Thank you to those who were able to attend the recent post-Board Town Hall. For those unable to attend, or who would like to watch it again, you may view the presentation via this link  Post Board Town Hall. As was stated at the town hall, this information is for faculty and staff only and is not to be shared in any form outside of current faculty and staff. Thank you for respecting this expectation. Closed captions are available on the recording if desired or needed. You may also read spring narrative reports (that are provided with the same expectations) through the following links:

• Academic Affairs Report
•   Faculty Chair Report
• Business and Finance Report
• Chief of Staff Report
• Enrollment Management and Marketing Report
• Student Life Report
• University Advancement Report
• Mission Integration Report
• Diversity and Belonging Report

The last Chapel for Autumn Quarter is Tuesday, Dec. 2, 11:10 a.m. in First Free Methodist Church. "A Service of Lessons and Carols" will feature the SPU Choir and Chapel Band. All faculty and staff are invited to join a community lunch each week after Chapel in the SUB Fireside Room. Bring your lunch and share fellowship with others across campus.

The Music Department will present its joint Collaborative/Percussion Concert on Tuesday Dec. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in the E.E.Bach Theater in McKinley Hall. The concert will feature student-led groups and the SPU Percussion Ensemble. The concert is free.

The brand-new SPU Theatre Club presents, "Holiday Cabaret," an evening of live entertainment in the McKinley Studio Theatre on Wednesday Dec. 3, at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.

Professors Brittany Tausen and Katherine Douglass will give a book talk to celebrate the launch of their new book, Love Your Neighbor: How Psychology Can Enliven Faith and Transform Community," on Thursday, Dec. 4, 4– 5:30 p.m.in the Ames Library Seminar Room.

A new resource marking the highlights of the last two years under President Porterfield's leadership titled, "Two Years of Impact: A Journey of God's Faithfulness," is available online. The online introduction to the report says, "Amid a rapidly changing landscape for higher education, Seattle Pacific University has experienced tangible signs of God's presence and provision. 2023–25 was marked by renewal, resilience, and a recommitment to SPU's distinct mission to engage the culture and change the world for Jesus Christ. We invite you to review the highlights of these past two years."

A message from University Advancement: We are delighted to share that Seattle Pacific University has been awarded a $105,231 Nursing Simulation Grant from the Washington Student Achievement Council. These funds will support the continued modernization of SPU’s nursing simulation lab, enhancing training resources for our growing and dynamic nursing program. This competitive grant was made possible through funding from the Washington State Achievement Council to expand nursing education capacity at both public and private universities across the state.These grant funds provide new and upgraded equipment for the expansion of our nursing simulation lab to:

• Increase access and training capacity — More students can participate in simulation at the same time, reducing scheduling bottlenecks.
• Accelerate student progression — Students can complete required clinical hours more efficiently, keeping them on track for timely graduation.
• Strengthen workforce readiness — By preparing more graduates with hands-on, high-fidelity training, SPU will contribute directly to meeting Washington’s urgent demand for qualified nurses.

This is a meaningful investment in one of SPU’s most vital academic programs/ Special thanks to Antwinett Lee, Michelle Anastacio, JulieAnn Harrington, Derek Wood, Brook Berry, and Doug Taylor for their contributions to securing this award.

The SPU Store is having a holiday sale through Dec. 31. Stop by or use code GIFT20 online to save 20% this holiday season and check back for new items coming in all month long! As a reminder, the online store can be found at spustore.spu.edu and offers year-round 10% discounts to faculty and staff with the code FACSTAFF10.

A message from Educational Technology and Media: Catch up on any of the Autum Quarter workshops by accessing the recordings and resources on the ETM Workshop blog:

• Sharing Strategies: Online Group Presentations and Peer Feedback with Teams & Canvas
• Canvas Updates & New Features
• Making Thinking Visible: Designing Annotation Assignments in Canvas

If you have any questions or need help accessing the materials, please reach out to etmhelp@spu.edu.

The Faculty/Staff Bulletin is published every Monday during the academic year. The last Bulletin for Autumn Quarter is Monday, Dec. 8, and the next deadline is Thursday, Dec. 4. The Bulletin will resume publication on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026.

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 and will be published for two consecutive issues; they can be resubmitted for an additional two weeks.

Center for Faithful Business’ Executive Director JoAnn Flett contributed a chapter on Leadership for Flourishing about the B-Corps and business. Leadership for Flourishing, published by Oxford University Press, suggests that a group's leadership impacts a group's flourishing and in a bi-directional way flourishing impacts leadership. The contributing authors develop frameworks and practices that highlight the dynamic between leadership and flourishing.

Professor of Biblical Studies Sara Koenig's book, The Ten Commandments Through the Ages, was published by Eerdmans Press. This book explores the various and varied ways the Ten Commandments have been understood and interpreted over the centuries.

Associate Professor of History Alissa Walter presented a paper at the Middle East Studies Association's annual conference on Nov. 23 titled, "The Politics of Infrastructure and Memory in Baghdad."

Associate Professor Emerita Becky Hughes gave a paper on British women missionaries and visual culture on Nov. 15 at the North American British Studies Conference in Montreal.

Fides et Historia, the journal of the Conference on Faith and History, has accepted Professor Emeritus of History Bill Woodward’s essay, “A Parable of Providence, Promise and Patience” for publication in 2026. The paper reflects on Jesus’ parable of the wheat and the weeds (Matthew 13) as a cue to how to think of and instruct history — and contemporary experience — in light of both the limitations of human achievement and the inbreaking and ultimate triumph of Christ’s Kingdom and its promise of justice someday.

A paper presented by Professor Emeritus of European History Alberto Ferreiro titled, “The Reception and Diffusion of the Creed and the Filioque Before and After the Third Council of Toledo (589) in Hispania,” at the 2023 symposium, Nicaea (325)–Ecumenical Council? The Reception of the "Great Synod" Past and Present," in Bamberg, Germany, has been published in the recent volume of Annales Historiae Conciliorum, 53, 2 (2023) 357-386.

Alberto provides the abstract: There are several Hispano-Roman, Suevic, and Visigothic councils from Hispania that were in varying degrees impacted by the Council of Nicaea (325). Of special importance is the reception of the Creed of Nicaea at the Third Council of Toledo (589); this council holds a special place among all the councils that gathered in Hispania. The main agenda that surfaced was the intentional goal to integrate the church in Hispania with the orthodoxy and orthopraxy of Rome and Constantinople. This study for the first time considers broadly the Third Council of Toledo (589) and the reception and integration of the Nicaean–Constantinopolitan Creed in the liturgy of Hispania and the Filioque at this council. One also cannot avoid discussion about the increased use of the double procession of the Holy Spirit (a Patre et Filio procedere) and its introduction in Hispania in the creed and the technical clause, Filioque, to describe the same teaching.

Please join the Office of Human Resources in welcoming Monica Hubert, director of impact giving and engagement, in University Advancement.

The next article in the "My Faith. My SPU" series featuring Falcon track and field star and accounting major Robert Joshua was published online at SPU Stories.