September 11, 2006

GREENSHEET HEADLINES

• Lyon College named one of nation’s top liberal arts colleges by Washington Monthly

• Lyon College’s annual Service Day slated for Sept. 27

• Acclaimed novelist to speak at Lyon College

• Lyon Moot Court to debate NSA policies as part of Constitution Day

• Sports

• Volleyball

• Soccer

 

  

Naturalist to present program on

rare ivory-billed woodpecker at Lyon
 

The first man to see the ivory billed woodpecker decades after it was thought to have gone extinct is coming to Lyon College.
On Tuesday, Sept. 12, at 7:30 p.m., in Nucor Auditorium in the Lyon Building, entrepreneur and naturalist Gene Sparling will present his program, “The Ivory-billed Woodpecker,” as part of scheduled Convocation events.

Sparling first spotted the ivory-billed woodpecker in the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge, a find that led to an extensive search in Arkansas. Since his initial observation in February 2004, Sparling has been actively involved in the search, serving as the project’s co-manager and working in the conservation and land acquisition efforts as well as public and community relations efforts.

Sparling, who began exploring the Big Woods in his kayak in 2003, has sought out wild and natural places throughout his life, exploring Arkansas’ Ozark and Ouachita mountains, as well the Rocky Mountains, and Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. A native of Springfield, Mo., Sparling lives in Hot Springs, Ark.

The ivory-billed woodpecker once inhabited through swampy forests in the southeastern and lower Mississippi valley states. Sighting were recorded from North Carolina to Florida and west to eastern Texas and Arkansas, with some 1800s reports in Kentucky, Missouri and Oklahoma. John James Audubon reported ivory-bills as far north as the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers around 1825.

Averaging about 20 inches in length, the ivory-bill is frequently mistaken for the smaller but similarly marked pileated woodpecker. Ornithologists distinguish the two by the location of the white wing feathers. When seen from above, the full-width white patch in the ivory-bill’s trailing wing feathers folds to form a white “saddle” on its back when the bird is perched. Males have a prominent scarlet crest; the female’s crest is black.

The event is open to the public and admission is free.

 

Lyon named one of nation’s most socially beneficial

liberal arts colleges by Washington Monthly

Lyon College, long known for its outstanding level of academics, has just been named to Washington Monthly’s list of the most socially beneficial universities and liberal arts colleges in the nation.

Out of 202 listed, Lyon came in at No. 76. Unlike most other college guides, the Washington Monthly asks not only what colleges are doing for students, but also what colleges are doing for the country.

Washington Monthly came up with three indicators of how much a school is benefiting the country, including: how well it performs as an engine of social mobility; how well it does in fostering scientific and humanistic research; and how well it promotes an ethic of service to country.

“Commitment to community service and preparation for professional fulfillment and personal growth are integral to our mission,” said Dr. Walter Roettger, Lyon College president. “Research – particularly collaborative research involving faculty and students – is one means among many by which we foster these ends. We are very pleased that the Washington Monthly recognizes our contributions in these areas.”

The Washington Monthly is a magazine based in Washington, D.C., which covers American politics and government. Its founder is Charles Peters, a legislator, lawyer and soldier.

For more information on Washington Monthly’s list, see www.washingtonmonthly.com.

 

Lyon College’s annual Service Day slated for Sept. 27

Over 300 members of Lyon College’s faculty, staff, student body and administration are planning to cut class later this month, and they’re doing it for the sake of their neighbors.

On Wednesday, Sept. 27, Lyon College will release everyone participating in the annual Service Day activities and allow them to work with members of the local community on the College’s yearly day of giving back.
 

Following a morning gathering in Brown Chapel, participating members of the Lyon campus will travel to more than 40 sites in the community.

This event involves most of the campus. Last year, 341 students, faculty and staff participated in service day, for a combined total of 1,187 volunteer hours. This year, like last year, members of the campus will disperse to sites throughout Independence County and neighboring counties.
 

“(Students) learn the value of service and the satisfaction helping others brings. It’s also a break from the daily routine after the first month of classes.”
– Dr. Bruce Johnston
 

  

Lyon College has long sponsored the event as part of the College’s mission to develop responsible citizens and leaders committed to continued personal growth and service. Since 1992, the Lyon campus has given more than 13,500 volunteer hours in Batesville and the surrounding area.

Dr. Bruce Johnston, vice president for student life and dean of students, said participants perform a wide array of jobs during the event.

“Yard work, window washing, reading to children, working with the elderly,” Dr. Johnston said. “It’s all over the map.”

Participants often benefit as much as the community does during Service Day, he added.

“They learn the value of service and the satisfaction helping others brings,” Dr. Johnston said. “It’s also a break from the daily routine after the first month of classes.”

For a campus with only about 500 students, having so many members of the Lyon College community volunteer their time and energy is “incredible.”

“It’s a wonderful measure of the development of civic responsibility on the part of the college community,” he said.

Joel Plaag, assistant professor of music, said many locations around Batesville receive the benefit of Service Day labor support for that day.

“That gives them either a break from those responsibilities, making their environment a little better, or helping to serve those in need in our community,” he said. “And the students get a sense of accomplishment, of having done something positive to benefit not only their school but the community. And we gain a better idea of what kinds of services and organizations are in Batesville.”

For more information on Service Day, or to inquire about hosting a future Service Day worksite, contact campus chaplain Rev. Nancy McSpadden at 698-4281.
 

Acclaimed novelist to speak at Lyon College

 The Washington Post calls Kevin Brockmeier a “thrilling” storyteller, The Chicago Tribune gave him its Nelson Algren Award, and The Oxford American named him one of the Best Writers of the South.

And he’ll soon visit Lyon College as part of the Contemporary Writers Series.

Brockmeier is the author of the novels, “The Brief History of the Dead” and “The Truth About Celia,” the story collection “Things That Fall From the Sky,” and the children's novels “City of Names” and “Grooves: A Kind of Mystery.”

On Tuesday, Sept. 19, at 11 a.m. in Bevens Music Room, he’ll give a lecture, and at 7:30 p.m., he’ll give a reading, also in the Bevens Music Room. Both events are free and open to the public.

Some of Brockmeier’s other awards include three O. Henry Prizes, the Italo Calvino Short Fiction Award, and the James Michener/Paul Engle Fellowship. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where he also taught, Brockmeier is a native Arkansan and lives in Little Rock.

The Lyon College Visiting Writers Series, the Visiting Fellowship in Creative Writing, and the Heasley Prize Reading Series all provide outstanding opportunities to anyone interested in reading – or writing – fiction, poetry, drama and creative non-fiction.

Andrea Hollander Budy, Lyon’s Writer-in-Residence, initiated the Visiting Writers Series in 1991 when she joined the faculty, and the series immediately began drawing both Lyon students and members of the community to hear authors read from, and speak about, their work.

For more information on the Contemporary Writers Series, contact Budy at ahbudy@lyon.edu.

Lyon College Moot Court to debate NSA policies as part of Constitution Day

A group of Lyon College students will soon celebrate the U.S. Constitution by using the freedoms it gives them by debating the legality of the National Security Agency’s controversial policies.

On Sept. 18, at 7 p.m. in Nucor Auditorium, in celebration of Constitution Day, members of the Lyon Moot Court team will sponsor a panel presentation on the NSA’s policy of wiretapping without warrants in their ongoing war against terror.

Students will assess the merits of the Bush Administration’s program and offer arguments both supportive and critical of the agency’s activities. The topic will provide an opportunity for those attending to reflect on the Article II powers of the executive and the Fourth Amendment protections afforded by the Bill of Rights.

Congress passed a law in 2004 mandating that every school and college that receives federal money must teach about the Constitution on Sept. 17, the day the document was adopted in 1787.

Schools can determine what kind of educational program they want, but they must hold one every year on the now-named “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.” If Sept. 17 falls on a weekend, as it did this year, schools must schedule a program immediately before or after that date.
 

Sports


Volleyball

Pipers top Trevecca

 The Lyon College Pipers started the TranSouth Conference season on the right foot Saturday, rallying from an 0-1 match deficit to cut down the Trevecca Nazarene Lady Trojans 3-games-to-1 at Becknell Gym.

Trevecca won the first match 30-24, but Lyon rocketed back to take the following three games 30-20, 30-15 and 30-24. The victory moves Lyon College to 6-1 overall and 1-0 in the TranSouth Conference.

The loss was the first of the year for the Lady Trojans, who fall to 3-1 and 2-1.

Jonesboro freshman Katie Beineke was the Pipers' kill leader on the afternoon with 11 kills. Fellow freshman Lauren Castleberry of Bono, Ark., had nine kills and 14 digs.

Junior setter Jessica Sylvester led the team with 22 assists and seven aces. Junior outside hitter Daria Paunovic had eight kills and eight digs.

Lyon College returns action tonight at Becknell Gym to face Williams Baptist College. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m.


 Soccer

 Lady Pats halt Pipers

TYLER, Tex. – Playing their second game in as many days, the Lyon College Pipers finally had an entry into the loss column via a 1-0 decision against the University of Texas-Tyler Lady Patriots in a women’s nonconference soccer match Sunday afternoon.

Sarah DeMartino’s goal late in the first overtime was the game-winner, ending nearly 97 minutes of scoreless soccer.

Stephanie Henderson (3-1-0) took her first loss in goal for the Pipers, saving eight while allowing only one goal.

The Pipers managed only six shots on goal, while the Lady Pats fired 22 at the keeper.

LeTourneau blanks Scots

LONGVIEW, Tex. -- The LeTourneau Yellow Jackets put in two goals in the first half and kicked in a third in the second to collect a 3-0 win over the Lyon College Scots Saturday in a nonconference match.

Lyon was playing its second game in as many days and fatigue may have gotten to the Scots, who fall to 2-2-1 this season.

"We were a step slower today," said Scots head coach Jeremy Bishop. "This was our second game in two days. They looked fresh, we didn't."

LeTourneau didn't waste any time getting on the board, scoring in the 1st minute on a Sergio Palacios header to the corner of the net. The Yellow Jackets added a goal in the 25th minute from Justin Rector and another in the 65th minute from Ryan Potter for the runaway win.

Matt Callaway and Dustin Horton split time again in goal for the Scots. Callaway (0-2-1) was hung with the loss and made five saves with two goals allowed. Horton saved three and allowed one goal.


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