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Pacific Union College students from various departments showcased Shrek the Musical in the halfway-renovated Paulin Recital Hall on May 24, 26, and 27. The stage adaptation of the DreamWorks Pictures movie Shrek, the musical follows the plot with 20 songs written for the show that include ballads, classic Broadway songs, and funky dance numbers. From building sets and designing costumes to directing and producing, PUC students ran the entire show. The character of Shrek was performed by music major Milton Perez, with his sidekick Donkey played by theology major Jacob Duran. Madeline Eastman, a biology major, had the lead role of Princess Fiona, nursing major Gabe Llanell-Vararaj played Lord Farquaad, and Dragon was performed by psychology and music major Kyra Grant. Perez brought the idea to perform this musical to co-director and co-producer Leila Beltran (who played one of the three blind mice). With other musicals in mind and unsure of what to showcase, PUC SA President Kaitlyn Nakanishi, co-director/producer and choreographer, encouraged Beltran to say “yes” to Shrek the Musical—and she’s glad she did!  Being a part of the production team, Beltran coached the cast on their lines and movements, helped with music direction, and organized rehearsals, which was...

Leila Beltran decided to attend Pacific Union College for two reasons: she heard the education department was one of the best in the Adventist school system, and she knew she thrived in a smaller community. With an interest in developing relationships and realizing she wouldn’t like to go to a college or university where everyone was just another face in a crowd, PUC was the community for Beltran to receive support and make meaningful connections. Beltran will soon complete her sophomore year of liberal studies and earn a music associate's degree. Within this school year, she has made a tremendous impact in the music department by being the president of the music club and co-directing and co-producing PUC on Broadway and Shrek the Musical. With a love for musicals and hearing students' interest in putting on a show, Beltran dedicated time to making these productions happen and considerably accommodating her cast and crew to give the community enjoyable shows. She didn’t always have a passion for musicals, aside from knowing the famous musicals Hamilton and Wicked, but not much beyond that. Movie soundtracks and music in general were something she enjoyed, but she couldn’t call herself a theater kid since...

Pacific Union College was delighted to celebrate the 245-student graduating Class of 2024 from June 14-16. The consecration service on Friday night kicked off graduation weekend at the PUC Church. The program was led by graduating class members, with Executive Vice President Sitraka Andrianarijaona welcoming family and friends. Professor of Communication Dr. Tammy McGuire addressed the congregation as the chosen speaker for vespers, where she discussed the fullness of uncertainty. Former PUC Pastor Mark Witas returned to campus to share the word for Sabbath church service. In the afternoon, Tad Worku, mission coach at Inland Empire Health Plan, spoke during the nursing graduate recognition service and was followed by the Dean of the School of Nursing and Health Sciences, Kimberly Dunker, who presented awards and pins to the students who completed an associate, baccalaureate, and MSN degree in nursing. Family and friends then continued celebrations afterward at the Dining Commons for the President’s Reception. Among the graduates, 177 were from the nursing and health sciences departments, 16 from the psychology and social work department, 15 from the business administration department, 10 from the chemistry department, and eight from the communication and world languages department. From completing essays and giving presentations...

The English department at Pacific Union College recently announced the winners of the second annual Emerging Voices of the Pacific Union. The English department received an influx of essays in which contestants were asked to write about a moment they were changed. “We received 90 essays, and judges were greatly impressed by the quality of submissions we received,” said Milbert Mariano, PUC dean of the school of arts, humanities, and professions. “Through a blind judging process, where the judges had no idea who or where the essay was from, it was a difficult decision to choose just three winning entries and several honorable mentions.”After attentively reviewing all the essays, PUC chose the following winners:...

The Visual Arts Department at Pacific Union College celebrated their film students at the 20th Annual Diogenes Film Festival. On May 30 at the Cameo Cinema in Saint Helena, 120 audience members watched 22 films by 18 filmmakers. In previous years, the department welcomed judges outside campus, but this year, the judges were kept within the faculty of PUC. Some of the winners included Sam Birsky, who received the Orsons Disciple; Dylan Sails and Melanie Klinedinst, who won the Audience Choice Award for Minority Report and Kateryna Popravkina for What Is This Feeling? Sails also received Best Screenplay for Before Next Winter, and Klinedinst won Filmmaker of the Future. PUC's film program emphasizes students learning to articulate their own concepts and stories and produce them at the highest quality. Visual Arts Chair Rajeev Sigamoney and Professor Tim de la Torre assist during production when needed but give their students the freedom to edit their projects as they see fit and support them as they make their vision come to life.Some projects, such as the senior thesis, took the entire school year to make, while others, like the freshmen projects, were completed over 2-3 weeks. “Seeing films screened in a professional...