Meet Our Team

Jennifer Vannatta-Hall is the Director of the MTSU Center for Teaching and Mentoring and professor of music education. She holds degrees from the University of Illinois (Ed.D) and Middle Tennessee State University (B.M., M.A.). She has over 27 years’ experience as a professional educator and taught K-12 music in both Rutherford County and Franklin Special School Districts. Jennifer has served in various leadership roles for the MTSU School of Music as Assistant Director (2019-2020), Associate Director (2023-2025), and Interim Director (2020-2023) and continues to teach undergraduate and graduate courses in music education.

Jennifer has presented workshops and conference sessions all over the United States and was a visiting professor of music at Hangzhou Normal University in China in March 2019. She frequently conducts and adjudicates choral festivals. She has completed master-level training in the Orff-Schulwerk approach to music education and has also studied World Music Pedagogy through the Smithsonian Institution and Modern Band/Music Will. Her research interests include teacher efficacy and K-12 general music. Her book, Music Teaching Self-Efficacy in Early Childhood Teacher Education, was published in 2013.

Bonnie Bailey is the CTM Administrative Assistant. A graduate of MTSU, Bonnie holds a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication with an emphasis in Newspaper/Magazine Journalism. While at MTSU, she participated in a study abroad program coordinated by MTSU and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and studied children’s literature at the University of Edinburgh in Edinburgh, Scotland. In addition to previous positions at MTSU, she has worked in higher education administration roles at the University of Denver, East Tennessee State University, and Arapahoe Community College. She enjoys supporting students, faculty, and staff, and is excited to contribute to the Center for Teaching and Mentoring.

John Hagan is the Graduate Assistant for the Center for Teaching & Mentoring and a doctoral candidate in the Assessment, Learning, and Student Success program at Middle Tennessee State University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Religion from the University of Ghana, Legon, and a master’s degree in Psychology from MTSU. He brings a cross-cultural and interdisciplinary lens to research, student success, and faculty development.

John has facilitated faculty book discussions, contributed to working groups on institutional innovation, and co-facilitated mentoring programs focused on inclusive academic support. He is recognized for his academic excellence through his membership in the prestigious Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. As the Graduate Assistant for the Center for Teaching and Mentoring, he supports the center’s programming and assists with social media and marketing initiatives.

Jenn Caputo is CTM Faculty Leader for the Faculty Fellows program and professor of exercise science, where she co-coordinated the exercise science program for 21 years. Her commitment to relationship-rich teaching has been recognized with the MTSU Foundation Outstanding Teacher Award in 2009 and 2022 and the Outstanding Public Service Award in 2010. 

Jenn is deeply engaged in faculty and student mentoring, having chaired over 75 theses and dissertations and led the LT&ITC Faculty Teaching Mentor Program for more than a decade. In addition to serving as Interim Director of Faculty Development at the LT&ITC (2024-2025), she has led and participated in faculty learning communities and book groups for the center. Jenn co-created and co-leads the All-Inclusive Mentoring (AIM) program and the seed grant AIM Higher in conjunction with Engage. She also serves as a mentor in the Leadership & Diversity Training Programs for both her regional and national professional organizations.

Jenn holds a B.S. in Psychology from Connecticut College and an M.S. in Sport Psychology and a Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Dr. John Lando Carter is CTM Faculty Leader for the Preparing Future Faculty program for graduate students. He began his teaching career in 2008 as an English Language Arts and creative writing teacher. He is now an associate professor in the Assessment, Learning, and Student Success Ed.D. program at MTSU. His co-authored book Teaching Signature Thinking: Strategies for Unleashing Creativity in the Classroom was published through Routledge in 2022. His forthcoming co-authored book From Getting Started to Graduation: A Student Guide to the EdD will be published through Myers Press. 

Jenna Cutright is the CTM Student Worker. She is from Buckhannon, WV and is enrolled in the B.S. degree program in Horse Science at MTSU. She is excited about helping out in the Center for Teaching and Mentoring.