KUDOS
• Stephen Hill ('09) finished the Gibson 5K Run/Walk as 2006 Overall Male Champion on June 9. He is pictured at left receiving his award from Olympic marathon runner and bestselling author Jeff Galloway. A member of the CBU cross country team, Hill was named an All-American earlier this year.
• Melissa Hines (Biology '06) has been accepted to the College of Medicine at the University of Texas in Houston.
• Dr. John Ventura (Electrical & Computer Engineering) was honored by the Tennessee Society of Professional Engineers with its 2006 Distinguished Service Award at the association's annual meeting in Franklin, TN, on June 9. Ventura was also awarded his Ph.D. this spring from Nova Southeastern University. His dissertation topic was "Web-Based Evaluation Process for an Electrical and Computer Engineering Department."
• The CBU School of Engineering was named the "Outstanding Employer of the Year" by the Tennessee Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE) at its annual state meeting on June 9 in Franklin, TN.

BUCCANEERS NAMED TO GULF SOUTH TOP TEN
CBU volleyball player Laura Washington (English/Corporate Communications '07) and baseball player John Raymond Hehn (Business '06) were selected as two of the Gulf South Conference's "Top Ten" student-athletes. These awards, based on athletic, academic, and extracurricular achievement during the 2005-06 academic year, recognize the top five male and top five female student-athletes in the GSC. The top male and female receive the Commissioner's Trophy, the Conference's most prestigious honor. The presentations were made at the GSC's annual awards banquet on June 29 in Pensacola Beach, FL. more...

WILSON FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIPS
The Kemmons Wilson Family Foundation of Memphis has announced a partnership with CBU and will provide a $250,000 scholarship fund for juniors and seniors majoring in the sciences. The annual scholarships will be awarded to students maintaining a 3.0 grade point average and a full academic schedule and who are involved in community service activities. The Wilson Science Scholarships are renewable for qualified students. more...

REALITY TV STAR TO SPEAK AT CBU
As a contestant on Survivor: Vanuatu, Chad Crittenden shocked viewers when he revealed that he only had one leg. About a year and a half before the show, he had his right leg amputated below the knee to remove a rare and deadly form of cancer; he went on the TV show to demonstrate that persons with a disability or handicap are just as capable as those without. Crittenden will present his story of triumph over adversity to new students at CBU's Orientation Weekend on Sunday, August 20 at 6:00 p.m. in the CBU Theatre. For more information, call Sarah McDaniel at 321-3529.

FINANCIAL LITERACY SEMINARS
A free seminar on "Investment Basics" will be offered on Thursday, July 20, as part of the ongoing series of eight seminars covering various aspects of personal financial fitness presented by CBU in partnership with MPACT Memphis and the Financial Planning Association. Seminars are being conducted by CBU School of Business faculty and the Financial Planning Association and will be held on the third Thursday of each month in Buckman Hall, 6:00-7:30 p.m. The remaining topics are "Buying a Home," August 17; "Insurance," September 21; "Retirement," October 19; and "Estate Planning," November 16. All seminars are free, but seating is limited. To register for one or all, call MPACT Memphis at 312-7760, or click here.

BROTHER JUSTIN'S MYSTERY NOVEL AVAILABLE ONLINE
Brother Justin Lucian's novel, Professor Baker's Hand Grenade, is now available from Amazon.com. "Real-world newstories form the basis for thrilling adventures in modern Paris, Angers, Aix-en-Provence and the island of St-Michel with the psychology professor and his friends..."

Submit your news to the CBU Connection. (The Connection appears monthly during the summer. It will return to its regular weekly schedule on August 21.)