Alumni & Friends Newsletter ***December 2024 | |
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Go Pioneers!
Scott Hummel, Ph.D.
“Pressing Forward”
– Philippians 3:14
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The holiday season is a time full of memories, thankfulness, family, and giving. I am sure you remember fondly heading home for the holidays after a strenuous semester. While most of our students were able to go home for Thanksgiving about 60 remained on campus, most of whom are international students. In conjunction with Tusculum Baptist Church and Taylor Made Barber Shop, we provided a huge meal for all of the students who remained on campus. For many, it was their first time to celebrate Thanksgiving.
After Thanksgiving, the students shifted back to academic mode to complete assignments and finals. After graduation on December 14, many students will head home for the break, but others will be heading out to the next stage in their lives.
As you remember the past and recall your memories at Tusculum, help secure the future of your alma mater and this generation of students. A great opportunity is on Giving Tuesday, December 3 (click here to donate), but you can also include Tusculum in your end of year giving. Give the gift of a Tusculum education and experience.
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Heather Woods
Tusculum alumna Heather Woods delivered an impressive presentation, “Explainable AI: How Software and Data Teams Can Get Started,” to students Wednesday, Nov. 6.
Dr. Faisal Al-khateeb, professor of computer science, arranged her visit to campus. In a LinkedIn post afterward, Woods said she had an “energizing day” at her alma mater. Woods said she appreciated the thoughtful questions and contributions from the computer science, math and business students who attended her presentation.
Her presentation focused on ways software engineers, data engineers and data scientists can work with the domain experts and business leaders to answer all the whys that need a response when they create responsible AI.
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Woods received her bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics from Tusculum and has a master’s degree in computer science, with a concentration in software engineering, from East Tennessee State University. She lives in Jonesborough, TN with her husband and boy-girl twins who are 8. She works in tech, with a "data for good" mindset. She is thankful for her time at Tusculum where she met so many wonderful people and learned to think in systems and relationships. She currently works as a cloud data engineer. | |
Taylor Made Barber Shop and Tusculum Baptist Church teamed up again to host Thanksgiving
Micah Taylor, owner of TaylorMade Grooming Lounge, is the brainchild behind what has become a growing annual tradition to feed Tusculum students who remain on campus for the holiday. For the second straight year, he teamed with Tusculum Baptist Church, which provided the space and kitchen facilities to accommodate the meal.
Many of these students come from other states and countries, and they were able to enjoy an extensive spread of traditional Thanksgiving staples such as turkey, dressing and mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie as well as a host of other sides and desserts.
“In my opinion, small business is the backbone of the nation,” Taylor said. “Every corporation should be doing more than what they do to serve the community. I think we should lead by example and be the cornerstone of the community. The barber shop in general is a place of conversation as well as grooming. I was talking with my barbers three years ago, and it came up in conversation, ‘Why not feed the students?’”
Taylor provided a smoked turkey, a deep-fried turkey, a spiraled ham, a honey ham, two types of dressings, four pans of macaroni and cheese and soft drinks. The church provided various sides and desserts. Members of the university’s Executive Cabinet provided soft drinks and desserts, and Dr. Scott Hummel and Starr Hummel, Tusculum’s president and first lady, respectively, brought sides, desserts and soft drinks.
The turnout included dozens of students, and many church members came to assist. Taylor said he was choking back tears about the outcome.
“I couldn’t ask for better results,” he said. “I didn’t expect this. Obviously, other people in the community share the same desires as I do, and to see everybody pull together and share their resources, time, energy and money demonstrates a multi-faceted effort. I didn’t do this by myself. This is a community effort.”
This is the third year for Taylor to hold a Thanksgiving meal. He held the event the first time at his barber shop, located across the Erwin Highway from the Tusculum Arch, but said it was a challenge to keep the food warm and seat everyone. So he talked to Dr. Hummel and Dr. David Smith, the now-retired pastor of Tusculum Baptist, and the church opened its doors for the event. Taylor said he will hold the event again next year, and he expects an even larger crowd.
Taylor has been a major supporter of Tusculum. He provides a scholarship and is best known on campus for the free haircuts he provides students on campus at the start of the academic year. Tusculum Baptist is also a key player for the university, and its ministry, Students Pray on Thursdays, is a hit with the students.
“We are extraordinarily grateful to Micah for his leadership in ensuring our students receive a great meal on Thanksgiving,” said Dr. Hummel, who is also currently serving as Tusculum Baptist’s interim pastor. “He is an outstanding corporate citizen, and we are fortunate to have him as one of our neighbors providing a valuable service for our students. We also appreciate the many church members who join us for this event to help the meal be provided so efficiently.”
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Quiz bowl tournament brings around 80 students to campus
We were thrilled to have 80 high school and middle school quiz bowl players from three states on campus to compete in the Tusculum Tournament for Helene Relief and learn more about being a student at the university.
Participating students also learned how they could build on their pre-college experience at this tournament as a member of Tusculum’s growing quiz bowl team. Dr. David Cook, provost and vice president of academic affairs, shared with the students and their families about the potential for an additional scholarship at the university should they become part of the team.
Dr. Scott Hummel, Tusculum’s president, and Jaileen Castro, an enrollment representative, spoke about all the university has to offer, including the academic programs, the mentoring of students by professors and the support of students whose parents or guardians do not have a bachelor’s degree.
Proceeds from the tournament and the broader quiz bowl community will be donated to AIDNET of Greene County, a nonprofit, to assist those affected by Hurricane Helene. The total will be more than $1,500.
We commend Dr. Chuck Pearson, assistant dean of science and mathematics, for his leadership with this tournament, which he has directed for several years. We also thank the many Tusculum family members who assisted. You can also view this gallery of photos from the Office of Communications.
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History Happened Here
With guidance from Dr. Angela Keaton, professor of history, the students have created 14 yard signs that are placed at strategic locations on the Tusculum grounds. All of the yellow signs have a header that says, “History happened here” and a QR code people can scan to connect to a web page that provides additional detail about Tusculum.
“Our history program embraces every opportunity to provide students with hands-on learning to develop skills necessary for their discipline and future careers,” Dr. Keaton said. “This project provided them with an excellent way to gain experience working with archival material and making it accessible to the public to tell the story of Tusculum University’s past.”
So far, the signs have been deployed on campus during the Old Oak Festival in the spring and Homecoming in the fall. Dr. Keaton wants to continue the project by either expanding the current one or choosing a new focus, and she would like to have permanent signage that would enable everyone to take an interactive history tour at any time.
The signs were the work of Dr. Keaton’s Gender History class. The students picked all of the topics and photos that were used to create the interactive tour. Students who participated in the project were Kenton Cobble, BriAnna Higgins, Sydney May, Max Mullins, Samantha Nelson and Todd Wallin.
The 14 web pages that were created were the project home page, the iconic Old Oak Tree, athletics, student clubs, veterans, debate tradition, graduations, amphitheater, Tusculum Farm, Samuel W. Doak sermon, civic engagement, student fun, programs of study and May Day. The pages are concise and feature a summary and photos that relate to the subject.
“We had so much fun rummaging through the university’s archives to find interesting and entertaining pictures that would act as windows into Tusculum’s past,” Dr. Keaton said. “Photos ranged from the old amphitheater near Tredway Hall and WWII-era student veteran housing to 1890 baseball players and May Day celebrations. My personal favorite is the Samuel W. Doak sermon in which he explains how to raise children properly.”
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Mark your calendars for Giving Tuesday! | |
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Dr. Scott Hummel, left, and Mayor Alan Corley stand in the crosswalk near Virginia Hall and Annie Hogan Byrd Fine Arts Center.
Pedestrians will benefit from safety enhancements coming to key locations to Tusculum University as well as to a prominent area adjacent to campus and places where the Tusculum Linear Trail crosses roads.
The City of Tusculum has received a $1 million community development block grant from the State of Tennessee that is expected to fund sidewalks, landscaping, alert signals and potential additional roadway lighting. The $1 million from the Department of Economic and Community Development will be matched by $234,568 from the city.
“We are delighted to receive this grant and to work with our partners at the university and the state to accomplish these important safety measures,” said Alan Corley, the City of Tusculum’s mayor. “This work will have a positive effect on the university and our linear trail, which are major drivers of our community’s success and quality of life. We are grateful to the state for recognizing the value of these improvements and look forward to completing this project.”
Specifically, the grant is expected to fund:
· A sidewalk on the beach volleyball court side of Shiloh Road from the outdoor basketball courts near Pioneer Way to Annie Hogan Byrd Fine Arts Center
· A sidewalk on the university side of the Erwin Highway from the Tusculum Arch to the city limits at the bridge over College Creek
· A sidewalk on the Doak Elementary School side of Sam Doak Drive from the school to the Whistle Stop restaurant on the Erwin Highway
· Additional safety features for the three crosswalks on Shiloh, the three crosswalks on the Erwin Highway and the crossing on Sam Doak Drive, all of which primarily serve university pedestrians or users of the trail
· Landscaping to encourage pedestrian use of the crosswalks, particularly at the university
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Here is the cast. Photo by Kristin Girton
We thank all of the cast members and behind-the-scenes crew for 10 outstanding shows of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in Behan Arena Theatre.
We especially commend Steve Schultz, the musical’s director and Tusculum Arts Outreach’s director, and Erin Schultz, who played Narrator in the show and is the university’s costume director, for their commitment to the show and its success despite experiencing severe damage to their house in the flooding of late September.
Other Tusculum family members were part of the cast, and we are grateful to them for spending the additional time on campus to present another high-quality production from Theatre-at-Tusculum.
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12% of all Charitable Giving happens in the three last days of the year! This is due largely to tax benefits, of course. But by way of its truth and beauty, the holiday season also brings to mind how abundantly blessed we have been. This is the most wonderful time of the year to consider making a Planned Gift for future generations of Tusculum students!
Richard D. Raum
PCUSA Pastor, retired
Planned Giving Specialist, Tusculum University
rdraum2@gmail.com
701-226-2084
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Tusculum working to create two new endowments to support students | |
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Seeking to provide additional financial support for our students, individuals at Tusculum are working to create two endowed scholarships.
The Office of Institutional Advancement is collaborating with the College of Science, Technology and Mathematics and family members of Ron Conley to establish one scholarship in his name. Conley was a faculty member for 30 years and former chair of the Mathematics Department.
In addition, Institutional Advancement is coordinating with an anonymous donor to start a scholarship in the name of Marion Edens, a 1932 Tusculum graduate, who was heavily involved in our Athletic Department and student recruitment.
Everyone involved is raising the $25,000 necessary to create these endowed scholarships, and your donation is welcome.
To donate to the Conley scholarship, please visit https://giving.tusculum.edu/the-ronald-conley-memorial-scholarship-fund. To support the Edens scholarship, please visit https://giving.tusculum.edu/the-marion-edens-scholarship-challenge. If you would like more information, please email Edward Roberts, vice president of institutional advancement, at eroberts@tusculum.edu or Cheryl Fehl, senior director of grants and development, at cfehl@tusculum.edu or call 423-636-7303.
You can read more about these endowed scholarships in this news release.
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A Message from the Division of Education
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As the fall 2024 semester is drawing to a close, I feel blessed as I reflect and marvel at the faith, fortitude, and perseverance I’ve seen in our students and our faculty. We have survived and succeeded through a hurricane and the damage it left in its wake. I’m so proud of everyone coming together during this time to prepare and endure during this trying time. We all reacted quickly to ensure everyone (students, colleagues, friends, and family) were safe, and to ascertain the type of assistance any would need.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.” – Romans 5:3-5
Kappa Delta Pi Induction Ceremony: Our fall 2024 induction ceremony was held from 6:00 to 8:00 PM on Wednesday, November 6th in the Brotherton Boardroom in the Meen Center.
We inducted fourteen new Kappa Delta Pi (KDP) members into TU’s Alpha Iota Zeta chapter (Brittany Shular, Shianne Reagan, Sarah Notarriani, Samantha Jimenez, Kyla Oppenhuis, Gabrielle Alvarez, Caylen Conrad, Carrie Cobble, Allison Silvers, Madison Silvers, Caroline Wilson, Ashlette Lopez, Stephanie Terrill, Lindsey Cole). Kappa Delta Pi is the International Honor Society in Education.
The mission of KDP is to sustain an honored community of diverse educators by promoting excellence and advancing scholarship, leadership, and service. TU’s Alpha Iota Zeta chapter members keep good company with famous and notable KDP members: Albert Einstein, George Washington Carver, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Margaret Mead.
After the induction ceremony led by our current president, Shay-Lyn Von Hess, our Alpha Iota Zeta chapter elected new student chapter president and secretary. The new Alpha Iota Zeta chapter student administrators are Allison Silvers (president), Gabrielle Alvarez (secretary), and Isabella Bianchin (treasurer).
Fall 2024 Virtual COE Honor Awards Convocation: The College of Education celebrated the academic excellence of students in our Education programs during the fall 2024 Virtual Honor Awards Convocation held at 6:00 PM on Wednesday, November 20th. President Hummel offered welcoming and congratulatory remarks to this celebration of student achievement and dedication. Provost David Cook provided closing remarks of congratulations and encouraged award recipients to continue their lifelong learning. Education faculty and staff, along with family and friends of award recipients, were thrilled to present awards to the following students:
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Donors learned about the positive impact of a Tusculum University education, the strength of the institution’s arts programs, and possibilities to become even more robust during a festive gala held recently on campus.
The 2nd Center for the Arts Gala, held Tuesday, Nov. 12, brought donors to Tusculum’s arts programs face-to-face with those who have directly benefited from this philanthropy. Through beneficial presentations, prepared by the various arts programs, guests at the gala learned about the important role the Center for the Arts plays in enriching personal lives and contributing to a greater quality of life in the community. The Center for the Arts is an umbrella for all arts programming at the university.
Attendees also enjoyed an enchanting short performance by Central Ballet and were able to purchase beautiful works of art, all in an elegant setting.
“We were thrilled to invite our donors to the event and share all of the exciting developments and the impact Tusculum’s arts programs have on our students and the community,” said Rouja Green, director of the Center for the Arts, who created the gala and oversees it. “We enjoy connecting regularly with the community through our events and spreading the joy that the arts bring to all who encounter it. The community’s investment in our students and our arts programs makes a profound impact, and we welcome the opportunity to continue fostering those relationships.”
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U.S. Senate staff member praises Tusculum
During his attendance at First-Generation College Celebration Day, Michael Hensley from U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s office not only praised the students who hold that status but also gave high marks to the university for its work in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
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David Evans, who is from Johnson City, and Angela Sanchez, who is from Sevierville, were announced as the king and queen, respectively, during halftime of Tusculum’s Homecoming football game Saturday, Nov. 9. Sanchez was presented with her sash and crowned by Dr. Scott Hummel, Tusculum’s president, and Evans received his sash and was crowned by Starr Hummel, the university’s first lady.
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Sophomore guard Bryce Jackson was on a roll. He sank 26 points against Carson-Newman University and repeated the number against Wingate University. That figure is a career high for him. Photo from the Office of Athletic Communications | |
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Junior forward Danyell Booker contributed 16 points and 10 rebounds for the women’s basketball game against Wingate University. Photo from the Office of Athletic Communications
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The men’s basketball team’s contest against Tennessee Wesleyan University was the annual Jack Kilday Education Game, which drew a near-capacity crowd of local elementary and middle school students, teachers and staff. Photo from the Office of Athletic Communications
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The women’s indoor volleyball team had plenty to celebrate in its four-set victory against UVA Wise Friday, Nov. 1. Photo from the Office of Athletic Communications
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Did you know...that Tusculum College was the first affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA) to admit women. Virginia Hall was the first female residence hall on campus.
Question: Who was the first woman to attend Tusculum College?
Question Credit: Kim Collins
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Last Month's question: How many volumes are in the Charles Coffin book Collection? This collection includes 16th, 17th, and 18th century Imprints from renowned European publishing houses as well as from the early American colonial press. These volumes currently reside in TU's Andrew Johnson Library.
Answer: 2000
Photo Credit: Cheryl Fehl
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Tusculum University Magazine
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Dear Alumni and Friends!
I hope you were able to enjoy your family and friends during the Thanksgiving season. I hope you ate too much. I hope your face hurt from smiling and laughing. I hope memories were made!
I know that spending time with my family is always the answer, no matter the question.
This season and always, I am thankful for you my Tusculum alumni family.
As always, please feel free to email me at jhawk@tusculum.edu or call at 423.636.7407.
Kind Regards,
Jolin Hawk '05 '11
Senior Director of Development and Alumni Relations
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