Mind & Heart Newsletter: January 2011
An update from Whitworth University President Beck A. Taylor
I hope that each of you had a blessed Christmas and New Year's holiday, full of family, fellowship and celebration, and that 2011 has gotten off to a fantastic start. That is certainly the case for the Taylor family. We were able to take some much-needed time off as we headed to Colorado for Christmas to visit Julie's parents and to ski at Copper Mountain. We decided to drive from Spokane to my in-laws' home in Monument. Yes, for those of you keeping score at home, that's about 1,200 miles each way. Several folks at Whitworth looked at me in bewilderment when I told them our plans, as if to say, "Have you looked at a map? The West is pretty big, you know!" Apparently they couldn't see the "fun" in loading a family of five into a vehicle – with tons of ski equipment, fluffy clothes, enough Hot Tamales and Jujyfruits to keep me awake, and iPods and other teenage entertainment gadgets – for two days of potentially hazardous driving through some of the most unpopulated territory in the U.S. To Julie and me, though, it was just what the doctor ordered. After perhaps the busiest six months of our lives, reclaiming some lost family time, even under these cramped conditions, was a wonderful opportunity to relish being in one another's presence. Just being together was such a simple but sweet blessing. Yes, we had to contend with a few backseat arguments between teenagers, a 3-year-old who inexplicably used this occasion to announce to the world that she no longer needs an afternoon nap, a spilled drink or two, more unplanned bathroom breaks than I would have preferred, and even a run-in with a deer just north of Buffalo, Wyo. But that time together...absolutely golden. God is so good. Take time, even now, after the busyness of the holidays, just to be with the ones you love – no agendas, no schedules. Savor every moment. They are some of the best gifts we can give or receive.
Academics
Jan Term began last week with Whitworth professors leading students to distant lands on 11 off-campus study programs.A sampling of what our students are up to includes exploring field marine biology, in the San Juan Islands off Washington's coast, with Craig Tsuchida (Biology); math history, in the U.K., with Donna Pierce (Math & Computer Science); the actor's experience, in New York City, with Brooke Kiener, '99 (Theatre); Christianity, in Britain, with Keith Beebe (Theology/Core 150); and cultural anthropology, in Hawaii, with Raja Tanas (Sociology). Ann Teberg (Education) is taking 10 students to Arusha, Tanzania, to work at St. Margaret's Academy and with two local orphanages, and our students will also take along materials and supplies to donate to the organizations that host them.
Fifty-one Whitworth students are headed to Central America. Twenty students taking part in the Jan.-May Central America Study Program will begin in Guatemala, with Kim Hernandez (Spanish). They will eventually travel to Honduras, with Lindy Scott (Spanish); Nicaragua, with Terry McGonigal (Theology); and El Salvador, with Karla Morgan (Economics). They'll close out their trip with a stop at our Costa Rica Center, where Michael Le Roy, '89 (Academic Affairs/Political Science), will be the guide by their sides. The Costa Rica Center also welcomes its first cohort, of 31 students, to a special Jan Term program for freshmen admitted with honors. Josh Orozco (Philosophy) and Rick Hornor, '70 (Theatre), will lead them in studying the philosophy of forgiveness. I look forward to joining them for a few days, as well.
Speaking of the Costa Rica Center, Director Lindy Scott writes that the center is doing its best to be environmentally sensitive to the beautiful area in which it is located. The CRC recently invested in a system that cleans wastewater until it is pure enough to be returned to the nearby river. In addition, students and staff are composting food scraps and leftovers, and they have used organic principles in planting a garden and a nascent fruit orchard that includes orange, lemon, mango, peach, coffee and apple trees. We want to be good guests in this beautiful country.
The Inland Northwest Community Foundation has awarded the Whitworth Literacy Center $6,000 for the purchase of curriculum materials. This funding will allow the center to double its enrollment next summer as it serves Spokane's at-risk students.
The Arts
Scott Kolbo (Art) is exhibiting new prints, drawings, and video projections at Spokane Falls Community College through Feb. 5. His exhibit, Sonic Medicine, will include a number of large video animations projected over the top of traditional charcoal drawings. Scott will deliver a lecture about the exhibit this week, and he promises slapstick humor, air guitar and supernatural comedy for all interested parties.
The Whitworth Choir will tour California during Spring Break, and the Whitworth Orchestra will tour Hawaii in May. Our alumni office will host receptions featuring, well, me, at some of the concerts that coincide with the Taylor Tour events described in the alumni section. Here's the choir's schedule: March 19, 7:30 p.m., La Cañada Presbyterian Church; March 20, 4 p.m., Irvine Presbyterian Church; March 23, 7 p.m., CUSD Performing Arts Center, Paul Shaghoian Concert Hall (Fresno); March 25, 7:30 p.m., Fremont Presbyterian Church (Sacramento); March 26, 7:30 p.m., First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley. And the Whitworth Orchestra performance schedule is as follows: May 18, 7 p.m., Harris United Methodist Church (Honolulu); May 21, time TBA, Waialua United Church of Christ; May 22, 9 a.m. (church service) and 3 p.m. (concert), Kawaiaha'o Church (Honolulu).
Gordon Wilson (Art) was selected to participate in Gonzaga University's triennial invitational drawing exhibition last fall.Drawn to the Wall IV featured five artists who created work by drawing directly onto one of the Jundt Museum's five 8'x11' portable walls. The first airing of the exhibition, on KSPS-TV's Northwest Profiles, included an interview with Gordon. A video of the program, "Drawn to Draw," can be viewed in HD on YouTube. Gordon also exhibited 28 paintings recently in a solo show, The Reluctant Muse or How Do You Paint an Olive Tree?, at Spokane's Tinman Gallery.
During Jan Term, Diana Trotter (Theatre) is bringing back Mirror, Mirror: The Body Image Show. With our culture's strong emphasis on physical appearance, today's teens are struggling more than ever with body image and self-esteem. Mirror, Mirroris an original script, developed by Whitworth students, that explores how our peers, families and the media shape our ideas about body image. Diana's troupe will tour middle and high schools in our region and will perform for Whitworth students on Jan. 18. For more information, please call 509.777.3707.
Student Life
The impact of our students' service equates to more than $250,000 for fall 2010. Last semester, students in our service-learning courses provided approximately 11,890 hours of service to local community agencies, organizations and ministries. Students, faculty and staff provided an additional 693 service hours on Community Building Day. Based on Campus Compact's estimated value of volunteer time at $20.25 per hour, the economic impact of these 12,583 hours of service to the Spokane community totals $254,805! Serving humanity is such a vital part of Whitworth's mission.
December at Whitworth began and ended with lots of festivity and celebration. Students attended residence-hall Christmas parties; enjoyed an evening of Whitworth Unplugged that featured very talented Whitworth performers; celebrated the season at choir and ensemble concerts; saw some great student actors at the Festival of One Acts; and, of course, ate and drank themselves silly at the President's Christmas reception (can you get carpal tunnel syndrome from serving too much wassail?). Finals then came upon us as students looked forward to settling their brains for a long winter's nap. January is full of study, on-campus activities and athletics contests, so the afore-mentioned nap should help to prepare students (along with faculty and staff) for another busy Jan Term at Whitworth.
We'll explore the many and varied ways Whitworth students gain international experience as we celebrate Heritage Month 2011. Highlights of the February celebration will include the annual Leonard A. Oakland Film Festival and other special events. Details are available at www.whitworth.edu/heritagemonth.
Financial Aid
The 2011-12 FAFSA website is now available for students who wish to renew their need-based financial aid. Families can file the electronic pre-filled FAFSA at www.fafsa.gov. Our priority deadline is May 1 for returning students who are seeking financial aid for 2011-12. For new students and students who wish to apply for summer work-study, the deadline is March 1. Students planning to attend summer school should contact the financial aid office (509.777.3215 or finaid@whitworth.edu) to discuss their plans. Students who receive only academic scholarships do not need to file the FAFSA form.
Late this month, we will be mailing Federal Form 1098-T to verify full- and part-time enrollment. This form is used to support your request for educational tax credits on your tax return. Please consult your tax advisor or go to www.irs.gov for more information on available educational tax credits. You may also want to take a look at the Worksheet for Reporting Scholarships/Grants on Federal 2010 Tax Return, found on the financial aid office's Forms webpage, at www.whitworth.edu/financialaid, to determine if any of the financial aid you/your student received in 2010 is taxable.
Alumni & Parents
Alumni can enjoy free Pirate basketball in the fieldhouse throughout January. We will hold our annual Alumni Night at the Fieldhouse (free admission, snacks, and door prizes) on Jan. 29, when the Bucs take on Lewis & Clark. All other home games (Jan. 7, 8, 18, 21 and 28) are also free to alumni and their families. Start times and matchups are available at www.whitworth.edu/athletics.
Seattle-area alumni are invited to join us for an alumni and parents reception at UPS on Feb. 4. Cheer on the Pirates as the women play the Loggers at 6 p.m.; the men's game follows at 8 p.m. Complimentary refreshments will be served near courtside during the intermission between games. The Pirates play PLU in Tacoma on Feb 5.
Mark your calendar now for Homecoming Weekend, Oct. 7-9. All alumni are invited to campus for a weekend of celebration, reconnecting with friends, and the grand opening of Robinson Hall. We'll celebrate five-year, ten-year and 20-year class reunions, and several groups will gather for special reunions. Scheduled events include a celebration of 50 years of swimming at Whitworth and a gathering of biology and chemistry grads, as well as a cluster reunion for the classes of 1995-98. Information on Homecoming Weekend events is available online at www.whitworth.edu/homecoming.
Registration is now open for regional Taylor Tour events, in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 30; Portland, on Feb. 5; Denver, on Feb. 10; Colorado Springs, on Feb. 11; La Canada, Calif., on March 19; Irvine, on March 20; and the Bay Area, on March 26. More details are forthcoming for an event in Honolulu on May 22. I'm excited to meet our alumni, parents and friends in each of these regions. For more information and to register, go to www.whitworth.edu/taylortour. I'm excited that Julie will be able to join me for most of these dates.
Puget Sound-area alumni are invited to join us for a professional networking event at Starbucks headquarters on Feb. 17.The event will include networking opportunities with other regional Whitworth alumni, and I will facilitate a panel discussion with School of Global Commerce & Management Dean Bob Beatty, Department of Business & Economics Chair Heather Rogers and Executive-in-Residence Duff Bergquist. Visit www.whitworth.edu/alumni/networkingevent for more details and to register.
Resources
The annual-giving office has really been pushing the envelope – the giving envelope – in order to engage supporters in continuing to build on Whitworth's excellence. In December, many of you sent those envelopes back with gifts of all sizes. It's still too early to give you the totals, but your generosity has certainly kept our gift processors busy. Thank you for your annual financial support and for taking so seriously your role as a member of the Whitworth community. We deeply appreciate your partnership in lifting up Whitworth's mind-and-heart mission and in serving our students.
Sports
The swimming teams made the most of their Christmas trip to Southern California. Both teams practiced twice a day at California Lutheran University, putting in 75,000-100,000 yards of work over the course of the week. The trip concluded with a meet against Cal Lutheran, UC Santa Cruz and University of La Verne; the Pirate men/women finished one/two.
The women's basketball team heads into 2011 one game under .500. The Pirates battled hard but lost to Carroll College and Montana Tech, two talented teams from the NAIA, between Christmas and New Year's.
Men's basketball improved to 11-0 by winning twice at the D3hoops.com Classic in Las Vegas. The Pirates are ranked sixth nationally in the most recent D3hoops.com poll, and Head Men's Basketball Coach Jim Hayford picked up his 200th win as the Pirate coach in just his 10th season at Whitworth.
The indoor track and field season will kick off (or shoot out of the starting blocks) with the Washington State Open, in Pullman, on Jan. 14-15.
And the tennis teams will officially open their schedules on Jan. 22 against Eastern Washington University. Our players had to prepare the old-fashioned way after a service tech overinflated the Whitworth Tennis Bubble and caused it to pop, literally! (Unfortunately, we did not have cameras on hand to witness the event, as they did at the Minneapolis Metrodome a few weeks ago when it collapsed during a blizzard.) The bubble is up and running again, and our netsters appreciate even more the comfort and shelter it provides.
Closing Thoughts
Finally, one of the most important and exciting initiatives occurring this year is the creation of Whitworth's next 10-year vision and strategic plan. Many on-campus conversations between faculty, staff and students have given shape to this evolving dialogue that attempts to answer the question, "What should Whitworth look like in 2021?" Those internal discussions will move to the next level at the board retreat in early February. Once our trustees have had an opportunity to add their important input, we will begin to engage all of our external communities, including alumni, parents, friends and community members. Stay tuned for information on how you can review and add insights to the planning process. We want to hear from you. A shared and compelling vision for Whitworth, one that's informed by all of our stakeholders, will provide important and life-giving momentum for the future. As always, please keep Whitworth in your prayers.
