In the News: WGNS features MTSU guests discussing mechatronics, dyslexia and SGA

The July 15 edition of WGNS radio’s Action Line program, with veteran host Bart Walker, featured MTSU-related events and people.

To listen to the podcast, click on the image at right.

Guests included:

Click on the image to access a podcast of the program featuring MTSU.

• Dr. Walter Boles, chair of the MTSU Department of Engineering Technology, discussed the new mechatronics program scheduled to start this fall at MTSU pending Tennessee Higher Education Commission approval July 25.

Dr. Walter Boles

Mechatronics is a design process that includes a combination of mechanical, electrical, control and computer engineering. The program is based on a three-level international certification program created by Siemens, a German engineering company.

MTSU’s mechatronics program is expected to quickly attract students and, upon graduation, their skills and their bachelor’s degree will land them jobs in a workforce that is facing a critical shortage.

Read the full story here: http://mtsunews.com/new-mechatronics-program-to-grow-rapidly/.

• Dr. Jim Herman, director for the Tennessee Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia at MTSU, discussed the various services offered by the center.

The Tennessee Center for the Study and Treatment of Dyslexia was established by the Tennessee General Assembly in 1993 to assist K-12 students with dyslexia, their teachers and their families.

According to the center’s website, dyslexia is the principal learning disability contributing to limited overall development of literacy skills, despite good teaching, among intelligent individuals who want to learn. The Center for Dyslexia at MTSU is located on Baird Lane.

Low literacy has high cost consequences for society. But, students with dyslexia can learn to read and write effectively if identified early, if specialized approaches to instruction are provided, and if teachers and families are patient.

The center is located on the MTSU campus at 200 N. Baird Lane. Learn more at http://www.mtsu.edu/dyslexia/center.php.

• James Lee, incoming president of the MTSU Student Government Association, and Daniel Webb, vice president of marketing for SGA, discussed their roles in student government and plans for the coming year.

James Lee

SGA, a unicameral legislative body with senators elected from MTSU’s colleges, is the voice of the more than 25,000 students attending the university. Lee is a member of MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee’s cabinet and has direct access and regular contact with the university administration.

Through SGA, the student body is represented in almost all facets of campus life, from the university’s standing committees to planning Homecoming.

Lee, a Clarksville native, said he intends to push for a truly transparent SGA that makes sure every student knows exactly what’s going on and where the money’s going.

Lee, a finance major and rising senior of Korean descent, is the university’s first Asian-American SGA president. Webb is an electronic media communications major from the Mt. Juliet area.

Read more and see a video of Lee at http://mtsunews.com/lee-takes-reins-of-mtsu-sga-2013-14/.

— Jimmy Hart (jimmy.hart@mtsu.edu)