Six staff members joined in a pie eating contest this week in connection with KWC’s Campus Family Campaign, “A Piece of the Pie.”

The six brave souls who participated in the contest include, from left, Scott Kramer, Miles Mallette, Randy Chapman, Jill Switzer, David Knight and Matt Ruark.

Congratulations to Miles Mallette (women’s softball coach), who won the competition and a $25 gift card to Great Harvest.

Check out the video below — a good time was had by all!

(Watch for Matt Ruark’s head to get shoved into the pie at the very beginning …)

<>

A guest post by Professor Marisue Coy …

To call our trip an odyssey is appropriate because we traveled on our journey, had adventures, and struggled (a little) to find our way home. More on that later…

When a city names its professional football team the Titans, that city obviously respects Greek mythology. As further proof of that respect, Centennial Park stands in the middle of Nashville, and its reproduction of the Parthenon, the ancient Greek temple honoring Athene, goddess of wisdom, has attracted visitors for decades. Students enrolled in my Classical Mythology classes have visited the Parthenon nearly every semester, but this spring they got an added bonus, a visit to the Frist Museum.

April 17 started out as one of the most beautiful spring days of the year. Eight students and I left KWC’s campus in a van at 9:00 a.m. to travel to Nashville, TN. Nashville’s Frist Museum had an exhibition of Greek heroes, so we first stopped at the museum, where we saw ancient vases and artifacts depicting the stories we had studied. We could take “quizzes” to see which hero or heroine we most resembled and then look for “ourselves” in the exhibit. We wandered around that exhibit and came away with an even better appreciation for the ancient Greek stories.

In addition, we saw not only the collection of European Masterpieces (one of which depicted the “Judgment of Paris,” a pivotal story in Greek mythology), but also an innovative and fascinating exhibit by a Korean artist whose combination of metal and lights and electronics to create flowers and other unusual creatures fascinated us. It was absolutely beautiful.

After seeing all we could at the museum, we boarded the van for the quick trip to the Parthenon. When we approached, finding a place to park proved tricky because of a huge festival taking place in the park, but at last we found a spot and walked across the street to a restaurant to grab some lunch.

After another stop at an ice cream shop, we walked back to the Parthenon and spent time roaming inside to see the 40+ foot statue of Athene along with many other statues and pieces of information about the gods and goddesses of Greek mythology. We then walked around the outside of the Parthenon and enjoyed a stroll through the park. As much as we might have liked to stay longer, we found our way back to our van and headed home.

In true Greek mythology fashion, we faced a few obstacles. Like Odysseus in his journey back from the Trojan War, we found that going straight home just wasn’t meant to be. When the gas gauge indicated a need for gas, we found ourselves pretty much in the middle of nowhere with what seemed to be an empty tank. Again, in true Greek mythology tradition, we relied on heroism (two students got directions from some friendly farmers) and maybe even a little divine intervention (we found a gas station fairly easily once we got back on track). To say we were relieved would be an understatement.

At last, we arrived back on campus maybe a half hour later than we planned. In the end, we decided the entire trip was worth the effort, and no one complained about the final part of the adventure. We were thankful that at least, unlike Odysseus when he traveled home in the Odyssey, we weren’t lost for ten years.

For more photos, check out the Classical Mythology Nashville Trip photo set on Flickr.

<>

Dr. Connor (far left) and his students at PITTCON

 Dr. Henry Connor, Professor of Chemistry at KWC, recently took four KWC chemistry majors to PITTCON (the Pittsburgh Conference), held in Orlando, Florida.

PITTCON is an analytical chemistry meeting that includes the largest exposition of scientific equipment in the world. About 20,000 people attend. The first conference was in Pittsburgh but it soon outgrew the facilities in Pitt.  It now moves annually between Chicago, New Orleans, Atlanta and Orlando.

The KWC contingent (Dr. Connor, plus Ben Wilson, Alycia Lynch, Stacy Webb and Ashley Humphrey) left Owensboro on Friday, Feb. 26. After more than a dozen hours of driving, they arrived the next day in Orlando. 

The group went to the beach the next morning before launching full-speed into the conference that afternoon (Feb. 28) and returning home on March 3.

 This is the tenth time Dr. Connor has taken students to PITTCON. In 2008 they went to New Orleans — next year’s conference is in Atlanta.

A few photos from the trip:

At Coco Beach

Students with PITTCON info

Sales rep demonstrating a product

Students with NASA Rover

Click here to find out more about opportunities through KWC’s Chemistry Department.

<>

Katy Evans Harrison ’01 is a third-grade teacher at Cravens Elementary School in Owensboro (and the daughter of Joyce Ann Evans, KWC’s Director of Development).

Her class recently finished reading  Mr. Popper’s Penguins and decided it would be fun to build a milk jug igloo. Her mom helped round up milk jugs from faculty and staff at KWC, and 276 jugs later, her third grade class finished the igloo!

They plan to use the inspired creation as a classroom reading spot.

KWC president Cheryl King also visited Ms. Harrison’s classroom for ”I Love to Read” Day. She spent time reading  Teammates to the kids and explaining why reading is important for everyone.

–UPDATE–

The igloo had to be moved recently, and of course, this was the result:

But never fear. Ms. Harrison (and her husband) put the igloo back together again:

Follow more of the Cravens Elementary School third grade adventures at Katy Harrison’s blog: http://harrisoncravens.blogspot.com/.

<>

Kentucky Wesleyan students recently participated in an annual holiday tradition at KWC – the Hanging of the Greens in front of the Winchester fireplace.

They gathered to decorate festive Christmas trees and enjoy holiday refreshments including hot chocolate, cider and cookies.

Five different student organizations set up their own Christmas trees, with Student Life raising a 12-foot tree in the Winchester Rotunda.

Contest winners were as follows:

Most Creative Tree:  Sigma Alpha Mu

 Most Festive Tree:  Circle K Club

 Prettiest Tree:  KWC Cheerleaders

 Overall Champion Tree:  Kappa Delta

If you’re on campus, stop by the fireplace to get in the holiday mood!

Photos from the event:

KDs decorate their tree.

Yeah, that's a tall tree behind them.

Does this really go here?

Dean Kramer gets in on the action.

The final 12-foot tall tree in the Rotunda.

The piano celebrates its 300th birthday this year, and in celebration KET presents the Kentucky Muse special “Eighty-Eight Keys, Three Hundred Years,” airing Wednesday, Nov. 4 at 10:30/9:30 p.m. CT on KET and Sunday, Nov. 8 at 10:30/9:30 p.m. CT on KET2.

Dr. Diane Earle, professor of music and chair of the department of communication and fine arts at Kentucky Wesleyan College, created a special concert program tracing the history of this popular instrument. Kentucky Muse introduces this Kentucky performer with a passion for the piano as she performs a grand array of piano pieces, including accompaniment by the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra led by conductor Nicholas Palmer.

Beginning with the harpsichord, Earle delves into the history of the instrument, illustrating its place in the musical pantheon with a variety of pieces including works by Galuppi, Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Debussy, Rachmaninoff, Henry Cowell and George Gershwin. Along the way Earle relates the importance the instrument has played in her life, and, in vignettes recorded outside the concert hall, depicts her interaction with her students.

Earle has performed in seven countries and in 27 states, including performances on two China tours, at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center and the Kaufman Center in New York. She has also been featured on several CDs and DVDs, and as education consultant for the Owensboro Symphony Orchestra, she presents many programs for Owensboro-area schools.

Kentucky Muse is a KET production, produced by Teresa Day. “Eighty-Eight Keys, Three Hundred Years” is produced by Tom Bickel. More information about Kentucky Muse is available at www.ket.org/muse.

UPDATE: The Lexington Herald-Leader’s Rich Copely featured the program in his “Copious Notes” column on the front page of the Nov. 1 Arts section. Here’s the online version.

• KETKY Sunday, November 1, 11 am Central Time
• KETKY Monday, November 2, 11 pm CT
• KETKY Monday, November 2 at 6 am CT
• KETKY Monday, November 2 at 7 pm CT
• KET1 Wednesday, November 4 at 9:30 pm CT
• KET1 Friday, November 6 at 2:30 am CT
• KETKY Friday, November 6 at 4 am CT
• KETKY Saturday, November 7 at 2 pm CT
• KET2 Sunday, November 8 at 9:30 pm CT
• KET2 Sunday, November 15 at 4:30 pm CT
• KET1 Friday, November 27 at 11 pm CT
• KET1 Sunday, November 29 at 3:30 am CT
• KETKY: Sunday, December 20 at 11:00 am CST
• KETKY: Sunday, December 20 at 11:00 pm CST
• KETKY: Monday, December 21 at 6:00 am CST
• KETKY: Monday, December 21 at 7:00 pm CST
• KETKY: Friday, December 25 at 4:00 am CST
• KETKY: Saturday, December 26 at 2:00 pm CST

Time Warner channels in Owensboro:
KET1 in High Definition is on Channel 712.
KETKY is on Standard Digital Channel 303.
KET2 is on Standard Digital Channel 302.

KET1 is on Owensboro cable channel 12.
Sometimes cable channel 9 (PBS) has KET programming.

Cable box options:
KET 1 on 31-1
KET 2 on 31-2.

<>