Category Archives: EVENTS

TSU Announces Homecoming Week Activities

Members of the Aristocrat of Bands march up Ed Temple Boulevard during the 2012 Homecoming Parade. This year the parade returns to its original route beginning at 14th Avenue and Jefferson Street to 33rd Avenue and Albion Street. (photo by John Cross, TSU Media Relations)
Members of the Aristocrat of Bands march up Ed Temple Boulevard during the 2012 Homecoming Parade. This year the parade returns to its original route beginning at 14th Avenue and Jefferson Street to 33rd Avenue and Albion Street. (photo by John Cross, TSU Media Relations)

University ushers in a New Century, New Direction for Excellence

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University will hold a week full of exciting events October 20-26 as community members, alumni and friends of the University come to Nashville to celebrate Homecoming 2013.

Inspired by last year’s centennial and moving forward into its next 100 years, TSU will celebrate a New Century, New Direction for Excellence for 2013 with a week full of events.

“Homecoming at Tennessee State University is unlike any other,” said Sandra Griggs, Director of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving. “It’s a time to reconnect with old friends, classmates, and reminisce about the days they walked the campus as a student. The positive changes and growth are remarkable. Although there has been much expansion, the traditions of Tennessee State A&I remain sound.”

While TSU has cherished and maintained certain Homecoming traditions, it has also moved forward across the century, finding new ways to celebrate pride in the institution, its students and alumni. Innovations that have sprung up over the years include the parade, pep rally, Homecoming Court, tent parties and many additional campus activities.

This year sees the return of the Homecoming Parade back to Jefferson Street. The parade route will begin at 14th Avenue and Jefferson Street, and proceed two miles to 33rd Avenue and Albion Street. Last year, the route was moved for the Centennial celebration only to accommodate large floats and a large influx in crowd size. This year’s parade begins at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 26.

The annual Robert Murrell Oratorical Contest will officially kick off homecoming week on Sunday, Oct. 20 beginning at 3 p.m. in the Floyd Payne Campus Center. The Gospel Explosion rounds out the evening, beginning at 6 p.m. also in the Floyd Payne Campus Center.

Student events highlight Monday, Oct. 21 when the Courtyard Show takes place in Welton Plaza starting at 11 a.m., followed by the Battle of the Residence Halls at 7 p.m. in the Floyd Payne Campus Center.

The Blue Sapphire Awards will take place on Tuesday, Oct. 22 in the Walter S. Davis Humanities Building in the Poag Auditorium beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Presidential Inaugural events kick off Wednesday, Oct. 23 in conjunction with Homecoming starting with the Presidential Processional at 11 a.m., and the Mr. and Miss TSU Coronation and Ball at 7 p.m. in Kean Hall.

Events continue on Thursday, Oct. 24 with the Inaugural Symposium at 10 a.m. at the Avon Williams campus Auditorium, and Homecoming Concert at 7 p.m. in Kean Hall.

Friday, Oct. 25 begins with the Investiture of President Glenda Baskin Glover as 8th President of the University beginning at 9 a.m. in the Howard Gentry Complex. Homecoming events include the Charles Campbell Fish Fry on the President’s Lawn at 11 a.m., the annual Pep Rally at 11:45 a.m. in Hale Stadium, and the TSU Pan-Hellenic Step Show at 5 p.m. in the Gentry Complex. Tickets are $10 for students in advance, $15 at the door. The night ends with the Inaugural Reception and Scholarship Gala beginning at 6 p.m. at the Gaylord Opryland Resort.

Saturday, Oct. 26 begins with the Homecoming Parade beginning at 8 a.m., followed by the Showcase of Bands at 2 p.m. at LP Field. The Homecoming football game between TSU and Eastern Illinois kicks off at 4 p.m. at LP Field.

View the complete list of alumni, student, reunion and inaugural events.

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331


About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university and is a comprehensive, urban, coeducational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top Universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912 Tennessee State University celebrates 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu

TSU to Welcome 5-Time Grammy Winner Victor Wooten Oct. 4

victor_wootenNASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Tennessee State University will welcome five-time Grammy award winning musician Victor Wooten Friday, Oct. 4 for an appearance with students, professors and the community in Poag Auditorium.

Wooten, author of The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search for Growth Through Music, which discusses the musician’s life lessons about the elements of music, will be the second guest of the newly launched lecture series, “Music Matters: Hosted by Dr. Rod Taylor,” sponsored by the Department of Language, Literature and Philosophy.

Wooten’s lecture will feature a mixture of music from some of his earlier and most recent recordings.

Dr. Rod Taylor, assistant professor of Literature and Writing and creative consultant and editor on Wooten’s book, said he and the musician and author will discuss the process of working on the book, which is available in four languages and being used in curriculums in universities, high schools and learning institutions around the world.

“Through our exchange, I hope students will see how writing can be a collaborative project and how the joy of writing is in the process not just the end product,” Taylor said. “I also hope they can see the unique relationship among language, writing, teaching and music.”

Taylor’s English 1010 class will be the subject of Wooten’s lecture.

Wooten, whose solo efforts and collaboration with artists like Stanley Clark, Bruce Hornsby, India Arie and Dave Matthews have led him to be regarded as one of the greatest bass players of all times, is revered by his fans and peers for his uncanny skills on the guitar.

Two of his latest CDs, “Words and Tones,” a collection of 14 tracks featuring various female vocalists; and the instrumental, “Words and Stone,” represent the various sides of Wooten’s unique approach to music, performance and songwriting highlighted by a searing bass solos that will boggle the mind.

Wooten continues to tour with his band, The Victor Wooten Band, which has received rave review on their last three tours.

The Oct. 4 appearance in Poag Auditorium will begin promptly at 12:40 p.m. For more information, contact Dr. Rod Taylor at [email protected] or 615-963-4896.

For more information about this series, visit the Music Matters Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/musicmattersconversations

This is the second guest in the “Music Matters” series. The first guest was legendary bass guitarist Chuck Rainey who made at one-day appearance at the University September 12.

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331


About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university and is a comprehensive, urban, coeducational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top Universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912 Tennessee State University celebrates 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu

“Surviving the Storm” Comes to TSU Sept. 26

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Lisa Spencer and the 4WARN Weather Team bring “Surviving the Storm” to Tennessee State University Thursday, Sept. 26 beginning at 7 p.m. in the Cox-Lewis Theatre in the Performing Arts Center.

 “Surviving the Storm” is a multi-media program where guests learn the “what, why and how” of severe thunderstorms and what they can do to be safe.  Participants find out things like what makes a thunderstorm “severe”, when and where tornadoes happen the most, and the safest place to be no matter where they are…at home or out shopping.  Come meet the 4WARN Weather Team including Lisa Spencer, Dan Thomas, Paul Heggen and Nancy Van Camp along with the legendary Snowbird.

The doors open at 6 p.m. and the first 50 people to enter receive a free Snowbird goodie.  Other door prizes will be given away at the end of the program.  There will also be opportunities to ask questions of the team.

Join Channel 4 Thursday, Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. in the TSU Performing Arts Center. The program is free and open to the public.

 

 

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331


About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university and is a comprehensive, urban, coeducational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top Universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912 Tennessee State University celebrates 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu

Music Legend Chuck Rainey to Lecture, Perform at Tennessee State University

CD CoverNASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Release) – At one time tagged as the hardest working bass player in America, music legend Chuck Rainey will lecture and entertain students, faculty, staff and the community in a one-day appearance at Tennessee State University on Friday, Sept. 20.

As the first guest in the upcoming lecture series, “Music Matters: Hosted by Dr. Rod Taylor,” sponsored by the Department of Language, Literature, and Philosophy, the longtime performer and educator will speak to an English class about music and writing.

Rainey, whose playing on successful television shows, motion pictures and recordings have earned him the title as the most recorded bass player in the history of recorded music, will combine his lecture with a demonstration of his techniques/songs, to be followed by a question and answer period with the audience. The lecture and performance will be held in Poag Auditorium between 12:30-1:45 p.m.

Longtime Rainey collaborator and friend, Dr. Rod Taylor, assistant professor of Literature and Writing, whose English 1010 (Freshman Composition) class will be the subject of Rainey’s lecture, says he expects the music icon to bring a “unique perspective” to his class topic and to the process of writing.

“As a pioneer of both a musical instrument and revolutionary style, Chuck Rainey’s visit offers the students in my class a chance to talk with someone who has played his way across five decades of musical landscape, transitioning from 4-track analog days to the modern Pro Tools digital age,” said Taylor.

A noted bassist himself, Taylor, after whom the lecture series is named, was an associate producer on Rainey’s most recent solo album Interpretations of a Groove, which was partially mixed in Nashville.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio as Charles Walter Rainey III, Chuck boasts a native ‘son ship’ of Youngstown, Ohio, where he was actually raised and educated. Originally trained in the classics as a trumpet player by C.F. Brown, James Ramsey and John Busch, Chuck switched to Baritone Horn while attending Lane college in Jackson, Tenn., and was an intricate part of the school’s well known and traveled ‘brass ensemble’ in the early 60s.

During the early 60s thru the early 70s, Rainey toured and/or recorded with some of the most prominent artist of that era, such as King Curtis, Sam Cooke, Etta James, the original Coasters, Jackie Wilson, Harry Belafonte, Al Kooper, The Supremes, Labelle, Aretha Franklin, Roberta Flack and Quincy Jones.

Chuck Rainey Flyer-smallAdditionally, his unique style has brought him opportunities in the television and film industries where he has performed on musical themes and in the source music of numerous motion pictures, television series and sitcoms, along with radio and TV advertisements.

“Chuck Rainey’s bass lines have laid the foundation for many of the popular songs in pop, rock, jazz and fusion that emerged from the 60s and 70s,” Taylor wrote about his friend in an article in the Aug. 9, 2012 edition of No Treble, an online magazine for bass players. “From Aretha Franklin to Marvin Gaye to Steely Dan, he’s played an integral part in the music of at least five Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame inductees. His double stops, slides, and syncopated grooves are legendary, and—alongside James Jamerson, he remains one of the most influential players in our instrument’s history.”

Rainey’s Sept. 20 performance in Poag Auditorium will feature a mixture of music from some of his earlier and most recent recordings. The show begins promptly at 12:30 p.m. It is free and open to all. For more information contact Dr. Rod Taylor at [email protected] or 615-963-4896.

For more information about this series, visit the Music Matters Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/musicmattersconversations

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331


About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university and is a comprehensive, urban, coeducational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top Universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912 Tennessee State University celebrates 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu

University Welcomes 2nd Annual Kurdish Arts Festival Sept 6-8

2nd KAFNASHVILLE (TSU News Service) – A weekend of traditional Kurdish music, dance, art and food will take place at the Performing Arts Center and Kean Hall on the Tennessee State University campus, Friday, Sept. 6 through Sunday, Sept. 8.

The 2nd Annual Kurdish Arts Festival, sponsored by the Kurdish Cultural Institute, and Tennessee State University, will be one of the most exciting Kurdish showcases in Nashville and North America. Kurdish artists and creative talents from the U.S. and from countries around the world including Turkey, Iraq, Europe and Canada, are scheduled to perform and present the rich history of the Kurdish heritage.

The Festival kicks off Friday from 5-10 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center. There will be a reception, Kurdish dance show and music during the opening night festivities. Ticket prices for Friday’s opening night events are $10 per person.

Saturday’s events begin at 10 a.m. with an educational seminar. The events take place until 8 p.m. and include music, short films, theater, guest speakers and award presentations. Admission is $10. Lunch consisting of traditional Kurdish food will also be available for purchase.

The three-day event wraps up Sunday with a Festival Celebration beginning at 6 p.m. until 11:30 p.m. in Kean Hall. Admission is $15 and will include a night of traditional dance and music.

Ticket prices for children 6-10 are $5 with children under 6 admitted free. TSU students, faculty and staff admitted free with University ID.

According to organizers, the annual festival is the premier Kurdish artistic and cultural networking event in the States, and one of the most exciting Kurdish showcases in North America, and is expected to draw thousands of guests to Nashville and Tennessee State University. Proceeds from the Festival will assist in building a scholarship foundation for Kurdish students, both in the United States and abroad who are in need of financial assistance, and to allow them the opportunity to study and further their education in the areas of arts and music at Tennessee State University.

For more information, email [email protected] or visit kurdishartsfestival.org.

 

 

 

 

Department of Media Relations  

 

Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331


About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university and is a comprehensive, urban, coeducational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top Universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912 Tennessee State University celebrates 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu

TSU Mobile Biodiesel Education Lab on Display September 6-15 at Tennessee State Fair

Dr. Jason de Koff (center), assistant professor of agronomy and soil sciences at TSU, shares bioenergy research with visitors recently. The mobile demonstration lab will be on display at the Tennessee State Fair Sept 6-15. (courtesy photo)
Dr. Jason de Koff (center), assistant professor of agronomy and soil sciences at TSU, shares bioenergy research with visitors recently. The mobile demonstration lab will be on display at the Tennessee State Fair Sept 6-15. (courtesy photo)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service)  – Tennessee State University’s College of Agriculture, Human and Natural Sciences’ Mobile Biodiesel Education Demo will be on display at the Tennessee State Fair as part of the Green Collar Exhibit from Sept. 6 – 15.

Throughout the week, informational fact sheets about bioenergy and biodiesel production will be available as part of the demo and the mobile biodiesel production trailer will be open to attendees between noon and 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the exhibit.

Dr. Jason de Koff, TSU Extension Assistant Professor and Mr. Chris Robbins, TSU Extension Associate, Farm Operations will be available when the trailer is open to answer questions about biodiesel production.

“Being invited to participate in the Tennessee State Fair is a great opportunity to talk to all kinds of people about bioenergy and the bioenergy program we have in the College of Agriculture, Human and Natural Sciences,” said de Koff. “It’s also a way to showcase one of the many great things we have going on at TSU.”

The eye-catching mobile lab is the showpiece of the University’s pioneering alternative fuels program. Funded with $250,000 from the USDA Capacity Building Grant program, the mobile lab takes biodiesel fuel education right to working farmers, and has all the equipment necessary for producing the alternate fuel.

For more information, contact Dr. de Koff at (615) 963-4929 or [email protected]. The TSU bioenergy program and the Mobile Biodiesel Education Demo can be followed on Twitter at @TSUBioenergy or on Facebook at Biodiesel Production Tour.

The Tennessee State Fair takes place September 6-15 at the fairgrounds located at 500 Wedgewood Ave., in Nashville.

Department of Media Relations 

 

Tennessee State University
3500 John A. Merritt Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37209
615.963.5331


About Tennessee State University

With nearly 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university and is a comprehensive, urban, coeducational, land-grant university offering 38 undergraduate, 22 graduate and seven doctoral programs. TSU has earned a top 20 ranking for Historically Black Colleges and Universities according to U.S. News and World Report, and rated as one of the top Universities in the country by Washington Monthly for social mobility, research and community service. Founded in 1912 Tennessee State University celebrates 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu