September 25, 2013

In this issue…

• Current News
• Family Updates
• Personnel Updates

Current News

CBU opens flight school for aviation science program

Maria LeBlanc, CBU’s chief flight instructor, and Daniel Prather, chair of the department of aviation science, show off one of the three Cessna 172 single engine planes in the university’s current fleet.

California Baptist University’s aviation science program has expanded to include its own flight school, according to Dr. Daniel Prather, chair of the department of aviation science.

“We made the decision to offer flight instruction, because it gives us control of the quality of flight training,” Prather explained. “We have our own Christian flight instructors, our own aircraft and oversight of the whole operation, including maintenance of the planes. That gives us complete control of the flight school and enables us to conduct training exactly like we know it should be done.”

The aviation science program opened this fall with 23 students. Eleven are concentrating on the flight portion of the program, while 12 more are studying aviation management. Flight students begin flying the aircraft this week.

“This fall, students will be flying four times per week,” Prather said. “In the spring, we’ll go to a more typical three times per week.” He explained that acquiring the planes and the instructors have taken time at the beginning of the semester, so the four times per week makes up for the time students may have missed during this phase of program development.

Prather said CBU has acquired three Cessna 172 single engine planes that will be used in the flight school as well as the CBU aviation science program. Staffing will include Maria LeBlanc, chief flight instructor, and four part-time flight instructors.

The flight school will operate six days per week, Monday through Saturday.

Esquerra continues to rack up honors

Zach Esquerra is being honored once again for his performance as a CBU Lancer.

More than three months removed from his graduation and selection in the MLB Draft, former California Baptist University standout outfielder Zach Esquerra continues to rack up the accolades.

Esquerra was named the NCAA Division II Conference Commissioners Association West Region Scholar-Athlete of the Year this week, adding to a trophy case that already includes NCAA Division II Player of the Year, PacWest Player of the Year and PacWest Scholar Athlete of the Year.

The award, sponsored by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association, provides the opportunity for Division II to highlight the extraordinary achievements of its student-athletes. The organization made the announcement on Tuesday, Sept. 17, from its president’s offices in Lock Haven, Pa.

Esquerra is one of eight scholar-athletes being considered for the Division II Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year honor that will be selected from the regional winners.

A criminal justice major with a 3.88 grade point average, Esquerra was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-American first team and was tabbed PacWest Male Athlete of the Year.

He led the PacWest with 51 runs scored while ranking second in hitting (.382) and third in both doubles (15) and runs batted in (47). Esquerra’s 17 home runs landed him fourth in all of college baseball, covering all three NCAA divisional levels and the NAIA.

Esquerra played for the Hillsboro Hops, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Class A Short Season minor league team, this summer, earning Northwest League All-Star honors after hitting .283 with 33 RBI, 21 extra-base hits, 22 runs scored and a .500 slugging percentage.

Family Updates

The Office of Mobilization is looking for team leaders for International Service Projects and U.S. Projects who will invest in every area of a student’s life, mobilize students to long-term ministry and serve whole-heartedly to accomplish the Great Commission. ISP and USP are discipleship programs, and leaders should be learners who will serve as role models alongside their students. To apply for the 2014 mobilization season, go to www.calbaptist.edu/go. All applications are due by October 10, 2013. A list of service projects is available by clicking here, and journal entries of the 2013 teams are available by clicking here. . For more information about leading a team, contact Kerri Horton at khorton@calbaptist.edu.

Erika Travis

Erika Travis, assistant professor of English and behavioral sciences, wrote a book review titled The Ring and The Cross: Christianity and the Lord of the Rings (Ed. Paul Kerry) that was recently published in the Spring 2013 edition of Christianity and Literature (Vol. 61, Issue 3). She also had a chapter recently published in a book: “From Bikinis to Blasters: The Role of Gender in the Star Wars Community” in Fan Phenomena: Star Wars, which was edited by Mika Elovaara and published by Intellect.

Duncan Simcoe, professor of visual arts, has three pieces of art in an exhibit at the Ridley-Tree Museum at Westmont College in Santa Barbara. The show is titled Invisible Realms and runs from Aug. 29 to Oct. 12. Simcoe also wrote a review of the James Turrell retrospective at Los Angeles County Museum of Art which has been posted on the website for The Center of Christianity and Culture at Biola (ccc.biola.edu/resources/).

Dr. Patricia Hernandez

Dr. Mary Ann Pearson

Dr. Patricia Hernandez, assistant professor of communication studies for Online and Professional Studies (OPS), and Dr. Mary Ann Pearson, associate professor of communication studies for OPS, presented a workshop on social media and marketing strategies for the Riverside Downtown Partnership on Sept. 17.  Hernandez and Pearson discussed social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others and provided insight on the value of social media campaigns. Robbie Silver, communication and events liaison for the Riverside Downtown Partnership, hosted the event, which was attended by more than 35 participants from local businesses. Silver is an undergraduate student in the OPS communication program. Pearson also a seminar on blogging for Give Big Riverside on Friday, Sept. 6. Give Big Riverside is a 24- hour web-a-thon that raises much needed finds for local non-profits. The second annual Give Big Riverside Campaign is scheduled for Nov. 12, 2013. Pearson’s session was designed to help small business owners and non-profits to understand the importance of blogging and to provide skills to get started in the blogosphere.

Joey Sabol

Joey Sabol, adjunct professor in the department of natural and mathematical sciences, gave a presentation at the Inaugural Worldwide Homeschool Conference on the topic of Engaging Math Students in an Online Community on Aug. 23. The focus of the conference was homeschooling, unschooling, free schools, democratic schools and other forms of alternative education.

Dr. Mark Kling

Dr. Mark Kling, assistant professor of criminal justice for OPS, gave a presentation on Sept. 12 titled Working with the Media in Times of Crisis: Preparing for Adversity for the County of San Bernardino for National Preparedness month. Kling presented two case studies involving the need to effectively communicate with the community.

Leontine Armstrong

Leontine Armstrong, adjunct professor of English, recently completed a master’s degree (her second) in mythological studies with an emphasis in depth psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute in Carpenteria, Ca. She also wrote an article titled A Transformation of Gawain: A Human Experience recently published in the Mythological Studies Journal, Vol. 4, 2013.

Students from CBU’s athletic training program competed in the 2013 Athletic Training Student Challenge to support the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Research & Education Foundation. They won the award for highest endowment contribution, as well as highest contribution from first-time participants.

Dr. Grace Ni

David Bishop

Dr. Anthony Donaldson

Dr. Grace Ni, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, presented a paper titled Use of Online Tools in Teaching C++ Programming to Freshmen in All Engineering Majors at the 5^th annual First Year Engineering Experience (FYEE) conference at Pittsburgh, Pa. Aug. 8-9. The paper was co-authored with David Bishop, assistant professor of software engineering, and Dr. Anthony Donaldson, dean of the College of Engineering.

Personnel Updates