Lynn M. Lansdown, Author at Reynolds College Blog

Mock Trial team advances to national competition rounds

March 12, 2026 by Lynn M. Lansdown

One of Missouri State University’s Mock Trial teams has advanced to the Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS) of the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) annual national tournament.

Twenty-three teams from 15 different universities competed in the AMTA regional tournament Feb. 21-22. The University of Oklahoma’s College of Law in Norman, Oklahoma, hosted this year’s regionals.

Only six teams could advance to first round national competition, said Dr. Jordan Riddell, Mock Trial coach and faculty advisor. Riddell is also an assistant professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice.

This year, team 1083 from Missouri State was among those six.

Missouri State sent two Mock Trial teams to the regionals. “Both teams faced stiff competition, with each facing three teams from nationally ranked mock trial programs,” Riddell said.

Next stop: Memphis

The ORCS will be held March 20-22 in Memphis, Tennessee. Rhodes College hosts this year’s event at the Shelby County Criminal Justice Center.

Missouri State’s team will need to finish in the top six to advance beyond the ORCS, Riddell said.

“Team 1083 will face strong competitors from nationally ranked programs,” Riddell said. “They may end up going head-to-head against teams from top-ten ranked programs like University of Texas, University of Georgia and Rhodes College.”

This season, Mock Trial students have competed in seven tournaments, Riddell said. Six of those tournaments were invitationals, including the annual Bear Brawl tournament, which Missouri State hosts. They also competed in tournaments at the University of Arkansas, University of Missouri-Kansas City, University of Kansas, University of Missouri-Columbia and the George Allen Courthouse, hosted by Texas A&M University, in Dallas, Texas.

French cultural ensemble celebrates Francophone music

March 11, 2026 by Lynn M. Lansdown

French Honor Society students and Alain Gbenouga, a graduate student in French, have collaborated with Dr. Antoinette Barffour to create the first ever French Cultural Ensemble.

The ensemble is open to all interested students, regardless of their ability to speak French. Participants can expect to enjoy Francophone music and culture while building community through song, Barffour said.

“The French Cultural Ensemble is designed to bring students together through the joy of singing French and Francophone music,” she continued. “This is the first ongoing French music ensemble open to the broader university community. It offers a creative space where students from all backgrounds—whether or not they speak French—can participate.”

Barffour is an associate professor of French in the Department of Languages, Cultures and Religions (LCR).

The ensemble meets on Thursdays from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Plaster Student Union 317A. Contact Barffour to confirm dates.

Tent Theatre’s Mark Templeton to retire, reception set for March 27

March 11, 2026 by Lynn M. Lansdown

Every year for nearly 30 years, Missouri State University’s Tent Theatre has been under the dedicated guidance of Managing Director Mark Templeton.

As of April 1, 2026, Templeton will step aside from his role with this cherished Ozarks tradition.

Templeton began working at Missouri State as a graduate assistant for the marketing director at the Juanita K. Hammons Hall for the Performing Arts. In addition, he worked in a similar capacity over the summers with Tent Theatre, adding merchandising and vending operations to his workload.

In 1999, the Department of Theatre and Dance hired Templeton as a part-time employee. He worked in the box office and oversaw event coordination. Later that same year, he moved to a full time position as the department’s marketing director. Then in 2001, the department changed his job title to managing director to better reflect his expertise and include even more responsibilities.

Retirement reception March 27

A retirement reception celebrating Templeton’s career will be held 4:30-7:30 p.m. March 27 at the Davis-Harrington Welcome Center. Please join the Reynolds College community in wishing him well, share many happy memories, and enjoy a few light hors d’oeuvres.

Mark your calendar

History department welcomes guest lecturer Dr. Rory Huang

March 6, 2026 by Lynn M. Lansdown

Missouri State University’s Department of History recently welcomed Dr. Rory Huang as a guest lecturer Feb. 23, 2026.

Huang is an assistant professor of history at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. She received her Ph.D. from the University of California-Los Angeles in 2023.

In her lecture, “Between Solidarity and Empire: Tahara Haruji’s Transpacific Vision,” Huang discussed the transpacific influences informing Tahara Haruji’s political vision. Haruji was a Buraku activist associated with the Suiheisha movement, Japan’s first nationwide human rights movement.

Huang spoke to students in Dr. Linshan Jiang’s Modern East Asia (HST 381) course. Several faculty, staff and students from other classes also attended the lecture.

Jiang, an assistant professor specializing in East Asian history and culture, coordinated the event. She estimated 40-45 people attended.

Social movements, diaspora and Buraku activism

Woman standing outside next to observatory — Dr. Rory Huang. Photo courtesy of Rory Huang.

Huang’s work focuses on Buraku minority rights, social movements and diaspora in the Japanese Empire.

According to her, the Burakumin were a historically marginalized group in Japan. Their social exclusion persisted even after legal discrimination was abolished.

Huang’s research highlights the Burakumin experience by examining Haruji’s time in the United States during the 1920s. While in the U.S., Haruji witnessed African American freedom movements and racial exclusion. These encounters influenced Buraku critiques of inequality and Japan’s own imperial contradictions.

Research a labor of love

Initially, Huang became interested in the Buraku as a research project while still an undergraduate student.

“During my stay in Nagasaki as an exchange student, a close friend revealed to me his Buraku identity and spoke extensively about his family stories,” she said. “Over the past decade, I went back to Japan frequently to learn more about those communities and their activism.”

The project continues to be a labor of love for Huang. She has worked on the topic since 2015. It was also the focus of her doctoral dissertation research.

Missouri State alumna Kendal Blumenthal appointed to “Pershing’s Own”

March 5, 2026 by Lynn M. Lansdown

Missouri State University alumna Kendal Blumenthal has been appointed to a full-time position with The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own.”

Blumenthal graduated from Missouri State’s Department of Music in 2023 with degrees in music performance and jazz studies.

As a band member, Blumenthal will regularly provide musical support at national and international events, funerals at Arlington National Cemetery, and federal events such as arrival ceremonies at the White House and the Pentagon. She will also serve on an as-needed basis for duties within the Concert Band and Army Blues ensembles.

Along with her duties as a saxophonist in “Pershing’s Own,” Blumenthal must also meet the same physical and moral standards of the typical Army enlistment process. This includes a ten-week basic combat training program. When she completes basic training, Blumenthal will move to Washington, D.C. and begin her duties as a member of “Pershing’s Own.”

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