2008-09 school year kicks off with many 'firsts'
Janel Shoun |
The 2008-09 will be full of milestones, such as the first class of Lipscomb University student pharmacists, four new or renovated facilities, the campus’ first certified “green” building, the debut of the SALT service learning program and plenty of activities surrounding the presidential election.
Read on for a quick glimpse of the fun headed our way as August rolls into full swing:
The Thomas James McMeen Music Center
The Village at Lipscomb
Willard Collins Alumni Auditorium
Lipscomb has completed a $10.1 million renovation of the A.M. Burton Building and re-named it the Burton Health Sciences Center. The College of Pharmacy, the nursing department and the Institute for Sustainable Practice are the new residents of Burton, which now sports four laboratories, an airy, open design for collaborative study and a historical display of pharmaceutical equipment.
The Thomas James McMeen Music Center is connected to Burton, sitting adjacent to Collins Alumni Auditorium. It include large offices, numerous rehearsal rooms and a large rehearsal space for the choral groups and orchestras.
The Village at Lipscomb is the first four buildings of an eventual 11-building housing complex for students. The apartment-style rooms provide an off-campus lifestyle with on-campus convenience.
Both Burton and The Village have been constructed using green building methods, and Burton is expected to become the first U.S. Green Building Council-certified classroom building on a Tennessee college campus.
The Willard Collins Alumni Auditorium has undergone a complete remodeling, now boasting an expanded stage, new seating and refurbished interiors.
Dedication Day is open to the public. The main events will occur as follows:
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Willard Collins Alumni Auditorium Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony
9:30 a.m., Bison Square steps of Collins Auditorium Coffee and Pastry Reception President’s Convocation 2008 Thomas James McMeen Music Center Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony
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Burton Health Sciences Center Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony
2:15 p.m., University Park Boulevard entrance to Burton Lemonade Reception The Village at Lipscomb University Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony |
Middle Tennessee’s First Student Pharmacists
The first 75 students at Lipscomb University’s College of Pharmacy will begin their health care career with a prayer on the steps of Burton on Aug. 13, the first day of class for the student pharmacists.
On Friday, Aug. 15, the students’ families and invited friends will join them to see them receive their first white lab coat, in a special ceremony in Collins Auditorium. Former Gov. Winfield Dunn will be the speaker for Lipscomb’s first white coat ceremony.
Several hundred Lipscomb University freshmen will start their college career on move-in day, Aug. 17, and at Quest Week, beginning Aug. 19. Quest Week is a week of fun (Mountain DewFest, Quest Olympics) and educational events (orientation, meet the faculty) including an afternoon of community service at 20 local charities throughout Nashville.
Hundreds of freshmen scatter about town doing landscaping, arts and crafts, sorting donations, hauling and cleaning equipment and stocking canned goods for a variety of benevolence organizations.
It’s all political
Lipscomb University will offer a wide array of opportunities for students and the public to learn about and engage in politics during the fall, the height of the 2008 presidential campaign.
The Lifelong Learning program is offering not one, but four separate programs for retirees to get political. Courses will give seniors the opportunity to learn about early democracy in America, issues surrounding the current presidential election, the history of American political campaigns and predictions of what America’s new president will face.
The Department of History, Politics and Philosophy is coordinating this year’s Landiss Lectures and will offer two sessions in September with Michael Nelson, political science professor at Rhodes College and author of 22 books on politics and social issues.
The department will also offer debate parties for students to watch all four presidential debates on a big-screen television in Shamblin Theatre.
The 2008-09 freshman class will be the first to have a service learning requirement each year as they progress through their college career. The SALT Project, a service learning program using service opportunities to enhance classroom instruction, debuts this year.
Service opportunities for students this year include conducting job skills and etiquette training for disadvantaged teens and conducting a speakers bureau for the Second Harvest Food Bank.
Beginning with this year’s freshmen, all students will have to complete a specific service learning requirement each year in order to graduate.