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President Emeritus Bill Robinson

  1. Whitworth University
  2. President Emeritus Bill Robinson
  3. Of Mind & Heart Newsletter
  4. May 2006

Of Mind & Heart Newsletter: May 2006

An update from Whitworth University President Bill Robinson

Yesterday we wrapped up another academic year with perfect weather, an inspiring Baccalaureate service, and a joyous Commencement ceremony. Today I'm in New Jersey, the weather is lousy, and I'm in meetings all day. But it's all good. Yesterday's students are today's alumni -- literally. And they will make this world better. It struck me at Friday night's Senior Commissioning Service that our graduates don't just feel finished; I think they feel "sent." We speak often of educating mind and heart as the core of our mission. But Commencement Weekend exposes the seniors' deep awareness that the prepared mind and full heart rely on active hands and feet. The sending part seems rather mysterious, but Frederick Buechner locates the destination by calling it that place "...where your deep gladness meets the world's deep needs." At Washington State University's Spokane graduation, one of our Whitworth/WSU Intercollegiate Nursing graduates, Jessica Herbes, gave the student speech. Powerfully, she told of how working with HIV/AIDS babies on a Jan Term trip to South Africa awakened her awareness that being a nurse is what she was put on Earth to do. And I guess that's where we pray our students feel sent -- to that special place where the mind, heart, hands and feet unite to do what they have been put on Earth to do. For all the ways so many of you have joined us in "sending" these graduates, we are immensely grateful.

Academics

Our faculty members know that in order to be good teachers they have to be good learners.

  • Rich Schatz (School of Global Commerce & Management) received a Fulbright scholarship and will lecture during spring semester 2007 on economic development and international trade and finance at the National University of Timor Leste. "Getting back to Southeast Asia, a part of the world where I lived and worked for many years, will be a wonderful refresher for me and will help me update my teaching in economic development and international trade," Rich says. He will also conduct research on the effects of foreign-aid financed rural-development projects in East Timor.
  • A number of faculty members will participate in a "Vocations of the Christian Professor" workshop led by Arlin Migliazzo (History). They'll focus on better understanding the integration of faith and learning in the classroom.
  • In another workshop, Karin Heller (Theology) will work with faculty members to explore their general calling as Christians.
  • Gordon Watanabe (Education) and Ginny Whitehouse (Communication Studies) will direct a workshop to help faculty develop competence as intercultural advisors as they work with students across cultures.

Our annual Honors Showcase recognized many students for their outstanding work.Students were saluted by academic departments, student life and athletics for their excellent work and service to the campus. The faculty selected Cory Bergman and Jennifer Wild as winners of the Distinguished Collegiate Achievement Award.  Megan Crisp, Melissa Hinman, and Teranne McComas were awarded the President's Cup, Whitworth's highest academic award, given to graduating seniors who have maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout their Whitworth careers. What I find remarkable is that the students who won academic awards were also involved deeply in other activities. They really made their time count.

In several outside academic competitions, Whitworth students brought home the hardware, and some cash.

  • A team of high-minded Whitworth students took second place at the fourth annual Northwest Regional Ethics Bowl, held April 28-29 at the University of Washington. The winners probably cheated. Just kidding. Actually, it's encouraging to see higher education emphasize ethical decision-making. Whitworth's interdisciplinary ethical-debate team analyzed 12 complex cases, then defended its solutions against teams from UW, WSU, and Cal Poly Pomona. Case topics ranged from Internet restrictions to using genetic screening in the workplace to police sting operations. The team included Lisa Fox, Jeff Hunter, Nicole Remy, Noah Patterson and Amy Bernard. The team's coaches were Mike Ingram (Communication Studies) and Keith Wyma (Philosophy).
  • In a similar competition, this time addressing business plans, three members of the Class of 2006 made significant strides in their post-college career plans when they won a first-place prize in the Inland Northwest Regional Business Plan Competition. More than 200 students from Whitworth, Gonzaga, EWU and WSU participated in the competition, and the winning teams received a total of $42,500 in prize money. In the community-based category, the Whitworth team's business plan, "Summit Applied Technologies, Inc.," placed first. Team members Jonathan Carlson, Jeremiah Brack and Josh Breda won $7,500 in prize money and a year of rent-free space offered by the Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce. Two other Whitworth teams placed: Master of International Management Program graduate student Sara Tanzi-Dunham  won $3,500 in a second-place finish in the social-enterprise category, and Anne Briggs, Jason Colvin, Seth Lowe and Amber Matthai finished third and won $1,500 in the community-based category.
  • For the fourth consecutive year, Whitworth MIM students have joined a select group at the U.N.'s graduate-study program in Geneva, Switzerland. MIM students Lisa Trefts and Sara Tanzi-Dunham (who also excelled in the business-plan competition mentioned above) were selected for academic internships in the 44th Graduate Study Programme. The MIM students are two of 100 graduate students from more than 40 countries who will gather July 3-21 at the Palais des Nations to evaluate and make recommendations on global issues including human rights, the environment and economic development.

Enrollment

I generally use this space to report admissions and enrollment activity, but students, prospective students and the families of both should be aware of very important changes in federal legislation. As of July 1, both Stafford and parent loans will have fixed interest rates, and in-school consolidations will no longer be an option. Previously, these loans have always had variable interest rates and have offered borrowers the option to consolidate federal direct loans while the student remains in school. The new fixed-interest rates will be 6.8 percent for Stafford Loans and 7.9 percent for Parent PLUS Loans. Be sure to check www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov in time to consolidate before the July 1 deadline. Students with Perkins Loans may find that it is not in their best interest to include these loans in their federal consolidations. There are certain borrower benefits that will not be honored once the Perkins Loans are consolidated. Perkins borrowers should research these benefits carefully before making a decision. If you have trouble figuring it all out, please call our financial-aid office at 509.777.3215 or 800.533.4668.

Student Life

We wrapped up April with ASWC's annual Springfest celebration, which raised $1,200 for the Multiple Sclerosis Society. It's a crazy day, but huge fun. Also finishing off the month was the intramural program's first triathlon, with more than 30 participants, and an outdoor soccer tournament that took advantage of the beautiful spring weather we've been having. Jubilation shared an eclectic performance of dance in the group's spring concert, and the senior class had a packed house for the Senior Coffeehouse and Talent Show. Among a ton of other events that rounded out the year was the Black Student Union's annual soul-food dinner. ASWC, its officers, Assistant Dean of Students Dayna Coleman and the whole student-life staff deserve thanks for a great year. By the way, I don't know exactly what the fall new-student orientation theme will be, but I had my picture taken on a phlegmatic horse. I looked very authentic waving my cowboy hat, wearing glasses and penny loafers. 

Resources

Duvall Hall is right on schedule for summer completion. The rooms in this new hall went fast in this year's residence-hall lottery. A year from now we'd love to break ground for the new art building. We still need $1.7 million, so please send me a note if you know of potential contributors. It's really important to complete this project as soon as possible.

June 30 marks the end of our fiscal year and we're going to need a big finish in order to reach The Whitworth Fund goal, but I think we'll make it. We have $200,000 in pledges outstanding that will close the gap as they come in.  Thank you so much for all you have done and for any additional gifts you are able to make. You can give online at www.whitworth.edu/give or by U.S. mail, or any other way you can think of.

Athletics

Whitworth's softball team earned its first-ever bid to the NCAA championships,receiving an at-large bid after finishing second in the NWC with a 26-12 overall record and a 21-7 Northwest Conference mark. Senior Jo Sonnett was named NWC pitcher of the year, while Heather Case was selected as a first-team All-NWC honoree. While the Pirates dropped two very close games at the regional competition, they also gained valuable experience for the future.

Baseball finished the season tied for fourth in the NWC with a record of 13-11. Starting pitcher Steve Hare was named first-team All-NWC, while fellow starter Brandon Zimmerman became the first Pirate to win eight games in one season since 1992. Senior Todd Phillips was named Academic All-District.

Andrew Parrott was the individual champion as Whitworth's men's golf team won its second straight NWC title. Parrott was joined on the All-NWC team by Jordan Carter, who won the NWC fall and spring classics. Warren Friedrichs was named NWC Men's Golf Coach of the Year for the second straight time, to go along with his four previous NWC Men's Basketball Coach of the Year awards.

Several Whitworth track-and field athletes are aiming to qualify for the NCAA Division III outdoor championships May 25-27 at Benedictine University, in Illinois. Brandon Howell and Derrick Dewindt have provisional marks in the 800 and hammer throw, respectively. Kristi Dickey has one of the country's top times in the 10,000 and also hopes to qualify in the 5,000. Angela Florence has provisionally qualified in the javelin, while Sarah Marken has a provisional score in the heptathlon.

At the senior honors forum, Jo Sonnett (softball), Loren Killgore (men's swimming) and Lance Pecht (men's basketball) were named Senior Athletes of the Year. All-Americans Natalie Danielson (volleyball) and Todd Sabrowski (men's soccer) were the recipients of the Dennis Spurlock Memorial Awards.

Alumni

Alumni Family Weekend (June 16-18) is fast approaching. If you get this by snail mail, the list of registered attendees will be up on the website, and early registration pricing is good until May 25. There are still plenty of rooms available in Boppell Hall. All of the details and online registration can be found at www.whitworth.edu/familyweekend.

Online registration is now available for Core 650 events with Jim Edwards, '67, (Theology) in Alaska. Events take place on Saturday, June 24 (2-4 p.m. at Juneau's Chapel by the Lake) and Sunday, June 25 (2-4 p.m. at Trinity Presbyterian Church, in Anchorage). Details are on the alumni-events webpage. Jim will be speaking on the intersection of Christianity and Islam, and he will be joined by Alumni Director Tad Wisenor, '89.

Last Jan Term, the Article and Feature-Writing course taught by Ginny Whitehouse (Communication Studies) interviewed recent Whitworth graduates on the theme of transitions, then wrote up their stories. Read about our young alums at www.whitworth.edu/transitions.

Miscellaneous

We're excited about our Whitworth Summer Jazz Camp, June 25-29. Intended for high-school students, it's an intensive five-day camp that focuses on jazz in both big-band and combo settings, and also includes classes in jazz history, jazz theory, and technical issues with each instrument. Faculty members include Whitworth full-time and adjunct jazz professors, plus several highly talented jazz students. Information can be found at www.whitworth.edu/jazzcamp.

I just found out that our fall main-stage production will be Pirates of Penzance. I love this Gilbert and Sullivan show! Rick Hornor, '70, (Theatre) will direct the play, which will be presented Oct. 13, 14, 15, 20 and 21.

We only have a few spaces left for this year's Whitworth Institute of Ministry, July 10-14. The theme is Proclaiming Christ in a Pluralistic World. Institute speakers include F. Dale Bruner (former Whitworth professor and non-resident legend), Mark Labberton (First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley), Iain Torrance (Princeton Theological Seminary), Leanne Van Dyk (Western Seminary), and Whitworth's own James Edwards, Jerry Sittser, Ron Pyle -- and me. You can register online at www.whitworth.edu/wim or by phone at 509.777.4345.

Closing Thoughts

Life moves quickly. This was my 20th year as a college president and my 13th at Whitworth. Living where you work for 20 years can wear you down, but it's also big fun. On the Saturday before finals, I was scheduled to cook breakfast at our house for six students. It was an auction item, or a prize, or a punishment or something. Whenever I do this kind of thing, Bonnie withholds a certain measure of warmth until she is safely on the other side of my idea. So I woke up to a bit of her attitude, which I expect and I have earned. At 9:25, five students were on the doorstep with their appetites. I had the griddle going, bacon was on the move, eggs were poised for scrambling and donut holes kindled the raging appetites. My only screw-up was forgetting the instant pancake mix. Graciously, Bonnie climbed off her piano bench to whip up some batter. Given my history, I was still doing well. Curiously, at 9:30, the doorbell rang again. A second group -- all guys, large guys -- were there to collect on whatever they'd won or bought. Evidently, I gave this breakfast thing to two groups. As I prepared what we had, I remembered the feeding of the 5,000 and prayed that my bacon and eggs would be multiplied. While I was busy praying and the Lord was busy not answering my prayer, Bonnie was busy going to the grocery store. It all turned out well, with an abundance of food and laughter. In a matter of mere days I was out of the doghouse and planning my next mistake. I wrap up my 20th year with this "day in the life" simply to express the joy and blessing I feel living in the Whitworth community, being married to Bonnie, and knowing the peace and presence of Christ. I hope you have a great summer.