the a(fOLUME LVIII, Number 4
lan Gi
ed to !
Serving the Mars Hill College Community Since 1926 Friday, November 9, i9S4
gellon Funds Endowment
CAMPBELL
1*'=' t^dvisor
000 grant to Mars Hill
'the Andrew W. Mellon
ti of New York City has
unced by college presi-
Fred B. Bentley. To be
wo-for-one by the col-
PON'T upward will result in a
:N TO Tl endowment fund per-
estricted for faculty and
n development and
the arts and sciences.
11 received a $140,000
the Mellon Foundation
f faculty and curriculum
nt. The new grant will
oermanent endowment
. sustain the programs
!gun as well as expand
)f opportunities to other
mbers and programs.
V grant will fund cur-
id faculty development
ind sciences and the
^ ® It will also provide
upport for the college’s
immitment to the Ap-
region. Strategies for
,iewal will be developed
;as; activities which sup-
ual faculty renewal; ac-
Jh encourage group in-
and support services,
ome from the endow-
be allocated as stipends
ed time for faculty
to study, pursue
I improve their instruc-
hniques, attend occa
J
sional conferences, and participate
with colleagues in seminars and
workshops. Consultants and
visiting scholars may be brought to
the campus with the possibility of a
visiting professorship for up to one
year.
The funds may also be used for
implementing new or revised
course offerings, or as a special
faculty salary supplement
recognizing outstanding teaching
ability in the humanities and arts.
Up to 20 percent of the income
in a single year may be allocated to
expanding faculty members’
knowledge of Appalachia and
relating this knowledge to course
offerings.
Along with the announcement
of the grant, it was announced that
Dr. Ron Eller, professor of history
at the college, will be the Director
of the Mellon Endowment.
“Mars Hill has always been
known for its strong arts and
science curriculum,’’ commented
Eller, “and the Mellon Endow
ment will enhance our ability to
maintain that strength. It is rare to
find a school the size of Mars Hill
which has a $1 million-plus endow
ment for faculty development,’’ he
continued. “This fund will allow
us to stay abreast of the rapid
growth of knowledge as well as
keep us informed of the new direc
tions in which society is heading.”
Eller also acknowledged that the
strong points in the traditional
liberal arts education are those
which employers find desirable.
“Our experience shows that
employers are looking for flexibili
ty, the ability to make decisions,
and the ability to ‘think on your
feet.’ Companies can train new
employees in the specifics but not
in these qualities.”
“The Mellon Endowment will
also provide our students with the
opportunity to study with a signifi
cant number of nationally known
scholars. It will keep our faculty at
the cutting edge of knowledge and
has already generated considerable
enthusiasm.
Bentley agreed that the grant has
created enthusiasm among the col
lege’s faculty and supporters.
“The Board of Trustees strongly
endorsed the proposal when it was
presented at the May business
meeting, and we already have
$25,000 in contributions to be used
for the matching portion of the
grant.”
He also outlined the procedures
the college will follow in raising the
remaining matching funds. “Our
development staff and I have put
together a strategy to go into six
metropolitan areas with members
of our Boards of Advisors and
Trustees to raise the matching por
tion of the grant. With the en
thusiasm and commitment of these
workers, we believe that we shall
be able to begin implementing this
renewal program during the
1986-87 academic year.”
1
Choir: European Tour ’85
ill
The Mars Hill College choir has
received an invitation to par
ticipate in a European festival next
summer celebrating the 300th bir
thday of J. S. Bach. The
45-member choir will travel to
Vienna for the festival June 12-15,
and then give a series of perfor
mances in Berne, Switzerland;
Strasbourg, France; Muinch, West
Germany; and Leipzig, East Ger
many.
To help meet the $1,500 per-
student cost of the trip, the choir
will perform a pops concert Satur
day, November 17, at 7:30 pm in
Moore Auditorium. The concert’s
theme is “A Night on Broadway,”
and will include selections from
“The Sound of Music,” “South
Pacific,” “The King and I,”
“Oliver,” “Fiddler on the Roof,”
“Annie,” “The Fantasticks,” and
PHOTO BT JOHH CAMPBELL
“The Music Man.” In addition
there will be a variety of group
numbers, solos, and instrumentals
during the performance.
Tickets are $4 for adults, $2 for
students, and children under six
will be admitted free. Additional
information about the tour, the
concert, or donations may be ob
tained from Dr. William Thomas
Choir Director.
Spotlight: The 1984 Marching
Band
By PAM KISH
Features Editor
With each pound of percussion
that bursts into the stands and in
terrupts every fan’s own heart
beat, there is an excitement that
envelopes musicians, field per
formers, football players, and fans
as the half time shows begin. Mars
Hill marching brigade consists of
forty-seven musicians in addition
to other field performers including
flags, rifle corps, and majorettes.
Although the band is small, the
sound is superior.
“It’s part of the spirit we have
here. We just don’t have any
‘slackers’”comments Raymond H.
Babelay, the Mars Hill band direc
tor of 17 years.
Breeding spirit and conceiving
atmosphere is what Mr. Babelay
feels are the main purposes for the
band during the football season.
Supporting both the school and the
football team is comparable to the
relationship of a church choir to
the church service, according to
Babelay. “People don’t go to hear
the choir, but it sure can help in
creating a mood,” he states.
Opening the half-time show, the
band splashes color over the entire
stadium with “Festival Prelude.”
The musical radiance of the
trumpet is displayed in two selec
tions that are included in the show
as well. With brilliant gusto, the
performance of the entire trumpet
section is featured in an arrange
ment of “Escorpion.” On the op
posite end of the spectrum, a sen
suously mellow trumpet duet is
done by Martha Linsey and Phil
Rector in “Over the Rainbow.”
The pregame show’s rendition in
cludes “Stars, Stripes, and
Drums” and “The Star Spangled
Banner.”
November 3, 1984, the band will
travel to Hickory, NC to play for
Lenoir Rhyne College’s
Homecoming pregame show.
Olympic gymnast Julian Mac-
Namara will perform at half-time
as the Mars Hill band plays “The
Star Spangled Banner.”
Making the transition from
marching band to concert band
when the football season has ended
is a considerable transaction. The
band treats each phase of musical
performance with a sense of
serious devotion and reverance.
Every other year. Mars Hill Col
lege hosts and performs for the
Western Carolina District All-
State Band Clinic which involves
thirty counties. On the second
week-end of February, represen
tatives from three hundred high
school bands, divided into three
bands, will come to the campus to
perform and audition. The Mars
Hill band’s performance for these
musicians and their directors is a
“pressure concert” says Director
Babelay. It is a tremendous oppor
tunity for recruiting prospective
students. This event opens the
concert season for the band.
Just prior to spring break the
band will present their annual
spring concert for the campus and
the community. Soon after this
concert, the band will begin a
series of performances at several
local high schools. These concerts
will provide exposure for the band
as well as promotion for
recruiting.
Correlating the musical enter
tainment of both, the band and the
choir brings special significance to
the Pop’s Concert, performed the
day before graduation. May 18,
•1985. This memorable concert is
attended by both campus and com
munity.
Due to a rushed schedule and
limited preparation time, there will
be no Christmas concert this year.
Although he states that superior
personnel and proper attitudes are
the essential ingredients to making
a band good, Babelay notes that
“It’s an impossible task if the at
titudes are wrong. Good players
are important, but proper attitudes
of pride and motivation are
better.”
The director’s smile of sincerity
enforces the relevance of his com
ment that “the sky’s the limit when
you have these.”
No auditions are held for the
participation in the Mars Hill
band. Although the band largely
consists of music majors, the pro
gram is available to all students.
It is evident that Raymond
Babelay has established strong ties
with the members of the band. His
tremendous pride in their ac
complishments presents itself in his
sensitive affection for all those
who have participated in the band
or who appreciate the band’s per
formance. From comments made
by band members, it is also ob
vious that this admiration and
respect is felt mutually towards
their director, teacher, and dream
builder.
Phil Rector and Martha Lindsey is a highlight of this year’s halftime show, and from the looks of
o bad for Phii and Martha either.
Aithough smaiier this year, the Band’s sound is as powerfui as ever.