Circle Magazine Spring 2017

BELMONT UNIVERSITY | CIRCLE MAGAZINE SPRING 2017

The GALLERY of ICONIC GUITARS celebrates grand opening with Ricky Skaggs and Vince Gill

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FIRST

LOOK

BELMONT UNIVERSITY - BRUIN HILLS RESIDENCE HALL EXTERIOR ELEVATION

NASHVILLE, TN - 16054.00 - 1/25/17

EXPANDING RESIDENTIAL SPACE Belmont broke ground in January on what will be the institution’s largest residence hall to date. The 220,000 square foot complex will house more than 600 upperclassmen and will open in phases beginning in Fall 2018.

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FROM THE PRESIDENT It’s not every day that a University president gets to “open” for Vince Gill and Ricky Skaggs, but April 25 was just such a day for me. When I was first told about the possibility of Belmont receiving nearly 500 vintage instruments from a donor, I honestly didn’t know if we should accept. Even with our longstanding success in music and music business education, being stewards of a collection of that magnitude was intimidating. Now, though, it’s already difficult to imagine Belmont without The Gallery of Iconic Guitars, or The GIG as we call it.

It was certainly a personal highlight to play guitar—however briefly—on the same stage as Vince and Ricky, who graciously performed at our grand opening. However, it was far from the only highlight I experienced this semester. As you’ll see from the stories in this issue, Belmont continues to be a shining light in higher education. Whether opening new facilities like The Belmont Store, engaging in innovative academics or welcoming alumni back to campus, this University is a tremendous place to be. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to flip through this issue of Circle so that you too can celebrate all that was accomplished this spring and reflect on your own contributions to the Belmont community.

Best Regards,

Robert C. Fisher, president

To close out the semester, students bonded with canines at the annual exam stress relief “Puppies and Popsicles” event hosted by Bunch Library.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

UNIVERSITY ADMINISTRATION President Bob Fisher

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From the President

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Nashville’s New Guitartopia

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Workin’ ‘9 to 5’

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Gear Up!

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Making Connections

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Bruin Family Reunion

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Being Belmont

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Walk With Me

Vice President of Development and External Relations Perry Moulds

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Campus News

Vice President of Spiritual Development Todd Lake

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We Believe

ON THE COVER: Music legends Vince Gill and Ricky Skaggs dropped by campus in April to perform at the official grand opening of Belmont’s new Gallery of Iconic Guitars, The GIG.

Provost Thomas Burns Vice President/Chief of Staff Susan West Vice President of Finance and Operations Steve Lasley Vice President of Administration and University Counsel Jason Rogers

Vice President of Institutional Effectiveness Paula Gill

MAGAZINE Managing Editor April Hefner (M.A. ’07) Designers Glenda Dahlhauser, Hilary Griffith, Anna Howard, Natalie Smith (B.F.A. ’08) University Photographer Sam Simpkins Contributing Photographers Taylor Beck (B.B.A. ’20) Andrea Hallgren Ben Sherrill (B.A. ’20) Attic Fire Photography Contributing Writers Hope Buckner (B.S. ’12, M.Ed. ’17) Kelsey Herbers (B.S. ’17) Greg Sage Circle magazine is published biannually for alumni and friends of Belmont University.

Editorial content, graphic production, printing and distribution are coordinated by the Offices of Communications and University Marketing & Public Relations. Address changes and alumni notes should be directed to the Office of Alumni Relations. Third-class bulk postage is paid at the U.S. Post Office, Nashville, TN. Direct inquiries and comments regarding Circle magazine content to: Belmont University Office of Communications/Circle magazine 1900 Belmont Blvd., Nashville, TN 37212 615.460.6641 or circlemag@belmont.edu Belmont University is a Christian community.

The university faculty, administration and staff uphold Jesus as the Christ and as the measure for all things. As a community seeking to uphold Christian standards of morality, ethics and conduct, Belmont University holds high expectations of each person who chooses to join the community. Belmont University does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, color, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, military service or sexual orientation. Inquiries or complaints concerning the application of these policies to students should be directed to the Dean of Students, Beaman Student Life Center Suite 200, 1900 Belmont Blvd., Nashville, TN 37212, deanofstudents@belmont.edu or 615.460.6407.

/belmontuniversity /belmontuniv /belmontu /belmontu

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NASHVILLE’S NEW

NEW GALLERY OF ICONIC GUITARS GIVES STUDENTS AND TOURISTS A UNIQUE INSTRUMENT EXPERIENCE.

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KRISTA HESS, a May 2017 graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Commercial Guitar Performance, recently spent time in the new Gallery of Iconic Guitars.

A Martin acoustic guitar made in 1939 and valued at The James B. and Lois R. Archer Charitable Foundation $350,000… a Lloyd Loar-signed mandolin from the 1920s serves as the presenting sponsor for The GIG, providing considered to be even rarer than a Stradivarius violin… A support to undergird the museum’s operation, special 1960 Gibson Les Paul Standard Sunburst Electric guitar projects and educational programming. Mr. Archer said, worth $225,000… These are just a few of the instruments “We are so excited to work with Belmont University on this on display at the new Gallery of Iconic Guitars (GIG) at project. Music is such a fundamental part of our lives. It Belmont, which held its official grand opening April 25. inspires creativity, and we hope that the gift will inspire The event at the vintage instrument museum featured future generations of students who have endeavored to performances from legendary country artists Vince Gill and devote their careers to the performing arts.”

Ricky Skaggs, along with current Belmont graduate student Ben Valine, a commercial guitar performance major from Beyond conveying the important history and design of Forest Lake, Minnesota. these instruments, the Gallery of Iconic Guitars will foster future opportunities for many of the instruments in the The GIG is the result of a gift to Belmont University of nearly Shaw Collection to be played by both well-known and 500 historically significant instruments and supporting student musicians, bringing the instruments alive for a endowment—amounting to a total value of approximately new generation. $10.5 million—from the estate of the late Steven Kern Shaw, grandson of renowned composer Jerome Kern.

The Gallery of Iconic Guitars is open to the public Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sunday from Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher said, “I’ve played guitar 1–5 p.m. Admission is $5 and free for children under since I was a teenager so to have these prized instruments 12 as well as Belmont students, faculty and staff. Visit on this campus is a true joy for me personally. But the THEGIGATBELMONT.COM for more information. • real value of these historical treasures comes with the educational opportunities they present to our students and faculty as well as visitors to the museum.”

PHOTO BY ATTIC FIRE PHOTOGRAPHY

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workin’

Take a backstage look at Belmont’s highly successful musical theatre program through the spring performance of the classic show.

BACK STAGE, ENERGY IS HIGH.

THE PROCESS

With dancers running between floors and the smell of hairspray so strong you can taste it, Belmont’s musical theatre department is in their final preparations for “9 to 5.” Set in 1979, the storyline follows the lives of three female coworkers who are overworked, underpaid and fed up with workplace inequality. In what Director and Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre David Shamburger calls a redemptive story, the trio ultimately learns they have what they’ve been looking for—including the strength to fight their boss.

The show was cast before the fall semester ended, and students returned to campus with lines and lyrics memorized. “We are creating professional performers,” said Professor Nancy Allen. “We want them to leave here and know that they could walk into any professional theatre company and be successful.”

Shamburger embraces using theatre to examine the human condition through the lens of faith. “God has called me here,” he said. “I can profess my faith and integrate it into my teaching.”

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In fact, in the last 10 years, Broadway has seen 10 Belmont musical theatre alumni on its stages, and another 30 have performed in national tours. For the students, Belmont musical theatre majors use the same phrase to describe the program. “We’re a family,” said junior Dani List. “We love like family, fight like family, work together like family. We’re so proud of each other and the work that we do.”

REHEARSAL’S OVER… IT’S GO TIME The final note rings out and applause fills the theatre. With opening night coming in just two days, Allen closes dress rehearsal in prayer, thanking God for her students, colleagues and the ability to tell the “9 to 5” story. “See you tomorrow,” she says.

The cast begins to trickle from the stage, wipe off their make-up and remove their wigs. They’re out of costume and back to their own lives as students—at least until class tomorrow. With two days left until the show’s opening night, it’s go time… especially between the hours of 9 to 5. •

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PHOTO BY ATTIC FIRE PHOTOGRAPHY

THE NEW BELMONT STORE CELEBRATES ITS GRAND OPENING ON THE HISTORIC FORMER SITE OF ATHLETE’S HOUSE AND LAY’S POTATO CHIP BUSINESSES. With campus mascot Bruiser the Bear manning a pair of scissors, Belmont students and University administrators officially cut the ribbon in March on The Belmont Store, a new campus retail outlet and spirit shop located on the former property of the Athlete’s House.

Found at the intersection of Belmont Boulevard and Portland Avenue, the new store provides a convenient location for campus members seeking to purchase apparel and supplies. It also further solidifies the southern end of campus as a studentcentered area as the Belmont Store sits near the recently renovated Gabhart Student Center and joins a number of student-run businesses along Belmont Boulevard (House Of and Boulevard Record Shop) along with restaurant outlets McAlister’s Deli and Curb Café.

“This new store is beautiful, highly-visible and easily accessible, making it a significant upgrade from our previous location,” said Belmont President Dr. Bob Fisher. “Even better, The Belmont Store’s location holds deep connections for our campus and the

PHOTO BY ATTIC FIRE PHOTOGRAPHY

Nashville community as a now-famous former occupant, Herman Lay, built a business empire from this corner that impacts Belmont students to this day.”

In 1932, Herman Lay became an independent snack food distributor in Nashville and located his potato chip manufacturing office at 1700 Portland Avenue.

The site became a distribution center enabling his chips to be delivered to shops around the city, and that warehouse sat across the street from an Esso gas station owned by Ed and Bernice Johnson. The couple often helped Lay keep his potato chip trucks on the road by allowing him to pay for gas on credit.

In 1948, in gratitude for the help, Lay offered the Johnsons a chance to buy stock in his company.

H.W. Lay & Company gradually grew, merging with the Frito Company in 1961 and with Pepsi-Cola in 1965, where Herman Lay became chairman of the board until his retirement in 1980. Thanks to that original friendship—and the Johnsons’ love and support for Belmont students and faculty—more than $18.6 million in scholarship donations can be sourced to the helping hand Ed and Bernice Johnson offered entrepreneur Herman Lay. •

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Belmont’s Social Work Club led a city-wide community art installation to show how all lives are interconnected.

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n April, Belmont’s Social Work Club organized and implemented an interactive art project in Nashville as part of the international Unity Project movement. The event, which was held at the Bellevue Branch of the Nashville Public Library, was aimed at reducing division in the community by visually showing how all lives are interconnected and related.

Belmont student Kate Patterson initially came up with the idea to bring the Unity Project to Nashville after being inspired by her participation in a Unity Project in Washington D.C. last June. The opening ceremony featured a panel discussion led by local community members on matters of diversity and inclusion. Participants included

Belmont’s Chief of Staff and Vice President Dr. Susan West and student Jasmine Niazi, along with representatives from Vanderbilt University, Open Table Nashville, the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and Conexión Américas.

Patterson said, “[It] was powerful to hear how organizations across Nashville value working together with various populations for a common goal of promoting the rights of humans. It was refreshing to meet so many people who worked together to create unity in the collaborative art piece as well as in their lives.”

After the opening ceremony, the interactive art project was open for public participation

under the supervision of Belmont students.

The art project consisted of 32 poles placed in a circle, with each pole representing a unique identifier (culture, ethnicity, race, religion, etc.). Participants were invited to wrap colorful yarn around the poles they identified with, connecting themselves with the growing piece. Once complete, the yarn formed a cohesive web of interconnectedness to show that community members have more similarities than they do differences.

The closing ceremony featured a poetry reading, music by a local artist and a group discussion on diversity, which was led by Associate Professor of Social Work Julie Hunt. • SPRING 2017

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Largest Homecoming

IN BELMONT HISTORY Each year, Belmont University calls Bruins from all over the world back home to celebrate more than 125 incredible years of students, faith, education and community. But February’s most recent family reunion proved to be the biggest and best yet with a week-long series of events designed to encourage alumni and friends to celebrate what it means to be a Bruin.

This year’s Homecoming Week focused on the theme “Together We Are Belmont” and sought to cultivate a “festival of university life” through a variety of events that included cornhole and residence hall banner competitions, a Homecoming concert, a Career Conversations networking gathering for students and alumni, and a special convocation panel discussion with a group of Ward-Belmont alumnae.

Special theme days were also held across campus to focus on various aspects of university life. On Mission Monday, for example, Aaron Bryant from Avenue South spoke on missions and service while T-Shirt Tuesday offered students the opportunity to ‘give a shirt, get a shirt’ as they donated gently used T-shirts in exchange for this year’s Homecoming gear. WOW Wednesday brought surprise pop-up events across campus, and Thank You Thursday prompted Bruins to thank donors and other Belmont community members.

FANtastic Friday asked all of campus to wear their Bruin finest as they celebrated the end of the week and supported Belmont’s baseball and softball teams in their games at Rose Park. On Saturday following individual class reunions, a huge Tailgate at the Tower—complete with local favorite Martin’s Bar-B-Que—brought hundreds of people of all ages on campus to celebrate and reminisce.

The week culminated on a high note as both the men’s and women’s basketball teams took on Tennessee State University and came out on top with scores of 87–71 and 68–63, respectively. Junior biochemistry and molecular biology major Joe LaMartina and junior corporate communications major Madi Shultz were crowned 2017 Homecoming King and Queen. • 12

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BEING

BELMONT

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INTO AFRICA Eleven student athletes representing volleyball, women’s soccer, women’s basketball, men’s soccer and men’s basketball spent 10 days in May on a sports evangelism trip to Kenya working with Streets of Hope, an organization devoted to caring for children forced to fend for themselves on the street.

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WALK WITH ME As part of Belmont’s general education program, Learning Community Courses find common links in different subjects, such as writing and fitness.

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What is a learning community? That’s a common question for Belmont first year students as they look to their degree requirements and recognize they need to take two distinct courses linked by a common theme, otherwise known as Learning Community Courses or LCCs. As part of Belmont’s general education program, LCCs encourage students to “cross the borders” between two disciplines by completing common assignments, readings and projects.

Dr. Bonnie Smith Whitehouse’s “Writers Who Walk” and Holly Huddleston’s “Health and Fitness Concepts” courses represent one such linked opportunity from this spring’s offerings. For one

assignment, the classes traveled to Radnor Lake State Park with their guided journals in hand to experience how exercise and nature foster creative writing.

Additionally, exercising the mind while also taking care of the body prepares students to develop a lifelong commitment to wellness in the physical, mental and spiritual sense.

For Smith Whitehouse, an English professor, taking walks in nature helps to inspire students’ creativity. “I think writers spend way too much time in front of screens. That’s not historically how writers have composed, and we need to remember that,” she said. “Creation is a great place to create! I love getting to show my students that through the learning community and through getting their bodies and their minds engaged.”

Smith Whitehouse added, “[For] philosophers and teachers like Plato, ‘classrooms’ were not rooms with four walls and a row of desks, but the perimeters of the city. They literally walked about and taught about what they saw and how the world in which they moved connected to real-world philosophical problems. That appealed to me, and I wanted to experiment with it. And Belmont is the kind of place where someone like me can get a kernel of an idea and bring it to life! I’m so grateful for that.” • SPRING 2017

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CAMPUS

NEWS

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CAMPUS NEWS

CLAYTON-PEDERSEN KICKS OFF SPRING SCHOLARS-INRESIDENCE PROGRAM Dr. Alma Clayton-Pedersen, chief executive officer of Emeritus Consulting Group, spent a week at Belmont in February as part of the University’s Scholar-in-Residence Program.

An initiative of Belmont’s Welcome Home Team (the University’s cross-functional diversity and inclusion committee), the Scholar-in-Residence Program was created to celebrate diversity within higher education and encourage students to explore the field as a career option.

Clayton-Pedersen was invited to Belmont

by Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Dr. Bryce Sullivan. Sullivan said, “We hope that one outcome of the residency is that underrepresented students deeply consider pursuing higher education as a career. We really hit a home-run with the selection of Dr. Clayton-Pedersen. Her work with the American Association of Colleges and Universities, among others, demonstrates her role as a leader in higher education.”

While on campus, Clayton-Pedersen spent time with faculty, staff and students and participated in lectures and luncheons as well as co-facilitated “My Mentor and Me,” a session held with Dr. Sybril Brown, professor of media studies and Clayton-Pedersen’s mentee. Additionally, Clayton-Pedersen spent time with the Welcome Home Team, led by Vice President and Chief of Staff Dr. Susan West.

THE QUEST FOR HIGH FIDELITY World-renowned digital audio and computer science expert Dr. Karlheinz Brandenburg provided the keynote for the Belmont Undergraduate Research Symposium.

MUSIC CITY MEETS WEST TEXAS Belmont signed an educational affiliation agreement with West Texas A&M University to bring Curb College expertise to WTAMU students interested in the music business.

JD + MBA = THREE YEARS! Starting this fall, prospective law students can pursue a dual JD/MBA degree at Belmont and will be able to complete both degrees within three years at a reduced tuition rate.

Other Scholars-in-Residence during the Spring 2017 semester included Karen Bankston in the Inman College of Health Sciences and Nursing and Dr. Caroline Gaither in the College of Pharmacy.

JUNGLE PASTORS’ CONFERENCE Professor of Theology/Religion and the Arts Dr. Steve Guthrie recently led a conference for indigenous pastors in an unusual location— on the banks of the Amazon River.

CAMPUS NEWS SLEEPLESS NIGHT RAISES $110K Student organization “Up ‘Til Dawn” hosted its third annual fundraiser for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital—the 24-hour event collected a total of $110,530.70.

FAITH & CULTURE SYMPOSIUM Contemplative activist Micky ScottBey Jones wrapped up the fourth annual Faith and Culture Symposium as the last speaker in a week-long series of faith-based discussions.

BRUIN SOMETHING SPECIAL WOMEN’S BASKETBALL COMES WITHIN THREE POINTS OF A MAJOR NCAA TOURNAMENT UPSET. Saint Patrick’s Day 2017 found few people on Belmont’s campus wearing green—instead the Bruin community was decked out in red and blue for the NCAA Watch Party as the women’s basketball team took on the Kentucky Wildcats. It was an electrifying, high-drama affair befitting March, with the Bruins showcasing resolve, toughness and togetherness. Ultimately, Belmont (27–6) lost to the No. 4 seed 73–70, capping off the best season in program history to date.

Sophomore Darby Maggard said, “I think they learned that we have a lot of heart and fight.

No matter what the circumstances are, we are never going to give up. That stems from our love for one another.”

The season was full of highlights including a program record 21-straight wins and an undefeated record in conference play, not to mention ranking nationally in the Top 20 in 15 different statistical categories.

The Bruins 2017–18 campaign will begin with a new leader at the helm as former DePaul University assistant coach Bart Brooks was named Belmont women’s basketball head coach following the departure of Cam Newbauer to Florida.

MOCK TRIAL TEAM MAKES NATIONAL IMPRESSION The College of Law Mock Trial Team was crowned second in the nation at the finals for the American Association for Justice National Student Trial Advocacy Competition.

TALE AS OLD AS TIME Internet sensation Doug the Pug and alumna manager Leslie Mosier returned to campus for a photo shoot at the Belmont Mansion honoring the “Beauty and the Beast” theatrical release.

Athletics Director Scott Corley said, “Bart embodies everything we were looking for in a candidate: high character, enthusiasm, passion for the players and a winning pedigree on the court. He is the right person to lead this program and build upon the incredible momentum it has achieved.”

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HYBRID RETAIL/MAIL CENTER PARTNERSHIP

PHARMACY STUDENTS, ALUMNI MATCH WITH RESIDENCY PROGRAMS NATIONWIDE By the end of the Spring 2017 semester, 27 of Belmont’s College of Pharmacy students and alumni matched with a pharmacy residency position during the national matching process. Of the 19 Belmont students who applied for postgraduate year one (PGY-1) residencies, there were 17 matches (or a match rate of 89 percent). Of the 10 alumni in the match for PGY-2 residencies, 10 matched (match rate of 100 percent).

College of Pharmacy Dean Dr. Phil Johnston stated, “Post-graduate pharmacy residencies prepare recent graduates for advanced hospital and health care system positions.

Many who pursue second year residencies will practice in critical care, emergency care, transplantation, informatics, infectious disease or pediatrics. These positions are highly competitive because fewer residencies are offered than the number of student pharmacists desiring a position. We are extremely proud of our recent graduates who will pursue many options in pharmacy practices across the country.”

The Belmont community celebrated the opening of The UPS Store at Belmont this semester, a first-of-its-kind hybrid University mail center/private retail store partnership.

GO FOR THE GOLD Olympic gold medal skater Scott Hamilton visited Belmont in the spring to speak to a group of students about professional ethics.

COLLEGE OF BUSINESS MAINTAINS ACCREDITATION The Jack C. Massey College of Business maintained its AACSB business and specialized accounting accreditations, a designation achieved by less than five percent of the world’s business schools.

Belmont’s College of Pharmacy has also been instrumental in creating new first year residencies in the Nashville area for the last three years.

HISTORIC SOFTBALL SEASON Belmont’s softball team (35-22) celebrated a historic season, winning 30+ games for the first time in the Division I era and earning its first postseason tournament berth and victory.

CAMPUS NEWS THE KEN BURNS EFFECT Senior entertainment industry studies major Augusta Smith is spending her summer interning at Ken Burns’s Florentine Films working on the “Country Music” documentary.

TAKE YOUR CURTAIN CALL Commercial music alumnus Akil Thompson was recently awarded with the School of Music’s Curtain Call Award in recognition of his achievement in the music industry.

COMMENCEMENT CELEBRATION The University conferred 1,161 degrees (undergraduate, masters and doctoral) during two ceremonies on Saturday, May 6.

LOVE HEALS Top 10 CNN Hero of 2016 and founder of Nashville’s Thistle Farms, Becca Stevens spoke to students on campus as part of Belmont’s Women’s History Month celebration.

BELMONT CELEBRATES RE-OPENING OF RENOVATED GABHART STUDENT CENTER Belmont celebrated the first week of the Spring 2017 semester with the grand reopening of the Gabhart Student Center after its $2.6 million renovation. Built in 1981, the Center is named in honor of the late Dr. Herbert C. Gabhart who served Belmont for 50 years as Belmont College president and then chancellor, overseeing phenomenal growth in enrollment and physical space.

The renovation resulted from an inclusive process to determine the best uses of available space across campus. Following a campus-wide request for proposals in Fall 2015, Belmont’s Senior Leadership team reviewed submitted ideas on how to best use the vacated space. In addition to measuring overall design and financial feasibility of each proposal, the most important criterion was determining how suggestions aligned with Belmont’s Vision 2020 strategic plan.

The Center’s renovation unites a number of student service areas at the center of campus, including Belmont Central, Campus Security, Student Financial Services, Bridges to Belmont, the Registrar’s Office and University Ministries/ Spiritual Development. The renovation also provides meeting space for student organizations and offers an easily accessible home for Belmont’s new Office of Multicultural Learning and Experience.

PHOTO BY ATTIC FIRE PHOTOGRAPHY

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BELMONT EMPLOYEES VOLUNTEER FOR UNIVERSITY-WIDE SERVICE DAY Furthering Belmont’s charge to be “Nashville’s University,” faculty and staff members spent half their day on Friday, April 7 volunteering together at Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee.

Split into three groups upon their arrival, nearly 175 participants sorted donated dry food, packed boxes of food for neighboring seniors and even bundled up to weigh and pack frozen food in the organization’s industrial-sized freezer.

The annual service project, which the University dubbed “It’s Bruin Time in the Community,” began in 2014 with teams of employees serving a local Metro Nashville Public School. The last three years have been celebrated at Second Harvest. With Vision 2020 ideals in mind, Belmont employees registered to serve during one of two three-hour shifts, aligning the Belmont community with the “ever-changing needs of the people in our community.”

Planned and executed by Belmont’s University Staff Advisory Council (USAC), the annual event is a staple for employees on Belmont’s campus during the spring semester. USAC Event Chair Kelli Davis said, “Belmont employees look forward to ‘It’s Bruin Time in the Community’ all year long.

We’re so blessed to have the opportunity to leave our offices, step into the community and contribute to the great work Second Harvest does each day.”

CAREER CONVERSATION Belmont Alumna Taj George (’04), a Survivor contestant and member of R&B group SWV, returned to campus for a “Career Conversation” with students interested in the entertainment industry.

ALL-TIME LEADING SCORER Evan Bradds set Belmont’s NCAA D-I era career scoring record with 1,921 points, besting the record of alumnus and current Golden State Warrior Ian Clark by one point.

BUDDING ENTREPRENEURS A group of Belmont students appeared in numerous award categories at the International Collegiate DECA Competition, which tests business acumen.

In total, Belmont’s “It’s Bruin Time in the Community” morning and afternoon groups boxed more than 15,000 lbs of dry groceries, 700 senior nutrition boxes and 15,000 lbs of frozen food for delivery.

TOWN HALL MEETING Nashville’s News2 hosted a live broadcast on campus featuring law enforcement agents and College of Pharmacy Dean Dr. Phil Johnston discussing the deadly impact of heroin.

We are now one year into the public phase of the We Believe campaign and are making amazing progress. We passed the $100 million mark earlier this year and are now nearly halfway to our $300 million goal. Here are a few recent stats that illustrate our significant progress:

$300,000,000

11,309

total donors to the We Believe campaign

83

new endowed scholarships created

$200,000,000

$142,581,461

$100,000,000

$5,280,337 in gifts eligible for University match

$2,349,978 funds raised to support missions

753

gifts of $5,000+

Your gift makes a

DIFFERENCE.

“A main reason that I chose to study nursing was that after my dad had his stroke, I was able to see what a wonderful job all of the nurses did.

Being able to receive this scholarship has not only touched my life, but will allow me to touch the lives of others through my future career. I honestly cannot express my gratitude enough!�

REBECCA HALL BON AQUA, TN NURSING MAJOR HONORS PROGRAM CLASS OF 2017

DID YOU KNOW? The Bruins4Bruins initiative in March significantly exceeded its original goal of $150,000 and raised $225,529 in one week with donations coming in from all over the country.

To make your gift to the We Believe campaign visit, WEBELIEVE.BELMONT.EDU or call 615.460.5517.

BELMONT.EDU

GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS AT

COM-17959 COM-16151

BELMONTBRUINS.COM