On behalf of SPU’s Fulbright Advisory Team: We had a near-record year! Of seven applicants, three have been granted Fulbright awards for 2021–22: 

• Jonathan Colladay Roberts ’17, a French & Francophone studies and global development studies double-major, who received a Fulbright Study Award to pursue a master’s in international relations and political science in Turkey. This highly competitive award was only offered to five individuals in the previous award year.  
• Elizabeth Davisson ’20, a special education major and Spanish minor, received a Fulbright English Teaching Award to teach in Spain. With her highly sought-after expertise in special education, Elizabeth will travel to the Canary Islands this fall. 
• Ann Lam ’21, a business administration: information systems and apparel merchandising double-major received a Fulbright English Teaching Award to teach in Vietnam. A native speaker of Vietnamese who learned English as a second language in school, Ann will be uniquely placed to teach English to Vietnamese children and young people.  

We are very proud of these three Falcons and wish them all well. Please contact any of the students whom you know to congratulate them. Finally,  a huge round of applause for to all those who served on the SPU campus Fulbright interview committees this past September. The applicants and our team appreciate your insights, suggestions, and time!

From Gary Womelsduff, director of Human Resources: The Senior Leadership Council is actively engaged in making plans and preparing for our return to campus, and we look forward to providing important information in the very near future. A key decision will be how we approach vaccinations for our staff and faculty. We are all aware of conversations universities and businesses are having on how best to approach vaccines.

To gain an understanding of our community’s thoughts and opinions, we are asking all employees to complete the following very short survey. Please know that your responses will be anonymous, and we will not be able to tie responses to individuals. This survey will close on Friday, June 14. Click here to participate in the survey.

We very much value the input from all members of our community and are appreciative of your participation.

How can business advance God’s purposes? Read about the Center for Faithful Business and the impact of their work over the past two decades in the latest issue of the Shareholders e-newsletter.

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.

SPU’s Department of Engineering and Computer Science is offering on-campus summer day camps for rising 9th–12th graders. Students can jump-start a tech career with hands-on programs focused on video game creation (Aug. 16–20) and mechatronics and 3D printing (Aug. 16–20). No coding experience necessary. Plus, they’ll earn college credit! Learn more and register at spu.edu/techcamps.

The University Ministries team is available as needed to faculty and staff. If you would benefit from spiritual care and pastoral presence during this time of uncertainty, there are multiple opportunities to pause, pray, and meet together as a community. Here's a list of resources available from UMin and other campus partners. UMin: Hard Spaces Together.

Fall/winter reservation requests are now being taken for the Faculty/Staff House at SPU's Camp Casey Conference Center on Whidbey Island for full-time faculty and staff. The dates of stay are Sept. 13, 2021, through Jan 3, 2022. Reservation requests are due by June 4, 2021. These requests are selected by lottery and are not affected by summer stays at Casey. Please visit this link to request a reservation. If you are curious how the lottery works or how to stay at Camp Casey with discounted faculty and staff rates, checkout the new HR wiki. Questions? Contact Camp Casey at campcasey@spu.edu.

College Cafe, hosted by First Free Methodist Church, is a space for the SPU community to take a break and be served by our FFMC neighbors. The final College Cafe for this academic year will be Monday, June 7, 9–11 a.m. Come get an espresso drink — just bring your SPU ID and, if you are able, a $2 donation to help sustain the ministry. Entrance is at First Free under the sky bridge. The cafe will return during Autumn Quarter 2021.

All faculty and staff who come to campus must complete an online self-screening to attest that they meet certain criteria for being on campus (e.g., not exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms). SPU has developed a campuswide tool through Banner (login into Banner and select Personal Menu) to report a daily COVID-19 self-attestation for faculty and staff working on campus (including Camp Casey and Blakely Island). A link to the self-attestation form is also available on the Stay Smart website, which is now highlighted in the top banner on the SPU homepage.

The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published weekly during the academic year. The next Bulletin will be published Monday, June 7, and the deadline is Thursday, June 3. 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.

Beginning Monday, June 14, the Bulletin will be published every other week during the summer.

In recognition of her service to the SPU community, Sharon Barr-Jeffrey, director of the Student Counseling Center, was nominated by her peers and selected by Staff Council as the May Staff Member of the Month. Congratulations and thank you, Sharon! Learn more about Sharon and nominate a colleague for recognition on the Staff Council website.

From the Office of the Provost: We have four faculty retirements at the end of this academic year. Each week in the Faculty/Staff Bulletin we are highlighting one retiring faculty member.

Rod Stiling, associate professor and chair of history, 20 years of service.

Dr. Rod Stiling’s deep care for the SPU community has shone through his achievements the past 20 years. His relational approach to teaching, service, and leadership demonstrates his commitment to love his neighbors as himself. Rod’s innovative history courses on Christian theology and science have attracted students across campus, particularly Honors students, whom he has taught over most of his two decades at Seattle Pacific.

Rod was voted Professor of the Year in 2006 and has earned other awards, including “Top Professor.” Not only has he diligently guided students through the sophisticated thought of such scientific giants as Galileo, Darwin, and Einstein, but he has done so in ways that encourage students to think deeply about their Christian faith. These efforts have been aided through Rod’s own scholarship and publications in his field.

Outside the classroom, Rod has also devoted himself to students: he has genially advised the History Club for years and enthusiastically cheered on Falcon sports teams, musical productions, and theatrical performances.

His gracious service has also extended throughout the broader SPU community. Rod has contributed to search committees and more, including the heralded and daunting task of serving as Faculty Senate chair. For the past five years, Rod has generously chaired the History Department. His tenure has been characterized by his warm pastoral demeanor and genuine encouragement for all.

Captain Rodney Stiling also deserves recognition for his years of service in the U.S. Navy, his countless hours of leadership and service at Bethany Community Church, and his enduring commitment to his beloved Ruth and their family.

Amy Mezulis, professor of clinical psychology, was recently interviewed by the career-search website, Zippia, on which she weighed in current job market trends for recent graduates in her field.

Karen Snedker, professor of sociology, gave a talk titled, “Tents in Seattle: Sanctioned and Unsanctioned Tent Encampments,” as part of the University of Washington’s Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology seminar series on May 21.

Marcia Webb, associate professor of psychology, was recently elected as a Fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion.

Professor Emeritus Don MacDonald passed away on May 29. Scott Edwards, chair, program director, and associate professor of Marriage and Family Therapy, sent this message to colleagues in the School of Psychology, Family, and Community: 

It is with immense sadness that I share the news of the death of our friend and colleague, Dr. Don MacDonald, passed away on Saturday, May 29.

Retiring in 2019 after several decades of dedication and service to Christ, SPU, and the profession, Don leaves a legacy of strong, grounding, and life-changing connections with so many. I was personally and greatly touched by his steadfast friendship, mentorship, humor, and grace. His passion with clinical training and therapist development was well known and experienced, especially in the context of faith. Don was truly a faith-filled disciple of Christ and committed to family. He had the ability to be fully present and connect with students, faculty, and client systems while considering multi-layered contexts and worldviews. Don fully embodied openness, respect, curiosity, and accountability — the ORCA-Stance, a clinical and relational way of being grounded in Christ which he co-developed, taught, and co-authored articles/presentations/books with many colleagues.

Our MFT Department is compiling reflections, stories, and photos of Don over the years from students, friends, and colleagues into a book and will provide it to Ginger and his family. If you would like to contribute to this remembrances and memorial book, please submit responses and photos online by Friday, June 11. Please take a moment right now to plan time to prepare and make your contribution.

I was able to speak with his wife, Ginger, on Monday and she wishes to share the following with the SPU and MFT communities:

Dear Friends of Don,

My sweet husband, our dear friend, Don, died Saturday, May 29. Don has suffered from end stage liver disease and liver cancer for the past few years. The amazing team of physicians and nurses he had at UW Medicine/Cancer Care Alliance/Harborview Liver and Kidney specialist clinics tried all they could to help him, and they did, for a while. Then, as of a few weeks ago, the shift to the team at Providence Hospice became necessary, and they have been absolutely amazing in support of Don and me. Our three sons, Josh, Jeff, and Andy have each been phenomenally present in this challenging time.

In lieu of a fussy formal funeral, which he would not have liked, we are planning a casual celebration of his life in the form of a drop-in open house at our home, Sunday, June 27, 3-7 pm. We’ll tell Don stories, laugh, eat and drink and have a fun time together, which he would have loved.

As all in our collective have been fully vaccinated, we do not intend to wear masks. Feel free to wear a mask if you are more comfortable. If you are not ready or able to have this much social closeness, let me know and perhaps you could just drop by the house another time soon and we can share memories and social distance and/or mask up.

Feel free to share this email with others. Email, text, or call me if you would like more information.

- Ginger MacDonald, 30227 25th Ave SW, Federal Way, WA 98023, gingmacdon@gmail.com

For anyone wishing to contribute remembrances in Don’s name, Ginger suggested:

1) Don and Ginger MacDonald Scholarship Endowment in Honor of David Anderson (Choral music student scholarships at Seattle Pacific University)
2) The Nature Consortium, Forterra, or Delridge Neighborhoods Development Association (Local environmental, arts, and youth development)
3) Any charity of your choice that respects the dignity of all people, or our precious environment.

Our prayers are with his family — may they experience Christ’s presence during this time of grief, remembrance, and celebration of the life of our dear friend, Dr. Don MacDonald.