Governor’s School Class Buries Time Capsule at UT Martin

Fifty-three students and faculty members involved with the UT Martin 2022 Governor’s School for the Humanities buried a time capsule on campus last month. The goal is to open the time capsule in five years, when students are expected to have graduated college. Photo courtesy of Dr. Robert Nanney/UTM Department of Mass Media and Strategic Communication[/caption]

MARTIN (July 5) – The University of Tennessee at Martin Governor’s School for the Humanities 2022 class buried a time capsule June 28 in front of the Boling University Center. The capsule is the first in the program’s history and contains artifacts from each of the 53 students and the faculty members involved with the program.

Bebe Falkner, a rising junior from Murfreesboro, came up with the idea while working on a story about GSH alumni. When she pitched the idea to her classmates that participated in the program’s newspaper, the idea was a hit.

“I got the opportunity to meet (alumni), and it was like they were unpacking an oral time capsule to me,” Falkner said. “I got so fascinated with the history of GSH that I wanted to become part of it.”

Falkner suggested the idea to other students who worked on the program’s newspaper and to Dr. Jerald Ogg, professor of mass media and strategic communication and director of the Governor’s School for the Humanities. From there, Ogg served as the liaison between the students and other university officials to determine if the time capsule was possible

“I think it is an absolute perfect fit for humanities,” Ogg said. “After all, we’re the ones who celebrate community. We’re the ones that capture culture. We love history, and again, if you’re a humanities person, you have to love the idea of capturing something. This month’s been so special for all of us.”

The students filled a PVC pipe, which was donated by the university’s Physical Plant, with souvenirs like photos, name tags, drawings and other mementos from their time at Governor’s School. Students also individually shoveled soil to help bury the time capsule. The capsule will be reopened in five years, which is when the students will have graduated from college.

The Governor’s School for the Humanities is a four-week summer program that offers rising high school juniors and seniors an opportunity to earn three semester credit hours and experience a collegiate environment. The program began in 1986 and is the oldest Governor’s School program in Tennessee.

For more information, go to https://www.utm.edu/departments/govschool/ or contact Ogg at eogg@utm.edu or 731-881-7579.