July 3, 2019

In this issue…

• Current News
• Family Updates
• Personnel Updates

Current News

Scores of CBU student athletes awarded academic honors

Lancer Athletics enjoyed great success on the playing field and in the classroom in its first season in NCAA Division I.

A total of 132 Lancers earned Western Athletic Conference (WAC) All-Academic recognition in 2018-19. To be eligible for Academic All-WAC Honors, a student-athlete must have completed at least one academic year at CBU, have at least a 3.2 cumulative grade-point average and have participated in at least 50 percent of the team’s contests.

Overall, CBU’s 18 intercollegiate athletic teams achieved a cumulative 3.355 GPA for the 2018-19 academic year. That figure was greater than the 3.24 GPA for 2017-18, and was an improvement on its previous department best GPA of 3.267 from 2016-17.

“The Lancers put the STUDENT in student-athlete,” said Dr. Micah Parker, director of Athletics. “Not only did our teams have a terrific year in our first year of D-I, they managed their new schedules and set a record for department GPA.”

On the field of competition, CBU logged five top-three WAC finishes in the regular season. Lancers women’s cross-country and baseball teams brought home the university’s first two conference championships in the NCAA Division I era.

Additionally, five CBU teams qualified for postseason tournaments (women’s volleyball, men’s and women’s swimming, and men’s and women’s basketball). Both basketball teams hosted first-round postseason games and both the men’s and women’s water polo teams ended the year ranked in the top-25 in NCAA D-I rankings (men 16th, women 25th).

 

CBU students study historic architecture on trip to Italy

Rebekah Bottjen, a California Baptist University student, was amazed as she walked through the gardens at Villa d’Este and Hadrian’s Villa, both in Italy. She greatly admired all the historic architecture.

“The Hadrian’s Villa is actually ancient Roman ruins, so it felt like I was being transported through time as I was wandering through it,” Bottjen said.

Bottjen was one of nearly 20 Master of Architecture students from CBU who spent five weeks in Italy, visiting and studying a spectrum of architecture through many eras. The trip was coordinated by the College of Architecture, Visual Arts and Design (CAVAD).

“After experiencing everything, I realized that the history of the world abroad has such an amazing impact on our world today,” Bottjen said. “Architecture brings people together in a way we wouldn’t normally realize and the history of Italy shows it well.”

Keelan Kaiser, program director of architecture; Dr. Katherine Papineau, assistant dean in CAVAD; and Dr. David Ogoli, professor of architecture, led the group of students. The team, left for Italy on May 8, and began their tour in Florence, studying medieval and Renaissance art, culture and architecture. The team also traveled to Venice, Vicenza, Verona and ended in Rome, exploring architectural works from the antiquity and Baroque as well as contemporary periods.

“Since the beginning of recorded history, architects have traveled to heritage sites to study and draw the monuments to better understand their craft and how buildings endure. Our students embraced this rite of passage on the ultimate field trip,” Kaiser said.

Along with taking photos, videos and writing blogs, the schedule included 41 drawing sessions.

“That’s really important because sitting still for half an hour and drawing all the details of any particular façade from a Renaissance masterpiece is an educational experience in and of itself,” Kaiser said.

Gerald Portea, an architecture graduate student, said the trip was inspirational.

“Architects can look through history and decipher what things worked and what things did not,” Portea said. “After returning home from this trip, I am more motivated to look throughout architectural history and beyond the architecture of the United States in my studies and my pursuit of architectural licensure, for it will help me learn more methods and techniques so that I can be the best architect I can be.”

 

CBU Language and Literacy Camp serves kids with hearing loss

Graduate students from California Baptist University and a group of children gathered around a makeshift campfire to chat about tasty treats.

“What do you need first to make a s’more?” a CBU student asked. The children responded by communicating using American Sign Language (ASL). Layer by layer, the kids signed each ingredient while preparing their treats, which they proceeded to eat.

The activity was part of the Language and Literacy Camp organized by the Clinical Education Center at CBU. Nineteen children who are deaf or hard of hearing attended. They ranged in age from almost 3 years to 8-year-olds. CBU hosted the free camp that was offered in six sessions over a three-week period in June.

Graduate students from the Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology program led the activities and speech therapy sessions.

“The camp is an enrichment program to foster literacy and literacy awareness,” said Dr. Danette Bonillo, director of the Clinical Education Center.

Children usually sign in ASL, but ASL has different grammatical structures from English, Bonillo said. For example, articles are missing and word order is different in ASL.

“We want them to be aware that written text is different than how they sign,” Bonillo said. “We want to help them learn how to read and write sentences that are grammatically accurate so that can then foster ongoing learning.”

The camp also gives CBU students opportunities to learn about deaf culture and to run a group program, Bonillo said. The students created the lessons, activities and parent handouts.

“We’re empowering our students on how to run groups, how to coordinate and work together as a team to build a successful camp,” Bonillo said. “The other thing I would love for them to get out of this is to meet a need. When you have the ability to create something amazing because there is a need, you need to do it, whether it’s in your comfort zone or not.”

Kelcey Kornek, a CBU graduate student, increased her sign vocabulary while assisting at the camp.

“A challenge is when they sign something we don’t know. And just like any other language, sign has its own dialect,” Kornek said. “The biggest reward has been learning so much sign in such a quick time. I’ve learned a lot and it’s fun to be able to communicate with them.”

Heidi Edwards, a CBU graduate student, said helping the children persevere in communicating was both the biggest challenge and the biggest reward.

“I try to keep them motivated and keep a positive attitude. Once we do work through something, the more times they do that and have success, the more willing they are to keep trying to communicate,” Edwards said.

 

CBU theatre program grows on and off the stage

The stage has gone dark as the theatre program at California Baptist University concluded its fourth annual Courtyard Shakespeare Festival on June 22. The summer production of “Hamlet” and “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead” finished the 2018-19 theatre schedule that featured four additional productions (“Lost in Yonkers,” “She Loves Me,” “Pride and Prejudice” and “Barnum.”).

Frank Mihelich, associate professor of theatre, said he is excited about the growth and direction of the theatre program at CBU.  Mihelich noted that four 2019 theatre graduates were accepted into graduate schools.

“For me, grad school is a sign that we’re doing something right,” Mihelich said. “Let’s get [our students] in front of people because the talent is big at CBU.”

Mihelich said that each year the department aims to improve on previous year’s production quality.

Theatre students work hard on their craft but are also required to work backstage, said Lee Lyons, professor of theatre. Sometimes the students discover they are better at lighting design or makeup than acting, he noted.

“You’re as important as the actor because in that moment, you’re trained to do something and nobody can just step in and do it,” said Lyons of the backstage crew. “Our goal is teaching students, taking their raw material and hopefully seeing real growth.”

Nicole “Koli” Marks, a theatre senior, was the assistant designer for hair and makeup for “Pride and Prejudice.” She was tasked with researching fashion styles of the early 19th century.

Putting on a play is a team effort, Marks said.

“As a performer, you can’t get up on stage unless you have an awesome backstage team,” Marks said.

While the students are at CBU, they are treated as professionals, Mihelich said.

“The American theatre is a tough place to work and make a career,” Mihelich said. “If they are trained to work in the professional American theatre, they will be prepared for whatever the Lord might call them into, be that teaching, drama-therapy, applied theatre or any other number of theatrical endeavors.”

Ryan Lee, a communication studies junior, played the leading role in “Barnum.” From remembering all his lines to doing magic tricks and costume changes, Lee had to work on enhancing his multitasking performance skills.

“Our show is so unique in the fact that it is not just like any other musical. It’s a musical circus,” Lee said.

In April, the theater program at CBU received 27 awards from the Inland Theatre League for its Shakespeare and main stage performances in 2018. The awards came in the categories of acting, set design, costume design, lighting design, musical director and director.

“We’ve got a creative band of people that is allowing us to do high quality work for college theatre,” Lyons said.

Mihelich said adding the Shakespeare Festival has helped grow the students and the reach of the theatre program.

“Shakespeare is the heavy lifting of acting training. If you master Shakespeare, all the other stuff is easier,” Mihelich said. “We have students who through class or the main stage or through the Shakespeare Festival are grappling with the classics more. The classics is like the Miracle-Gro for actors.”

The festival also brings in actors from the community and occasionally professional actors, exposing students to a new level of acting, Lyons said.

“That allows us to bring our acting quality up a bit more and to cast people who bring 30 years of experience as actors in the community.” Lyons said. “For the students, it’s a Shakespeare company where you come in with these small roles and begin to find your way up as the years go by.”

 

Family Updates

Dr. Kendra Flores-Carter, assistant professor of social work, gave a presentation at the San Bernardino County Children’s Network Perinatal Mental Health Training on June 11. The presentation was titled Barriers and Maternal Mental Health Concerns in a Primary Care Setting. The training was done in collaboration with the Inland Empire Maternal Mental Health Collaborative.

 

 

 

Dr. Charles Sands, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, was honored by the Chia Tai International Hospital in Jilin, China, at a celebration on June 17. He has worked with the hospital since 2007 in various roles, including management consultant. His new roles are chief operations consultant and the chief public health consultant.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Mary Ann Pearson, professor of communication, spoke on a panel for a Public Relations Society of America-Inland Empire event held in Riverside on June 19. She shared research on generational diversity in the workplace.

 

 

 

 

Christopher Kern, assistant professor of photography, was master of ceremonies and chairperson for the Insight Exchange Network’s Creative Operations conference in Los Angeles on June 20-21. He was also a speaker and moderator for a panel discussion titled All Things Talent! Managing, Resourcing, and Motivating Creative Staff.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Keith Hekman, associate professor of aerospace, industrial and mechanical engineering, presented a paper at the American Society of Engineering Education 126th annual conference in Tampa, Florida, on June 16. The title was Automated Grading of Microsoft Excel Spreadsheets.

 

 

 

Dale Lee, director for information security and projects for information Technology Services, co-presented two sessions at the Coalition of Christian Colleges and Universities’ Annual Commission on Technology Conference in Wheaton, Illinois, on June 5-6. The first session was a panel discussion titled MultiFactor Authentication: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. The second session was titled Outsourcing Cybersecurity: Two Perspectives.

 

 

 

Dr. Berniece Bruinius Alspach, associate professor of English, took a course at the Digital Humanities Summer Institute in Victoria, B.C., June 3-7. The course was titled Web APIs with Python, in which participants investigated and practiced the use of data analysis in literary studies.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Carol Minton-Ryan, professor of sociology, and Dr. Douglas Wallace, associate professor of sociology, took a group of students in Global Social Service Engagement Practicum to the Netherlands on May 7-16. The group had studied the culture of the Netherlands in the spring 2019. The theme of the practicum was “Loss of a Generation,” focusing on the impact of the Holocaust and contemporary Alzheimer’s therapy. They visited sites such as the Anne Frank Museum, the Corrie ten Boom House and the concentration camp Westerbork. They also visited the Hogeweyk Village, a specially designed village for seniors with dementia.

 

 

Dr. Candace Vickers, associate professor of communication disorders, and two speech-language pathology graduate students, Daniel Castillo and Regina Reyes, assisted at an aphasia awareness event in Brea, California, on June 4. They provided information and resources to persons with aphasia. Additionally, Vickers presented at the Brain Injury and Support Group in Riverside on June 19. The title of her presentation was Working with your amazing brain – Tips after stroke and brain injury. Three students, Castillo, Reyes and Elyssa Oostdyk, provided one-on-one assistance to survivors.

 

 

 

Dr. Veola Vazquez, professor of psychology, had an article published in the journal Mental Health, Religion, and Culture. The title of the article is Relationship stigma and Black-White interracial marital satisfaction. Her co-authors, Isabel Otero and Jennifer Goodlow, are CBU graduates.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Ronald L. Ellis, president of CBU, spoke at a Good Morning Riverside event hosted by the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce on June 13. Ellis presented a campus update to more than 250 attendees.

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Chris Morgan, dean of the School of Christian Ministries, edited Biblical Spirituality (June 30), which addresses spirituality from the perspective of the Bible, exploring topics such as the Trinity; divine sovereignty and human responsibility; and the church. Additionally, Morgan, Dr. Anthony Chute, professor of church history, Dr. Greg Cochran, professor of applied theology, and Ben Skaug, adjunct professor of Christian ministries, wrote chapters for the book.

 

 

Evan Lo, assistant director of operations/technology for Enrollment Services, was named employee of the month for July. His nomination included the following statements: “Evan is quick to help everyone in need in the department. Evan is always willing to expand his duties as our needs grow and he does so with joy and excellence. He is also being trained on new responsibilities. And he has taken every new aspect of his job with eagerness and determination.”

 

 

 

Dr. Deron Walker, professor of English, had an article published in the journal Educational Review (June 2019). It was co-authored with Dr. Soung Hwa Walker, adjunct professor of psychology, and titled Empowering care in the inner-city: Meeting standards with high expectations.  

 

 

 

 

Dr. Kathryn Short, professor of education, took part in the Autism Researchers 2019 Roundtable Panel webinar on June 27. She spoke on her research focusing on an examination of the effect of the use of NAO, a humanoid robot, as a communication tool for preschool children diagnosed with autism.

 

 

 

Dr. Joe Way, director of multimedia services for information technology services, recorded an episode of Higher Ed AV podcast live from the InfoComm 2019, the AV industry’s largest trade show, in Orlando, Florida, on June 12. He also was a guest on the Church Tech Weekly podcast, Church Tech Weekly Episode 305: Producing Worship; on the Trade Show Minute podcast by rAVe Publications, Joe Way Of California Baptist University; and on the AV Road House podcast, AV Road House [Resurrection] Episode 1: Welcome Back My Friends to the Show That Never Ends (Part 1).”

 

 

Andrew Cress, institutional effectiveness coordinator for Academic Affairs, presented a paper at the Tyndale Fellowship Conference in Cambridge, England, on June 28. The title of the paper was Exorcism and the Kingdom of God in the Ministry of Jesus: An Open Question.

 

 

 

Dr. Terri Thompson, associate professor of nursing, was the keynote speaker at the 53rd World Congress of Nursing and Health Care in Brisbane, Australia, on June 21-22. The presentation was titled Preconception Health Education and the Impact on Maternal and Newborn Health Outcomes. She was also selected as the chair for the conference sessions.

 

 

 

Jennifer Zamora, assistant professor of physician assistant studies, completed a faculty program at the Teaching Excellence Academy of the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine in May. The program is open to faculty of any university who are recommended and who wish to learn about evidence-based medicine and also conduct clinical and academic research.

 

 

 

 

Dr. Erin Smith, associate professor of psychology, and her husband, Raider (’11, ’12), welcomed a son on May 22. Lincoln James Smith weighed 8 pounds, 15 ounces and measured 21.5 inches. He joins sisters Evelyn, 6, and Penelope, 4.

 

 

 

 

 

Dr. Michelle Nielsen Hernandez, associate professor of mathematics, and her husband, Josue Hernandez, welcome a daughter on June 10. Isabella McKenzie Hernandez weighed 6 pounds, 2 ounces and measured 18.5 inches.

 

 

 

Personnel Updates