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Pacific Union College awarded diplomas to 311 graduates on Sunday, June 16, 1996, during its 108th annual Commencement exercises. Degrees conferred included 72 associate degrees, 240 bachelor degrees, and four master of arts degrees. Of the seniors graduating with academic distinction and honors, 15 received the distinction Summa Cum Laude; 17 received the distinction Magna Cum Laude; and 33 received the distinction Cum Laude. Six gra 8ed With Honors, having completed PUC's four-year honors program. The graduating class represented 16 states and seven foreign countries, including Korea, Singapore, and Yugoslavia. "The achievements of the graduating seniors are matched by the dedication of their professors and the commitment, support and, often, sacrifice of their parents. As with every graduating class of PUC, we are proud of the accomplishments of the class of '96 and are excited by the vision these students carry for the future," said President D. Malcolm Maxwell. Also recognized during the commencement ceremony was Mr. Walter Chin, treasurer of the Chan Shun International Foundation, recently, retired Chief Auditor of the California Department of Health Services, and a former member of Pacific Union College's Board of Trustees. President Maxwell and Vice President Charles V. Bell conferred on Mr. Chin...

Pacific Union College's library has recently put its list of periodical holdings on the Internet. The periodical list is part of an experimental search page which also includes many of PUC librarian and historian Gary Shearer's bibliographies on church history and Adventist history. A referencing program containing the entire text of the King James Version Bible will be added to the search page soon. "The unique aspect of this is that the service is available 24 hours a day to any scholar who has Web access," said PUC reference librarian Dan Mitchel. "The library just can't be open at 3 a.m. when the urge to study hits." According to Mitchel, the periodical list is useful when a scholar wants a particular title, but needs to know whether the library will have to request a photocopy from somewhere else or whether the item is shelved in the stacks. The database also allows one to download many of Gary Shearer's bibliographies on church history and Adventist history, which include references that are hard to find. Finally, the King James Version Bible reference program allows users to read or copy whole books and chapters, or search for occurrences of specific words or phrases....

Pacific Union College celebrated the career of D. Malcolm Maxwell, the longest-serving president in its 114 year history, on July 17, 1996. Maxwell, whose college presidency of more than 13 years officially surpassed all previous records on July 10, 1996, took office on July 1, 1983. He is the first alumnus to serve as PUC's president. The record of longest-standing president had previously belonged to W. E. Nelson, who served as president from June 21, 1921, to July 9, 1934. Maxwell's achievement was officially recognized at a luncheon held on July 17. In appreciation of his leadership at PUC, and knowing Maxwell's enthusiasm for the sea, Vivian Wahlen, spouse of late PUC alumnus Don Wahlen, '51, donated a decorative, glass-cased sailing ship to be placed in the president's office. The ship is a replica of the 14-sailed USS Constitution, built in the 1790s in Boston. One of President Maxwell's earliest achievements during his tenure at Pacific Union College was to reduce the tensions over the theological debate which he inherited on his arrival. Eric Anderson, professor of history, likened Maxwell to FDR or Ronald Reagan as "a great communicator" within the Adventist environment. "Like them, he recognized the vital importance...

On October 1, 1995, Pacific Union College was awarded $30,000 as one of 12 colleges selected for participation in a summer research program for college faculty. This program, largely funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts, distributes mini-grants to individual faculty members at select Christian colleges. Harold Heie, Director of Gordon College's Center for Christian Studies which administers the program, described its purpose as being "to nourish high quality Christian scholarship that addresses important scholarly issues in ways that have the potential to make lasting impact on future academic discussion." Pacific Union College and the 11 other selected colleges were chosen out of 107 eligible Protestant colleges by a program advisory committee comprised of six senior Christian scholars. The colleges were judged on such things as their commitment to promoting Christian scholarship and the potential of the college's faculty to generate this scholarship. The $30, 000 PUC received as one of the grantee colleges will in turn be matched by the college and will then be divided among faculty members for research during the summers of 1996, 1997, and 1998. PUC faculty members hoping to participate will submit research proposals and letters of recommendation from two senior scholars. On the basis...

Tammie Lindsey of San Jose recently received full scholarships to the University of Southern California Law School and the University of San Diego. Lindsey was also accepted to Georgetown Law Center, the University of Virginia, and several other prestigious law schools around the country. Lindsey graduated with honors from Pacific Union College on June 16, 1996, with a degree in communications. Lindsey is also a 1992 graduate of Mountain View Academy in Mountain View, California. Lindsey feels that her chances for acceptance into law school were enhanced by the skills that she developed while earning her communication degree. "My classes taught me how to put my thoughts together clearly, and all my writing practice paid off," said Lindsey. "Nearly every school that I was accepted into mentioned my personal statement," she added. Lindsey also attributes much of her success to the support she received from her teachers at PUC. "My professors helped me to crystalize ideas and helped me decide which law schools to apply to," Lindsey said. "The biggest reason I stayed at PUC is that all of my professors were willing to work with me and go out of their way to help me," she explained. James D....