A message from Louise Furrow, vice president of University Advancement: The School of Health Sciences learned that the Norcliffe Foundation approved a $1,500,000 grant to help renovate a new facility for the Lydia Green Nursing Program. The nursing program is entering a new phase of expansion to help meet a growing demand for nurses in the Pacific Northwest. Plans include a newly renovated building at Six Nickerson Street, which will offer modern classrooms and offices, spaces for meetings and student support, and an expanded Clinical Learning Laboratory to accommodate enrollment growth. Grant support will build upon the nursing program’s history of academic excellence, and provide the space needed to prepare students to excel as clinicians, practitioners, and nurse leaders in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape. 

A message from Student Life: As many of you are aware, Director of Health Services Jean Brown retired at the end of June after 30 years of service to SPU. We are pleased to announce that nurse practitioners Sally Thunselle and Kristie Feldmann have stepped into interim leadership roles in Health Services beginning July 1.

Sally Thunselle will be interim director of Health Services for 2018–19. In addition to managing the operational tasks of the Health Center, she will serve on the Student Life, Athletics, and Ministries (SLAM) leadership team. Sally worked for 16 years as a registered nurse in pediatrics, obstetrics, and school nursing before completing SPU’s Family Nurse Practitioner program in 2014. Since then, she has worked as a primary care provider for all ages. Sally joined SPU’s Health Services staff in December 2017.

Kristie Feldmann will be interim assistant director of Health Services for 2018–19 and will serve on the Student Support Team (SST). Kristie graduated from Pacific Lutheran University with BS in nursing. She worked as a registered nurse in a variety of inpatient and outpatient settings from 1996 to 2003, including labor and delivery and ambulatory care resource teams. Kristie graduated from the University of Washington with a MS in nursing, and is dual certified as a women's health nurse practitioner and adult nurse practitioner. She worked as a nurse practitioner at a local women's clinic for over 13 years before joining SPU's Health Services in 2016. 

It’s not too late to register your high school student for SPU IMMERSE 2018, the School of Theology’s youth discipleship academy, July 15–21. IMMERSE is a discipleship training experience for students finishing grades 9–12, hosted at SPU and Camp Casey, with hands-on ministry experiences in Seattle as well. Details, including costs and scholarships, are available at spu.edu/immerse. Students who attend also qualify for a future $1,000 scholarship to attend SPU. Email immerse@spu.edu for details or with questions. Be sure to register today!

The School of Business, Government, and Economics (SBGE) just released 13 short films, each spotlighting business leaders living out their faith through their vocations. The films are part of SBGE’s first MOOC (massive open online course). Read about it in the June issue of the SBGE Shareholders newsletter, along with alumni updates, news, and more. Subscribe to the newsletter.

A message from Campus Dining: We are excited to announce the launch of our new SPU dining website. Our new website enhances the user's experience through a mobile-first design with trending design elements. View upcoming events and promotions, read our news blog, find out our dining hours, and navigate through our new e-commerce store.

The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published every other week during the summer. 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, July 19. The next Bulletin will be published Monday, July 23.

A paper by Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering Tajudeen Olasupo titled “Framework for Optimizing Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks” was published in IEEE’s Transactions, a publication that promotes pluridisciplinary research in computational biology and bioinformatics. The IEEE Computer Society is the world's leading membership organization dedicated to computer science and technology.

Bruce Baker, associate professor of business ethics, presented a paper co-authored with Don Lee, associate professor of management, at the Christian Humanism in Business and Society, June 20–22, at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis. The paper is titled, "Solidarity and Workplace Engagement: A Management Perspective on Building Community."

The book, BAM Global Movement, by Gea Gort and Mats Tunehag was published in May by Hendrickson Publishers in their Theology of Work line. Emeriti Faculty Al Erisman was invited by the authors and the publisher to write the forward.

Associate Professor of Counselor Education Munyi Shea gave a presentation at the annual meeting of the International Society for Quality-of-Life Studies: Promotion of Quality of Life in the Changing World in Hong Kong, June 14–16. Her talk was titled "Development of the Encouragement Character Strength Scale: Implications for Psychological and Community Well-Being." Co-authors of the presentation include Associate Professor of Counseling/Counselor Education Joel Wong from Indiana University–Bloomington, and SPU student "Alice" Wing-Shuen Lau (MA in TESOL, 2018).

Shannon Smythe, assistant professor of theological studies, recently led two workshops for pastors and church leaders at the 2018 Barth Pastors Conference on "The Witness of the Pastor," held in Princeton, New Jersey, June 21–23. One workshop, “Straight to the Heart: Delighting With Barth in Romans," was presented twice. The other workshop, "Entering the Narrative," engaged church leaders on the public narrative in the U.S. around the political construct of race in light of the call of the gospel.

An essay by Associate Professor of Sociology Karen Snedker titled “Why the UK Needs a Separate Justice System for People with Mental Illness” was published by The Conversation, an online publication “curated by professional editors offering informed commentary and debate on the issues affecting our world.” The essay is based on her forthcoming book about crime, treatment courts, and mental illness.

A new book by Professor Emeritus of English Thomas Trzyna titled Cain's Crime: The Proliferation of Weapons and the Targeting of Civilians in Contemporary War was published by Cascade Books. It is highly recommended by Susan Williams at the University of London, author of Who Killed Hammarskjold?

SPU head gardener Jeff Daley will give a lecture titled "Let's Talk Ornamental Grasses" at the West Seattle Nursery and Garden Center on Saturday, July 14. Registration is now closed for his talk. 

The Office of Human Resources would like the SPU community to welcome the following new staff members.

• Katelyn Eggiman, chemistry laboratory coordinator, Chemistry
• Bob Elmer, communications specialist, University Communications
• Eileen Harte, events manager, Alumni and Parents Relations, University Advancement
• Paul Lee, engineering laboratory coordinator, Engineering
• Katherine Limpin, visit and events coordinator, University Recruitment and Admissions
• Dan Thompson, undergraduate admissions counselor for multicultural outreach, University Recruitment and Admissions.

The Office of Human Resources would like the SPU community to congratulate these staff members in their new appointments:

• Michelle Arendt, project coordinator, University Communications 
• Kathy Henning, communications manager, academics and fundraising, University Communications

An essay titled "Four Myths About Homelessness: Voices From a Tent City" by sociology professors Karen Snedker and Jennifer McKinney was published June 5 in The Conversation, an online publication "curated by professional editors offering informed commentary and debate on the issues affecting our world."