The Seattle Pacific University Percussion Ensemble and soloists will present their final concert of the year Tuesday, May 31, 7:30 p.m., in the E.E. Bach Theater in McKinley Hall. This is the annual end-of-the-year celebration of ensemble and solo percussion works that the students have been preparing. Works by Daughtery, Benson, Kechley, Jarvis, Sabanovich, Reich, Chu, Kraft, Sammut and Korb will be featured. Admission is free. This concert will also be livestreamed.

Please join the SPU Art Department in celebration of our Visual Communication Design Major Senior Exhibition, "Resilient." The exhbit features design work by a “resilient” group of students — Astrid Bui, Claire Conway, Jordan Davies, Kae Doan, Sana Hakim, Natalie Hoff, Julien Howard, Ken Aaron Kok, Michael Lewis, Vivian Liu, Lily Morgan, Ivy Nguyen, Theresa Nguyen, Caitlyn Olexer, Blake Peterson, Madison Porter, Jenna Rasmussen, Serena Schirm, and Hannah Thompson. The exhibition will be on view through Friday, June 10.

A reception will be held at the SPU Art Center Gallery, Thursday, June 2, 5-7 p.m. All students, faculty, and staff are welcome to join; please stop by to say "hello."

The latest SPU Voices podcast features JoAnn Flett, PhD, the executive director of SPU’s Center for Faithful Business, a leading think tank on the integration of faith and business. JoAnn is a frequent speaker, collaborator, and organizational consultant, teasing out the intersection of faith and business that promotes human flourishing. Listen or read the transcript here.

Fall/winter reservation requests are now being taken for the Faculty/Staff House at SPU's Camp Casey on Whidbey Island. Full-time faculty and staff can make a reservation request for periods of stay between Sept. 12, 2022–Jan. 4, 2023.  Reservation requests are due by June 3, 2022. These requests are selected by lottery and are not affected by summer stays at Casey. If you are curious on how to stay at Camp Casey with discounted faculty and staff rates, check out the new HR wiki. Questions? Contact Camp Casey at campcasey@spu.edu.

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 to your 403b account may take up to seven days to be provided to SPU for processing, so please contract Transamerica by the first of the month prior to your requested change. 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 Cherylin Shdo in HR at 206-281-2816.

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

The summer schedule for the Bulletin also begins June 6. The Bulletin will be published every other week. Here are the publication dates. 

June 20

July 5

July 18

Aug. 1

Aug. 15

Aug. 29

(Weekly publication resumes Sept. 6). 

 

Sharleen Kato, professor of human development and family studies, 36 years

Since 1986, Sharleen has been an exemplary and grace-filled member of the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences — as faculty member, program chair for Human Development and Family Studies, and FCS director. Highlights include program development, focus on global studies, scholarly writing and publications, and significant service to the department, University, professional associations, and community. She created a new major, Human Development and Family Studies, and oversaw the FCS Secondary Education program. Her interest in global studies led her to develop the Philippines study abroad program, spearhead the minor in global development, serve as senior international officer in the Office of Global Engagement, and represent international interests for the Washington Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (WAFCS) in the International Federation of Home Economics. Since 2013, she has authored 10 textbooks.

Sharleen received the 2021 Washington State Leader Award from WAFCS and the SPU Senior Faculty Servant Award in 2020, and was the 2015 FCS Alumna of the Year.

Robbin O’Leary, professor of mathematics, 32 years

Since her arrival at Seattle Pacific in 1990, Robbin has faithfully served the SPU community and Mathematics Department. A three-time department chair, Robbin also served on Faculty Status Committee, Faculty Budget and Stewardship Committee, and Faculty Affairs Committee. She has blessed the community time and again with her musical talents, playing cello and singing for multiple community events throughout her years at SPU. Her students will tell you that she is both demanding and fair, demonstrating genuine care for them not only as learners but also as people. Many will never forget how she used Jell-O to teach calculus!

After teaching more than 20 different courses — many of which she developed — Robbin is looking forward to enjoying her retirement with her husband, and visiting their sons and their families. She plans to stay involved at Seattle Mennonite Church, where she has attended since arriving in Seattle. She is also looking forward to reading some non-math books, working on needlepoint projects, and having more time to play cello.

Matthew Benton, associate professor of philosophy, recently presented two papers in Scotland: “Faith and Interpersonal Knowledge” at the Logos Institute for Analytic and Exegetical Theology at the University of St. Andrews, and “The Epistemology of Interpersonal Relations” at an epistemology workshop on Knowledge and Normativity at the University of Glasgow.

An article by Munyi Shea, professor of counselor education and director of doctoral programs, and Alice Wing-Shuen Lau, a doctoral student in the School of Education, titled “Empowering English learners in the classroom through culturally responsive social-emotional teaching practices,” was published in the Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, a premier cross-disciplinary journal.

Bill Woodward, professor emeritus of history, continues an active schedule of public lectures. Recently he spoke at the Columbia Pacific Historical Museum in Ilwaco on May 21, giving his lecture, “Will the 2020s Roar like the 1920s?,” which was sponsored by Humanities Washington. On May 24, he spoke at Parkshore Senior Living in Madison Park, giving his lecture, “Coming Home: Baseball’s America,” and on May 27, he spoke at Aljoya Thornton Place Senior Community, sharing his lecture, “Every Generation Has Its War.”

A conference paper by Alberto Ferreiro, professor of European history, titled "Consecrated Women, Monks, and Priscillianists in the Hispano-Roman Suevic-Visigothic Councils,” were published in Annales Historiae Conciliorum, [Journal for the History of Councils] 51 (2021) 53–82. The paper is from a conference that met September in Dresden, Germany, on the theme of monasticism and the conciliar legislation. Alberto also spent a week in Rome recently doing research at the Fabbrica di San Pietro in the Vatican, as a side trip from his Lisbon stay. The subject is a four-panel relief containing apocryphal scenes from Peter’s life, in particular his confrontation with Simon Magus.

Jason Thornberry, receptionist for the School of Education and adjunct professor, recently was a guest on the Thought Row podcast, where he talked about his life in music, recovering from a life-changing injury, and his new path in writing and teaching. Listen to the podcast episode here. Jason also had his short story, “Nothing Has Happened Yet,” appear in the journal, Letters.  

Please join the Office of Human Resources in welcoming new SPU staff member, Ryan Bumcrot, technology support analyst II, Computer and Information Systems.

Amy Mezulis, professor of clinic psychology, was interviewed by local NBC affiliate KING-TV news on May 25 for the story, “Seattle Pacific University professor encourages people talk openly about Texas mass shooting."

From Adrienne Meier, SPU archivist: “Spring Quarter is the most tempting time to hold class sessions outdoors, and Tiffany Loop has been used for this purpose for many years. In this photo, probably from the early 1950s, education professor Golda Kendrick conducts class in the Loop, with Adelaide Hall and Alexander Hall visible in the background. Also in the background are several cars; the paved portion of the Loop was open for parking until the early 2000s. The record is silent as to why Kendrick appears to be wearing a crown for this class.” Select the link below to see the photo.

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