I am pleased to announce the speakers for our year-end high ceremonies:

The Undergraduate Commencement speaker is Rev. Adam Hamilton, founding and senior pastor of The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas.

The Graduate Commencement speaker is Chitra Hanstad, executive director for World Relief Seattle.

The Ivy Cutting faculty speaker is Dr. Frank Spina, professor of Old Testament at Seattle Pacific University.

Dr. John Perkins returns to campus Tuesday, April 30, 11 a.m., at First Free Methodist Church, for the 14th annual John Perkins Lecture Series. This year’s morning event features Erna Kim Hackett, executive pastor at The Way Berkeley. Later that day, Hackett and Dr. Perkins will continue the morning’s topic, “Words Have Power,” at 7:30 p.m., also in First Free Methodist Church.

John Perkins is one of the leading evangelical voices to come out of the American civil rights movement and an internationally known author, speaker, and teacher. His is the co-founder of SPU’s John Perkins Center for Reconciliation, Leadership Training, and Community Development and the author of the new book One Blood: Parting Words to the Church on Race and Love. Erna Kim Hackett served with InterVarsity for 18 years in Black Ministries and Urban Programs. She is a preacher, pastor, writer, activist, and singer.

Faculty and staff are invited to attend the First Fridays Colloquium series presented by the Social Justice and Cultural Studies major. The next event is Friday, May 3. For more information, email Kimberly Segall, professor of English, at segalk@spu.edu.

How the Streets Were Made
12:30–1:30 p.m.
Friday, May 3
Weter Hall, Room 201

Yelena Bailey, assistant professor of English, will present her research involving the relationship between geographic segregation and perceptions of black consumerism. She will also discuss the relationship between the mid-20th century housing boom, white consumerism, and U.S. nationalism. She will look at marketing campaigns in the flagship black American magazine, Ebony, as evidence of the specific way black consumer habits were cultivated in contrast to white consumer habits. This research will be part of her forthcoming book for University of North Carolina Press. 

The Center for Applied Learning presents the third installment of the School of Business, Government, and Economics Dean’s Speaker Series for the 2018–19 academic year. Heather Ratcliffe, director of technical design and product management at T-Mobile, will speak on Monday, May 6 at 9:30 a.m. in Otto Miller Hall 109. She will discuss the intersection between technology and diversity — specifically, the impact of bias algorithms in artificial intelligence and machine learning. Case studies, Facebook, Twitter and other tech companies are facing lawsuits, fines, and tarnished reputations when diversity is not represented in the products produced. How can they do better? Faculty, staff, and students are welcome to attend.

The Theatre Department will present A Wrinkle in Time, May 2–4, in McKinley Hall Theatre on campus. Performances will be held at 7:30 p.m., with the exception of a Saturday matinee performance on May 4 at 1 p.m.

This beloved story by Madeleine L’Engle tells the story of the heroine, Meg Murry, who joins forces with a cast of characters to battle the forces of evil so she can rescue her father, save humanity, and find herself. Under the direction of SPU theatre faculty member Charlotte Tiencken, the production features a small group of multi-faceted actors and puppets.

Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for seniors (age 60 and over) and students (age 25 and under) with a valid I.D. Tickets are available for purchase at the door, online at the Theatre Box Office or by calling 206-281-2959.

Please mark your calendar for the 2019 Celebration of Service, on Thursday, May 9, to honor Seattle Pacific University faculty and staff members with milestone years (5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, and 45) of dedicated employment. The event will be held in Brougham Pavilion at 11:10 a.m. Come support your colleagues and express your appreciation for their committed service. We will announce Staff Members of the Year, as well as Undergraduate and Graduate Faculty of the Year. There will be a community reception immediately following, and light appetizers will be served. All offices are closed so faculty and staff members can attend.

The 2019 Bike Everywhere Challenge encourages team members to commute by bicycle during the month of May. Join an SPU Bike Everywhere Team today to participate, then visit one of the advertised bakeries to win big prizes. Here's how:

• Select the blue “Register Here” button.
• Join as a participating member of Seattle Pacific University.
• Sign in or create a new account and follow the prompts.
• Once logged in, navigate to “My Org” and select the team that you would like to join with SPU.
• Start biking, win prizes, and get to know other SPU bike riders!

Ivy Honorary will honor retiring faculty Ramona Holmes and Doug Thorpe by having them present their “Last Lecture” on Wednesday, May 1, 5 p.m. in Eaton 112. Ramona is professor of music education, and Doug is professor of English. The concept of the Ivy Honorary “Last Lecture” event is based on the 2007 lecture and 2008 book by Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer science professor who died from pancreatic cancer in July 2008. In subsequent Last Lectures, professors reflect on what matters most and what wisdom they would hope to share with others.

Switchboard is where you can connect with the SPU community to offer what you have and ask for what you need. What kinds of things will you find on Switchboard? A student seeking a human resources internship. A staff member looking for Magic cards. Camp Casey hiring for a new position. Students seeking roommates. Staff looking for carpool buddies. Alumni in aerospace, insurance, engineering looking to hire SPU students. Keep the spirit of the SPU community alive online, and join us on Switchboard. Come see what’s new this week. Maybe there’s someone you can help out!

Seattle is known as a place of technological innovation, but many residents do not have access to the technology or skills needed to participate fully in our digital society. Come hear what the City of Seattle and other organizations are doing to close divides related to digital access and digital literacy in the panel discussion, Digital Equity and Inclusion in Seattle on Tuesday, May 7, 7 p.m., Upper Gwinn Commons. Panelists include:

• David Keyes, digital equity program manager for the City of Seattle
• Steven Maheshwary, chair of the Seattle Community Technology Advisory Board and board advisor for DemocracyLab
• Minh-Duc Nguyen, executive director, Helping Link
• Marcellus Turner, executive director and chief librarian, The Seattle Public Library
• Stacey Wedlake, research coordinator and analyst, Technology and Social Change Group at the University of Washington Information School

The event, sponsored by SPU's Information Studies Program and Friends of the Seattle Pacific University Library, is free and wheelchair accessible.

The 10th of each month is the last day to make changes to your upcoming payroll check. Do you need to add or remove your spouse and/or children from your health care plans? If so, contact Human Resources (HR) to complete the appropriate form. Changes might include events that are expected to impact your benefits and deductions, such as your spouse or children gaining or losing coverage due to employment, birth, marriage, etc. Additionally, any changes you wish to make to your 403(b) account contributions must be made by the 10th of the month. For changes to your 403(b) account, contact Transamerica Retirement Solutions at 1-888-676-5512 (5 a.m.–6 p.m. PST), or 1-800-755-5801. If you have any other benefits-related changes, call Mardeth Hughes in HR at 206-281-2816.

The new Staff Council term begins on July 1, and five open positions are available for representatives from Student Life, Athletics, Campus Ministries; Enrollment Management and Marketing; Finance and Business Affairs; and the Office of the Provost and Academic Affairs. If you’re interested in serving for the coming two-year term (or for a term in the future), or would like more information about what it means to serve on Staff Council, email staffcouncil@spu.edu or connect with your current Staff Council representative. Thanks for your consideration. 

As you begin to hire students for summer employment, remember that on-campus summer housing is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Please advise your student employees to complete an application in the Housing Portal by Tuesday, May 7, if they hope to live on campus during the summer. If you have any questions, contact Housing and Meal Plan Services at 206-281-2188 or housing@spu.edu.

You have until 9:59 a.m. on Tuesday, May 7, to have stationery orders delivered Monday, May 20. Stationery orders are delivered once a month. Orders made after 10 a.m. on May 7 will be delivered June 17. For more information, contact Hope McPherson in University Communications at hmcpherson@spu.edu.

The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published every week during the academic year. If you have information or event news, send it as soon as possible to Bulletin editor Tracy Norlen at fsb-editor@spu.edu. Submissions may be edited for clarity. The next deadline is Thursday, May 2. The next Bulletin will be published Monday, May 6.

This week, we are highlighting three more faculty colleagues who will retire at the end of this academic year. We hope you will enjoy watching and reading a bit more about them.

Please join us in celebrating:

JoAnn Atwell-Scrivner, associate professor of health and human performance, for 33 years of service.

• Video tribute | Emerita Resolution

Rick Jackson, assistant professor of journalism, for 24 years of service.

• Video Tribute | Emeritus Resolution

Bill Prenevost, associate professor of educational administration and supervision, for 13 years of service.

• Video Tribute | Emeritus Resolution

Scott Edwards, associate professor of marriage and family therapy, recently had his review of the book, Integrative Systemic Therapy: Metaframeworks for problem solving with individuals, couples, and families, published in the profession’s premier journal, Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 45(2), 364-365.

Jaeil Lee, professor of apparel design and merchandising, completed her Fulbright teaching assignments in Myanmar. She taught a MBA course, “Small Business and Entrepreneurship,” at Yangon University of Economics, Yangon, Myanmar. She also provided workshops and public lectures to the Myanmar fashion industry to support fashion entrepreneurs using traditional Myanmar textiles and designs.

In addition, Jaeil won a Fulbright Regional Travel Grant. She worked with the U.S. Embassy in Phenom Penh, Cambodia, and gave public lectures and curriculum reviews to universities in Cambodia, including Limkokwing University, University of Management (NUM), and SETEC Institute. She also spoke at the nonprofit organization, Harpswell Foundation, and provided a workshop to local women textiles entrepreneurs in the region.

Alissa Walter, assistant professor of history, presented her paper, “Sex Crimes and Punishments in Saddam’s Iraq,” at the Workshop on Religion, Violence, and the State in Iraq at Brandeis University on April 17.

Ruth Moon Mari, editor of Response magazine and adjunct communication professor, recently had her article, “Why the Church Needs Single Parents, and Single Parents Need the Church,” featured in Christianity Today.

Michael Paulus, University librarian and associate professor of information studies, was quoted in the recent article, “The Gospel of AI: Evangelicals Want It to Remain Good News,” in Christianity Today. The article reported on the new Evangelical Statement of Principles on Artificial Intelligence, which was composed by experts in business, tech, ethics, and theology.