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After a four-year hiatus, the annual Angwin to Angwish trail run made a triumphant return to Pacific Union College. Due to wildfire threats and the COVID-19 pandemic, 2018 was the last time this event was held.But early on a sunshine-filled Sunday, May 7, 100 runners of all ages from the college and in the greater community gathered atop the mountain to run and have fun. All funds from the race went to support the PUC department of athletics.Race director Abraham Garrido, also PUC’s head coach for both men’s and women’s cross-country teams, said he was surprised and excited about the number of participants. “They all had a great time, and that's something that stood out,” he said.Angwin to Angwish, which began in 1974, is a beautiful forested trail run through PUC’s backwoods property. This year’s event offered four races of varied difficulty and terrain. A 10k, half marathon, and 30k took runners up and over the aptly named “Angwish Hill.” There was also a 1-mile fun run for kids.“PUC has managed the forest well, opened it up to the surrounding area; it’s a huge community asset,” said Napa County Supervisor Anne Cottrell. “It’s great to feature it as part of...

Pacific Union College and Adventist Health have announced a new partnership to better serve rural communities in Central and Northern California, including in Lake and Mendocino counties. This collaboration will further the college's goals of growing its nursing program and help meet the rising need for highly qualified healthcare professionals in these areas. “Partnering with nursing schools is the best way for hospitals to ensure there is a pipeline for recruitment of nurses,” said PUC Department of Nursing Chair Kimberly Dunker. “Because of the long-standing history between our Adventist organizations, we are able to not only partner but share the same values and beliefs for nursing education and talent acquisition.” The Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) program will be open to Adventist Health employees and community members in the local areas of Lake and Mendocino counties looking to move into the nursing field. Classes will begin in September. Judson Howe, president of the North Coast Network for Adventist Health, said creating a local nursing workforce is one of the organization’s top priorities. “The nursing program at Pacific Union College creates an additional avenue for our community members to receive a world-class registered nursing education,” Howe said. “Adventist Health North...

Pacific Union College is excited about the new interdisciplinary, customizable Language & Culture Studies BA. In the new program, students select a language emphasis plus a second area selected from a large list – or they can propose their own second emphasis. “We have very creative students out there who see the connection between Italian and music, but maybe also between Spanish and environmental science, for example,” says Chair and Professor of World Languages Sylvia Rasi Gregorutti. “We all love to have an individualized, ‘curated,’ experience—so this is the equivalent in a B.A. degree!”The Language & Culture Studies B.A. includes an academic year of study abroad at a host campus, amazing trips in the tuition itself, and the degree is structured so as to be easily combined with a second major. “I would have been so excited to have an option like this as a student—so at least now I’m able to create and offer it!” shares Gregorutti. Since PUC is a member of the Adventist Colleges Abroad (ACA) consortium, the department offers a degree encompassing experiences at host campuses abroad where coursework is offered in Arabic, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish. (ACA also offers Biblical Hebrew during a summer course...

Student-athletes are the penultimate students on campus in part because they have so much to juggle. If you ask Pioneers at Pacific Union College what the hardest part about being a student-athlete is, they will say balancing time between school and sports. During a regular sports season, they must balance homework, class, labs, and extracurriculars—all while honing their athletic craft with all their practices, conditioning, weightlifting, games, and travels. They are also leaders and are often the public face of the college more than other students. While at PUC, they’ve experienced a lot of pressure to achieve, and these students have done so at very high levels. Many of PUC’s student-athletes are in the 3.5+ and 4.0 range. A fantastic 85% of student-athletes were awarded at the Pioneers Athlete Awards Banquet April 30 at the Angwin Fire Station. This annual awards banquet recognizes the Pioneers athletes for all their hard work throughout the year. Student-athletes receive sports-related and academic-based awards. The academic awards are for juniors and seniors; it shows that they have been able to achieve a high standing in academics, while still competing at the collegiate level.Joonsuh “Ben” Huh was named Presidential Scholar Athlete of the Year. As a junior...

In March, over spring vacation, a group of students and faculty from Pacific Union College traveled to Mana Island, Fiji, for a 10-day mission trip.It’s been nearly a decade since the first PUC trip to this remote location. Mana is very small, with only a population of about 500 people. Each mission trip has focused on meeting their needs in a variety of areas. A deep connection between PUC and the community has developed with each return trip to the island.Under the leadership of former Missions Director Fabio Maia and two co-leaders, Biology Professor Floyd Hayes and Nursing Professor Sandra Ringer, this year’s mission trip included 12 nursing students and three non-nursing students. Nicolette Piaubert, a nursing professor at PUC, also went on the trip and helped lead healthcare services.“This year, we focused mostly on providing medical and dental care for the residents of the island, working as a team with American and Brazilian health care professionals,” Hayes said. “We also provided laptop computers, snorkeling gear, solar power systems, Vacation Bible School, and trash removal.”At a spring Week of Prayer program in April, Ringer told students about the recent trip to Fiji and said there is virtually no healthcare on...