by Bridgette Begle | Sep 19, 2012 | Uncategorized
Tim Ghianni, a Lipscomb adjunct who worked as a newspaper journalist for more than 30 years, has published “a love letter to how newspapers used to be.” The “love letter” comes in the form of his newest book “When Newspapers MATTERED: The News Brothers & their Shades of Glory.” Ghianni’s book was published in April, and Ghianni was recently a guest on well-known journalist John Seigenthaler’s Channel 8 segment, “A Word on Words,” which aired Sunday morning. Between freelance writing, teaching and advising Lumination, Ghianni found time to write his book in 2011. His inspiration for the book was a story he reported 30 years ago, about two young people being murdered. “It was a therapy thing for me to write, because I could not get [the murders] out of my head” Ghianni said. Co-Author Rob Dollar also played a big role in writing the book. Ghianni said he would write a few chapters then send them to Dollar who would read, make edits, add his view and send it back to Ghianni. This became a back and forth rhythm for eight months until the book was completed around Christmas 2011. “All I ever wanted to be was a newspaperman,” Ghianni said. Ghianni’s love for writing hasn’t changed even though, according to him, the newsroom environment and the community aspect of news has changed. “The book is a love letter to how newspapers used to be,” said Ghianni, explaining that the newsroom atmosphere is not the same. “I don’t like how it is now. I loved the way it was.” At the core of the book is a tale...
by Emily Snell | Sep 18, 2012 | Uncategorized
When most college students imagine a chemistry professor, they don’t picture someone with a law degree. And they don’t picture someone who does creative writing and mixed martial arts for fun. But students at Lipscomb find exactly that in Dr. John Smith, assistant professor of chemistry. Smith, who started full-time at Lipscomb in 2007, said students seem to enjoy hearing about his unusual hobbies. “Some of my students think it’s amusing that I’ve taken up mixed martial arts,” Smith said, explaining that he picked it up because his 8-year-old daughter, Miranda, has been doing it for over a year. “I started that back in March. I’ve wanted to do marital arts since I was Miranda’s age, but my family couldn’t afford it. Now is my chance. It’s fun.” Beyond martial arts, Smith spends some of his free time writing. “I love writing,” he said. “I hate science writing; it’s incredibly formulaic and boring. I love creative writing.” Smith said he writes scripts for VBS drama presentations at Harpeth Hills Church of Christ, where he attends. He has also written poetry, short stories and parts of novels. “I’ve entered some competitions, but I never win anything.” Smith, who has a bachelor’s in chemistry from Drew University in Madison, N.J., said he began working at Lipscomb as an adjunct faculty in 2001 while he was getting his Ph.D. at Vanderbilt. During the 2001-02 academic year, Smith said he wrote his dissertation for his Ph.D., started classes at Vanderbilt Law School and began teaching at Lipscomb. “It was a busy year,” he said. “I don’t remember much. I remember sitting down every...
by Nicci Carney | Sep 17, 2012 | News Slider
With the death of MTSU student Jacob Nunley due to an aggressive case of bacterial meningitis, Lipscomb Health Services are on alert to make sure students are protected from this illness. Just a day after Nunley’s death was announced, the Lipscomb student body received an email regarding meningitis vaccination information, encouraging students to take the vaccine seriously as well as pay attention to symptoms and risk factors of the illness. Lipscomb’s Nurse Practitioner Bethany Massey said the risk for contracting meningitis is very high in college, especially for freshmen. “Bacterial meningitis has an increase in incidents between college freshmen,” she said. “Our biggest concern is for the ages 16-21 because the risk factors are high within the age group—from sharing drinks, food and kissing.” Every day tasks like keeping your hands clean can be important in preventing this serious, and sometimes fatal illness. Massey said the vaccine will decrease the chances of getting meningitis. “[The vaccine] is the best way to prevent from getting the bacterial form of meningitis,” she said. “Washing your hands is important, but the vaccine is your best protection.” The vaccine is available in the health center for $120, and local health services around Nashville should carry the vaccine as well. Massey said students should be aware of the symptoms that are related to the illness: High fever Severe headache Stiff neck Vomiting or nausea Confusion Seizures Sleepiness Sensitivity to the light No appetite Skin rash (in the cases of viral and meningococcal) For more information regarding the vaccine, visit the Health Center in the lower level of Elam or send an email to healthservices@lipscomb.edu....
by Brianne Welch | Sep 17, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
The Lady Bisons softball team volunteered to work with the Boys and Girls Club at their annual fall picnic Saturday. This was the first year the softball team has worked with the Boys and Girls Club. The team assisted with a variety of activities including arts and crafts, face painting, hula hooping, kick ball and many other outdoor games. “We wanted to do something different this year,” said Head Coach Kristen Ryman. “We wanted to work with a different organization.” Ryman said the Boys and Girls Club is a great organization, especially since it gives older people the opportunity to mentor a younger generation. “It makes you realize there are people out there that are always looking up to people like us,” Ryman said. The girls on the team said they had a great time being around the kids and getting to play games with them. “It was good to just be a kid for a day ourselves and, at the same time, do something for them,” said junior Bridgette Begle. Begle and several other girls said they enjoyed face painting with the kids. Sophomore Gracey Aguirre was the celebrity of the day, doing the majority of the face painting. “My favorite painting was this little shark I did for this little kid,” Aguirre said. “He was having a blast with it, and I truly enjoyed it all.” Several team members said it was easy to connect with the kids by playing games with them. “I loved working with one little boy who loved to hula hoop,” said junior Kristen Sturdivant. “It was really fun getting to hang out with...
by Brianne Welch | Sep 14, 2012 | News Slider, Sports
Lipscomb men’s golf hired a new coach, Will Brewer, a Lipscomb alum and NAIA Hall of Famer, to bring fresh leadership to the team this season. Coach Brewer is a Lipscomb graduate and was a golfer during college. Brewer was a three-time NAIA All American, the NAIA National Champion in 1976 and is a member of the NAIA Hall of Fame. The current golfers said they feel they’re benefitting from being coached by a Lipscomb legend. “It’s beneficial for us because he knows what it is like to be in our situation,” said junior golfer Dustin Wilder. “He knows what it takes to succeed at the college level.” Comparing last season to the current season, the golfers said they are excited and anxious for what a new coach with a new plan can bring to the table. “It’ll take a little bit of time for Coach Brewer to really get his system implemented,” said junior golfer Ryan Terry. “As far as the ways a coach can help a team, this year we’ll definitely improve a lot more than last year just because we’ll have someone who can solely devote his time to our team.” In past years, Buddy Harston was the head coach of both the women’s and men’s golf teams. One coach dividing his time equally between two teams can be challenging for the coach as well as the players, Terry said. “It is difficult for one guy to coach two teams,” he said. “Things have been going a lot better just because we have had one coach that has been able to devote himself to just one team,...
