Tag Archives: Avon Williams Campus

TSU Looks to Change Landscape by Enhancing Its Continuing Education Offerings

November 20, 2017 Lucas Johnson

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – No time for a traditional class schedule? Real estate, mobile app development, and entertainment legalese are just a few areas working professionals can now explore by taking self-paced noncredit courses at Tennessee State University.

This expansion represents another milestone in the university’s efforts to bridge the digital divide and position itself as a leader in the area of continuing education.

Dr. Evelyn Nettles, TSU associate vice president for academic affairs, said she is excited about the new dimension of programming this partnership is adding to the continuing education program.

Andrew Golden, a Nashville native, is currently pursuing certifications through the TSU Continuing Education Program.

“The university offers a variety of things for a variety of people,” she said. “It offers credit for those people who really want to get their degree. And for those people who want to improve what they already have, we offer a noncredit program.”

Some of the specialized courses life-long learners can take at TSU will include classes on women in leadership, helping minority youth and police work together, second-chance reentry programs to help inmates when they return to society, and social media marketing courses.

This development is part of an agreement with Aperion Global Institute (AGI), a unique digital educational model of network affiliates that have a direct focus on erasing the digital divide in education.

“The collaboration with Aperion Global Institute will allow Tennessee State University to expand its noncredit course offerings by helping the university expand its presence in high-demand markets,” said Dr. Mark Hardy, TSU vice president of academic affairs.

“The web portal through AGI is attractive and designed so that potential students can readily find the specific course or courses of their choosing. This is also expected to increase the number of students who sign up for various courses through AGI.”

Costs for the courses range from $99 for a typical four-week course to $297 for a 12-week course. Students can take the courses on their mobile phones and tablets or through AGI’s digital TV channel. All the courses have been loaded on an SD (secure digital) card.

Isiah Reese, chief executive officer of AGI, said this venture gives professionals, entrepreneurs and those who have not finished school an opportunity to enhance their skills and stay relevant using a self-paced platform.

“The beautiful part is that we have open enrollment 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year,” Reese said. “A lifelong learner can start a course with us any day of the week from anywhere in the world. It’s an open platform to keep the learning flowing.”

This flexibility attracted Andrew Golden, a Nashville native who attended Howard University last year, but found himself unable to return for the current academic year.

“I spoke with Isiah, and when I shared my career goals, he began to explain to me what this program offers,” Golden said. “It just made sense to me to go ahead and pursue some of the things I was already planning to pursue after graduation. Getting that done now and getting some experience in those various fields give me a head start for when I graduate.”

Golden who is currently pursuing certifications in security plus, networking plus, and Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP), has been accepted as a full-time student at TSU in the computer science program.

Dr. S. Keith Hargrove, dean of the TSU College of Engineering, expressed excitement about Golden’s acceptance into the program.

“With a strong demand for IT professionals in Middle Tennessee and the nation, I believe our program is well suited for Mr. Golden, that is affordable and will provide the right credentials for employment or entrepreneurship,” Hargrove said.

According to Hargrove, less than 20 percent of programs in computer science are nationally accredited. However, he said the TSU Department of Computer Science is accredited by the Accrediting Board of Engineering & Technology (ABET), and provides an academic experience of IT knowledge to pursue a career in software development, networking, cybersecurity, or information systems.

“Ultimately, I want to be in mobile app development and cybersecurity,” Golden said. “Growing up there was so much I was unable to see in terms of being exposed. I want to be in a position not just to say I have this and that, but to say this is what you have the potential to be.”

Dr. Cheryl Seay, director of distance education and multimedia services at TSU, said expanding the university’s continuing education offerings with AGI is part of TSU’s efforts to revitalize its continuing education program.

“Aperion Global Institute’s uniqueness in this space is their developing relationships with well-known figures in certain areas and then offering a bundle of courses associated with those individuals,” Seay said.

AGI’s high profile experts, also known as Global Education Ambassadors, are committed to erasing the digital divide. They include prominent individuals like entertainment attorney Ricky Anderson, whose clients include Steve Harvey, Mo’Nique, Rickey Smiley, Yolanda Adams and Mary Mary; civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who worked on the Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown cases; Digital marketing expert, speaker, start-up consultant and author Yoli Chisholm; and Keith Clinkscales, founder and former chairman and CEO of Vanguarde Media.

“Our first mission is to have a high completion rate. We want them to have a unique and engaging experience,” Reese said.

TSU awarded more than 800 continuing education units (CEU) in the 2016-2017 academic year. According to a majority of those awards were from courses taught by various campus departments or external agencies.

Nettles said the continuing education department is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

“What we offer is quality programming for our whole community, and now the global community,” she said.

To explore the new courses offered by Tennessee State University’s Continuing Education Department, visit www.tnstate.edu/continuinged .

Department of Media Relations

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

About Tennessee State University

With more than 8,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 38 bachelor’s degree programs, 25 master’s degree programs and seven doctoral degrees. 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 celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

EVENTS, FEATURED, NEWS

TSU to Host Legislative Forum on Tennessee Academic Standards for Grades K-12 Feb. 26

February 12, 2015 Emmanuel Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – One of the biggest and controversial issues facing the 109th General Assembly in Tennessee this session is what role should the state have in mandating a common set of academic expectations for students to achieve at each grade level. This has significant implications on curriculum, budget and decision making.

To inform the public on what the future holds for education legislation in the state, Tennessee State University will hold a legislative panel and forum on “Viewpoints on Tennessee Academic Standards for Grades K-12,” Thursday, Feb. 26 at the Avon Williams Campus Atrium. The forum begins at 7:30 a.m. and is free and open to the public.

Education Commissioner, Dr. Candice McQueen, will be the featured speaker for the event, with State Senators Steven Dickerson, member of the Senate Education Committee, and Becky Duncan Massey, member of the Joint Subcommittee on Education, Health and General Welfare, serving on the panel provide to let the public to see, hear and digest information on the state’s standards.

Other panel members include State Representatives Brenda Gilmore, Harold Love Jr., member of the House Education Instruction Programs Committee, and Mark White, chair of the House Subcommittee on Education Administration and Planning.

According to Dr. Michael Harris, dean of the College of Public Service and Urban Affairs and moderator of the forum, the panel will provide a balanced representation of views to “allow for a meaningful discussion.”

“Education standards are probably one of the biggest issues taken on by legislators this year,” said Harris. “The panelists will discuss existing positions both in favor or against the standards, present current legislative initiatives that address them, and share evidence-based resources on the standards.”

The panel discussion on academic standards comes on the heels of Tennessee school superintendents recently urging state lawmakers to rethink making any changes this year to the state’s K-12 academic standards and instead give Gov. Bill Haslam time to complete his current review next year.

The Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents Tuesday presented a letter signed by 114 superintendents from the state’s 141 school districts at the State Capitol, asking that, “no legislative action be taken during the 2015 legislative session to change our academic standards.”

Many argue, that the success of the recently signed Tennessee Promise law that offers future graduates of any Tennessee high school the opportunity to receive two years of community or technical college tuition-free, hinges on how prepared students are to succeed. Recently, leaders of all 13 of Tennessee’s community colleges held a press conference at the state capitol to emphasize their support for continuing Tennessee’s commitment to higher K-12 academic standards that prepare students for college study.

“This is an issue that the public needs to be informed about, and kept abreast on what is facing our schools, our students and our legislators,” Harris added.

Along with TSU, the forum is hosted in partnership with the American Association of University Women of Tennessee, and AAUW Nashville. Organizations cosponsoring the event include the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce, Women in Higher Education in Tennessee, the American Society for Public Administration, and Lipscomb University Institute for Conflict Management.

For more information, contact Dr. Ann-Marie Rizzo, professor of Public Administration, at 615.963.7250 or arizzo@tnstate.edu.

Department of Media Relations

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

About Tennessee State University

With more than 9,000 students, Tennessee State University is Nashville’s only public university, and is a comprehensive, urban, co-educational, land-grant university offering 42 undergraduate, 24 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 celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

NEWS

African-American History and Culture Conference set for February 13 at TSU

January 14, 2015 Emmanuel Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Room) – The 34th annual Nashville Conference of African-American History and Culture will take place Friday, Feb. 13, at the Tennessee State University Avon Williams campus.

Co-sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts, and the Metropolitan Historical Commission, the conference will focus on the educational and musical legacies of Nashville’s African-American community. For more than 30 years, the award-winning conference has brought together historians, students, educators, community leaders and others interested in African-American history and culture.

The 2015 conference continues the long-standing tradition of focusing on unsung heroes in Tennessee’s cultural history from slavery through the 20th century. Those highlighted at this year’s conference include John McCline, a former slave at Cloverbottom Plantation in Donelson, who escaped from bondage, worked for the Union Army in the Civil War, and eventually found a new life in the American West. Also highlighted during the daylong conference is journalist, author and educator Samuel Yette, an English graduate from Tennessee State University, who became an influential and sometimes incendiary voice on civil rights, and was the first African- American Washington correspondent for Newsweek.

Along with McCline and Yette, the life and work of King Daniel Ganaway will also be explored. Ganaway, an African-American from a Rutherford County family, was an award-winning photographer, working in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and Chicago. His portraits were exhibited during the 1920s and 1930s in Los Angeles, Chicago, and as part of the Harmon Foundation’s traveling exhibit of African-American artists.

This year’s speakers include Belmont University professor and noted author, Dr. Sybril Bennett, who will speak to the lessons of the Underground Railroad and how its innovative network can be adapted for networking in the 21st century, and Tennessee State University historian, Dr. Carroll Van West, who will present “Where giants walked: American Baptist College and Selma’s voting rights movement.”

Building on the conference’s long-standing commitment to honoring the contributions of African Americans to city’s cultural scene, the Nashville Public Library’s Wishing Chair Productions will stage “Anasazi the Spider,” in honor of the rich story-telling traditions of the African-American community.

Conference participants will also have the opportunity to view the winning student video documentaries from the 2014 Tennessee History Day competition. Honored for the best projects in African- American history, middle- and high-school students and their teachers will show their documentaries shorts from the 2014 Nashville Conference Committee competition.

The conference takes place Friday, Feb. 13, beginning at 9 a.m. at the Avon Williams Campus of Tennessee State University. Registration is $20, and includes admission to all speakers and performances, additions to the Profiles of African-Americans in Tennessee series, and other publications. Lunch and parking are also included. To register visit www.nashville.gov/mhc, or call 615.862.7970.

Department of Media Relations

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

About Tennessee State University

EVENTS, NEWS

Commercial Real Estate Conference Kicks off at TSU Avon Williams Campus Thursday, April 17

April 16, 2014 Emmanuel Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Brian Bailey, senior financial policy analyst at the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, will be the keynote speaker at a one-day conference on “Commercial Real Estate Opportunities and Obstacles.” The conference will take place Thursday, April 17 on the Avon Williams Campus at Tennessee State University.

Hosted by the Department of Economics and Finance in the College of Business, the conference will also include two panels of experts. One panel will comprise industry experts who are actively involved in various types of commercial real estate, such as office, warehouse, multi-family housing, and residential construction.

Another panel comprising bankers from Middle Tennessee will discuss lending to the commercial real estate industry.

According to conference organizers, Bailey, a lead reviewer in the “annual stress tests” conducted on the nation’s largest financial institutions, will focus his presentation on commercial real estate trends in the Southeast market.

Some of the real estate and banking institutions participating in the conference are CBRE Multi-family Group, Chas. Hawkins Co., Inc., Boyle Investments, Regent Homes, the Bank of Nashville, Regions Bank, Capstar Bank, US Bank and Pinnacle Financial Partners.

The conference will start promptly at 8 a.m. with registration in the Atrium. Cost to attend the conference is $50 per person, or $275 for a table to seat six persons.

For ticket or other information contact Dr. Jerry W. Crigger at (615) 717-7393 or jcrigger@tnstate.edu.

Department of Media Relations
Tennessee State University
3500 John 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, co-educational, 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 celebrated 100 years in Nashville during 2012. Visit the University online at tnstate.edu.

Uncategorized

Medal of Honor Recipient Sgt. Dakota Meyer Motivates Small Business Leaders

March 14, 2014 Emmanuel Freeman

Courtesy U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District

Story by Mark Rankin

Medal of Honor recipient Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer (center) talks with participants during a break at the 3rd Annual Small Business Training Forum at the Tennessee State University, Avon Williams Campus, in Nashville, Tenn., March 13. Sgt. Meyer is currently the president of Dakota Meyer Enterprises Incorporated and most recently received his first federal contract from the Corps of Engineers. (photo by Leon Roberts, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – More than 266 business owners, managers and reps from as far away as California and Texas gathered at the Tennessee State University, Avon Williams Campus, March 13, to hear a Medal of Honor recipient speak and to collect information on federal, state and local procurement systems during the 3rd Annual Small Business Training Forum.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District Small Business Office, Society of American Military Engineers Nashville Post, local businesses, and USACE experts, contracting, engineering and operations participated during the event. They worked to educate business professionals about available tools and resources and provided information on how to obtain assistance with the procurement process.

Dr. Ruthie Reynolds, executive director of the Entrepreneurship and Economic Development Center at Tennessee State University, welcomed small business representatives to the Avon Williams Campus and briefly talked about the university’s continued support for small business.

After Reynolds remarks, Lt. Col. John L. Hudson, Nashville District commander and Society of American Military Engineers Nashville Post president, also welcomed the small business representatives in attendance.

“Some of you have done business with the federal government in the past, including the Nashville and Louisville Districts, but for many of you federal government procurement is a new process,” Hudson said. “Our objective today is to let you know what tools and assistance are available. And if you are already doing business with federal, state and local governments, hopefully you will learn something new that can help with your business endeavors.”

Hudson then introduced the keynote speaker for the event Medal of Honor recipient Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer. Meyer, a native of Columbia, Ky., is the first living U.S. Marine in 41 years to have earned the honor.

Meyer thanked Hudson, the Corps and everyone in attendance for providing him the opportunity to speak at the forum. He explained briefly how he enlisted in the Marine Corps, his journey since Sept. 8, 2009, and how he was awarded for heroic actions in Ganjgal, Afghanistan, that rescued 36 U.S. and Afghan troops.

Meyer completed his active duty in 2010 and now serves in the Individual Ready Reserve of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Since returning to civilian life, Sgt. Meyer is currently the president of Dakota Meyer Enterprises Incorporated and most recently received his first federal contract from the Corps of Engineers.

“It is certainly a great opportunity to come here, network, and meet so many good people,” said Meyer. “Business is about people and people working together.”

Meyer talked about challenges of cultures, learning to put aside differences and using his learned military communication skills to forge relationships in business.

Following his speech, Hudson provided an overview of the district’s projects and contracting opportunities.

Participants then asked questions, and spent time networking and meeting with contracting and government representatives in booths just outside of the TSU auditorium.

Roy Rossignol, Nashville District Small Business manager, said the Society of American Military Engineers and Tennessee Small Business Development Center sponsored the event to enable small businesses opportunities with USACE and to network with USACE experts.

“We are very happy with this year’s turnout and excited to have Sgt. Meyer motivate and speak to us about business,” said Rossignol.

The businesses that attended met with vendors, networked with other businesses, interacted with government agencies, and picked topics of interest during three breakout training sessions throughout the forum.

Molly Malone, a representative from the Parent Company, a commercial and industrial subcontract based in Nashville, Tenn., said her company has not done business with the federal government and values events like this training seminar that helps unlock processes and provides a forum for networking with potential subcontracts and potential clients.

“This is a great environment and forum to network with other businesses and events like this provide avenue for us,” said Malone.

Malone said she had the opportunity to hear, meet and talk with Meyer at the event and it was the highlight of the forum.

“How cool is that? To meet a Medal of Honor winner and network too,” said Malone.

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

About Tennessee State University

NEWS

From Death Row to Artist…Former Inmate Displays Artwork At Avon Williams Campus Library Feb. 28-April 11

March 5, 2014 Emmanuel Freeman

Ndume Olatushani turned to painting as a way to escape the tedium and depression of serving a death sentence. Now a free man living in Nashville, his paintings will be on display at TSU's Avon Williams Campus Library Feb. 28 through April 11. — Ndume Olatushani turned to painting as a way to escape the tedium and depression of serving a death sentence. Now a free man living in Nashville, his paintings will be on display at TSU’s Avon Williams Campus Library Feb. 28 through April 11. (courtesy photo)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Service) – Freedom was only a dream for Ndume Olatushani, a man who spent 28 years behind bars in maximum-security prisons. Wrongly convicted of murder, he spent 20 of those years on death row.

To escape the tedium and depression of life behind bars Olatushani began painting, by turning to canvas to “live outside of prison” as a way of freeing his mind and spirit.

The paintings, on display at the Tennessee State University’s Avon Williams Campus Library Feb. 28 through April 11, demonstrate the products of his incarceration and the will to change his life after hitting rock bottom.

“I was truly a broken man and the lowest I’ve ever been,” said Olatushani, recounting how he began painting following his mother’s death two years into his prison sentence. His mother Moosie, who never wavered in her belief of her son’s innocence, was killed in a car accident that also claimed the life of his 8-year-old niece.

“After my mom’s death, I decided I couldn’t be hurt anymore,” he added. “I started drawing and eventually taught myself to paint. Through my artwork I lived outside of prison and didn’t paint my surroundings, but instead the people from outside the prison walls I would like to meet.”

Born Erskine Johnson in St. Louis, Olatushani’s troubles began Oct. 26, 1983 while celebrating his mother’s birthday with about 30 relatives. While the family was celebrating, nearly 300 miles away in Memphis, a grocer named Joe Belenchi was murdered while working in the supermarket he owned.

Within several months following the murder, Johnson, who legally changed his name to Ndume (Swahili for masculinity) Olatushani (unifier), was tracked down, charged, convicted and sentenced for the crime—even though he never before set foot in the state of Tennessee. In 1985, at the age of 27, he was sentenced to death.

For nearly three decades, Olatushani spent his time moving from different levels of incarceration, including from Level C – where he spent 23 hours-a-day in forced solitude, with hands and feet shackled during the remaining hour – to Level A, which allowed up to three hours a week for visitations, outdoor time with other convicts in a 12-by-12 cage, and the opportunity to have odd jobs.

In 1991 he started corresponding with a young college student, Anne-Marie Moyes, who had dedicated herself to social justice issues. She began working with Death Penalty Focus, a California-based nonprofit similar to Tennesseans for Alternatives for the Death Penalty. The two met after months of corresponding, and she was so convinced of his innocence, Moyes enrolled in Vanderbilt Law School where she was awarded the law school’s Founder’s Medal – the highest honor bestowed on a single graduate out of every graduating class. The two would spend nearly two decades filing appeals.

In the meantime, a large international firm in New York decided for the first time to take on a death penalty case and filed appeal after appeal on his behalf. Finally in Dec. 2011, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals overturned Olatushani’s murder conviction due to faulty witness testimony and demanded a new trial. On June 6, 2012, Olatushani walked out of prison after accepting an Alford Plea to avoid potentially serving several more years in the Shelby County Jail awaiting a new trial and taking his chances with another jury. This deal required that he plead guilty to second-degree murder, while, at the same time, allowed him to maintain his innocence. In exchange, he was sentenced to time served and was released.

Today, at age 54, Olatushani is a free man living in Nashville with his now wife, Anne-Marie, and their adopted child. Now just two years shy of being released and starting a new life, he is still painting, growing a small vegetable garden and learning about all the advances that did not exist when he was first incarcerated.

“The only real struggle is trying to get used to all these technological advances that have been made,” he said, listing on his fingers all the inventions that didn’t exist when he went to jail in 1983: computers, cell phones, the Internet.

Olatushani’s art exhibit will be on display at the Avon Williams Campus Library Feb. 28 through April 11 and is free and open to the public. The library is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Sunday noon until 8:30 p.m.

For more information call 615.963.7188.

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

About Tennessee State University

EVENTS, NEWS

African-American History and Culture Conference to Open Feb. 14

January 8, 2014 Emmanuel Freeman

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (TSU News Room) – The 33^rd annual Nashville Conference of African-American History and Culture will take place Friday, Feb. 14, 2014 at the Tennessee State University Avon Williams campus.

Co-sponsored by the College of Liberal Arts at Tennessee State University, and the Metropolitan Historical Commission, the conference will focus on the educational and musical legacies of Nashville’s African-American community. For more than 30 years, the award-winning conference has brought together historians, students, educators, community leaders and others interested in African-American history and culture.

During the conference, Dr. Sonya Ramsey, of the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, will speak on the legacy of African-American schoolteachers in Nashville, the subject of her recent book, Reading, Writing, and Segregation: A Century of Black Women Schoolteachers in Nashville.

Additionally, Dr. Don Cusic, professor of Music Business at Belmont University, will speak on educator, poet and activist James Weldon Johnson. Dr. Janet Walsh, coordinator at the TSU Avon Williams Campus library, Beverly Robertson with the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, will highlight the research and interpretation of the African-American experience at their institutions.

In commemoration of the Sesquicentennial year of the Battle of Nashville in the American Civil War, Norm Hill will join Dr. Tim Johnson to discuss the Civil War experiences of Nashville’s African Americans during the Battle of Nashville.

For more information, contact Tara Mielnik, Metropolitan Historical Commission, at 615.862.7970, or Linda Wynn at 615.532.1550.

For more than 30 years, the Metropolitan Historical Commission and Tennessee State University have celebrated the contributions of African-Americans to Nashville and Tennessee through the Nashville Conference on African-American History and Culture. Each February, Nashvillians come together to honor these individuals through historical and cultural presentations by historians, artists, students, dramatists, musicians, genealogists, and others interested in the history of our city and state. The long-running series, Profiles of African Americans in Tennessee, a collection of almost 200 short publications, makes the Conference research available to the public.

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

About Tennessee State University