Films and videos by Montgomery Bell Academy students and one faculty member will be featured Oct. 23 on the Nashville Education, Community and Arts TV channel’s Artober celebration.

A short film by student Jacob Lothers was created as an entry in the Full Moon Film Festival for high school students, with the longer cut of his film airing this month. Lothers is part of Red Tower Productions, the school’s film and video club.

Two music videos by student Cameron Travis are also being shown for “The River” and “Gonna Get You Back,” featuring the music of Si Deane, Luke Wooten and others.

MBA’s video director, Barry McAlister, also has a number of entries airing, including the comedy sketch “Hotel Humphry” which was shot at Nashville’s Two River’s Mansion last year with an MBA video crew.

All MBA films will air 7-9 p.m. on Comcast Channel 9 in Davidson County and AT&T U-verse Channel 99.

Davidson Academy seeks headmaster

The Davidson Academy Board of Trustees is currently searching for its next head of school.

Dr. Bill Chaney, who has led the school from its founding in 1980, announced his plans to retire in June 30, 2015.

The search committee recently met with a group of five semi-finalists for the position, and will meet again soon to choose two or three finalists for an extended visit to the campus.

St. Cecilia honored for ‘Excellence’

The Cardinal Newman Society recently named St. Cecilia Academy as the only school in Middle Tennessee to be recognized by the Catholic Education Honor Roll as a 2014 Schools of Excellence.

“It is an honor for St. Cecilia Academy to be recognized for the seventh time in a row by the Catholic Education Honor Roll as a School of Excellence in the United States,” SCA Principal, Sister Anne Catherine, O.P. said in a release.

“This distinction confirms our commitment to the mission of Catholic education. I applaud the students, parents, teachers, and staff for their hard work and am grateful for the support of the Dominican sisters in assuring a strong Catholic identity guides all we do in preparing our students to be future leaders in both society and the Church.”

CPA welcomes new principal

Dr. Parker Cornell Altman is the new principal at Christ Presbyterian Academy High.

Altman came to CPA with ten years of experience in educational leadership, most recently as assistant principal for Centennial High School in Franklin, but also as assistant principal at Hillsboro High School, and as an advanced placement history teacher and football coach at Ravenwood High School.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Politics from Princeton University, he pursued his master’s of education in secondary education and a doctorate of education in educational leadership and policy, both from Peabody College at Vanderbilt University.

“I am thankful to join the CPA community,” he said in a release. “In addition to CPA’s reputation for excellence in academics, the arts, service, and athletics, I have been impressed with the people I have met – teachers, students, and parents – and I’m looking forward to seeing all that God has planned in the future.”

Christian college fair Oct. 14 at DCA

Donelson Christian Academy will host a Christian College Fair on Tuesday, Oct. 14.

There will be a total of 44 colleges from 17 states represented, with admission counselors from many of the top Christian colleges.

The event will be held in the school gym from 6-8 p.m. Admission to the fair is free and open to any students looking for a college. Information: 615 577-1218615 577-1218.

Ensworth alum awarded grant

Won Huh, a member of the Ensworth High class of 2010, has been awarded a $10,000 grant through the Davis United World College Scholars Program to conduct health research in India.

Grant applicants are encouraged to design projects that facilitate conflict resolution, reconciliation and breaking down barriers to peace throughout the world.

Huh and a fellow biological sciences student will work with a local agency in India for six weeks to screen people for diabetes and anemia in order to gain data on the prevalence of the diseases in a rural population.

They will make presentations to the community about their work this fall.

Ryan band director featured in TV ad

Caterpillar dealer Thompson Machinery has released a TV commercial featuring a sound track written by Father Ryan’s band director Dustin Schletzer.

“We knew the commercial was good, mostly because of the amazing drum line written by Dustin,” said Daniel Clark, director of marketing at Thompson Machinery, in a release.

“When we started developing the idea of coupling Caterpillar equipment and college football, I immediately thought of Dustin and the Father Ryan drum line.”

The commercial will air this fall primarily during SEC football games on ABC, CBS and the SEC Network.

FRA alum wins Pulitzer for series

Chris Hamby, Franklin Road Academy class of 2004, won a Pulitzer Prize this year for a yearlong investigation and series of articles he wrote about coal mining and black lung for The Center for Public Integrity.

A former intern at The City Paper, he was recently hired to be an investigative reporter for BuzzFeed.

Golf tournament back at Vanderbilt

The Henderson Memorial Golf Tournament will celebrate its 10th anniversary on Oct. 16 at its original birthplace, the Vanderbilt Legends Club on the North Course.

The tournament began in 2005 to benefit the Britt Henderson Endowed Scholarship Fund at Currey Ingram Academy, which was established in 1989 by school founders Carol and Bobby Henderson.

The fund contributes significantly to the overall tuition assistance program each year.

The tournament has raised more than $500,000 for scholarships in the last decade.

Harpeth Hall alum takes HHS post

Alumna Katie Hill, a member of the Harpeth Hall class of 2000, has become the new national press secretary for health care at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell.

She will primarily focus on the communications strategy around the continued implementation of the Affordable Care Act and other public health initiatives, working closely with national and health care reporters who are covering the topic.

Hill spent the last four years working in Washington, D.C., as the communications director for Maryland Attorney General Douglas Gansler, press secretary for Americans for Responsible Solutions, and press secretary for Congressman Jim Cooper.

Before moving to Washington, D.C., Hill worked as a senior account executive for McNeely Pigott & Fox and as the community relations manager for Hands on Nashville.