Grace Allaman

Commons will not only welcome new students from the class of 2022 in the fall, but also three new faculty heads of house. Joining the Commons community will be nursing Professor Natasha McClure in North House, earth and environmental sciences Professor Daniel Morgan in Memorial House, as well as law and chemistry Professor Sean Seymore in East House.

Each brings a unique perspective to their new residential community. Professor McClure is a pediatric primary care nurse practitioner and studies how academic clinical partnerships can both help patients with chronic conditions and improve nursing education. Professor Morgan is an associate dean of the College of Arts and Science, oversees the College Scholars Honors and Cornelius Vanderbilt Scholars Programs, and focuses his research on glacial history and geology. Professor Seymore studies the intersection of science and law and the influence of scientific advances on patent law and public policy.

Professor Seymore shared some thoughts on his new role as a faculty head of house with MCL.

Q: What are you most looking forward to?

A: Serving as a faculty head of house will provide me with a unique opportunity to mentor, build a living-learning community, and make an enduring impact on the first-year experience.

 

Q: What impact do you hope to have?

A: I totally embrace the idea of a truly residential university experience.  I look forward to building a community that values an integrated approach to intellectual and professional growth by building stronger connections between the classroom experience and everyday life.

 

Q: What do you like to do in your free time?

A:  I like engaging conversations, walking/jogging, and good coffee.  I like the idea of making something out of nothing, which probably explains my interest in chemistry and in cooking.  Perhaps my favorite activity is fellowship over a good meal.

 

As any Commons resident knows, faculty heads of house can make an immense impact on our community, bringing inspiration and spirit to first-year students as we embark on our college journey. A sincere thank you to Professors Gregory Melchor-Barz, Kevin Leander, and Daniel Gervais, who will be ending their time as faculty heads of house after this year, as well as a hearty welcome to the new professors lending their service to students and truly completing the Commons experience.

 

Two theatre performances took the stage this weekend- one transporting audiences to England at the turn of the nineteenth century into the twentieth, another with a giant, human-eating plant. Vanderbilt University Theatre’s Mrs. Warren’s Profession and Vanderbilt Off-Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors both debuted last week, featuring an array of first-year students heading up their casts and crews.

 

Mrs. Warren’s Profession

A mother and daughter come to terms with their divergent pasts in this 1893 drama by George Bernard Shaw. The play centers around Vivie Warren, an ambitious university graduate played by first-year student Mary Marguerite Hall, coming to terms with her mother’s promiscuous career. Fellow first-year Ian Guile played Frank Gardner, Vivie’s love interest, and first-year Barton Christmas played Reverend Gardner, Frank’s (and possibly Vivie’s) father. From the tangle of this complicated family dynamic emerges a social commentary on the role of women in society and their lack of meaningful employment opportunities in Victorian England.

“After intermission, the show really goes into some powerful statements about feminism and how women interact with men in a transactional sense,” Christmas said.

Walking into auditions on a wim, he wound up joining two other first-years in their VUT debuts, as well as three upperclassmen who lent their experience to the cast of the final show directed by longtime Vanderbilt Theatre professor Terryl Hallquist, who is retiring after this year.

“First semester I remember sitting, biting my nails and watching theatre happen on campus, thinking ‘I want to do it… it looks so cool!’” Christmas said.

Blending comedy, drama, and deep themes to ponder, the play began with a musical pre-show, where the performers sang a medley of songs while they donned their costumes. The sequence of the songs moved backward through different time periods, all pertaining to the ideas presented in the show.

“Hopefully audiences come away with the sense of having respect for yourself, as well as respect for the lives of other people,” Christmas said. “I hope people can laugh away the night, but also have that message stay with them.”

Little Shop of Horrors

Fame and success can have a deadly price, as the characters in Little Shop of Horrors learn. First-year David Ward played Seymour Krelborn, an awkward but innovative teen who comes up with the idea to display an exotic plant in his flower shop’s window to attract business. Seymour falls in love with fellow shop employee Audrey, played by first-year Adreanna Hernandez. At the beginning of the show, Audrey is dating Orin Scrivello, D.D.S., a crazed dentist with a passion for inflicting pain, played by first-year Foster Swartz. The run-down neighborhood of “Skid Row” is populated with residents like the one played by first-year Sabrina Kaplin, who also served as an understudy for the other female roles. Seymour’s business scheme works, but with a catch: his famous plant only eats human blood.

As the musical rockets through rock ‘n roll songs, heartwarming ballads, and sometimes gruesome plot twists, the audience is entertained by the absurdity of this attempt at success gone horribly wrong.

“It’s my favorite show, probably ever,” Swartz said. “It’s rock ‘n roll, but it’s also so poignant and so funny. Everything I would want in a musical, it provides.”

After coming back from spring break with lines and lyrics memorized, the cast, musical performers, and crew, which also included several first-years students lending their skills to the project, worked to create an environment where dark humor and young love combine to form an artistic and entertaining show.

“Through and through, theatre’s an escape,” Swartz said. “It’s a chance to go into this other side of the world that we all have inside of us, but is sometimes repressed… I hope the audience could escape from their daily lives for just a little bit, and enter into this world of rock ‘n roll and fun.”

 

Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the hit musical Hamilton, coined a hashtag to use when he does something insanely cool (which is arguably most of the time). He’ll say it’s been a “#bitofaday.” I’ve commandeered his phrase and dubbed my past few days a #bitofaweek.

I’m fairly certain the most famous person I’d ever met was the mayor of my small Midwestern town… until last week. As an American history and government nut, I always look forward to guest speakers with ties to politics. My most recent encounters did not disappoint. I had the chance to meet Vice President Al Gore, Dr. Chelsea Clinton, Mr. Chris Matthews, and Senator Lamar Alexander – four giants of the political world – in the span of three days.

 

Vice President Gore

I’m lucky enough to be enrolled in the political science course “Presidential Leadership” this semester. Taught by Professor John Geer alongside Professor Jon Meacham, a renowned presidential historian, each class is a #bitofaday in itself. The course also features an array of guest lecturers, from journalists to politicians to a certain university chancellor.

This particular whirlwind of greatness descended Monday when Vice President Gore visited class. He engaged in a discussion with our professors and then took questions from a lecture hall quite literally overflowing with students. He spoke about the qualities of effective leadership, overcoming challenges, the impact of the internet on politics, and the importance of standing up for the rule of law regardless of political consequences.

He praised the students involved in the recent March For Our Lives and was introduced to Abby Brafman, the Vanderbilt first-year and Stoneman Douglas alumna who started Nashville’s March. The Vice President took the time to shake hands with students as they left, even snapping selfies with a few.

 

Chelsea Clinton

Scrolling through Twitter on Monday morning, I came upon a post from Chelsea Clinton that began with “Hey Nashville!” I read on to discover the First Daughter, activist, and author was doing a book signing that night at Parnassus Books near Green Hills Mall – just down the road from campus. In the spirit of meeting my heroes, I recruited my friend Alice and to come with me on an impromptu adventure to meet her.

Chelsea Clinton has written two children’s books called She Persisted and She Persisted: Around the World recounting the stories of courageous women and girls throughout history. Navigating a sea of middle-aged moms and little kids, Alice and I waited to give our books to their author before she shook our hands, asked us our names, and returned the stories with her name affixed to the opening page.

 

Chris Matthews

As a part of the IMPACT Symposium and Chancellor’s Lecture Series, Chris Matthews paid a visit to campus last week. Host of MSNBC’s Hardball, this famed political commentator served in the Peace Corps, worked for Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill, and published his most recent book entitled Bobby Kennedy: A Raging Spirit.

His discussion with Chancellor Zeppos and Professor Meacham ranged from historical reflection on the Kennedys to candid comments on politics today. He spoke of the need for more bipartisanship and moral leadership in Washington, telling stories from the Reagan era and crafting creative metaphors to describe present situations.

Free copies of his newest book were distributed and able to be signed after the lecture. I waited in line, befriended the visitors behind me, and eventually made my way to the front. I told Mr. Matthews I’m studying political science, to which he replied “I’ve always said that’s an oxymoron… Have you figured it out yet?” I took my book and left with a grin.

“I’m working on it.”

 

Senator Alexander

Following Vice President Gore, Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander visited our Presidential Leadership class last Wednesday. Having served as the Governor of Tennessee, Secretary of Education, and now Senator for fifteen years, he had a little bit of leadership experience to share!

The Senator was able to speak about different leadership styles needed in various jobs and situations, as well as how the dynamics of American government have changed over his many years of service. Again taking questions from both professors and the class, he discussed his positions on issues, memorable moments from his career, and the importance of youth engaging with politics.

Hearing his insights capped three days of meeting more famed, accomplished people than I had even thought possible. Evidently my fortune ran out, however, as a ticket to see Vice President Biden alluded me despite earnest efforts. So, here’s to overflow viewing areas… and the genuine thrill of meeting childhood heroes.

Spring break 2018 sent Commons residents on adventures all across the globe. Here are the stories of how four first-year students spent their week away from school.

Seth Drey

A hurricane may have the power to topple trees and upend lives, but it cannot dampen the spirit of an island or deter a first-year Commodore. Seth Drey spent spring break in Puerto Rico, where residents are still recovering from the category-five hurricane that struck last September.

“We stayed in San Juan and spent a lot of time in Old San Juan and also got out to some cool, more remote places,” he said. “Some places were obviously still affected by Maria… it dropped as much rain in thirty hours as Harvey did over the course of three days and destroyed eighty percent of their agriculture.”

Despite the lasting devastation, Drey found some aspects of the island remained unaltered by the storm.

“The people were super friendly, and there was still lots of beauty in Old San Juan and the nature areas,” he said.

This was Drey’s first time in a Spanish-speaking region, and he valued the chance to utilize his Spanish language skills and experience another culture. He visited a variety of places, from the beach to Castillo San Felipe del Morro, a sixteenth-century fort and world heritage site.

“The weather was so nice, but the sun was unforgiving and burned me bad,” Drey said.

Besides a sunburn, spring break left him with memories of “awesome” Puerto Rican cuisine, crystal-blue ocean waves, and the fun of meeting people from a new corner of the world.

 

 

Oliver Cenedella

Spring break isn’t always about chasing warm weather. For Oliver Cenedella, it meant braving the cold and hitting the slopes on a skiing trip in Colorado.

“I live in Boulder, Colorado, and I stayed there for a few days until Tuesday, then met up with three friends from Vandy and went to Breckenridge,” Cenedella said.

The foursome brought a range of experience to the mountains. Cenedella, a seasoned skier, had the chance to share one of his favorite pastimes with a friend who had never skied before. Watching his skills progress beyond the bunny slopes quickly became a rewarding part of the week.

“By the fourth day… we took him down a double black,” Cenedella said. “By the end of the day, he was looking really good.”

The group’s accomplishments did not come without challenges. Some initially had trouble adjusting to the higher elevation and harsh winter climate.

“The elements were not on our side,” Cenedella said.

Despite the drop in air pressure, higher altitude brought more adventure for the four Commodores. In addition to skiing, they went hiking in the mountains. Cenadella discovered a few slopes farther from the lifts, where he described the skiing as “excellent.” He documented his run with a Go Pro camera, a sure way to make this break one to never forget.

 

Amira Vivrette

It’s “The Big Apple,” “The City That Never Sleeps,” and maybe even “The Greatest City in the World.” Whatever you choose to call it, New York City served as a spring break destination for students like Amira Vivrette.

“I went on different tours with Student Media at Vanderbilt,” Vivrette said. “We saw Facebook, CNN, Nickelodeon, and NBC. It was a lot of fun and a great opportunity to meet and talk with Vanderbilt alumni and see future careers in media.”

After traveling with the Student Media group on Monday and Tuesday, Vivrette stayed in New York for the rest of the week to explore the city with a friend.

“We did a lot of tourist things,” she said. “We got to see Central Park, the Met, the LOVE Sculpture, and other cool things we were interested in. We took the ferry and just tried a bunch of new foods.”

Vivrette had the chance to see more behind-the-scenes work on media productions (while also enjoying a few laughs) when the pair landed tickets to the tapings of “Late Night with Seth Meyers” and “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.” Braving the second major winter storm of the week, their ticket numbers were the last two called from the line of people hoping to attend “The Tonight Show.”

“It was very exciting to see the shows produced live… just to see it done and then watch it on TV the next day to see how everything worked out,” Vivrette said. “It was cool to see all that stuff from the media tour actually put into action.”

 

 

Sharonda Adams

Vanderbilt proudly hosts the first Alternative Spring Break (ASB) program, an idea created in 1986 that has since spread to universities across the country. ASB provides students with the opportunity to participate in service projects during their break, all working on different causes in various locations nationwide.

Sharonda Adams traveled to Utah last week on an ASB trip focused on environmental conservation.

“For my trip, I helped to remove invasive species from the Grand Staircase – Escalante National Monument,” Adams said. “I camped with eleven other Vanderbilt students, and each day we would chop down Russian olives.”

The Russian Olive Tree is an invasive species which poses a threat to the health of the Escalante River and its watershed. In collaboration with the Escalante River Watershed Partnership, ASB students worked to remove the trees and restore parts of the monument’s two million acres to their natural ecological conditions.

Adams found the trip to be not only beneficial to the environment, but also a personally rewarding way to spend a week of spring break.

“The beautiful views and major bonding with my other site members made it a true week to remember,” she said.

 

 

 

Zero props. One oak tree made of humans. Two weekends of performances. Fourteen college kids spending three hours a night, six days a week, creating a piece of art.

What’s it like to make words printed on a page into a living, breathing creation? I’ve had the chance to experience it firsthand as a member of the cast in my first full-length college play: VUTheatre’s production of Orlando by Sarah Ruhl.

The story is based on the book Orlando by Virginia Woolf. It explores a fantastical world where gender and time are fluid, following the life of a boy called Orlando as he grows up, writes poems, falls in love, and wakes up one day as a woman. The play reckons with societal expectations of gender, challenges traditional ideas of relationships, and searches earnestly for the meaning of life itself.

 

We started rehearsals the first week back from winter break and have been working non-stop ever since. For me, the most exciting part of any show is “tech week,” when lights, sound, and costumes are added to the acting we’ve practiced. At this moment, a fragmented story is made whole. From the stage manager to the designers to the director to the crew, staging a play is the ultimate team effort.

Four first-year students are in the cast, and several others are lending their skills backstage. I think we all agree the nightly trek from Commons to Neely Auditorium has been worth every minute. Over the last month, we’ve watched this story come to life, and now we couldn’t be more excited to help share it with the world.