Dear Bellarmine Students, Faculty and Staff,
As the 2008-2009 academic year comes to a close, and we
celebrate our May 2009 Commencement, we wish our undergraduate and
graduate students earning degrees the very best as they begin exciting
new chapters in their lives and thank them for the opportunity to
teach and learn together.
Thomas Merton Center Receives Gift of Letters
A former editor of Monastic Studies has donated letters
and calligraphies appraised at more than $50,000 to the Thomas Merton
Center at Bellarmine University. The gift from Brendan Collins
includes 34 original pieces of correspondence and 10 copies of
originals that will be donated at a later time. All were written from
1962-67.
"In many ways, these letters are typical of the way
Merton talked to his fellow monks -- smart, funny, passionate, with an
unmistakable love of God underneath everything," Collins wrote in a
letter accompanying his donation.
The donation includes handwritten and typed letters,
poems, essays and drawings. Be sure to stop by the Merton Center to
see this wonderful addition to Bellarmine’s collection.
Student and Alumni Achievements
Bellarmine’s men’s basketball team made it all the way to
the sweet sixteen this year, but those who were unable to attend in
person were able to tune into the BU radio staff – Donnie
Kornick, Nick Mattingly, Reed
Peterson, Alex Koch, and Justin
Stafford, that broadcast the games. People listened in
Germany, Ireland, Canada, Mexico, and all over the USA.
Bellarmine Mock Trial has wrapped up
another strong season, bringing national acclaim to the university.
After decisively beating the competition in the initial regional
tournament, and qualifying two teams for the opening round of the
national championship, Bellarmine's season ended in Memphis.
The more experienced of Bellarmine's two teams, team 852,
effectively ended its chance to advance with a third round loss to
hometown Rhodes College. The younger team, team 853, saw its
opportunity to be one of the top six qualifying teams vanish in the
fourth round against the University of New Hampshire.
Team 852 finished the year with 45 wins, 10 losses and
five ties, won the most prestigious fall invitational -- the
University of Virginia Great American Mock Trial Invitational -- and
went undefeated at the Illinois Invitational and at the regional
tournament in Louisville.
Team 853 – made up entirely of underclassmen – finished
the year with 24 wins, 21 losses and 3 ties, including an excellent
third place finish at the Downtown Invitational hosted by New York
University.
Congratulations to all Mock Trial team members and
coaches for a job well done. Read more about Mock Trial here.
The Kentucky Intercollegiate Press Association
recently held its state competition on Feb. 27 and 28. The Concord
staff received many awards:
Danielle White
First Place
Sports
Photo
Megan Carpenter
First Place
Advertising Design
Kristian White
First Place
News
Headline
Nick Welsh
Second Place
News Story
The Concord
Second Place
Overall Layout
Zach Braman
Third Place
Sports Game
Story
Steve Witt
Honorable Mention
Feature
Photo
Rita Dixon
Honorable Mention
Feature Photo
Congratulations to The Concord staff on these
achievements!
The 2009 Annual Student Art Exhibition
boasted one hundred and twenty-two works of art by 83 students this
year. These works were displayed in the McGrath Art Gallery, several
of which received awards from Dean Kingsolver.
Jack L. Terhune Memorial Scholarships
Shohei Katayama
Nathan Hendrickson
Norton Art Endowed Scholarships
Sarah Beveridge
Heather Drury
Best of Show
Sponsored by Dr. John Gatton / Carolyn Payne
Waterlilly / Acrylic
Best 2-D
Sponsored by Preston Arts / Sarah
Beveridge
Tam, Shadows in Blue / Acrylic
Best Photo
Sponsored by Dr. Doris Tegart / Leanne Cape
Untitled / b/w Photography
Best New Media
Sponsored by Dr. Doris Tegart / Natalie Fisher
Image / Video
Most Outside the Box
Sponsored by Artist and Craftsman Supplies / Maria
Tatman
Aegina de Anna / Acrylic on Wood
Best 3-D
Sponsored by Bob and Dotti Lockhart / Christopher
Mozier
The Awkwardness of the 'Just' Worker / Ceramic and
Acrylic
Honorable Mentions included: Nathan
Hendrickson, Katie Pauly, Rachel Banks, Mark Becker, Nick Flood,
Bethany Steinmetz, Heather Drury, Alicia Hildebrand, Mara
Piechowski, Justin Applegate, Amanda Cooper, Angela Ress, Blake Bass,
Liz Dugan, Shohei Katayama, Rachael Patterson, Simone Potts, Rachael
Patterson, and Theresa Hawkins.
Nine psychology students presented their major research
papers as talks at the 20th Annual Mid-America Undergraduate
Research Conference at Franklin College on April 18. Many of
these received public praise from attendees from 18 colleges and
universities in the region. Names and talk titles are given below.
Abstracts are available by request.
Josh Anna
The Prevalence of
Illegal Drugs in School and the Workplace
John Guinter
On the Relationships
among Defense Mechanisms and Age when Parents Divorced
Jaime Kisselbaugh
Self-Monitoring
and the Element of Social Stress as Defined as Academic Evaluation
Felicia Schultz
Stress and
Rehearsal Prevention: Revealing Sensory Bias in Cognitive Resilience
Emily Whitledge, John Guinter, and Jensyn Kaplan
Sexual Motivators among College Students
Kim Williamson
A Survey of the
Opinion and Prevalence of Psychopharmacology among College Students
Kim Williamson, Chelsea Turner, Jaime
Kisselbaugh, and Blair Massey
The Influence of
Authority on Self-Reported Comfort Levels
Congratulations to the winners and nominees of the 2009
Metroversity Adult Learner Awards. Winners included: Scott
Farley, Accelerated Nursing; Monica Martinson, Master of Arts in
Business Administration; Dr. Linda Cain, Nursing Faculty; and Gayle
Ramirez, Nursing Staff.
Nominees included: Christopher Meyer, History; Sharon
Raney, Accelerated Nursing; and Leanne Willen, Master of Arts in
Teaching.
Faculty and Staff News
Bellarmine University's director of financial aid, Heather
Boutell, has received the 2009 Herb Vescio Distinguished
Service Award from the Kentucky Association of Student Financial Aid
Administrators (KASFAA). Association president Jennifer Cosens Priest
presented the award during the group's spring conference last week in
Erlanger, Ky.
The Vescio Award is the association's most prestigious
honor for financial aid professionals, and recognizes an individual's
contributions to the association or the profession. Please join me in
congratulating her on this prestigious accomplishment. Learn more
about Ms. Boutell’s award here.
Norton Healthcare Chief Development Officer Lynnie
Meyer delivered the keynote address at the induction
ceremony for the Bellarmine Lambda Psi Chapter of Sigma Theta Tau,
International. Meyer, who earned both her undergraduate nursing degree
and master's degree in nursing administration from Bellarmine, was
honored as an inductee during the ceremony on April 19. Ms. Meyer also
serves as executive director of the Kosair Children's Hospital and
Norton Healthcare Foundations. The Bellarmine Lambda Psi chapter of
Sigma Theta Tau began in 1990. The society honors people in the
nursing profession who have shown a strong commitment to research,
service and leadership. Read more about Ms. Meyer and her
accomplishments here.
On April 3, Dr. Dottie Willis made a
presentation, “Preparing Urban Teachers to Address Student Needs in a
High-Demand Subject Area,” at the Great Teachers for Our City Schools
National Summit in Denver, Colorado.
Dr. Robert Cooter delivered the 2009
presentation for The Dean’s Lecture Series at Murray State University
on March 27. His presentation was titled, “Academic Literacy and
Multicultural Education: Strategies for Helping Low Socioeconomic
Students Succeed in Higher Education.” On April 2, Dr. Cooter
delivered the keynote address at the 2009 National Association of
Laboratory Schools Annual Conference in Memphis, Tennessee. His speech
was titled, “Rousing Minds to Life: The Teacher Makes the
Difference!”
Congratulations to Karen-Lord Powell and
Brian Powell on the birth of their son of Dillon
Christopher Powell, born 3:22am, April 24th. He is Nineteen
inches, 7.2 lbs. Karen is instructor of violin and principal second
violinist with the Louisville Orchestra and Brian is instructor of
double bass.
Congratulations to Student Life Coordinator Melanie
Evans and her husband Mark, who welcomed Eleanor
Whitney Evans at 11:30am on Tuesday, April 28th. She was 7
pounds 11 oz and 21 inches long. Mom and daughter are doing happy and
healthy.
Tobacco-free Campus
I am proud to inform you that Bellarmine is taking an
important step toward making our community healthier for everyone.
Based on information gathered during a campus-wide survey and
year-long study, Bellarmine will become a tobacco-free campus on
January 1, 2010.
We respect the freedom of Bellarmine community members
who choose to smoke, but we also recognize the rights of community
members to enjoy the campus free from secondhand smoke. Bellarmine
will prohibit the use of tobacco on all university property, including
vehicles and sports and recreation facilities. Smoking in personal
vehicles will be allowed. This policy will be a self-enforcing
community effort. We will depend upon members of the university
community to comply and encourage others to observe this change to
create a healthier place for us all to learn, live and work.
Creation of a tobacco-free campus will occur in two
phases. The first phase is education. To support the health and
well-being of everyone on campus, the university will sponsor smoking
cessation programs free of charge to all participants. Information
about the cessation programs will be distributed during the coming
months. New signage also will be in place to inform campus visitors of
the policy as we near the effective date. In the meantime, if you are
interested in participating in a smoking cessation program, please
contact Alice Kimble at 452-8493 or makimble@bellarmine.edu. In
concert with educational efforts, the second phase will occur with
implementation January 1, 2010.
We are exploring the best way to implement this
commitment to a healthier campus. Through patience and a community
spirit, we believe this policy will be successful and will benefit
students, employees and visitors.
"The Bellarmines" nominations
The 2008-2009 faculty and staff awards are still open for
nomination on our website. The awards recognize the distinguished
achievements of faculty and staff in living the core values of the
Bellarmine campus community. To nominate a faculty or staff member for
one of these prestigious awards, please visit the nomination page. The page includes
descriptions of the awards, along with a form you can use to make a
nomination. Just enter the name of the nominee, your name (optional),
choose the appropriate award, and include a brief description of why
your nominee is deserves the nomination. Award winners will receive a
beautiful stoneware "Bellarmine jug." Please note that the nomination
deadline is May 9.
Bellarmine in the News
WDRB-TV highlighted the Academic Challenge at
Bellarmine as part of its Derby festivities coverage. Preview clip.:
Bellarmine Education alum Beth Reiss was named an Excel
Award Winner. See the WHAS-TV profile of Reiss here.
New York Times reporter Lisa Belkin interviewed
director of financial aid Heather Boutell about the importance of
work-study in this economy. See the full story here.
Bellarmine education professor Kathleen Cooter spoke with
Baltimore Sun reporter Eileen Ambrose about what students have
learned from the financial crisis. Dr. Cooter is co-director of the
Bellarmine Center for Economic Education. See the story here. This story also re-ran in the Chicago Tribuneand The Morning Call (Allentown, Pa.):.
Business school dean Dan Bauer spoke with the Courier-Journal
about the state receiving loans to cover jobless benefits. See the story here.
The Courier-Journal April 16 featured an interview with
PT professor Beth Ennis about her research with children who have
autism. See the full story here.
Bellarmine University junior Craig Satterley was
interviewed by the Courier-Journal regarding his
participation in a Good Friday Walk for Justice. See the story here.
On Tuesday, April 7, Courier-Journal reporter
Nancy Rodriguez explored the tight job market. She interviewed
soon-to-be Bellarmine grads about their plans post-commencement. See the full story here.
WDRB-Fox, WHAS-ABC and WAVE-NBC all covered the Sweet 16
celebration picnic honoring the Bellarmine men’s basketball team. See the WHAS story here.
WDRB-Fox 41 noted the success of Bellarmine
Basketball’s Hobbs during the 2008-09 season during Fox in the Morning
show on Friday, April 3. See the full clip here, which focuses on local
college basketball honors.
Media outlets extensively covered Bellarmine's plan to
go tobacco-free in 2010. See the Courier-Journal story here and WHAS Radio coverage here. See clips of the
television coverage on WLKY (CBS), on WHAS (ABC) and WDRB (Fox). The Associated Press picked up the
story, which led to its posting on the USA Today Kentucky page, the
Lexington Herald Leader, The State Journal in Frankfort, Fox-17 TV in
Nashville, WBKO TV in Bowling Green, WFIE TV in Evansville, and CW Ch.
12 in Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Enquirer and the Web site http://www.universitybusiness.com
re-ran the C-J story.
Spread the Word
Do you have news to share? Drop a line to lburns@bellarmine.edu.