CampusSpotlight
Songwriting class helps students find soulful collaborations across continents
Jan. 13, 2021—Any Nashville songwriter will tell you that some of the most meaningful collaborations come during crisis. Vanderbilt undergraduates in a songwriting class at the Blair School of Music got a taste of this when they partnered with peers on the other side of the globe, who also were dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, to co-create original songs.
Students surprise professor with special act of gratitude
Dec. 18, 2020—On the last day of fall classes, Associate Professor of Sociology and Jewish Studies Shaul Kelner received a heartwarming surprise from his class of mostly first-year students.
Student-run radio stations keep the music alive through COVID-19
Dec. 7, 2020—While COVID-19 safety protocols have put some extracurricular activities on hold, Vanderbilt’s two student-run radio stations, WRVU and VandyRadio, have adapted and even thrived with the help of remote equipment.
Business professor ‘doubles down’ to help students thrive in quarantine
Nov. 23, 2020—When the COVID-19 pandemic split his class among those who are able to attend in person and many who are quarantined around the world, Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management finance professor Jesse Blocher was determined to make learning equitable, even for those in disparate time zones.
Virtual sticky notes and crafts bring residential college community together
Nov. 16, 2020—This year students in E. Bronson Ingram College are starting off their weekly “Bronson Breaks,” a time for residents to have some fun with Faculty Head of House Sarah Igo and her family, by peeling off a virtual sticky note from an online collaboration tool to share thoughts or give advice.
Fashion with function: Students express themselves through their masks
Nov. 9, 2020—Vanderbilt students recently had the opportunity to make their own stylish and unique “designer” face masks at multiple mask-making sessions led by Vanderbilt costume shop manager and senior lecturer Alexandra Sargent Capps at the Wond’ry, Vanderbilt’s Innovation Center.
Civil political debate helps student see through a new lens
Nov. 2, 2020—An American Studies seminar is exploring the complex relationship between religion and partisan politics in the United States by putting an emphasis on civility, mutual respect and robust dialogue.
Maker class adapts to COVID-19, innovates at the Wond’ry
Oct. 26, 2020—Kevin Galloway, director of making at the Wond’ry, has adjusted his class on engineering and immersive design to help students create in all environments while making things that help people.
Theatre instructor takes her teaching, latest play into VR world
Oct. 19, 2020—Writer in Residence in Theatre Krista Knight is taking a creative twist on COVID-19 protocols by teaching her Introduction to Writing for Stage and Screen course in an online, virtual reality world.
First-year student’s new sci-fi novel, written pre-COVID-19, imagines life in an epidemic
Oct. 12, 2020—First-year student Morgan Butts used the idea of an "it" factor—in this case, "independent thought"—as a launching point for her newly published science fiction novel, "Raeth Thower and the Four Princes."
Creativity builds community at Towers and across campus
Oct. 5, 2020—When Arts and Science student Chandler Quaile first put his mark on Vanderbilt, he did so with a handful of acrylic paint. Quaile and fellow first-year students living in Carmichael Towers this semester came together for a special art night called “Leave your Legacy.”
Faculty head of house encourages healthy bodies and healthy minds
Sep. 28, 2020—When faculty head of Murray House Alyssa Hasty connects with first-year students this semester, she's often doing so from a white painted circle on a lawn at The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons.