TROY News Center

March 7, 2012

Troy University students combat college-age binge drinking across Alabama

Troy—For years, various groups and organizations have tried to positively influence the national problem of college-age binge drinking. However, it may take LessThanUThink to reach students on the issue, according to some Troy University students.

A group of students have been implementing an award-winning campaign statewide since January.

The award-winning campaign, LessThanUThink, is student-generated and addresses the national problem of college-age binge drinking. It is funded through grants from The Century Council, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting responsible decision-making regarding the consumption of alcohol, and the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association on behalf of the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board.

Public Relations Chair for the campaign, Lindsey Shoewe, said this semester's phase of the campaign is focused primarily on spring break and the two weeks prior.

"The issue of college-age binge drinking is a national problem that is elevated during certain times of the year, such as spring break," Shoewe said. "I am excited about the opportunity to encourage students to monitor their drinking habits while enjoying their vacation."

"We have held several events on campus and given away free promotional items that talk about the consequences of binge drinking." Shoewe continued.

The campaign reaches college students through the use of humorous messages that highlight the negative social consequences associated with the over consumption of alcohol. This unique approach toward the issue has been the key to LessThanUThink's success, Research Coordinator, Liz Dowe, said.

An example of the humor tactics used can be seen in a poster that reads. "You think you can dance. And you could. Three drinks ago. It takes LessThanUThink."

"We are not promoting abstinence from alcohol," Dowe said. "We are simply encouraging college students to drink more responsibly, and that message is not one students are used to hearing."

The campaign committee members will have a booth in the new dining hall on the campus of Troy University today to pass out promotional items. They will close the campaign with a bar initiative event at 315 Exchange tonight from 10 – midnight. Troy University students were also featured in a statewide campaign video featured on YouTube to launch the campaign.

Visit the LessThanUThink website, LTUT.org, for more information about the campaign or find the campaign on Facebook.

LessThanUThink is a student-generated, anti-binge drinking campaign funded by The Century Council and the National Alcohol Beverage Control Association on behalf of the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. The team consists of University of Alabama advertising and public relations students, working with the Student Health Center Department of Health Promotion and Wellness in association with The Capstone Agency, a student-run public relations firm.

For More Information:

Morgan Hooper Drinkard
Troy University Campus Coordinator
205-965-1888
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Sam Nathews
Director of Media Relations
LessThanUThink Campaign
205-229-1452
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

March 7, 2012

TROY to host free conference for parents, teachers of gifted students

DOTHAN—Troy University will present the fourth annual conference for parents and teachers of young, high-ability students on Saturday, March 31, at the Dothan Campus.

The conference will be held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Michelin Room in the Library/Technology Building. This year's theme is advanced literacy.

The free event is sponsored by the College of Education and is aimed at helping parents and teachers better meet the needs of high-ability students in kindergarten through second grade.

"Typically, students are not identified and served in gifted programs until third grade. Therefore, we want to provide parents and classroom teachers with techniques that can enrich the curriculum for K-2 students prior to enrollment in a gifted program," said Dr. Victoria Morin, Professor of Special Education and Gifted Education.

"The focus of this year's conference is on recognizing and nurturing advanced literacy skills for high ability students in grades K-2. The conference presenters will provide information about how to select and use books, games, technology, and writing activities to prevent boredom and burnout at home and at school for high-ability students," Dr. Morin said.

The conference is offered at no cost to participants, but seating is limited. Pre-registration is required and will be on a first-come, first-served basis. To register, contact Dr. Morin at (334) 983-6556, extension 1351 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Check-in begins at 8:45 a.m., and refreshments will be provided.

March 6, 2012

TROY English professor completes book on Roman philosopher

TROY—Troy University English professor Harold Kaylor has completed his work on a volume that examines the writing of the sixth-century Roman philosopher Boethius and the work is scheduled for publication this month by Brill, a leading academic publishing house in the Netherlands.

The work "A Companion to Boethius in the Middle Ages," contains essays by 15 Boethian scholars, including Dr. Kaylor. Dr. Philip Edward Phillips of Middle Tennessee State University served as co-editor with Dr. Kaylor.

Boethius is best known for his "Consolation of Philosophy" and for his attempt to translate the works of Aristotle and Plato from the original Greek into Latin.

"It was an honor to be approached by Brill to edit this volume, which contains the analysis of some truly outstanding Medieval scholars," Dr. Kaylor said. "It was a tremendous challenge, but I believe the work will aid future Boethian scholars."

Dr. Kaylor joined the Troy University faculty in 2000 after 11 years on the faculty at the University of Northern Iowa. He has also lectured at two institutions in Germany, Dresden University of Technology and the University of Regensburg. Dr. Kaylor holds five academic degrees, including the Ph.D. in comparative literature from Vanderbilt University and a master of arts in German from the Monterey Institute of International Studies in California.

March 6, 2012

Troy University Pied Pipers to perform at festival in Tennessee

TROY--The members of the Troy University Pied Pipers, a popular theater-for-youth performing ensemble sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance, will perform Thursday, March 8, in Chattanooga, Tenn., through a selection and invitation process in the Theatre-for-Youth Festival at the Southeastern Theatre Conference, the largest theatre conference in the United States.

"The performance will be a colorful, fast-paced, acrobatic, humorous, and visually engaging telling of some well-known children's stories," said Dr. David Dye, Professor Emeritus of Speech and Theatre and the group's founder and creative director. "The beauty of performing for children in grades K-3, our target audience, is that the children get to be involved in the performance. They become willing partners in the performance as they get to help save the day when a villain is about to do some terrible deed. A Pied Pipers' performance also helps expose young audiences to how the magic of theater can transform a written text into a performance the children could never have imagined, and all without scenery, props, or character costumes. The squeals of delight from the children when the big bad wolf chases the pigs, is worth all the time and discipline that goes into perfecting the 50-minute performance."

The Pied Pipers cast was selected through audition in August and toured schools in the Columbus, Ga., area during the fall semester. They prepared for the SETC showcase through an adjudicated performance with Ms. Rachel Briley, director of the MFA theatre-for-youth program at the University of North Carolina-Greensboro, and Ms. Tonya Hays, performing arts director for the Wings Discovery Center in Gulfport, Miss.

The Troy University Pied Pipers began in 1970 with its first performance at Troy Elementary School. During the following decades, the group reached a peak with sixty performances a year in elementary schools around the state, in north Florida, at arts and crafts festivals, and at libraries. When the university moved from the quarter system to the semester system with a loss of prime touring dates outside of regular classes, the group discontinued its touring.

With the inauguration of the Department's First-Year Initiative program in 2006, the group was brought back into action at the request of Ms. Adena Moree, Director of Theatre, to provide a strong ensemble experience for freshmen, to provide an opportunity for a systematic introduction to the University and to the theatre discipline, and to aid in the University's retention efforts. Equally important is that members of the ensemble learn early about giving back to the community through quality fine arts performances aimed at the youngest elementary- age students, Dr. Dye said.

Based on the Italian Renaissance commedia dell 'arte, with stock characters, highly specialized bits of business, extreme physicality and a revolving repertory, the Pied Pipers Ensemble was re-established as a professional group over the last two years by Dr. Dye and Ms. Moree.

"The vivid, enthusiastic, highly physical, and very endearing characters continue to come to life in performances to the delight of children, families, and a legion of our graduates," said Moree.

Cast members are Colin Cahill of Madison, Mary-Catherine Chambliss of Cataula, Ga, Jacobi Hall of Huntsville, Kara McDowell of Pelham, Amanda Lewis of White Oak, West W.V., Connor Murphy-White of Greenville, Judith Roberts of Decatur, Quade Sewell of Stone Mountain, Ga. and Matt Thompson of Enterprise.

For additional information about performances, please contact Ms. Adena Moree, Troy University Department of Theatre and Dance.

March 6, 2012

TROY professor reveals tornado impact research in new book

TROY -- Just in time for tornado season, Troy University economics professor Dan Sutter will release his latest book on tornado analysis.

"Deadly Season: Analysis of the 2011 Tornado Outbreaks," set to publish late this month, takes a deeper look on the reasons behind death tolls during 2011's particularly devastating tornado season. More than 1,200 tornadoes touched down and more than 500 people died, the highest death toll since 1953.

Sutter, a Charles G. Koch professor of economics in the Manuel H. Johnson Center for Political Economy, along with Kevin Simmons, Corrigan Chair of Economics at Austin College, had just published the "Economic and Society Impacts of Tornadoes" a month before 2011's most destructive tornados hit.

"I wondered if we had written a book that was already out of date," Sutter said. His answer: Not dramatically.

"Deadly Season" studies how extreme weather and societal vulnerability contribute to death rates in tornadoes and also looks to recognize patterns in the effectiveness of Doppler radar and storm warning systems.

"We are looking forward to seeing how this book does. We think we have some suggestions that can help focus tornado research," Sutter said. "There are very substantial differences in fatalities of tornadoes across the country."

Sutter said tornadoes are deadliest in the southeastern United States, and while researchers have some ideas why that might be, there should be more effort put into the studies.

"They are 25-27 percent more deadly here than in the rest of the U.S.," he said.

Sutter began his tornado research about 10 years ago, when he went to work at the University of Oklahoma. After a deadly tornado outbreak in 1999, Sutter began quantifying the risks of storm shelters and safe rooms to determine if he should buy one for his home.

And from there, "one project led to another."

When Sutter first began his projects, in fact, he thought his research would just be written in one paper. Now, several papers and two books later, Sutter doesn't know where the road will lead.

"There's always the idea of the next paper," he said.

"Deadly Season" can be ordered from the American Meteorological Society at www.ametsoc.org/amsbookstore or by calling 617-227-2426, ext. 686.

About Dr. Sutter: Before coming to Troy University, Dr. Sutter had served as an economics professor at the University of Texas-Pan American and University of Oklahoma, where he also served as graduate director of the Masters and Ph.D. programs in Economics. He has published widely in economics and policy journals, worked closely with many graduate and undergraduate students, and his work has been cited in major media outlets, such as USA Today. Dr. Sutter earned his Ph.D. and Master's degrees in Economics from George Mason University and Bachelor's degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic University. In addition to "Deadly Season," he co-authored "Economic and Societal Impacts of Tornadoes" with Dr. Simmons.

Dr. Sutter is available for interviews, and as a source for tornado impacts and recommendations. He may be reached at his office at 334-670-5771.