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President Emeritus Bill Robinson

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  2. President Emeritus Bill Robinson
  3. Of Mind & Heart Newsletter
  4. February 2007

Of Mind & Heart Newsletter: February 2007

An update from Whitworth University President Bill Robinson

In February we host Career Week festivities. I used to joke about how students didn't let thoughts about trivial matters like making a living interfere with their college lives. No more. Over the past five years, an extraordinarily generous grant from the Lilly Endowment has allowed us to make vocation a major emphasis in the lives of our students. As a community we have helped students find the gifts and passions around which they can build meaningful careers. But we have also listened for the call that God issues to us all. For Christmas, my daughter gave me a book of Frederick Buechner's sermons. I'm a big fan of Buechner, so I have been rationing the sermons, one per day. Last night I read one that claimed we all carry a commission to bring gladness into whatever we do. It is Buechner who defined vocation as "the place where your heart's deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet." But in this sermon he calls for gladness not only in our specific vocations but in all of life. This means reflecting Christ's light in all the places where we live. Maybe during this Career Week we can add a chapter on gladness to the seminars on résumé-building and interviewing: "And so, Ms. Parker, what will you bring to this job?" "Gladness. I will bring gladness." Very powerful. Thanks to the many of you who have gladdened our hearts through your kindness and prayers.

Academics

We look forward to Heritage Week, Feb. 8-16, as we celebrate Whitworth and the health sciences. Stan Borg, '82, M.D., will provide the keynote speech. Stan is vice president and chief medical officer for Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Illinois. The week will also feature an exhibit, "Communities in Crisis," by Gordon Wilson (Art). These mixed-media works were inspired by Gordon's time in New Orleans during January 2006. You can find the entire Heritage Week schedule at www.whitworth.edu/heritageweek.

Jan Term concluded with reports of great experiences around the world and on campus. I heard from students in India, Turkey, Scotland and Italy -- and at Mt. Spokane (for the ever-popular skiing course). Spring semester also offers rich learning opportunities. In a few days we will send 19 students to France for a spring-semester study program. They'll be accompanied by the tag team of Carol Smucker (French) and Mike Ingram (Communication Studies/Academic Affairs), and then by Gordon Wilson (Art). Over the term, classroom sites include Alsace, Paris, Normandy and Nice. One of our academic objectives is to help students form global perspectives of 21st-century life. These other-culture opportunities contribute richly to the achievement of that objective.

Faculty began the spring term with the second annual Scholarship Celebration Luncheon, aka Food for Thought. This event celebrates the breadth and depth of our faculty's scholarly work. Last year, 78 faculty members engaged in scholarship that was published, presented or both. You can read the entire list of their good work on our website at www.whitworth.edu/facultyscholarship.

Outreach and learning form many intersections at Whitworth College.

  • Deanna Ojennus (Chemistry) oversaw a group of eight chemistry majors who developed chemistry exercises for 10th-graders involved in math, engineering, and science achievement through MESA, an enrichment program for disadvantaged students. Last month, 26 of those students came to campus and performed experiments under the Whitworth students' supervision. Three more groups of MESA students will visit this month to perform similar experiments in our labs.
  • Keith Kelley (Service Learning) received his third grant from the Bonner Leaders Program, which provides funding for students with leadership potential to work in area nonprofits. In addition, an award from Princeton University's Learn and Serve Grant will provide funding to train faculty to develop service-learning components for their courses.
  • The Spokane Spokesman-Review recognized Tatyana Bistrevsky, '07, as an "Uncommoner" for exemplary citizenship. Moving here from Ukraine with no English-language background, Tatyana attended language classes, earned her associate of arts degree, and is now in our continuing studies program. The Review said, "Bistrevsky is the Uncommoner in the citizen-volunteer category because she is never really off the clock when it comes to translating her (Slavic) culture to the mainstream -- and vice versa. The Spokane Regional Health District has relied on Bistrevsky's volunteer work to translate and distribute important health warnings."
  • Last month, Whitworth hosted a summit for 50 leaders from around the state to study our innovative Act Six Leadership and Scholarship Program, which promotes college access for first-generation urban students and has been piloted at Whitworth with remarkable success.

Spokane's hosting of the U.S. National Figure Skating Championships produced record-breaking crowds and particularly healthy skaters. Our students supported the event while they were enrolled in the Jan Term Figure-Skating Injuries course for current athletic trainers. They field-studied figure-skating medical issues, skating injuries, skating equipment, the biomechanics of figure skating, and the psychology of skaters. Russ Richardson, our director of athletic training, and Eastern Washington University's Jeff Kawaguchi worked alongside the Group Health medical team providing coverage for the event. What a cool service-learning project!

Enrollment

We've received more than 4,000 freshman applications for fall 2007. Due to the size of this pool, we've had to place more than 500 students on our waiting list. These well-qualified students will be notified of their admission status by the end of March. Because our deposits have not risen proportionally, we believe that a significant factor in this 80-percent increase in applications is the fact that high-school seniors are expanding the number of schools to which they apply. So I think it is very likely we will accept students from the wait list. The application deadline for freshmen is March 1, and the deadline for transfer students is July 1.

The Whitworth Financial Aid Office is beginning to review files for new freshmen and transfer students for the 2007-08 academic year. New students who have applied by the March 1 deadline will begin receiving their financial-aid awards in March. Continuing students who meet the May 1 deadline for submitting the renewal FAFSA (www.fafsa.ed.gov) will receive their awards in May and June electronically. The deadline for continuing students applying for summer aid (which is very limited) is March 1. Merit scholarships are automatically renewed.

Student Life

February begins with a bang at the Black Student Union's annual Gospel Explosion. And as I mentioned, this is also the month in which we work with our students on job searches and other career activities. Students will also be delighted to hear four local up-and-coming live bands and the group Raining Jane, evidently a Whitworth favorite. I'm not sure if "raining" (in this case) is an adjective or a gerund, but if I'm free, I definitely want to see Jane rain. Finally, believe it or not, student life will begin the hiring process for next year's student leaders.

Resources

Thank you so much for making December a great month for The Whitworth Fund.January has also come in above average. At this point in the fiscal year, your giving to The Whitworth Fund is ahead of nearly all previous years (which is pretty important, since our goal this year is higher than in any previous year). Last Saturday, Bonnie, Stacey Smith (Institutional Advancement) and I had breakfast with a guy who's Exhibit A of people who find goodness and gladness in life. He is the father of two Whitworthians, one current student and one alum. He and his wife (who couldn't join us) are also alumni. Like many of you parents who both pay tuition and make gifts, they are generous people who love this school. Thanks to them, and to you.

Athletics

Whitworth's athletics program recently got some great coverage on ESPN's NCAA On Campus. You can download the clip from our athletics website at the following link: mms://media.whitworth.edu/athletics/ncaa/oncampus.wmv.

Our swim teams have just completed an amazing, record-breaking dual-meet season. The women finished the Northwest Conference schedule with a 7-0 record. This is the first time they have ever gone undefeated in conference dual meets; it's also the first time in 10 years that they've knocked off the University of Puget Sound.  The men's swim team also went 7-0 this season, extending its NWC dual-meet winning streak to 50. The Pirates pulled out a tough 106-99 victory at Linfield to preserve the streak. Both teams are gearing up for the 2007 NWC Swimming Championships Feb. 9-11 at Whitman. The men are aiming for their fifth NWC title in a row and their sixth in the last seven years. The women have a good shot at their second conference title overall and their first since 1995. I'll say more about this fine program in March. These are great student-athletes.

The Whitworth women's basketball team is 12-7 (6-4 in the NWC). The Pirates, who often play with all freshmen and sophomores on the floor, are currently in third place in the conference standings. The top three teams make the playoffs. Head Coach Helen Higgs picked up her 200th career victory this week in her 13th season as coach of the Bucs. She's chasing Warren Friedrichs for Whitworth's winningest-coach title. I think she'll get it in the 2009-2010 season. Congratulations, Helen!

The Pirate men are 19-2 (10-2 in conference) and are currently in first place by themselves in the NWC. Whitworth has been ranked nationally all season, and the team currently leads the nation in field-goal percentage. Senior Bryan Williams has directed head coach Jim Hayford's offense to perfection and is on pace to shatter the school's assist records; he's averaging more than eight per game. Leading scorer James Jones broke his hand two days before our first loss, but he's back and has been very big in the two games he has played. This has been an exciting year for a superb team.

Alumni

If you live in Colorado, you absolutely must attend one of our choir's spring-tour concerts (see schedule in Miscellaneous section below). Tad Wisenor, '89, (Alumni & Parent Relations) and Marianne Hansen, '97, (Admissions) will host post-concert dessert receptions at each venue. This is a great chance to meet other Whitworthians in your area.

Letters are in the mail from your reunion committees, and the Alumni Family Weekend brochure will be out soon. If you are in the classes of '47 to '82 or if you attended one of the Central/Latin America Study Programs for a semester, June 22-24 is your time to come back to campus for specific reunions --- but remember that all alumni are invited. The current schedule is available at www.whitworth.edu/familyweekend.

Dates for Homecoming 2007 are set for Oct. 5-7, and reunions are in the works for the classes of 1987 and 1997, for communication majors, and for all Whitworth Young Lifers. See www.whitworth.edu/homecoming for the tentative schedule.

Miscellaneous

Again, I hope you can attend one of our choir concerts in March. You can hear the choir, under the gifted direction of Marc A. Hafso, in the following Colorado cities:Sun., 3/25, 10:30 a.m. worship service, 7 p.m. concert: Wellshire Presbyterian Church, 2999 S. Colorado Blvd., Denver. Mon., 3/26, 7 p.m. concert: First Presbyterian Church, 219 East Bijou Street, Colorado Springs. Tues., 3/27, 7 p.m. concert: First Presbyterian Church of Fort Collins, 531 South College Ave., Fort Collins. Wed., 3/28, 7:30 p.m. concert: First Presbyterian Church of Boulder, 1820 15th Street, Boulder. Fri., 3/30, 7:30 p.m. concert: Central Presbyterian Church, 402 Kimbark St., Longmont.

Many of you have started receiving Of Mind & Heart electronically. Thanks. That saves trees and money. Also, you get it almost as soon as I finish writing it. Our hard-copy distribution list has gotten pretty big. If you would be willing to help us pare it down by receiving the newsletter via e-mail, go to www.whitworth.edu/mind&heart.

You may have seen a newspaper story about a former Whitworth trustee who is accused of theft and fraud. The courts have yet to determine this person's guilt or innocence, but the newspaper article is certainly guilty of factual errors and misrepresentation. While these blunders are unfortunate, we don't feel the damage is great enough to merit a fight. A friend of mine summed up well our reluctance to prolong this: "Okay, the story had a bad guy and a victim. Whitworth was neither. Why all the ink?" Good question. Although I can assure you that Whitworth did nothing unusual or wrong, the paper's claim that we did not run a criminal-background check on this person is true. We now run checks on all new trustees. And if the fraud allegations against this person hold up, we were among those who mistakenly believed his claims about his background. That's embarrassing, but it is not unethical. I wanted to mention this story because we have pledged to be people of integrity and trustworthiness, and we want you to know we have not violated that promise. If you have any concerns, please contact Director of Communications Greg Orwig, '91, at 509.777.4580 or gorwig@whitworth.edu.

Closing Thoughts

I've been reading a lot about Abraham Lincoln, so this month's President's Day should prove especially meaningful. And what President's Day holds for me in meaning, Valentine's Day will surely equal in cost. Even as I write, I am on an airplane with my Valentine. Two weeks ago I had work done on my cervical spine. My doctor told me I could travel as long as I didn't pick up anything over 10 pounds. Not easy. My wife (let's call her "Sherpa") offered to join me and provide bellhop service on one condition: I have to carry her purse. She finds this very funny. Just minutes ago, she acted like our bags were filled with lead, groaning as she heaved them into the overhead bins. And I stood there with a purse, thinking about the guy who had just said something about my bag not working with my running shoes. Of course, I lavish my Valentine with gratitude, and she points at my wallet and tells me the meter is running. I should probably try to make this into something spiritual. But there isn't really anything spiritual about it, except my motivation to pray for a fast recovery. Mostly, I just wanted you to share in the joy Bonnie finds in working me over. Those of us at Whitworth benefit immensely from Bonnie's music and grace, but we also enjoy her wit and wisdom. She contributes so much to life at Whitworth in understated but important ways. So, let me abuse the privilege of this newsletter to say thanks to a great Valentine. She brings gladness.