June 26, 2014

In this issue…

• Current News
• Family Updates
• Personnel Updates

Current News

CBU marks milestone with 400^th ISP/USP team in 17 years

California Baptist University sent out its 400^th volunteer service team June 24 with a celebration that included prayer, cake and commemorative T-shirts.

The team, which will work in New York for three weeks, was also the 45^th group of students, faculty and staff of the year and part of the fourth and final wave of International Service Projects (ISP), U.S. Projects (USP) and Summer of Service (SOS)teams for 2014. The last 11 groups for 2014 went to France, Spain, United Kingdom, Japan, Thailand, Central Asia, East Asia, South Asia and Baltimore. This year, more than 400 participants have served in 16 countries.

CBU launched its flagship global mobilization program in 1997. Jared Dobbins, assistant director of mobilization, noted that the university sent out the 100^th team in 2007 and took just seven years to send out another 300 teams.

“California Baptist University trains and sends out more short-term volunteers in the summer than any other university in the country,” said Kristen White, director of global mobilization. The reason CBU has such a strong number of volunteers is because the university is tapping into what God has already put in people, she said.

“They’ve come to CBU to get a professional skill set and we’re saying ‘look, you can use this to be a kingdom professional,’” White explained. “That’s the new phrase we’re really trying to stress. We tell them: ‘Live your purpose by being a kingdom professional. And we don’t just want you to prepare for the world when you graduate, we want you to engage the world while you’re here. We’re not going to just tell you to do it, we’re going to go with you and do it.’”

New students take a Step Ahead

The 2014-15 school year hasn’t started yet, but new students are already finding their way around California Baptist University with Step Ahead.

The Step Ahead events help prepare freshmen and transfer students for the new college experience. At the event, the students register for classes, learn about financial aid, get their student ID picture taken and learn about the resources available to them, such as free tutoring, the Wellness Center and the Recreation Center.

Step Ahead gets the students ready for the fall and also helps them and their parents be comfortable with their college choice, said Rhonda Shackelford, undergraduate admissions visit and events coordinator.

“It’s a great day to get them on our campus, get them registered for classes,” she said. “We try to do our best to make it very welcoming and very inviting, and for them to feel settled that this is the right choice. We want parents and students to be assured that ‘yes, CBU is the right choice for me and my student.’”

They also get to experience college dining by having lunch at the Alumni Dining Commons. At the end of the day, the participants have the option of touring the living areas.

Parents join their student on some of the informational sessions, and they also have their own sessions, such as on school policies and a Q&A with a panel from various areas of student services.

“I think it’s a good transitional point for parents to feel comfortable,” Shackelford said. “Once they leave there, we want parents to feel comfortable about dropping off their students for orientation.”

Although Step Ahead is about a beginning, students and parent will get a glimpse of what the end will look like, Shackelford said. This year, the participants watch a video of students who attended Step Ahead, have graduated and are working.

“We’re really excited that we can showcase people that came to Step Ahead and that now have a job,” she said. “We wanted to be able to show parents at the end of this journey, it works. Our goal is to have that child graduate and get a job and be successful, not only in their career, but growing in their faith and being able to contribute to the body of Christ.”

 

Family Updates

Dr. Mark A. Wyatt, vice president for marketing and communication, was elected recording secretary for the International Association of Baptist Colleges and Universities at the organization’s annual meeting June 1-3 in Charleston, S.C.

 

 

 

 

The College of Allied Health sponsored the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce Good Morning Riverside at The Mission Inn on June 12. CBU faculty and staff joined the morning event and listened to an update from Dr. Chuck Sands, dean of the College of Allied Health. Sands talked about the growing programs and the numerous service opportunities in the CAH, and featured a video recently produced by Eric Mendoza, CBU marketing specialist.

 

The College of Allied Health (CAH) sent off the first global health engagement team June 14. The team, comprised of CAH students and faculty, will be assisting field workers in East Africa and is led by Dr. Sean Sullivan, professor of kinesiology, Dr. Jodi Baker, associate professor of athletic training, and Amy Miller, assistant professor of kinesiology for Online and Professional Studies. Updates from the team can be found at http://calbaptist.blogs.edu/alliedhealth.

 

 

 

 

Nutrition and food sciences students have been presenting the Rethink Your Drink seminar, which encourages people to select healthier beverages, at eight sites this summer. The department of health sciences and College of Allied Health have established an affiliation agreement with the Family Services Association to serve the senior community in Riverside County through course-related activities and service learning in the area of health education and nutrition assessments.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gary Steward, adjunct professor of history and government for Online and Professional Studies, presented a paper May 31 titled Justifying the American Revolution: The American Clergy and Reformed Political Resistance at the Christians in Political Science Conference at Azusa Pacific University.

 

Dr. Tim Mosteller, associate professor of philosophy, participated in the Baptist Association of Philosophy Professors Summer Seminar May 19-23 at the University of Notre Dame. The seminar was led by Dr. John Haldane, professor of philosophy at St. Andrews University, one of the world’s leading Christian philosophers. The topic of the seminar was Analytic Thomism and included formal and informal discussions led by Haldane.

 

 

 

Dr. Daniel Skubik, professor of law, ethics and humanities, was one of 19 faculty competitively selected nationwide to participate June 2–13 in the 2014 Silberman Faculty Seminar in Washington, D.C. Titled Teaching about the Holocaust in the Soviet Union: Perpetrators, Collaborators, Bystanders, and Victims, the meeting was sponsored by the Mandel Center for Advanced Holocaust Studies, at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

 

 

Dr. Dawn Gilmore, assistant professor of music, recently received a doctorate of worship studies degree from the Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies in Orange Park, Fla. Her thesis was titled Developing a Biblical Foundation for Christian Worship Course for the Master of Music Program at California Baptist University.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Anthony Chute, professor of church history, and Dr. Matthew Emerson, assistant professor of Christian ministries for Online and Professional Studies, have published the latest edition of the Journal of Baptist Studies. In addition to articles on significant Baptist people and movements, the journal contains several book reviews solicited through John Gill, assistant professor of Christian ministries for OPS The journal can be accessed at http://baptiststudiesonline.com/the-journal-of-baptist-studies-6-2014/

 

 

Dr. Michael Chute, professor of journalism and program director for journalism and public relations, participated June 18 in a panel discussion on public relations education for about 40 members and guests of the Public Relations Society of America-Inland Empire at the Victoria Club in Riverside. The panel also included faculty from La Sierra University and California State University, San Bernardino. Dr. Mary Ann Pearson, associate professor of public relations for Online and Professional Studies, moderated the panel.

 

 

Dr. Erin Smith, assistant professor of psychology, presented a poster titled Psychological Essentialism Influences Personal Identity Concepts in Chinese and American Children at the Association for Psychological Science’s 26^th Annual Convention held in San Francisco May 22-25.

 

 

 

 

Robert Vis, director of development, received the master of business administration degree from La Sierra University in commencement ceremonies June 15.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Derek Updegraff, assistant professor of English, attended the 49th International Congress on Medieval Studies May 8-11 at Western Michigan University. Updegraff delivered a paper titled Manuscript Layout, Old English Poems, and Visual Lineation: Reassessing the Uses of Aural Verses and Visual Lines in Modern Translation.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Tim Luther, professor of political science, is author of a book titled Jürgen Habermas’s Reconstruction of Modernity: Reconciling Individual Autonomy and Community Solidarity, published recently by Linus Books in New York. He also presented a paper, Shifting from Philosophy to Culture: Rorty’s Deconstruction of Certainty at the Oceanic Popular Culture Association Annual Conference meeting in Riverside May 23 and another paper titled Reconstructing Deconstruction: Derrida’s Messianic Twist at the Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association Annual Conference, which met in San Diego on Nov. 2.

 

 

Dr. David Pearson, professor of kinesiology and faculty athletics representative, recently attended the NCAA Regional Rules Seminar and had lunch with recent graduates of CBU’s sport management graduate program who are working at NCAA member institutions in athletics compliance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kendra Johnson, academic evaluations coordinator, presented a paper titled Online Course Evaluations: How to Achieve an 82 Percent Response Rate at the 2014 Association for Institutional Research FORUM, which met May 28-June 1 in Orlando, Fla.

 

 

 

Dr. Nona Cabral and Dr. Jane McGuire, both associate professors of education, attended a conference May 30 at Azusa Pacific University on Assessment of Children’s Behavioral, Social and Clinical Functioning. The meeting featured Dr. Jerome Sattler, emeritus professor at San Diego State University. Sattler is a diplomate in clinical psychology of the American Board of professional psychology.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christy Walker, daughter of Dr. Deron Walker, professor of English, bowled May 3-4 in the 2014 California Pepsi United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Youth Championship State Finals at Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif. Christy qualified for the state finals with high scores at the USBC regional event in Victorville, where she placed second among 14 qualifying female bowlers in her division, bowing a 423 scratch series and a 738 series with handicap.

 

Karen Heinze, administrative assistant in the College of Architecture, Visual Art and Design, announces the marriage of her son, Clint Heinze (’12) to Phylicia Paulson (’11) in Menifee on March 29.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Personnel Updates