A message from Nate Mouttet, vice president for enrollment management and marketing. We are seeing very good early signs of a larger applicant pool for Autumn Quarter 2019. November 1 was the Early Action deadline for first-year freshman, and applications are up 18 percent from last year. (Early application students receive priority consideration for financial aid and scholarships.) We expect many of these prospective students and their families to be on campus in the next few months for Falcon Fridays and Falcon Nights in February and Admitted Student Preview in April. Please help us make our guests feel welcome as they begin to see themselves as part of the Seattle Pacific community.

From Margaret Brown, director of the Center for Scholarship and Faculty Development: Please join us Tuesday, November 13, at 1 p.m. for the campus commemoration of Veterans Day in Tiffany Loop (weather permitting). This year is the centennial celebration of the end of WWI. Please join us as we recognize and honor all veterans, living or deceased, and the sacrifice they and their loved ones have made for this country and our freedom.

The History Department and the student history club Hindsight will host an evening with Carol Aiko DeShazer Dixon, author of Return of the Raider: A Doolittle Raider's Story of War & Forgiveness, and daughter of SPU alumnus Jake DeShazer, on Tuesday, November 13, 7 p.m. in the Library Seminar Room. Her book shares the remarkable family story of her father Jacob DeShazer (1912–2008) and mother Florence Matheny Deshazer (1921–2017). Jake was an Oregon farm boy and U.S. Army Air Corps bombardier, a member of the Doolittle Raid over Japan in 1942, and a prisoner of war of Imperial Japan from 1942–1945. Florence was an Iowa girl who came to Seattle in 1945 to advance her education to improve her teaching skills. They met at Seattle Pacific, married in 1946, graduated in 1948, and returned to Japan six months later for a decades-long career of ministry service with the Free Methodist Church in the homeland of Jake's former captors. The full story traces an amazing and beautiful narrative of struggle, faith, forgiveness, and reconciliation.

Are you the first in your family to attend a 4-year university? If so, you’re a first generation college student. All students, staff, and faculty are invited to join Multi-Ethnic Programs in recognizing, honoring, supporting, and celebrating the immense contribution that first-generation college students have on the SPU community. Join us for a drop-in celebration of good food, fun photos, and celebratory activities at the Multi-Ethnic Programs office on Thursday November 15, 3:30–5 p.m.

A message from the Office of Global Engagement: For many international college students at SPU, November 22 will mark their first American Thanksgiving experience. As U.S. students return home to celebrate the holiday, many international students cannot do the same. The SPU Home for the Thanksgiving Holiday program is an opportunity for international students to enjoy a traditional holiday celebration with members of the SPU community.

The Office of Global Engagement (OGE) is seeking faculty and staff host families to match with one or more international students this Thanksgiving Day. All you need to do is set one more place at your table. We will match you up with a student (or two if you want!). (Students may or may not need help with transportation.) This unique opportunity not only allows students to experience a major aspect of American culture, it is also a chance for them to connect with American culture beyond the classroom or residence halls. Last year, over 15 faculty and staff volunteered to host. Here are some of your colleague’s experiences from last year:

A student from China joined Professor Emerita Evette Hackman’s family for the Thanksgiving meal. Evette provided a unique experience for this international student from China who is pursuing a degree in nutrition as she was even included in meal preparations

.

Nursing faculty member Carol McFarland welcomed a pre-ded major from Ghana to her family Thanksgiving meal. With several family members practicing in the medical field, this international student not only received the gift of an American holiday meal but kind and gracious career mentoring.

Will you consider becoming an SPU Home for the Holidays Thanksgiving host? If so, contact Sharleen Kato, director of OGE, at skato@spu.edu.

The SPU Bookstore invites faculty and staff to a 50-percent off clearance sale on Thursday, November 8, 9:30 a.m.–5 p.m. New items are being added every day this week.

Join the SPU Music Department, community leaders, and local arts organizations for dialogue and artistic presentations exploring reconciliation within the African, African American, Latin American, and Caribbean communities. Participants will engage in stories around liberty, reconciliation, hope, love, and faith through music, spoken word, dance, visual, and dramatic arts.The event is inspired by Associate Professor of Reconciliation Brenda Salter McNeil’s book Roadmap to Reconciliation.

Roads to Reconciliation
Thursday, November 15 | 6–9 p.m.
Nickerson Studios

More than 3,000 SPU parents and family members received the October In the Loop parents’ e-newsletter, and were able to read about the Center for Learning’s study resources for students, information about the 2019-20 FAFSA, an SPU Voices story about students’ favorite downtown hangouts, and more.

You have until 9:59 a.m. on Tuesday, November 6, to have stationery orders delivered Friday, November 16. Stationery orders are delivered once a month. Orders made after 10 a.m. on November 6 will be delivered in December. For more information, contact Hope McPherson in University Communications at hmcpherson@spu.edu.

(The SPU Wellness Initiative is a group of faculty and staff working to improve the mental, physical, and emotional health of undergraduates. The monthly posts on the Wellness Initiative blog provide information about common mental health problems that students deal with on a daily basis. We hope this will help faculty and staff identify students who may need extra support. We also provide campus and community resources that are available for students.)

Research suggests emotional and physical well-being may increase among undergraduates when they practice mindfulness. To learn more, visit the Wellness blog.

The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published every week during the academic year. 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, November 8. Due to the Veterans Day holiday, the next Bulletin will be published on Tuesday, November 6.

Joshua Tom, assistant professor of sociology, recently co-presented a paper with Brandon Martinez of Providence College at the annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion in Las Vegas, Nevada. The paper is titled “Race, Religion, and the American Pessimism Gap” and demonstrates how race and religion intersect as the defining dimensions of cultural difference on the American political landscape.

Jeff Daley, head gardener at SPU, was recognized by his peers as one of five outstanding Washington State University master gardeners for 2018. He was recognized for demonstrating leadership to his growing 37-member Master Gardener team at the Des Moines Farmers Market and Burien Library clinics, along with working on several pop-up clinics this year. The presenters stated: “Jeff brings inspiration, motivation with diplomacy, humor, and thoughtfulness to this group and is recognized as one of our Outstanding Master Gardeners for 2018.” 

The 600 Master Gardeners in King County will volunteer over 30,000 hours this year — an average of over 50 hours per master gardener. This year they welcomed 89 interns. The program runs nearly 40 clinics throughout King County and 14 demonstration gardens, answering questions from tens of thousands of clients each year. Congratulations, Jeff!

Brad Murg, assistant professor of political science and director of Global Development Studies, and Charadine Pich, senior fellow at the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace, presented a paper titled “Building the Lancang-Mekong Economic Development Belt: Complementarities, Corridors, and Coordination” at The Global Center for Mekong Studies Joint Research Workshop in Siem Reap, Cambodia, on October 30.

Professor of Music Stephen Newby will participate in Jordi Savall's "Routes of Slavery: Memories of Slavery, 1444–1888," on Tuesday, November 6, at 7:30 p.m. in Benaroya Hall. Renowned early music interpreter Jordi Savall and artists from Europe, Africa, and the Americas trace the journey of enslaved peoples from 1444 to 1888 through historic music and readings. Reverent and spirited, this powerful program is a living history of a long and painful past, from songs of resistance to songs of hope. The event is presented by Early Music Seattle and the Seattle Symphony.

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

Annie Reed, student accounts collections assistant, Student Financial Services
Sarah Sooklal, visit and events coordinator, ambassador lead, multicultural outreach, Undergraduate Admissions

The Office of Human Resources would like to congratulate the following staff members on their new appointments.

Katherine Limpin, admissions counselor, Undergraduate Admissions
Damon Smith, transfer admissions counselor, Undergraduate Admissions

(Correction) Charis Tobias, business operations analyst, Enrollment Operations