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On February 22, Rasmussen Art Gallery hosted the annual faculty show featuring work by Pacific Union College’s visual arts department. The featured artwork highlights the diverse and creative practices of PUC Visual Arts Chair Brian Kyle and Professors Amy Cronk Gatdula, Cliff Rusch, Jaymie de la Torre, Melissa Henry Pratt, Mike Murtaugh, and Nephtali Marin.For over 25 years, the faculty art show has been a tradition at the Rasmussen Art Gallery. "The inspiration behind hosting these annual exhibitions is rooted in the belief that practicing what we teach is essential," said Kyle. "The show provides an opportunity for faculty to share their creative work with students, colleagues, and the wider community. It reinforces the value of maintaining an active artistic practice while fostering dialogue and engagement with contemporary art-making processes."The show changes every year; this year focusing on 3D-printed typography, ceramic sculpture, encaustic painting, analog black and white and color photography, digital photography, mixed media, and filmmaking. With no set theme, faculty can explore their creative and artistic skills while showcasing their department's practices from traditional, experimental, and conceptual work. For PUC students, these annual faculty shows allow them to see their professors as artists, bringing their classroom lessons to...

During winter break, Pacific Union College’s music department toured Phoenix, Arizona. From February 6-9, their ensembles performed at Thunderbird SDA Academy and Elementary, Glenview SDA Academy, Paradise Valley SDA Church, Adventist Worship Center SDA Church, and Camelback SDA Church. “We had wonderful performances,” said Ronnie Zanella, PUC’s associate music professor. “Both our groups performed at a very high level of musicianship.” The two groups, comprised of 15 students, showcased different performances at each academy and church, while some students also led out in praise at academies. Seven pieces were performed by the Mosaic String Ensemble, while the Vox Pro Musica sang five songs. They held shorter performances at academies while performing a complete concert program over the weekend, with some pieces combining the groups.Zanella shared that the men from Vox Pro Musica learned a quartet piece by the Heritage Singers hours before their concert at Camelback Church and performed it well. “It was interesting to discover all of them have the same interest in this more traditional type of acapella male quartet music,” he said. “It’s also amazing to see how trips like these really bond our students, and us faculty to them as well, creating a safe and fun...

The nursing department at Pacific Union College is thrilled to have new equipment that will help shape and strengthen its students’ education experience. Using Song-Brown funds—grant money funded by the California Department of Health Care Access and Information, supporting nursing schools and workforce expansion in California—PUC's nursing department was able to purchase an anatomy table that students can start using in the new year. This state-of-the-art technology is the most advanced human-based medical education system, offering digitized human cadavers and medical tools. Currently, 80 colleges, universities, and medical programs across California utilize the table. For PUC, the anatomage table will better prepare pre-nursing students to take required prerequisite courses like biology, chemistry, microbiology, anatomy, and physiology. “We felt this table and the resource of having five human cadavers would be beneficial not just in pre-nursing but also as the students progress into nursing,” said PUC Dean of Nursing & Health Science Kimberly Dunker. “For the visual learners, this is an opportunity to utilize case study learning and understand and critically think about a medical problem but also visualize this problem in the body. It is a great way to incorporate teaching and learning for all types of learners.”In addition to...

Pacific Union College welcomed 16 academies nationwide for their annual basketball tournament from January 22-25. Pine Tree Academy in Maine, College View Academy in Nebraska, and Hawaiian Mission Academy accepted PUC’s invitation to visit the college and partake in the tournament. Among the California schools that competed were:- Escondido Adventist Academy- Newbury Park Academy- Rio Lindo Adventist Academy- Monterey Bay Academy- Mountain View Academy- Central Valley Christian Academy- Lodi Academy- Pleasant Hill Adventist Academy- Pine Hills Adventist Academy- Paradise Adventist Academy- Trinity Prep- PUC Prep- Calistoga High SchoolCollege View Academy placed first for the girls' teams, with Calistoga High School coming in second, and Hawaiian Mission Academy in third place. For the boy's teams, Paradise Adventist Academy placed first, with College View Academy coming in second place, and Rio Lindo Adventist Academy following in third. PUC Prep Physical Education Teacher Matthew Lee, PUC Athletic Director Hernan Granados, and PUC Campus Visit Coordinator Andrianna Massena organized the event, ensured students had an unforgettable time, and live-streamed the games for families who could not travel to the tournament in-person. “I believe the tournament went really well!” said Massena. “Since this is my third year being able to work side-by-side with Matt Lee,...

Pacific Union College Flight Center Director Nathan Tasker had the idea to build a type-specific aircraft simulator for his students. Since flight training devices in general aviation tend to be generic, limiting their usefulness, Tasker questioned how he and the program could obtain a simulator to teach basic skills, such as visual ground reference maneuvers and landing techniques. This would allow students to progress efficiently, as these skills cannot be effectively taught in traditional simulators. He shared his dream with Russell Laird, the former chair of PUC’s technology department, who would help bring this idea to life. Building the simulator started last summer, with dimensions mirroring PUC’s Piper Cherokee cockpit. Aviation major Micah Dymer drew an instrument panel that Laird would build and design. Taylor Webster consistently assisted Laird, with several other aviation students who volunteered to assemble parts and help calibrate the controls. From Hong Kong to Indonesia to Germany and Sacramento, different parts arrived in Angwin to build the simulator. According to Tasker, building a type-specific flight simulator for a small aircraft had not been done before. This process took countless hours of experimenting, ongoing improvements, and adjustments. With no manual and starting from scratch, it is rewarding...

In celebrating over 140 years, Pacific Union College is looking forward to welcoming alumni back on campus for Homecoming from April 18-19. This memorable weekend will be filled for friends to reconnect and reminisce about their times together.Homecoming registration can be found on puc.edu/homecoming, with the options of general attendance, lunch, and class parties. The classes being honored this year are 1955, 1965, 1975, 1995, 2000, 2005, and 2015. Also, classes before and after the honored classes will be recognized.For those who want to stay on-campus, limited guest housing is available for $110 per night and can be reserved through Suzie Ermshar by calling 707-965-1116.Special events for the weekend include a concert from Grammy winner and alum Justin Wilson, alongside his family, Pioneer games for alumni to play volleyball and basketball with student-athletes, and a club food fest where students will serve various food and drinks.The weekend will be filled with events and celebrations. PUC hopes to see you at Homecoming!...

From January 21-25, Pacific Union College was blessed with five students who spoke for Student Week of Worship, themed  “Passion: As Told By You.” Students Abiel Irving, Josue Hilario, Elena Blum, Julian Clarke, and Leila Beltran shared how passion is the force that drives intentional action toward God, everyone, and everything. It was a powerful week seeing students from different backgrounds, some of whom haven’t spoken upfront before, sharing personal stories on their relationship with Christ and encouraging others to seek Him. “Students could be in the audience and think, ‘That could be me!’” said Beltran. “It was so inspiring to see people share how their mind works when it comes to PASSION, our theme. You connect so much better with speakers who are like you and that’s what this quarter’s Student Week of Worship was all about.” Irving enthusiastically kicked the week off by speaking about how faith plays a part in our lives, with the Holy Spirit working in the people and situations around us. Reading from Hebrews 13:5, she reminded the audience that God will never forsake His people. Irving shared another uplifting text from Philippians 4:13 and encouraged students to find strength in Christ and be...

Pacific Union College is thrilled to announce Aimee Leukert as the new Vice President of Student and Spiritual Life. Leukert’s passion and dedication to Adventist education will provide leadership and vision while creating a campus culture that promotes student success and cultivates a spiritual community. Leukert has been an educator for over 20 years. She began her teaching career at Crescenta Valley Adventist School, where she also served as principal before moving to Newbury Park Academy and Monterey Bay Academy.In addition to her bachelor’s in music and liberal studies and master’s in education administration and leadership from La Sierra University, Leukert also earned her Ph.D. in education from Claremont Graduate University, where she wrote a dissertation titled “Choosing God, Choosing Schools: A Study of the Relationship between Parental Religiosity and School Choice.” She has written books focusing on Adventist education and culture in addition to her peer-reviewed publications. Her latest book from 2023 was Thriving: 31 Stories on the Impact of Adventist Education, a collection of stories from people who built on the foundation of their Adventist education and have thrived in their fields. Leukert has presented at academic and professional meetings and conferences around the country, including at PUC...

Pacific Union College is pleased to announce the appointment of Carlos Garcia as the new Vice President of Alumni and Advancement. In this role, he will provide leadership, vision, and direction for alumni relations while creating and leading development activities for sustained institutional growth.“We are extremely pleased to welcome Carlos to our campus and into his new role,” said PUC President Ralph Trecartin. “Since his first interview, we've been very impressed with his skill set, leadership background, and compatibility with the values of PUC. I believe that in addition to providing great leadership in his division, he will make significant and positive contributions to the administrative team.”Garcia returns to his alma mater with more than two decades of strong leadership experience, having directed team decision-making, leadership organization and planning, motivation and in-person training, and conflict resolution. He previously served as the lead pastor in Santa Maria, Modesto, and Los Banos, California, and Provo, Utah. He led his congregations through pastoral care, provided department management and oversight, conducted lay and leadership training, and supported church growth in all phases. Before joining the ministry, Garcia was a pharmaceutical sales leader in Chicago, Illinois. In this role, he facilitated sales to regional medical...

Jarrod Denton, a 1996 PUC graduate, is an architect, partner, and founder at Signum Architecture, LLP. He and his business partner Juancarlos Fernandez launched their firm in St. Helena in 2011 and relocated to Napa in 2023. When they founded the firm, they chose the name “Signum”—a Latin term for design—to reflect the center point of the firm and represent their unique studio environment. Signum looks at architecture from a holistic point of view. With a diverse group of talented workers, they collaborate with artists, offering a perspective beyond traditional architecture and are knowledgeable in low-carbon construction. From caves to boutique hospitality and restaurants, Denton gravitates towards diverse architectural styles, especially if the project is elusive, requires a challenging creative solution, and is reusable to bring it to life. “I love the process—coming up with a design concept, not falling in love with the first solution, nurturing the design along, distilling the solution down to the essence, and ultimately walking through a built space,” he shared. When all is complete, projects designed by Denton and his team feel more rewarding because they prioritize their client and the environment. For Denton, the joys of being an architect are using the transformative...