2019

For three weeks this summer community members, students, active and retired PUC faculty, and Maranatha volunteers worked together to renovate 31 student dorm rooms in Newton Hall, one of PUC's four residence halls.Each person had a specific job to do, including building and installing cabinets, replacing dressers and countertops, putting in new ceiling lights, wall patching, repainting, and prepping for and laying down new flooring. Eighty-one total volunteers contributed to the project with an average of 35 to 45 per day, and nearly half were first-time volunteers.Project coordinator Ed Jensen started doing volunteer work about 40 years ago, but became much more involved when he retired. For this project, he helped to register and provide information for volunteers."When a volunteer comes to the job, their housing and food is provided. They just need to come," he says. "And when these people work, they really put their heart into it."Heidi Lukowicz, graphic designer for the college and first-time Maranatha volunteer, decided to help with this project because she wanted to give her young sons the experience of volunteering and connect them to Maranatha and the larger PUC community."It's amazing how fast you can get something done with many hands," says Lukowicz....

Scott Butterfield, a senior scientist with The Nature Conservancy, conducted a series of four lectures throughout the quarter at Pacific Union College, sharing his passion for conservation with the college's department of biology. His last lecture, titled, "Training the Conservation Scientist for the Next Generation," included a distillation of new technologies and avenues of inquiry in the field of conservation.Dr. Aimee Wyrick's Conservation Biology students absorbed every word of Butterfield's final presentation. He emphasized the importance of incorporating data science across different disciplines, especially as it has the potential to involve students, such as the ones in this class, in important research."Data science is a huge topic in conservation right now," he explained. "It is essentially a conceptualization of what it would mean to train the future generations in this field."His talk centered on the fact that we live in an "anthropocene" era, meaning that in our current time, humans have a disproportionate impact on the climate and environment. We also are in the midst of a third industrial revolution, one that centers on technology.Butterfield then explained the endless ties between technological developments and conservation efforts, noting, "Virtually every project we carry out in The Nature Conservancy involves a combination...

Pacific Union College's department of visual arts has been accredited by the National Association for Schools of Art & Design (NASAD), the primary accrediting body for all top art and design schools in the country."We felt like being aligned officially with an accrediting body was an important step to validate the quality of art education at PUC," explains Rajeev Sigamoney, chair of the department.Accreditation through NASAD puts PUC in association with over 360 other accredited schools, of which PUC is the only one affiliated with the Adventist Church."From this relationship, we will gain an even greater understanding of best practices in all disciplines we teach, and organizational processes to make sure the department handles every aspect of art education at the highest possible level," Sigamoney says.The accreditation process began nearly four years ago, and included reviewing requirements, meeting with NASAD representatives, and a college self-study of over 200 pages to ensure every aspect of PUC meets the highest standards possible."We were able to look at ourselves in the mirror and continue to push for improvements," Sigamoney says. The self-study and feedback from NASAD led to changes to the department's programs and facilities, bringing PUC in line with NASAD's high standards.The...

Brennan Stokes (’13) started piano lessons when he was in Kindergarten. He was following in his parent’s footsteps; they themselves were in their church choir, his dad played trumpet through high school and college, and his mom plays piano.“Music has just always been around me, and piano was a match right from the start,” Stokes says. “I just took it and ran with it.”When he arrived at Pacific Union College, Stokes enrolled as a chemistry major, but changed to music with an emphasis in piano performance in his sophomore year. He took lessons, theory, and history, but when he got to the required composition class, he hesitated.“For as long as I can remember I’ve been on one side of the page,” he says. “I always knew I’d learn music, research it, and analyze it, but I’d never considered creating it myself.”Despite his misgivings, it didn’t take Stokes long to recognize the magic in the composition process. He quickly fell in love with creating music, and continued to study the subject beyond the required course.“I loved performing, but this idea of creating new music was even more exciting to me,” he recalls. “There are far superior pianists to me out there,...

Edsmart.org has ranked Pacific Union College in its list of the top 19 Best Christian Colleges in California, listing PUC at number 10.As the website says in its preamble to the rankings list, “There is a level of comfort found in attending a college or university that supports an individual’s fundamental values.” PUC provides a place for students to gain not only a quality education, but also the opportunity to engage with other young people, professors, and community members who share their Christian values.EDsmart assesses colleges based on four main areas:Affordability (average net price)Academic quality (graduation rate)Student satisfaction (retention rate)Salary after attending (the median earnings of former students who received federal financial aid, at ten years after entering the school)They collect their data from the U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, and College Navigator."PUC has excellent professors, compassionate staff, and outstanding students—and they all help to create a vibrant community of faith and learning,” says Milbert Mariano, academic dean at PUC. “We are proud of our campus, and it’s great to be recognized among the best Christian colleges in California."Coming in ahead of Vanguard University of Southern California, San Diego Christian College, and La Sierra University, PUC scored a 96.6....

This story was originally published in PUC's Campus Chronicle.On November 1, 2019, freshman Justin Roosma won a record-breaking first place in the Cal Pac championships. Competing against 81 competitors from 11 different schools, Roosma won first place in the 8k race by three seconds. Not only did Roosma win the Cal Pac championships, he also broke a Cal Pac cross country record with the time of only 24:56.5—the fastest in Cal Pac history. Additionally, Roosma is the first freshman and PUC athlete to win the Cal Pac title.The ChampionshipThe California Pacific Conference Men’s Cross Country Championship was held at Woodward Park in Fresno, California. The race was initially led by Santiago Hardy from Antelope Valley and Grady Kerst from Embry-Riddle. Half-way through the race, Roosma quickly advanced from the middle of the pack to the lead. Roosma not only won the Cal Pac title by a whole 16 seconds, but also qualified for the NAIA Championships.This Cal Pac championship was the fastest in Cal Pac history. This was the first time that two runners crossed the finish line in under 25 minutes. The 2019 Cal Pac Championship now holds the fastest times ever recorded, with Pacific Union College, Justin Roosma,...

This story was originally published in PUC's Campus Chronicle.Senior business major and student athlete Joshua Mitchell flew out to D.C. Oct. 16-19 for a leadership conference.Mitchell did two video interviews and two in-person interviews before the conference board made the final decision to invite him. The all-expenses-paid trip included five nights in the Washington Marriott Wardman Park and meals that Mitchell describes as “too bougie”— multiple forks and all.Where His Passion StartedRaised in New York—South Bronx, to be specific— Mitchell emphasizes the importance of pointing out his neighborhood because of hometown pride, and to acknowledge the impoverishment. Although many of his friends passed away or were incarcerated, Mitchell always knew he was different.“There was violence in my neighborhood every day. So I made a change. I wanted to get my family out,” he explains. “I just don’t want kids to go through what I went through.”His altruism and passion for business rightfully earned him a spot in the D.C. conference—a chance to network with people who could help him make a difference back home.The ExperienceThe conference offered networking opportunities with both businesses and graduate school recruiters. Fortune 500 companies like AIG, Boeing, Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase had representatives...

On Nov. 9, painter Davis Perkins will host an opening reception and artist talk at 7 p.m. in the Rasmussen Art Gallery on the campus of Pacific Union College. Admission is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.Always drawing as a kid, Davis Perkins doesn’t remember a time when art wasn’t a part of his life. Perkins attended University of Oregon, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in fine arts, and he has now made art a career. He has original artwork in a permanent collection at the Smithsonian as well as in the Pentagon, and has done one-man shows at the Alaska State Museum and the Smithsonian’s Air & Space Museum.“I consider myself a traditional landscape painter,” Perkins says. “Much of my life has been spent outdoors, and the wonders of nature inspire me.”His exhibit, Landscapes: A Moment in Time, will be on display through December 8 (the gallery will be closed Nov. 23-Dec. 1 for Thanksgiving break). Gallery hours are 2-6:30 p.m., Thursday through Sunday.To enjoy a Q&A with the artist, visit puc.edu/blog.For more information regarding the arts on the PUC campus, contact the department of visual arts at 707-965-6604 or the department of music at...

Back from summer break, energetic students gathered outside the Campus Center for Club Rush, an opportunity to get involved with all kinds of clubs at PUC. One of these, a science club called SPARK, gives volunteers the chance to apply concepts they are learning through teaching others.SPARK is an acronym for Science Presentations and Research for Kids. “We get to teach kids about Chemistry, Technology, and Biology,” says club co-president Justin Youn. “The goal is to get kids excited about science.”Youn and co-president Emma Tyner got involved with the club their freshman year of college and started leading out last year. They work mainly with local elementary schools and visiting academies who ask them to give presentations to students. Integrated into their talks are fascinating lab activities like color changes, explosions, and chemical reactions, as well as seeing and observing animals from the department of biology.“This year, we are planning to get the department of physics more involved as well so that the activities can be more interactive and hands-on,” says Youn.SPARK has also made connections beyond PUC. Last year, they were excited to be invited to the Loma Linda Academy Maker Fair, where they did a demonstration about cyanotype...

Sunday, October 20, marked the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the newest section of the Bay Area Ridge Trail, an extensive hiking route spanning from Calistoga in the north all the way to Gilroy in the south. The trail runs through PUC’s Back 40, and is part of a larger conservation effort that will eventually include 1,100 acres of protected forest lands.PUC’s forest manager, Peter Lecourt, headed the dedication with a speech detailing upcoming plans for the forest. Along with informational kiosks and maps, plans for additional parking are underway, in an effort to make the natural beauty of the PUC area as accessible for recreation as possible.Kellie Lind, PUC’s vice president for alumni and advancement, commented on PUC’s rich history with the surrounding land.“Not only were many of PUC’s academic buildings constructed using lumber from the back 40, but last year 14 classes used the forest as part of their curriculum just during Fall Quarter,” she noted.A number of Napa Valley officials attended the ceremony, including Napa Open Spaces District Vice President Barry Christian, Bay Area Ridge Trail executive director Janet McBride, county supervisor Dianne Dillon, and chairman of the board of Napa Supervisors Ryan Gregory.Dillon commented on the importance and...