1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

Events

Transylvania packs big lectures into November

Posted on by Office of Marketing and Communications

LEXINGTON, Ky.—During the first two weeks of November, Transylvania will present four engaging lectures on a variety of topics—from the Dead Sea Scrolls to same-sex marriage to a Kentucky political history talk by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell. All of the lectures are free, open to the public and in Carrick Theater, which is in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center. First, on Wednesday, Nov. 4, professor Lawrence Schiffman will speak on “The Dead Sea Scrolls: Judaism and Christianity” at 7 p.m. “He is without peer, the leading international scholar on the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were the greatest archaeological find of the 20th century,” said Paul Jones, a religion professor at Transylvania. “The discovery of the Dead Seas Scrolls in 1947 revolutionized the way scholars now understand Judaism during the time of Jesus.” The talk is part of the Moosnick Lectureship in Judaic Studies. The next evening at 7 p.m., Schiffman will lecture on “The Bible and Its Interpretation in the Dead Sea Scrolls” at Temple Adath Israel. On Thursday, Nov. 5, award-winning Detroit poet Jamaal May will give a reading at 5 p.m. His first book, “Hum,” won a Beatrice Hawley Award and American Library Association Notable Book Award and was an NAACP Image Award nominee. He has published two chapbooks, and his poetry has appeared in Poetry, The Believer, Ploughshares, New England Review and The Kenyon Review. He also is the series editor, graphic designer and filmmaker for the Organic Weapon Arts Chapbook

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Transylvania hosts fifth annual PumpkinMania on Oct. 27

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—In what is becoming a Lexington Halloween tradition, hundreds of jack-o’-lanterns are glowing on the steps of Transylvania University’s historic Old Morrison. The community was encouraged to come out to the fifth annual PumpkinMania lighting and trick-or-treating on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The public donated carved pumpkins, and the university invited local schoolchildren to participate in a carving contest and put their entries on display alongside the others. “There’s no better place to celebrate Halloween in Lexington, than Transylvania University,” said organizer Johnnie Johnson, associate director of admissions, operations. “It’s a perfect opportunity for the university and the community to come together for a celebration with music, trick-or-treating, games and, of course, the lighting of hundreds of pumpkins.” The jack-o’-lanterns will remain on display through Halloween night. In keeping with Transylvania’s commitment to sustainability, the school ordered 400 locally grown pumpkins for the event. Overman’s Bluegrass Fruits and Vegetables of Lancaster, Ky., delivered them to campus.

Transylvania presidential inauguration Oct. 9

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University installed Seamus Carey as its 26th president on Friday, Oct. 9, in Haggin Auditorium. Carey, who became president in July of 2014, is transforming the university through positive changes such as the appointment of Laura Bryan as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the university, the 100 Doors to Success mentoring program and the Project One diversity initiative. Other innovative improvements are campus-wide building projects that include the construction of three new residence halls and the renovation of the J. Douglas Gay Jr./Frances Carrick Thomas Library and the Haupt Humanities Building. “Dr. Carey has already had a significant impact on Transylvania,” said Chairman of the Board of Trustees William T. Young Jr. “His leadership exemplifies his passion for renewal and devotion to the liberal arts.” Young presented Carey with the Presidential Medallion during the installation ceremony. Distinguished visitors and speakers included presidents and officials from other universities and Lexington Mayor Jim Gray. The installation ceremony was the culmination of the four-day Celebration of Transylvania, which included events such as an All-Campus Picnic, concert by renowned Celtic fiddler Eileen Ivers and the dedication of Alumni Plaza. Before coming to Transylvania, Carey served as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Sacred Heart University in Connecticut. Also, at Manhattan College he was chair of the philosophy department and School of Arts curriculum committee, a member of the faculty senate and director of the Center for Professional Ethics. He earned an

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Kentucky poetry and music meet at Transylvania on Sept. 23

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University will host four of the most renowned Kentucky poets on Sept. 23 at the premiere of “Where I Am Now,” a music and poetry collaboration from Transylvania music professor Larry Barnes. The program will be in Carrick Theater at 7:30 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Part of Transylvania’s Creative Intelligence Series, the piece sets to music poems submitted by Pulitzer-Prize nominee Jeff Worley and Kentucky Poets Laureate Frank X Walker, Richard Taylor and George Ella Lyon. The poets will speak about their works, which are set in the first person and portray strong feelings around circumstances that range from the everyday to the extraordinary. “I was thrilled to have these fine poets agree to this project, and I wanted to do them justice by fully expressing my emotional response to their personal and deeply moving works,” Barnes said. “The power of their words inspired me to write music that is luminous, nostalgic, grief-stricken but hopeful and, at the end, full of sass.” Following the introductions, Lexington sopranos Joanna Manring and Anabelle Wright Gatton will join Barnes at the piano for the first performance of the new songs. Styles include classical contemporary, distant ragtime and a slow drag blues. “Their works led me to musical styles I wouldn’t have touched on my own,” Barnes said. “This collaboration has moved my heart more strongly than I imagined when I took the chance and asked these

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Renowned Celtic fiddler Eileen Ivers to perform at Transylvania on Oct. 7

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Grammy-winning Celtic fiddler Eileen Ivers, whom The New York Times called the Jimi Hendrix of the violin, will perform at Transylvania University on Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. in Haggin Auditorium. Ivers has played with a variety of performers, including Riverdance, Sting and Hall and Oates, and she has appeared on film soundtracks, most notably “Gangs of New York.” She is a nine-time All-Ireland Fiddle Champion and has become one of the most renowned figures in contemporary Irish music. Her band’s most recent program, “Beyond the Bog Road,” is a celebration of the Americana sound, surveying the growth of bluegrass, Appalachian, Quebecois and Cajun styles from their roots in Celtic music. The performance is energetic and passionate, with a wide variety of musical flavors. Tickets are free to the public and can be picked up before the show in the William T. Young Campus Center beginning Sept. 15 until they are sold out. For more information, call 859-233-8120. The event is part of the four-day Celebration of Transylvania, which will feature the inauguration of Seamus Carey as the university’s 26th president. It’s also part of Smith Concert Series, which was created in 2007 by the late Dorothy J. Smith, a 1942 Transylvania graduate, to bring high quality musical performances to Transylvania. The series is named for Smith and her late husband, Fred K. Smith, a 1940 Transylvania graduate. Transylvania University, located in the heart of downtown Lexington, Ky., is

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