During Undergraduate Commencement exercises and to close out SPU’s 125th anniversary year, President Martin honored Lois Teel Madden, a 1938 alumna of SPU's teacher education program. Lois was accompanied by her great-nephew Eric Best '95, and his son, Graham.

Lois is the daughter of Alfred and Gertrude Teel, with Gertrude being a member of the Seattle Seminary Class of 1906. Lois and her four brothers, Ed, Ward, Cliff, and Steve, all attended Seattle Pacific. She met fellow student Paul Madden at SPU’s All School Picnic in 1934 at Golden Gardens. Three years later, they were married and subsequently moved to Whidbey Island, where Paul was superintendent of the Langley School District and Lois taught at Bayview Elementary School.

But their roots were also in Seattle, where they served as members of First Free Methodist Church, SPU's campus church, for more than 60 years. Lois and Paul celebrated more than 75 years of marriage before his passing in 2013.

Select the link to see a photo of Lois and her family members with President Martin.

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During the summer, Mailing Services will deliver and pick up departmental mail in the afternoon only. Feel free to go to Mailing Services if you need your mail prior to the afternoon delivery. If you have modified summer hours for your department, contact Elaine Stevens in Mailing Services at estevens@spu.edu and they can accommodate your mail pickup or delivery.

A message from Tiffany Shelton, assistant director of conference services: As the 2016-17 academic year comes to a close, I wanted to remind you about an upcoming change to Upper Gwinn reservations. Effective July 1, 2017, Upper Gwinn room setup (Dining Services labor costs) for your internal events will no longer be paid for by Conference Services. This was announced in the 2015-16 academic year, along with the Upper Gwinn policy changes that went into effect on July 1, 2016. In anticipation of this, all 2016-17 Upper Gwinn invoices have included these charges as an informational note, to help you budget for this increase, and potentially adjust your room configurations.

Beginning July 1, 2017, “setup fees” will appear on your Upper Gwinn invoice in addition to the room charge. Both the room charge and the setup fee will be charged to your budget number via semimonthly interdepartmental charge, per the existing process. Note that if you are also ordering catering for your event, setup fees should be quoted on your catering event order as well. If you have questions, contact Conference Services at conferenceservices@spu.edu.

The Manhattan String Quartet, well known for their performances of 20th-century classics, has established a significant international reputation with regular concert appearances throughout North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. The quartet will be guests of Conference Services in June, and they are inviting the SPU community to free concerts on Wednesday, June 21, and Saturday, June 24, at 7:30 p.m. at First Free Methodist Church. Visit the website to learn more about the group and the repertoire for the concerts.

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Find out about resident and retail dining summer hours of operation online. 

From June 19 to 23, get your coffee fix at Common Grounds. From 10 to 11 a.m., receive 10 percent off your hot or iced beverages, and get pastries for $0.99.

From June 26 to 29, enjoy Cocina Del Sol's Happy Hour. From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 to 3 p.m., receive 20 percent off your ENTIRE PURCHASE!

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The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published every other week during the summer months. 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, June 29. The next Bulletin will be published on Monday, July 3.

A retirement party for John Glancy, longtime member of the SPU community, will be held Tuesday, June 20, 1:30-3 p.m. in the SUB Gazebo Room. (Program at 2:15 p.m.) John, currently director of SPU's 125th anniversary celebration, has been an integral part of the campus community for more than 45 years, and is a friend and valued colleague to many. Please come and celebrate John and his extraordinary contributions to SPU. (If you are unable to attend on June 20, send John an email at jglancy@spu.edu.)

A paper by Jaeil Lee, professor and director of apparel design and merchandising, and colleagues titled “Exploration of Textile and Apparel Curriculum in Mongolia From the Academia and Industry Perspectives” was published in Family & Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 45(4), 345-362. The purpose of the study was to explore the textiles and apparel curriculum in Mongolian higher education. The authors sought to determine areas of study that should be added to the Mongolian curriculum, along with essential skills and attributes necessary for success within the Mongolian textiles and apparel industry. These research findings could provide feasible guidelines for Mongolia and other developing countries seeking to improve their own fashion industries for the purpose of enhancing their comparative advantages and becoming competitive in the global textiles and apparel market. Read the paper online.

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Katya Drozdova, associate professor of political science, presented a research paper at Stanford University in March. The paper was titled "A Different ‘Special Relationship’: U.S.-Russian Ties in Strategic Perspective." Her talk was part of Stanford’s Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies seminar series. Here is the abstract for her paper: The United States and Russia have a unique opportunity to reform their relationship in the face of a common threat. History shows how this can be done. Together, the United States and Russia have dealt with recurrent periods of major geopolitical strife. Their successful resolution has been consistently enabled by self-interest, yet mutually beneficial, U.S.-Russian ties. Even as rivals, the two nations have found reasons to work together since the very creation of the United States — and they can return to being rational partners through reciprocal cooperation. A natural way to start is by using these historical lessons when facing common adversaries — such as the terrorists of ISIS and other extremist jihadi groups. The next step is to seize mutually beneficial opportunities emerging from a stable world order — including more secure energy relations. Finally, while Russia’s cyber forays may threaten U.S. interests — understanding cyber power in the context of global geopolitics offers opportunities for new forms of deterrence and improved strategic ties going forward.

On June 1 and 2, Professor Emeritus of New Testament Gene Lemcio participated in a workshop organized by the University of Washington’s International Policy Institute in the Jackson School of International Studies and co-sponsored by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Its aim was to begin instructing foreign policy practitioners from the State Department in Washington, D.C., about the interface between religion and politics in the regions where they would serve. Gene was invited to address the two dozen participants about the situation in Ukraine, the most religiously diverse country in Europe.

A new book by adjunct music faculty member Steve Treseler titled Creativity Triggers for Musicians was just published. The book contains non-idiomatic improvisation prompts and exercises for individuals and ensembles. 

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The Office of Human Resources would like the SPU community to welcome the following new employees: 

Breanna Beltran, gymnastics instructor, Athletics
Jaryd Remillard, microsystems analyst, Computer and Information Systems

From University Archivist Adrienne Meier: To mark SPU’s 125th anniversary, we’re revisiting previous anniversary celebrations. This week we’ll look at the 100th anniversary celebration, May 1989 through May 1991.

In February 1981, Response magazine published an essay by then-President David McKenna marking the 90th anniversary of SPU's founding and beginning the "Centennial Decade." McKenna wrote about the plans for the decade, including a recommitment by faculty "to lead as Christian scholars and teachers," new capital campaigns for campus improvements, and a new written history of SPU. From these beginnings came some of the research and ideas that were ultimately incorporated into SPU's centennial history book, Seattle Pacific University: A Growing Vision 1891-1991. Many of the regular events in 1981 and 1982 such as the Spring Fellows Banquet, Alumni Banquet, and Homecoming, were connected with the Centennial Decade, as was a special issue of Response published in September 1981.

The Centennial Celebration began in earnest in 1989, with a remodel of Alexander Hall, a special musical group tour, and the Free Methodist General Conference held on campus. The general conference also saw the unveiling of the history book (A Growing Vision), a 13-minute video (People of a Growing Vision), and a 12-foot photo mural display. The display was used at on-campus events and also at area celebrations for alumni, which were held throughout the United States and Canada between October 1989 and May 1991. Homecoming, a special series of symposia, and other campus events were all tied to the Centennial Celebration, climaxing with the Centennial Gala on May 25, 1991, and the 1991 Ivy Cutting and Commencement ceremonies.

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