University Ministries is offering the following small groups and retreats for faculty and staff. 

Group Spiritual Direction
Starting this week: University Ministries invites you to join faculty and staff members across campus for monthly group spiritual direction. This one-hour meeting will provide a communal confidential space for people to discern the work of God in each person’s life and encouragement to respond to the invitations God is offering, in community together. The groups will be led by Chaplain Lisa Ishihara or Pastor and Spiritual Director Jen Manglos. Here are three options you can choose from:
     1. Staff/Fac Group Option 1 meets: Wednesdays at noon (Sept. 28; Oct. 19; Nov. 9). Groups will meet in person.
     2. Staff/Fac Group Option 2 meets: Thursdays at 3 p.m. (Sept. 29; Oct. 20; Nov. 10). Groups will meet in person.
     3. Staff/Fac Group Option 3: If you have a group in mind, you can email Chaplain Lisa at chaplainlisa@spu.edu to "Choose Your Own Adventure." If you have a small group of people you would like to meet with, you can form your own group, or come as part of a department or cohort of some kind and we will pair you with a spiritual director for three sessions.

Register online: https://forms.office.com/r/nJ9sRwrHTw

Faculty/Staff: Half-Day Spiritual Retreats

Join other faculty and staff across campus for a half-day retreat from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. We will either meet on campus or at a local place of beauty. This will be a guided time of spiritual reflection and care guided by spiritual directors and Chaplain Lisa. Morning refreshments and lunch will be provided. Cost: $10 and scholarships are available.

     1. Thursday, October 13, 2022 - “Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane” Retreat: This retreat will focus on the truth that God is with us and Jesus knows us.
     2. Saturday, October 29, 2022 - “The Invitation of Gratitude” Retreat: This retreat is part of our November theme of thankfulness and gratitude which will be kicked       off at our All University Chapel on Monday, November 1, 2022.
     3. Wednesday, December 7, 2022 - “Advent and the Longest Night” Retreat: This will be after Autumn Quarter is over and we will be invited to look forward and to           be present… may God fill our souls in the waiting.
     4. Choose Your Own Adventure: If you have a small group of people you would like to meet with, you can form your own group (minimum five people), come as a         department we can craft a retreat for your group specifically.

Register Here: https://forms.office.com/r/0R0Tb686Ly

Dr. Randy Woodley, a recognized leader in the fields of Indigenous and Intercultural Studies, ecology, spirituality, race, theology, and missiology, will present a public lecture titled “Indigenous Spirit: Weaving Justice and Peace in a Wounded Land," on Monday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m. in Upper Gwinn Commons. Dr. Woodley will talk about finding the joy of place through an Indigenous perspective and give tools to live with the land, not just on the land. This event, hosted by the School of Theology and the Land Acknowledgement Committee, is part of a series of events recognizing Indigenous Peoples Day.

In chapel at 11:10 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11, in Upper Gwinn, Randy and Edith Woodley will be the guest speakers. They are co-sustainers and co-hosts of a regenerative teaching farm, school and community in Yamhill, Oregon called Eloheh Indigenous Center for Earth Justice and Eloheh Farm & Seeds. The Woodleys have been innovators and activists serving and mentoring America’s Indigenous people and others for over three decades.

Winter/spring reservation requests are now being taken for Camp Casey's Faculty/Staff House for full-time faculty and staff. The dates of stay are Jan. 4–June 12, 2023. Reservation requests are due by Oct. 24, 2022. 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, check out the Human Resources wiki. Questions? Contact Camp Casey at campcasey@spu.edu.

In Context is back for our six-week program! Mark you calendars, In Context will run Mondays, 5–6:30 p.m., Oct. 3–Nov. 7 (i.e., during weeks 4–9 of Autumn Quarter). Please register to join! Participants should expect to commit to attending all six meetings. In Context is a six-week workshop hosted by Catalyst in partnership with the John Perkins Center, on race, capitalism, and transformative justice. The workshop is open to SPU students, staff, and faculty. Together we will learn about the ever-present reality of systemic racism in order to refine our perceptions of ourselves, our histories, and our collective society. We hope to foster a safe space in which all SPU students, staff, and faculty are invited to engage in challenging and transformative conversations, and to equip SPU community members to work toward a better world by thinking critically about systems of exploitation. Queer, trans, and BIPOC folks are encouraged to participate. Contact Rae Perez (perezm9@spu.edu) with questions.

Facility and Project Management has completed additional ventilation projects throughout the SPU campus, and you will find the updated list of building restrictions on the Closed or Restricted Buildings webpage. 

The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published weekly on Mondays during the academic year (or Tuesday, if Monday is a holiday). The next deadline is Thursday, Sept. 29, and the next issue will be published Monday, Oct. 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.

Robin Henrikson, associate professor in the School of Education, co-authored an article, “Celebrating Diversity in Every Classroom: Culturally Responsive Perspectives on Video Analysis for Teacher Development” with Alice Wing Shuen Lau, a doctoral student in the School of Education. The paper was published in International Dialogues on Education Journal, 9(2), 46–70. In this thought piece, Robin and Alice advocate for the continued and intentional use of video observations of expert or master teachers that promote culturally responsive teaching (CRT).

In her presidential address to the Society for Classical Studies at its 2022 annual meeting, Dr. Shelley P. Haley of Hamilton College mentioned SPU and Owen Ewald, C. May Marston Associate Professor of Classics, in a series of examples of how Classics programs had changed to attract students and to practice a more inclusive pedagogy. Read the address, “Sites of Salvation: Classics and Small Liberal Arts Colleges” (PDF).

Cara Wall-Scheffler, professor of biology, had an article, “Walking Women Evolve,” published in Anthropology News. Cara examines how women’s “endurance mobility has shaped the evolution of our entire human species.”

Please join the Office of Human Resources in welcoming the following new staff members.

Morgan Jenney, program coordinator, Eaton Hall, Biology/Chemistry
Zhanhong Kuang, accompanist, Music

Janette Plunkett, sustainability manager in Facility and Project Management, was recently interviewed for the article “New directions and new work for PC(USA) in fight against climate change,” in the PC(USA)’s magazine Presbyterian Outlook. Janette is also an elder at Bethany Presbyterian Church in Seattle.