‘American Idol’ finalist, Dove winner on deck for this year’s Lighting of the Green

A few familiar faces will be joining show host Amy Grant at this year’s Lighting of the Green. The tenth annual show will feature American Idol finalist and Christian artist Danny Gokey, Dove-winning gospel singer and actress Tamela Mann, singer/songwriter Jon Guerra, multi-talented family The Willis Clan, Brother Parker, Lipscomb student choruses and others. Walt Leaver, vice president for university relations, spoke to the impact Grant has had on the show. “Lighting of the Green has become a beloved tradition in Nashville, and we couldn’t have made that happen without the support and generosity of Amy Grant, who gives of her time and talent to perform and to schedule an exciting slate of artists each year,” Leaver said. The free. rain-or-shine concert starts at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 2, on the Allen Arena Mall. Festivities will begin at 4, including the Merry Marketplace at the arena. Free photos with Santa Claus are also available. Food or cash donations will be accepted for the Second Harvest Food Bank at the event. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own blanket or lawn chair. For more information on this year’s Lighting of the Green, visit the event page on Lipscomb’s website. Photo credit: Erin...

HumanDocs returns for first movie of season with ‘Big Men’

Briefly: Big Men will serve as HumanDoc’s first film of the season Wednesday night. The documentary, selected for the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival, will screen for free in Shamblin Theatre at 8:30 p.m. A panel will follow. “Over the course of five years, director Rachel Boynton and her cinematographer filmed the quest for oil in Ghana by Dallas-based Kosmos,” Janel Shoun-Smith wrote for Lipscomb’s website. “The company developed the country’s first commercial oil field, yet its success was quickly compromised by political intrigue and accusations of corruption. As Ghanaians waited to reap the benefits of oil, the filmmakers discovered violent resistance down the coast in the Niger Delta, where impoverished Nigerians have yet to prosper from decades-old oil fields.” The news story says the film “provides an unprecedented inside look at the global deal making and dark underside of energy development — a contest for money and power that is reshaping the world.” For more information on the screening, visit Lipscomb’s website. Photo courtesy of...

Christian Universities Online calls Lipscomb one of nation’s best

Christian Universities Online, a website dedicated to higher Christian education, ranked Lipscomb among the best Christian universities in the country. The site put Lipscomb at number 13 on a list of 50 and lists the school in the same company as Pepperdine University, Abilene Christian University and Baylor University. “Institutions that are accredited by the Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools or are a Council of Christian Colleges and Universities member or affiliate were eligible for the ranking,” writes Kim Chaudoin for Lipscomb’s website. “The ranking considered which colleges offered the highest degree of personal attention (student-to-faculty ratio), selectivity (acceptance rate), financial assistance (percent of students receiving financial aid) and student satisfaction (retention and graduation rates).” The site notes Lipscomb’s variety of academic possibilities, quality of education and the school’s combination of faith in the classroom and...

Josh Roberts joins Office of Student Life as dean of student development

Attorney Josh Roberts will be joining the Office of Student Life as the new dean of student development, per the university.  Roberts will be taking an active role in providing guidance for various student organizations and serving as the student life liaison for Lipscomb’s counseling center. Senior Vice President for Student Life Scott McDowell said he champions Roberts’ addition to the Lipscomb community. “Josh brings a great deal of passion and expertise to this role of developing students in a holistic way,” McDowell said to Lipscomb’s website. “His legal background will also be an invaluable resource as we navigate an increasingly complex higher education landscape where government regulations continually proliferate. “He will dedicate himself to mentoring a new generation of leaders as Lipscomb continues its commitment to equipping students to discover their created purpose and to embrace their place in the kingdom.” Originally from Nashville, Roberts received his undergraduate education at George Washington University and his law degree at the University of Memphis School of Law. Roberts said he plans to use his new role to help Lipscomb’s student leaders grow. “I am overjoyed to be joining the Lipscomb family at this remarkable time,” Roberts told Lipscomb’s website. “There’s not another university in the country that has more fully dedicated itself to developing students into leaders. As the dean of student development, it is my privilege to leverage the full weight of Lipscomb’s vast resources in a manner that carefully stretches, challenges and nurtures our student leaders.” For more on Roberts, visit Lipscomb’s website. Photo courtesy of...

Bisons receive honor for performance in the classroom

Following a successful 2013-14 on-field campaign, Lipscomb has also come out on top in the classroom by being named the 2013-14 Atlantic Sun Academic Champions. During the 2013-14 school year, 78.83 percent of Lipscomb’s student-athletes finished with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher, giving the Bisons the best percentage in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The percentage was not only the top in the conference, but it was the highest Lipscomb has posted during its time in the A-Sun. 211 Bisons were named academic honorees for the school year, which was also the best number in the Atlantic Sun. Not only was the mark good enough to lead the conference, it also raised Lipscomb’s all-time total to 1,285 honorees, the most of any school in the history of the A-Sun. In addition to the team awards, Lipscomb senior cross country runner Tessa Hoefle was named the 2013-14 Atlantic Sun Female Student-Athlete of the Year. She became the third Lady Bison to receive the distinguished honor. Hoefle also won her third consecutive A-Sun Women’s Cross Country Scholar Athlete of the Year. Hoefle, along with Joshua Kolbo and Claire Peterson, were named Presidential Scholars for finishing their careers with a GPA of 3.8 or higher. Fellow seniors Geoff Musick, Melissa Dowd and Caitlin Dotson received Commissioner Scholar awards for finishing with a GPA between 3.6 and 3.79. To view the full list of all 211 scholar athletes visit the Lipscomb Athletics website Photo courtesy of Lispcomb...