the internet, and video games for teen mind-share. Students participating in spoken word programs report improvement in their reading and writing skills, increased self-confidence, and a new sense of community among their peers and teachers. Educators report a clear rise in interest among students, a more youth-driven learning environment, and evidence of greater social and academic confidence among students. Benjamin Smith, Executive Director of Youth Speaks Nashville, and local youth poets will be at Belmont to conduct a convocation event (from 4-5:30 next Tuesday, November 17, in the Neely Dining Hall)which provides an overview of spoken word youth development programming, features performances by local youth poets, and engages attendees in an introductory spoken word writing workshop.
(PG Convo will be available for undergrads.)