1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

News from Transy

Central Music Academy moving to Transylvania

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LEXINGTON, Ky.— The Central Music Academy—a non-profit organization that provides free music education for low-income youths—is moving to a house on Transylvania University’s campus. The move to 338 North Upper Street will provide CMA students with a safe, centralized location to receive instruction. The organization strengthens the Lexington community one child at a time by building personal capacity, discipline, self-esteem and musical skills in high-risk youth. Lessons will begin there on Jan. 8. Providing a space for them is one of many ways Transylvania partners with the Lexington community—such as the Unlearn Fear + Hate art project and the university’s Pioneer Pathways program, which includes college and career readiness workshops and mentoring for high school students. The Central Music Academy is the only school in central Kentucky that provides free, weekly, half-hour private music lessons—on any instrument, genre or skill level—to a diverse group of children who qualify for free or reduced school lunches. Since CMA was founded in 2004, it has given more than 30,000 free private lessons to more than 900 children. These students have successfully auditioned into the Central Kentucky Youth Orchestras; Lexington’s School for the Performing Arts; and all-district and all-state band, choir and orchestra. “The house will be the perfect spot for CMA, and we are so grateful to the Transylvania University faculty, staff, students and community for allowing us to use the space,” said program director Erin Walker Bliss. Transylvania, located in the heart

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Leading Jewish-Muslim authority to speak at Transylvania University

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LEXINGTON, Ky.— Reuven Firestone, who is a leading national authority on Jewish-Muslim relations, will give the Moosnick Lectureship in Judaic Studies at Transylvania University on Tuesday, Nov. 15. Firestone’s talk, “How the Birth-Pangs of Religion Complicate Peacemaking Between Faith Communities,” will begin at 7 p.m. in Carrick Theater. “The selection of professor Firestone as this year’s Moosnick lecturer in Judaic Studies is particularly significant,” said Transylvania religion professor Paul Jones. “Because many of the globe’s hotspots involve religion, it is imperative that we listen and learn from an informed voice who has spent his academic life dedicated to understanding and respecting the religious other.” As part of Firestone’s visit to Lexington, he will speak on Nov. 16 at Ohavay Zion Synagogue. The topic of the 7 p.m. talk will be “Diversity of Religious Expression in Islam.” Both lectures will be free and open to the public. Firestone has received numerous fellowships and authored books including “Children of Abraham: An Introduction to Judaism for Muslims” and “An Introduction to Islam for Jews.” Born in Northern California, he was educated at Antioch College and Hebrew University in Jerusalem. He received his M.A. in Hebrew literature and Rabbinic Ordination at Hebrew Union College; and he earned his Ph.D. in Arabic and Islamic studies from New York University. Firestone’s campus talk and the other endowed lectures at Transylvania this academic year follow the theme of “Unlearn Fear + Hate,” a public art project by

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Transylvania to host Governor’s School for Entrepreneurs

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University will host the 2017-18 Governor’s School for Entrepreneurs, an innovative program that teaches entrepreneurship to Kentucky high school students. During the three-week summer session, a select group of students will turn their bright ideas into real products with the guidance of high school teachers, college professors, business leaders and other mentors. There is no GPA or test score requirement to be accepted into GSE. The program looks for motivated teens who want to develop products that solve problems. Students apply to GSE online at www.KentuckyGSE.com in the fall. “We are pleased to have this relationship with Transy,” said Laurie Daugherty, GSE’s executive director. “Being here will allow us to expand on the resources and opportunities we offer our student entrepreneurs.” GSE is an enrichment experience similar to the state’s successful Governor’s Scholars Program and Governor’s School for the Arts, which Transylvania has hosted. The Kentucky Entrepreneurship Education Network (KEENStart), a Lexington-based nonprofit, manages GSE. Georgetown College had hosted the GSE sessions since they began in 2013. GSE is a public-private partnership with funding from the Education and Workforce Development Cabinet and many private foundations and sponsors. The immersive program teaches work and life skills, including teamwork and problem solving, in an environment where it is safe to take risks with ideas. Students are exposed to a variety of learning opportunities—from 3-D printers to a high ropes course. On a larger scale, these young entrepreneurs go on to contribute

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Transylvania ranks in top 10 nationally for best value; among nation’s premier liberal arts schools overall

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LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University ranks as one of the 10 best U.S. colleges for value, and overall as one of the nation’s premier liberal arts schools. USA Today/College Factual’s recent Best Colleges for the Money ranking lists the university 10th among more than 1,000 schools. Also, the U.S. News list of Best Colleges released today once again places Transylvania among the country’s top 100 liberal arts schools. “We are pleased to consistently rank among the nation’s finest liberal arts colleges,” Transylvania president Seamus Carey said. “Recognitions such as these reflect the quality of our incoming classes and the education they receive—at a great value compared to most of the rest of the U.S. News top-100 liberal arts schools.” Ninety-eight percent of Transylvania’s students receive assistance that reduces tuition, making it an attractive option—even when compared to public universities—for families on a tight budget. The USA Today ranking considers the educational quality of an institution as well as factors such as tuition, grants, scholarships and the average number of years it takes students to earn a degree. “The bigger the difference between the school’s quality and its cost, the more quality education you are getting for the dollar and thus the higher the value for the money,” according to College Factual, the service used by USA Today. In today’s U.S. News ranking, Transylvania placed 46th in the Best Value category for national liberal arts colleges. The university also tied for 83rd among

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Transylvania partners with Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship to offer Diplomacy Scholarship

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Lexington, Ky.— Transylvania University has partnered with The Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship to create a scholarship for a new generation of leaders. Rising high school seniors from every region of the U.S. who are competitively selected and participate in the Henry Clay Center High School National Student Congress in 2017 will receive a $10,000 Diplomacy Scholarship each year for four years, should they decide to attend Transylvania. “The quality of young leaders who have attended the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship National High School Student Congress is second to none,” Transylvania President Seamus Carey said.  “Alumni of the program are now staffers in the U.S. Senate and House, state governments, top law firms, NGO’s and leading corporations. Our university is committed to a modern, interdisciplinary liberal arts education, and offering the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship Diplomacy Scholarship will enable us to enroll and educate some of the best and brightest promising young leaders in America.” The Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship is an innovative nonprofit dedicated to educating students in the essential skills of negotiation, dialogue and compromise. For most of the past decade, the Center has held a summer Student Congress at Transylvania for rising high school seniors across the country. These students have met with justices from the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Speakers of the House, governors, U.S. senators and other nationally recognized officials and academic thought leaders. Compromise, the constructive engagement and dialogue to resolve

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