Thursday, March 31, 2011

C-SC lecturer named NAIA Head Athletic Trainer of the Year
Culver-Stockton College Senior Lecturer in Athletic Training and Athletic Training Education Program Director Rob Carmichael has been named NAIA Head Athletic Trainer of the Year by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association. This prestigious award is given annually by the NATA to individuals in each collegiate division who exhibit exceptional performance as a head athletic trainer. Award recipients are actively involved in their community or campus, athletic training associations and promotion of the profession. In addition to his duties at Culver-Stockton, Carmichael also serves as vice president of the Heart of America Athletic Conference within the NAIA (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) Division. Carmichael was nominated for the award by a colleague and fellow HAAC member. “It was quite a surprise. The HAAC met in January; that’s when the nomination was announced. Then, I received an e-mail congratulating me. I wasn’t expecting anything to happen that quickly, and I was extremely surprised that I won,” said Carmichael. “But I have to say, I owe a lot of this award to the conference members who nominated me, and my staff who work hard to make me and Culver-Stockton look good; without those folks this would not have happened,” he continued. Carmichael will receive the NAIA Head Athletic Trainer of the Year award June 20, 2011 during the NATA Annual Meeting and Clinical Symposia in New Orleans, La. Prior to joining the Culver-Stockton faculty, Carmichael worked for two years as an athletic trainer at Southwest Missouri State University (now Missouri State). He received his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Northwest Missouri University and master’s degree in health education from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Carmichael is now in his 17th year as a faculty member at Culver-Stockton College. Read more online.

Financial experts offer career advice to C-SC students
From the collapse of the housing market to the impact of the continuing crisis in Japan – Culver-Stockton students heard first-hand accounts of how U.S. financial markets are affected by current events as professionals from Edward Jones Trust Company spoke during the “Financial Management” class. Jeff Stuerman ‘82, principal and president of Edward Jones Trust Company and C-SC board of trustee member, and his colleague Eric Koestner, principal at Edward Jones spoke to students in Assistant Professor of Finance Kim Gaither’s class Wednesday, March 23. In addition to explaining their day-to-day responsibilities with Edward Jones and the challenges facing the finance industry, Stuerman and Koestner discussed what they view as positive trends in the U.S. markets. “I hope we gave students a glimpse of the real life issues facing businesses and markets today. Often, challenges that you can’t foresee come up in the finance industry. Hopefully, by sharing our experiences these students will be better prepared when faced with challenges in their own careers,” said Stuerman. Koestner continued by stressing the importance of making the most of classroom experiences. “A lot of times students sit in class and think that what they’re learning doesn’t really apply. I would just like them to know that it’s crucial to have the base understanding, even just knowing the terminology is critical when you get into the field.” Stuerman and Koestner both have extensive experience in the finance industry. Read more online.

Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band Spring Concert
Come enjoy an evening of jazz inspired wind band works beginning at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 15, 2011 as the Culver-Stockton College Wind Ensemble and Symphonic Band present their spring concert, “All About Jazz.” Under the direction of leadership of Trent A Hollinger, director of bands, the symphonic band will open up the concert with Robert Russell Bennett’s extremely popular "Suite of Old American Dances." The suite sets the mood of a Saturday night barn dance—with all the gaiety that the festivity demands—by recalling several of the characteristic dances remembered from Bennett’s childhood in Kansas City. Other symphonic bands works will include a transcription of George Gershwin’s "An American in Paris" and will close with Frank Ticheli’s "Blue Shades." The wind ensemble, also under the conduction of Hollinger, will begin with a chamber setting of Kurt Weill’s "Little Threepenny Music," a selection of movements from the 1929 musical "Die Dreigroschenoper," including the famous “Mack the Knife.” The full ensemble will then perform the rousing and entertaining "Slava!" by Leonard Bernstein. The concert will close with Eric Whitacre's "Godzilla Eats Las Vegas!" This unusual work comically depicts Godzilla eating his way through the many musical styles found in Las Vegas and includes several entertaining visual elements.Don’t miss this enjoyable and entertaining, jazz-inspired concert on April 15 at the Alexander Campbell Auditorium on the campus of Culver-Stockton College.

C-SC Division of Fine Arts hosts annual Pops Concert
The Culver-Stockton College Division of Fine Arts will host its annual Pops Concert on April 18, 2011 in the Robert W. Browning Performing Arts Center on the C-SC campus. This perennially popular concert experience will include performances by the C-SC Collegiate and Chamber Choirs, directed by Dr. Kevin Baker, associate professor of music, as well as the Jazz and Wind Ensembles. Starting the evening, the Collegiate Choir will showcase folk tunes of the American south and west including Blow the Candles Out arranged by Gregg Smith, The Yellow Rose of Texas arranged by John LeaVitt, Old Dan Tucker arranged by John LeaVitt, Deep River arranged by Roy Ringwald and Nelly Bly arranged by Jack Halloran. This large, open audition choir’s performance will conclude with a rendition of Down by the Riverside arranged by John Rutter, and will include an audience participation section. Members of the smaller C-SC Chamber Choir, a highly select ensemble in the C-SC choral program, will perform Summertime from Porgy and Bess arranged by Mark Hayes and Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho arranged by Mark Hayes. The Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of C-SC Professor of Music Dr. Tom Polett, will present selections featuring senior members of the ensemble in standard charts and improvisation. Saxophonist Josh Koehler, senior music major from Jackson, Mo.; trumpeters Drew Thompson, senior biological chemistry major from San Antonio, Texas, and Jamie O'Brien, senior music major from Winfield, Mo.; and trombonist Scott Uhlott, senior music education major from Rantoul, Ill., will be featured soloists and recognized for their contributions to the Jazz Ensemble. The Culver-Stockton College Wind Ensemble, under the direction of Assistant Professor of Music Trent A. Hollinger, will "let their hair down" to perform Eric Whitacre's Godzilla Eats Las Vegas! This unusual work comically depicts Godzilla eating his way through the many musical styles found in Las Vegas and includes several entertaining visual elements. The annual Pops Concert is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the C-SC Fine Arts Division at finearts@culver.edu or (573) 288-6413.

Trayon Nash Earns HAAC Track Honor
Culver-Stockton College sprinter Trayon Nash was named the Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) Track Athlete of the Week for his performance at the Augustana Viking Olympics in Rock Island, Ill., last weekend. Nash, of Worthington, Minn. (Worthington HS / Minnesota West College) placed in the top eight in two events on Saturday to help the Wildcats place sixth in the meet. Nash won the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.92 seconds. He defeated 20 other runners, including teammate Ernest Humphrey, who placed fourth. Nash also placed eighth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.32 seconds. The Wildcat track and field team is scheduled to compete in the Washington University Games this weekend, April 1-2, in St. Louis, Mo.

C-SC history class visits Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum
Dr. Scott Giltner and Dr. Patrick Hotle took the six students in the “Historian’s Craft” class to West Branch Iowa home of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum on March 24. The class spent the morning touring the museum and walking the historic site, including the Hoover boyhood home, before having lunch with the library staff. The students were then given a behind the scenes tour of the workings of a federally-operated Presidential archives facility, including a tour of the documents room, which is usually closed to the public and required a security escort. This was followed by a lesson in doing professional archival research from Matt Schaefer and Craig Wright, the chief archivists at the Hoover Library. Students were given a general topic and then spent two hours combing through boxes and folders of archival materials to find items of interest. The day at the library concluded with a discussion with Matt and Craig on how to become an archivist and the nature of a career in public history. 

New scholarship established
Friends and former students of Edgar A. Franz have provided funds to establish the Edgar A. Franz Endowed Scholarship at Culver-Stockton. Mr. Franz began his career as a mathematics professor in 1949 at Culver-Stockton College. During the Korean Conflict he was recalled to active duty as an officer in the Army Signal Corps where he served from 1951 to 1952. He returned to Culver-Stockton to continue teaching, and served as Chairman of the Science Division until 1965. He continued his teaching career at Illinois College until his retirement in 1994. Mr. Franz was known for his humor, his love of words, his eccentricities, his love for learning and teaching and his integrity and sense of justice. He was dedicated to his students. His wife, Mary, resides in Jacksonville, Ill. If you would like to honor Professor Franz with a gift to this endowed scholarship contact the Advancement Office at 1-800-755-2287. The scholarship will be awarded to students pursuing a major or minor in mathematics.