Nov.
13
G e or g e F ox U n i v e r s i t y
Colleague
Next Issue: Nov. 27
Volume 13
No. 19
E m p l oy e e N e w s l e t t e r
Send news items to spatterson@georgefox.edu
P r e s i d e n t ’s P r o l o g u e
At several points along my path to becoming a
scientist, I discovered surprising challenges. I
wasn’t surprised that my studies were
demanding and took me places my mind had
not been before. What I found surprising were
the comments from both Christian and secular
sources that suggested it might be inappropriate for a Christian to seriously study science.
The mother of a high school friend asked my
mother if she was afraid her son would lose his
faith studying physics (at a Christian college.) A
gentleman who had grown up in my home
church came back to visit and expressed
surprise to my father that his son was studying
physics. Fortunately for me, my parents were
entirely supportive of my field of study and held
both of these well-meaning individuals at a
distance from me. I didn’t know until graduate
school that the secular world of science had
long assumed that the really good physicists
were also atheists.
These personal stories came to mind because I
just finished reading The Language of God by
Francis Collins, director of the International
Human Genome Project. I found the book to be
most supportive of Christians called to be
scientists. Collins came to Christ from atheism
as an adult. He resonates strongly with the
conversion experience of C.S. Lewis and found
Lewis’ writing of great help in his conversion
process and in the formation of his own theology.
Collins makes the powerful point that science
and faith in Christ are completely compatible
and supportive of each other. This is a
particularly powerful statement coming from a
biological scientist dedicated to the study of
human genetics. After discussing several ways
for biologists who are Christians to resolve and
live with issues of science and faith, Collins
suggests an option he titles “BioLogos” (science
and faith in harmony). He expresses his deep,
parallel interests in the discipline of medical
genetics and his compelling faith in Christ.
He summarizes his position with the statement,
“I was vaguely aware that some of those around
me thought that this pairing of explorations was
contradictory and I was headed over a cliff, but
I found it difficult to imagine that there could be
a real conflict between scientific truth and
spiritual truth. Truth is truth. Truth cannot
disprove truth.” And so Francis Collins
continues to search for truth in both science
and his Christian commitment.
I enjoyed the book very much and highly
recommend it. I also encourage us all to seek
truth and know that the God who sent Jesus is
also deeply interested that we find truth –
wherever it is to be found. Our God is big and
very wonderful and deserves our total energy
and devotion.
Colleague
•
Deadline for Copy: Nov. 21
African Ambassadors
Suite Music
The university will host the African
Children’s Choir for a concert at 7 p.m.
on Wednesday, Nov. 15, in Bauman
Auditorium.There is no admission charge,
but donations will be accepted. Donations
and sales from the concert will go toward
providing food, clothing, and educational
scholarships beyond members’ schooling
provided by the Music for Life
organization.The choir serves as an
ambassador for all children in Africa
orphaned because of the AIDS pandemic.
The 26-member group includes children
ages 7 to 11. More information on the
choir is available at africanchildrenschoir.com.
Performing Arts is hosting two free
concerts at 7:30 p.m. in Bauman
Auditorium on back-to-back nights this
week. On Thursday, Nov. 16, the
university’s Symphonic Band and Jazz
Band will perform, as will the Whiteaker
Middle School Band of Salem.The
following evening, Nov. 17, the Chehalem
Symphony Orchestra, conducted by
William Hunt, will perform Vivaldi’s
Concerto for Four Violins, Nielsen’s Little
Suite, Op. 1, and Mozart’s Symphony No. 39.
Credit for Culture
If you’re an Oregon tax payer, gifts to
George Fox now qualify you for a 100
percent tax credit when you make a
matching contribution to the Oregon
Cultural Trust organization.
Here’s how it works:
• Make a contribution to George Fox
or other qualifying Oregon cultural
organizations
Give Thanks
George Fox will close for the
Thanksgiving holiday,Thursday, Nov. 23,
through Sunday, Nov. 26. All offices will
be closed, including the administrative
offices and bookstores on the Newberg
campus and Portland Center.The Boise
Center also will be closed.The Newberg
library will close at 5 p.m. on Wednesday,
Nov. 22, and be open from 6 to 10 p.m.
on Nov. 26.The Portland Center library
will close at 5 p.m. on Wednesday and
remain closed until Monday.
• Make a matching contribution to the
Oregon Cultural Trust
• Claim 100 percent tax credit for
your gift to the Trust when you file
your Oregon tax return, up to $500
for individuals and $1,000 for
couples filing jointly
Celebrate the Season
For more information, go to
culturaltrust.org or e-mail Amy Karjala
(Development) at akarjala@georgefox.edu.
President David Brandt and his wife
Melva invite the university community to
join them for a Christmas party from 7 to
9 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 5, at the Pittock
Mansion in Portland. Hors d’oeuvres and
desserts will be served, and holiday
entertainment will be provided.The cost
is $20 per person. For more information
or to purchase tickets, contact Vangie
Pattison (University Relations) at
evpattis@georgefox.edu or ext. 2134.
Registration also is available online at
georgefox.edu/alumni/events until Nov. 25.
Piano Man
The Staff Development Committee is
hosting an all-staff lunch from noon to 1
p.m. on Monday, Nov. 13, in the Cap and
Gown Room. Former George Fox
professor Bob Gilmore will play piano for
the event.The cost is $3 per person.
Grade ‘A’
The university’s website received an “A”
for admissions functionality from the
National Research Center for College &
University Admissions. High school
students from across the country rated
more than 3,000 college websites, grading
them based on the ease of navigation,
applying online, finding tuition or financial
aid information, and finding admissions
contacts. George Fox received an “A” –
one of only 157 schools to receive the
highest grade, putting it in the top 5 percent.
Newberg | Portland | Boise | Salem | Redmond
•
Nov. 13, 2006
COMINGS AND GOINGS
Rachel Powell joins the
undergraduate admissions
office as a part-time
receptionist. She has been an
administrative assistant at
Newberg Foursquare Church
for a year and a half. Before that, she worked
as a sales associate for Advantage Sales and
Marketing of Tigard for two years. Rachel
lives in Dundee with her husband, John, and
sons Christian, Connor, and Cole.The family
attends Newberg Foursquare Church.
Sunni York shifted from
temporary status to a parttime position as an
administrative assistant at the
university’s Redmond
teaching site. Previously,
Sunni worked as a temp for Redmond Fire
and Rescue and Quantum Communications.
In all, she has more than 30 years of clerical
and administrative assistant experience. She
attended Southern Oregon University and
Oregon State University. Sunni and her
husband, Len, live in Redmond and have three
grown children – a son in Dallas, Ore., a
daughter in Bend, Ore., and a son in
Portland. She and Len are members of
Redmond Community Presbyterian Church.
ABOUT OUR PEOPLE
Paul Anderson’s (Religious Studies) essay,
“Friendly Vocations,” was published in the
October issue of Friends Journal as an
evangelical Friends response to the larger
question “What Are Friends Called to Today?”
Paul also presented a paper, “The Church’s
Authority in the World – A Friendly
Perspective,” at the National Council of
Churches of Christ Faith & Order
Consultation meetings at Azusa Pacific
University on Oct. 13. Paul also was invited
to the Vatican the last week in October to
serve as the advisor to the Quaker
representative at the Conference of
Secretaries of World Christian Communions.
The subject of the meeting was “Visions of
Christian Unity,” which connects with Paul’s
earlier response to the Vatican: “Petrine
Ministry and Christocracy.”
Rick Muthiah (Center for Teaching and
Learning) assumed the role of president for
the Oregon Association of Higher Education
and Disability at the organization’s fall
conference Oct. 25-27 in Cannon Beach,
Ore. As president-elect during the past year,
Rick served as the conference planner for the
annual conference that included 61
participants from 28 Oregon colleges
and universities.
Howard Macy (Religious Studies) released
a new book, Stepping in the Light: Life in Joy
and Power, through Friends United Press. It
gathers essays Howard has written over the
years for Quaker Life magazine. He also
recently wrote a self-described “novelty piece”
entitled Red Nose Training Manual.
Tom Head (Economics and International
Studies) traveled to Hillsdale College in
Michigan to participate in a symposium on
“The Role of Markets and Governments in
Pursuing the Common Good” Oct. 27-29.
Colleague
•
Bob Harder (Engineering) recently
published a paper, “Transient Heat Partition
Factor for a Sliding Railcar Wheel,” in the
October issue of Wear, an international
journal on the science and technology of
friction, lubrication, and wear. He coauthored the piece with two colleagues from
Oregon State University.
Lisa McMinn (Sociology) was the featured
speaker at Trinity Western University in
Vancouver, B.C., for a focus week on
sexuality Oct. 22-24. Her chapel talks were
titled “Sexual & Single:What’s a Body to Do?”
Her evening lecture, titled “What the
Marlboro Man,WonderBra, and When Harry
Met Sally Have in Common,” explored media
and sexuality.
Michael Tomlin (Management) was the
featured speaker for Idaho’s first conference
of the Idaho Society of Certified Public
Managers. His topic was “Change
Management: After the Elections.”
Approximately 30 graduates of the CPM
program attended the Nov. 3 conference,
conducted at the State Police Training
Academy in Meridian, Idaho.Tomlin
addressed the state’s political issues and
candidates and the impact each might have on
state agency administrators.
Kendra Irons (Religious Studies) recently
published an article, “M. Madeline Southard
on Ecclesial Suffrage,” in the October issue of
Methodist History. She also reviewed the book
Living on the Boundaries: Evangelical Women,
Feminism and the Theological Academy, by
Nicola Hoggard Creegan and Christine D.
Pohl, in the Summer 2006 issue of Christian
Scholar’s Review. Kendra’s own book,
Preaching on the Plains: Methodist Women
Preachers in Kansas, 1920-1956, is
forthcoming from University Press
of America.
Gary Adams (Education) was a contributor
to Teaching Adolescents with Disabilities:
Accessing the General Education Curriculum
(Corwin Press), which has been nominated by
the American Educational Research
Association for the 2007 Outstanding Book
Award.The final selection will be announced
in the spring.
Ed Higgins (Writing/Literature) had six
poems – “Walking The Back Field,” “spent
speech,” “poem fishing,” “well, then,” “size
really does matter,” and “so” – published in the
fall 2006 issue of Blaze VOX, an online journal
of “post-avant” poetry and fiction.
Diane Wood (Education, Family and
Consumer Sciences) presented at the
American Council on Education’s Women’s
Leadership Forum Oct. 25-27 in Portland.
The title of her presentation was “Barriers to
Women as Leaders in Faith-based Colleges
and Universities: Strategies for Change.”The
annual event brings together approximately
30 women from around the country who
either currently hold an executive
administrative position or are pursuing
administrative positions in public and private
higher education institutions.
Newberg | Portland | Boise | Salem | Redmond
IN THE NEWS
Jim Steele (Management) was featured in an
article, “Life After Intel,” that appeared in The
Oregonian on Sunday, Nov. 5. Jim discussed
how major career transitions have a significant
impact on personal identity.
BIRTHDAYS
Nov. 14
Nov. 15
Nov. 16
Nov. 17
Nov. 18
Nov. 19
Nov. 22
Nov. 23
Nov. 24
Nov. 26
Jan Lefebvre
Colleen Huffman
Danielle Ambrose
Carol Jaquith
Carla Williams
Sue O’Donnell
Kathleen Jones
Shary Wortman
Bob Hamilton
Dwight Kimberly
Marilyn Clark
Vern Choin
Lon Fendall
Laura Simmons
Mark Sundquist
Larry Weber
CALENDAR
Monday, Nov. 13
Newberg Chapel
Sarah Baldwin, 10:40 a.m.
Staff Lunch, Noon
Tuesday, Nov. 14
Faculty Lunch, Noon
Wednesday, Nov. 15
Newberg Chapel
Shaun McNay, Pastor, Northside
Christian Church, 10:40 a.m.
African Children’s Choir Concert
Bauman Auditorium, 7 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 16
Band Concert Invitational
Bauman Auditorium, 7:30 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 17
Faculty Business Meeting
Hoover 105, 10:40 a.m.
Worship Gathering
Bauman Auditorium, 10:40 a.m.
Women’s Basketball vs. Oregon Tech
Wheeler Sports Center, 6 p.m.
Chehalem Symphony Concert
Bauman Auditorium, 7:30 p.m.
Men’s Basketball vs. Corban
Wheeler Sports Center, 8 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 18
Women’s Basketball vs. Northwest
Wheeler Sports Center, 6 p.m.
Men’s Basketball vs. Holy Names
Wheeler Sports Center, 8 p.m.
Monday, Nov. 20
Newberg Chapel
Becky Ankeny, 10:40 a.m.
Tuesday, Nov. 21
Faculty Lunch, Noon
Wednesday, Nov. 22
Newberg Chapel
“We Are Grateful,” 10:40 a.m.
Thursday-Friday, Nov. 23-24
Thanksgiving Holiday
Saturday, Nov. 25
Women’s Basketball vs. Concordia-Portland
Wheeler Sports Center, 7 p.m.
•
Nov. 13, 2006