Dr. Martha Beck, associate professor of philosophy, spent her sabbatical, from January 1 to May 31, at the Institute for Cultural and Ecumenical Research at St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, which is known as the Lake Woebegone area. Garrison Keillor lived and worked there when he joined Minnesota Public Radio in the early 1970s. His show is about the people of the area, some of whom Dr. Beck has known personally for decades.  “I wrote a 750-page manuscript on Plato and a reaction to a book on Plato written in the 1980s by a prominent scholar,” Dr. Beck said. She spent 10 weeks at the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, Minnesota, where she polished up the first 200 pages of her book and hoped to get it to the publisher by August 1.

Dr. Russell Stinson, the Brown Professor of Music, continued to work on his book “The Reception of Bach’s Organ Works from Mendelssohn to Brahms,” which is scheduled to be published by Oxford University Press in late 2005.

Dr. Robert Torchia, assistant professor of art history: “Aided by a Lyon grant, I have spent the summer working on an article devoted to annotating several contemporary documentary sources on Mary Smith (1842-1878), a 19th-century artist from Philadelphia who specialized in painting barnyard scenes. The article will be included in the next issue of the Journal of the Old York Road Historical Society. This subject relates to Lyon’s Scottish focus as Mary’s father, Russell Smith (1812-1896), a well-known landscape and theater scenery painter, was born in Glasgow.” Dr. Torchia also has been engaged by the Schwarz Gallery in Philadelphia to write a special exhibition catalogue to commemorate its 75th anniversary next year. The study will focus on American artists who worked in New Jersey.

Anthony K. Grafton, associate professor of chemistry: “In addition to teaching an APPLE class on astronomy, I have been working this summer to develop two separate web-based CGI interfaces that allow computational chemists and students to prepare calculations and analyze the results much more easily than is currently possible.  Also, recent graduate Jason Martin, who will be starting graduate school in chemistry this fall at the University of Arkansas, has been working with me voluntarily on a project in which he is modeling “resealable” carbon nanotubes that could conceivably be useful in drug delivery systems or in removing contaminates from polluted water.”

Tom Carpenter, visiting professor of education: Dr. Carpenter traveled to Israel and studied the existing climate for peace “as well as the difficulties in a community trying to live cooperatively side by side as Arab and Jew (Neve Shalom).”  He continued to study and provide the Israeli Education Ministry with input on the multicultural training and certification programs for educators working with the Ethiopian Jews who returned to Israel a quarter century ago. Dr. Carpenter preached the closing sermon at the district Christian Education Conference and was promoted to Pastor of St. Paul. A.M.E. Church in Tuckerman. He participated in the historic General Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Indianapolis in July.

A-maize-ing exhibition to be displayed

(at the risk of being "corny")

An exhibition of 12 paintings by Lyon student Melanie Morrison will be on display in the Kresge Gallery in the Alphin Building from August 20 through September 12. The opening reception will be at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, August 26, at the gallery.

“These paintings are part of a continuous series of work in which I have studied the various affects of light on a particular subject, namely corn fields,” Morrison explained. “In this series I examined the differences of natural colors found outside as a result of the time of day or weather conditions and the artificial colors found in advertising and supermarkets as a result of producers “enhancing” products to make them look more appealing.”

Upcoming campus events

The annual faculty and staff luncheon will be held in Edwards Dining Hall beginning at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, August 18. President Roettger will deliver his ‘State of the College’ address, new faculty and staff members will be introduced, service awards will be presented and the staff member of the year will be announced.

Walter and Peggy will host a ‘Start-of-School’ reception at Bradley Manor beginning at 4:30 p.m. Thursday, August 19, to celebrate the beginning of the new academic year. Spouses/significant others are also invited to attend. If you haven’t done so, please r.s.v.p. to Cindy at Ext. 4278 or e-mail cgillaspie@lyon.edu for both the luncheon and the reception.

Freshman orientation activities begin Friday, August 20. Students begin moving in that morning and will be meeting with mentor groups throughout the next few days.

The Matriculation Convocation will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, August 21, in Brown Chapel. The matriculation ceremony is the official reception of new students into the community of scholars where they will learn together with other students under the care and direction of the faculty and staff. Included in the ceremony is the signing of the Roll of Honor, indicating that each student voluntarily accepts the bonds that are essential to a community of scholars and that bind the students of the College to one another in a relationship of trust and mutual responsibility.

Former division I coach joins Piper staff 

Athletic Director Terry Garner has announced that Justin Dee has been named head volleyball coach at Lyon College. He will be replacing Michele Jacobs, who resigned the position in early June.

“I am very excited about the opportunities here at Lyon,” remarked Coach Dee. “We have a strong team and great recruits coming in for next year. The campus sells itself and I really appreciate a school that values athletics and academics the way that Lyon does. I look forward to many great and successful years here.”

Dee comes to Lyon after a brief coaching stint at Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham, Alabama. Dee was an assistant coach at BSC and helped improve the overall record in their first year of NCAA Division I post-season eligibility. While in Birmingham, Dee also coached a local club team, Magic City Thunder 17-1. Magic City had a remarkable year and qualified for the national tournament held in Houston, Texas. The team finished 42nd in the country in their age group, and second in the southern region. Before going to Birmingham, Dee was the head coach at NAIA Simpson College in Redding, California.  Dee led the Simpson squad to back-to-back National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) West Region Championships, which led to a fifth- and third-place finish nationally in the NCCAA II. His overall collegiate coaching record is 55-43.

Dee started his coaching career at the high school level. He was head coach of Open Door Christian School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. While at Open Door, he led the Eagles to three state championships, and garnered ACEAA Coach of the Year honors in 2000. His high school coaching record stands at 96-15. 

Dee is originally from Orlando, Florida. He earned his bachelors degree in mathematics from Liberty University in 1999. While at Liberty, Dee was a four-year starter on the men’s club volleyball team. He also was an active member of the Birmingham Area Volleyball Association and an avid outdoor player around the Birmingham area. Dee is single and resides in Batesville.

Lyon ‘Team Spirit’ is catching on...
Citizens Bank shows ‘Team Spirit’ Lyon College President Walter B. Roettger (right) welcomes Woody Castleberry, president of The Citizens Bank, as a corporate sponsor of the college’s new “Team Spirit” program. Team Spirit sponsors support unrestricted scholarships and unbudgeted athletics expenses such as post-season play. The Citizens Bank contributed $6,000 to annual scholarships, $1,000 to post-season athletics play and an additional $2,000 to the tennis program.		ConAgra shows ‘Team Spirit’ at Lyon Lyon College President Walter B. Roettger (right) thanks Gayle Thompson, plant controller of ConAgra Foods of Batesville, for ConAgra’s becoming a corporate sponsor of the college’s new “Team Spirit” program. ConAgra contributed $1,000 to Lyon – $500 for unrestricted scholarships and $500 toward unbudgeted athletics expenses.

...and the ‘spirit’ continues
First Community Bank joins Lyon’s ‘Team Spirit’ Lyon College President Walter B. Roettger (right) expresses the college’s appreciation to Tom Cobb, vice president of business development and human resources at First Community Bank, for the bank’s participation as a corporate sponsor of Lyon’s new “Team Spirit” program. First Community Bank contributed $1,000 to annual scholarships and $1,500 to post-season athletics play.		Wal-Mart and Lyon team up for ‘Team Spirit’ Lyon College President Walter B. Roettger (left) thanks David Wilson, manager of the Wal-Mart SuperCenter in Batesville, for becoming a corporate sponsor of the college’s new “Team Spirit” program. Wal-Mart contributed $1,000 to Lyon – $500 for unrestricted scholarships and $500 toward unbudgeted athletics expenses.

Team Spirit sponsors receive numerous benefits, including free admission to athletic events at Lyon, a corporate banner in Becknell Gymnasium and recognition at home games and in several college publications. Companies interested in becoming Team Spirit sponsors may contact Gina Garrett, Lyon’s director of development-corporate and foundation relations, at (870) 698-4624.