2002

Checking e-mail just became a little easier at Pacific Union College. The school is pleased to announce the recent completion of a campus-wide wireless network. The free wireless service, which is available in classrooms and buildings across campus, allows students and employees with wireless equipped notebooks to connect to the network quickly and conveniently. PUC is the first Adventist college to go wireless. In residence hall lobbies and the cafeteria, in the gym and from each classroom, PUC students can connect to the network’s vast resources. Wireless service was first brought to campus last summer as part of a general system upgrade. To make their bid for the project more competitive, the company whom PUC eventually hired agreed to provide wireless service at no additional cost. Because PUC paid only for the student labor required to install the system, the school was able to provide students with the luxury of wireless transmission without spending several hundred thousand dollars. In addition to the free wireless network, Pacific Union College upgraded hardware across campus and added bandwidth to increase internet connection to the residence halls....

Pacific Union College is proud to announce the 1st annual Napa Valley Tennis Tournament occurring in conjunction with the 10th annual Napa Valley Golf Tournament—newly renamed the Malcolm Maxwell Golf Classic in honor of the college’s former president. Both events will be held at the Napa Valley Country Club on Monday, May 20, 2002. Dust off your racquet or drag out your clubs and reserve a spot to participate in this year’s scholarship fundraiser. Proceeds from both tournaments benefit students supported by the Pacific Union College Malcolm Maxwell Scholarship Fund. Last year, ten scholarships were awarded to worthy students as a result of money raised at the tournament. Format for the tennis tournament is doubles round robin. The golf tournament features 18 holes of golf in a two best ball foursome play, with an individual low gross and low net division. Prizes will be awarded to participants in each category. A 2002 Chevy Blazer 4x4, courtesy of Epps Chevrolet, is this year’s featured hole in-one car....

Three students from Pacific Union College will serve as interns for Adventist Health System’s 2002 Leadership Development Program this summer. Magally Arevalo, Chris Jones, and Timothy Ko will have the opportunity to do special projects and assignments, shadow key executives, and participate in leadership events. The interns chosen for this program were amongst many candidates in the finance and management areas. The three candidates from PUC are business administration majors, Jones has an emphasis in accounting, and Ko has an emphasis in finance. All three are in their junior year at PUC. “The program continues to attract high-quality candidates each year, with more students competing for a limited number of internship spots,” says Christine To, assistant director of communications and leadership development at Adventist Health System. “These are the best students from across the nation with high grade point averages, successful and proven campus leadership experience, and a strong desire to work in the mission field of healthcare.” The 29 interns selected to serve at Adventist Health System were chosen from a variety of Seventh-day Adventist higher education institutions. An orientation for all interns took place on May 14-15 in Winter Park, Florida, to emphasize the mission and values in...

Pacific Union College professor of biblical studies, Dr. Greg A. King, recently authored a book called Kings and Chronicles: A History of Divided Monarchy, published by Pacific Press. The book is intended to be a Sabbath school lesson study help. It analyzes and explains 13 different stories from the books of Kings and Chronicles. This was the time in Israel’s history when the region was ruled by a series of kings. The stories in King’s book include events from the lives of famous Old Testament characters such as Solomon, Elijah, Jeroboam, Ahab, and Hezekiah. These stories give in-depth historical information on the people and the times, and they provide devotional studies for personal spiritual growth. In all of the stories, God’s mercy and compassion toward his people show through. “It’s my hope that readers of this book gain insights into an often overlooked portion of the Bible. Many of the challenges that God’s people faced in that time are still here today,” says King. Greg King has been a professor in the religion department at PUC since 1987, and he is now chair of the department. He teaches courses in Old Testament theology and Hebrew. He has a Master of...

Pacific Union College’s department of business administration has received accreditation by the International Assembly for Collegiate Business Education (IACBE), an organization primarily responsible for accrediting non-doctoral business programs in four-year institutions. It is the only Seventh-day Adventist institution to receive this accreditation. Pacific Union College (PUC) is currently accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, but the additional IACBE accreditation brings special recognition to the school’s popular business department. There are currently 253 business majors enrolled at PUC with a large percentage of graduates heading to medical, dental, law, or business schools after receiving their bachelors degrees. “We’ve been fortunate to have good students who work hard and do well when they graduate,” says Richard Voth, professor of business administration and chair of the department. PUC graduates have studied at Yale, UCLA, Berkeley, and Georgetown and found employment in a broad spectrum of jobs, from Price Waterhouse, Hewlett Packard, and the San Francisco 49ers, to family-run businesses and entrepreneurial ventures. Pacific Union College was founded in 1882 and currently offers more than 60 majors. The school has about 1,600 students and a faculty-to-student ratio of 12-to-1. For eight straight years, U.S. News & World Report has ranked PUC...

Many people look forward to the golden years of retirement, planning to do what they always wanted to do, but were too busy. Dr. Allyn Gilbert has already had a full life, and at almost 77 years old, he is continuing to make it richer in an unconventional way. Instead of finding new hobbies and investing in an RV, Gilbert is earning a degree in religion from Pacific Union College. Gilbert is a retired anesthesiologist who now lives in St. Helena. Five years ago, Gilbert was widowed and open to new ways to enrich his life when he picked up a copy of U.S. News and World Report. The issue was about the nation’s top colleges, and when he discovered that PUC was amongst them, he thought he’d pay a visit on registration day. He has been taking classes part time for five years now and will graduate in June. Gilbert says, “I’m just taking the classes for personal satisfaction and to fill that void in my education.” Gilbert, however, is a very educated man. After earning a master’s degree in physiology from the University of Illinois, Gilbert also decided to become a doctor. He was a high school science...

“Did you know that West Hall Annex used to be the prized new physics building?” The words across the screen brought a chuckle from the audience as they reflected on the currently run-down condition of the building. To the surprise of some, Pacific Union College also did not used to have a student senate or student association. PUC students had a glimpse into these and other changes from the college’s past when Lisa Gilbert, PUC senior graphic design major, did an honors project comparing the old and the new. Gilbert’s 40-minute documentary film showing interviews with former students and faculty gave an idea of what PUC used to look like. As Keith Francis, associate professor of history and Gilbert’s faculty advisor, said, the project came about as a result of “Lisa’s fecund and furtive mind” and an interest in PUC history. Gilbert says, “I just wanted students to be aware of what PUC used to be like so they could better appreciate how it is today. If they know how strict the rules used to be they won’t take for granted the freedom they have now, and hopefully they’ll use their freedom more wisely.” The three faculty members Gilbert interviewed...

For the ninth straight year, U.S. News & World Report ranked Pacific Union College among the top ten western comprehensive colleges. Of western comprehensive colleges in California, PUC ranked number two. The national magazine releases its 2002 rankings to newsstands on September 10, 2002, in the “America’s Best Colleges” issue. Significantly, U.S. News continues to name PUC in its top ten list of “Best Values” among liberal arts colleges in the Western United States. According to U.S. News, PUC’s strong rankings are based in part on academic reputation. Many of PUC’s departments average above the 90th percentile in standardized achievement tests, and of all universities and colleges in North America, PUC has one of the highest medical school acceptance rates. Furthermore, PUC’s rankings are based on high graduation rates. The western comprehensive region covers 14 states from Oklahoma to California. PUC was compared to other four-year colleges in this region that do not offer graduate degrees. “This ranking illustrates a continuing recognition in the broader world that you can have a strong faith-centered college and also be seen as offering an excellent academic program of great value,” says PUC President Richard Osborn. “Pacific Union College will continue to explore ways...