by Kyrsten Turner | Dec 4, 2012 | News Slider
Pi Kappa Sigma spent November collecting trendy, used clothing items for teenage girls at Youth Villages, all the while serving their mission and growing as human beings. “I hope that it makes our members more aware of the needs of other girls in the community and that they see it as a potential to make a positive impact in the lives of others,” said Emily Brunson, PKS service coordinator. Brooke McAllister, a senior family relations major, interned with Youth Villages in Middle Tennessee last summer and was excited to get PKS involved with the organization. McAllister, whose passion is helping young people, was glad to find an internship that provided her some financial support while also allowing her to develop as a person, at the same time doing something for which she is committed. “I chose Youth Villages because I wanted some experience in a social services organization where I could learn a lot and also get to serve,” she said. Youth Villages is a nonprofit organization seeking to help troubled children and their families lead successful lives. With locations across the country, including one here in Nashville, Youth Villages primarily serves youth between the ages of 12 and 17, many of whom have suffered abuse. “I worked in a group home with teenage girls,” McAllister said. “We were there to provide therapeutic structure, supervision, and to spend time with them. We took them on outings, helped with homework and listened when they wanted to talk.” But, service isn’t just about the people who are being served. It’s about the people who are serving. “I didn’t realize beforehand how...
by Kyrsten Turner | Sep 24, 2012 | News Slider
Lipscomb is a great place to make new friends and pursue an education, according to new transfer students. Although their experience is far different than that of incoming freshmen, transfers say they are making the most of their first few weeks on campus. Liz Schnell, a sophomore who transferred from Northern Kentucky University, is enthusiastic about life at Lipscomb. “The transition’s been really, really easy,” said Schnell, a fashion-merchandising major from Cincinnati, Ohio. “I’ve only been here for a few weeks, but I feel like I’ve already grown as a person. “I’ve made so many friends the past couple weeks, and it’s so easy to get involved,” she said. “And, the professors here want to build a relationship with you as a person, not just as a student.” Miranda Davidson, a junior health and physical education major from Paducah, Ky., said it has been an easy social adjustment to Lipscomb from her local community college. “The hard thing is really making yourself focus on studying, instead of doing other things,” Davidson said. “There are so many different things that you can get involved in and just find your fit here at Lipscomb.” Davidson said she is looking forward to becoming more involved on campus and finding her niche among the Bisons. “Just this week I keep meeting more people, and they recognize me,” she said. “I feel like I’ve been going here for a while now.” Despite their unique situation and the adjustments that must take place, many transfer students view the Lipscomb community as a big academic lift. Horton Jones, a first-year pharmacy student, completed his undergraduate education at Lipscomb, after transferring from The University of Tennessee...
by Emily Snell | May 25, 2012 | News Slider
Geena Davis says the media’s role in reshaping the image of women in society is simple: “If they see it, they can be it.” The problem is that the media is not doing its part in representing women and men equally, Davis says, and when women are portrayed in television and film they, often are sexually provocative or stereotyped characters. Davis, who has embarked on a mission to change that and offer more hope and empowerment for young women in popular culture, brought her message to a gathering at Lipscomb’s Andrews Institute. That institute partnered with the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media Thursday for “A League of Their Own,” an event starring the acclaimed actor and also featuring Deborah Taylor Tate and female local media leaders to discuss the role of women and girls on screen. Davis — who starred in movies like A League of Their Own, Beetlejuice, and Thelma & Louise — founded her institute in 2004 after watching children’s entertainment with her daughter and realizing the lack of female characters present in TV programming and family movies. Davis’ institute, which focuses on research, education and advocacy, conducted the largest body of research on gender prevalence in the media and discovered that only 17 percent of characters in family films are women. Davis noted those few female characters often are portrayed in stereotypical or hyper-sexualized ways. It’s not just popular media. Davis said women are not fairly represented in most areas of society, noting that the U.S. ranks 90th on the list of countries that have female representation in government. “It’s astounding,” she said. “The fact is that women...
