Boxer & Badger Notes

Alumna Returns to Serve Alma Mater

2012-02-21T16:10:00.003-08:00

If you had asked me or anyone who knew me freshman year if I would still be at Pacific University now six years later, you’d hear an eruption of snickers and laughter.
Without even visiting campus, and only spending a long weekend in the state of Oregon a few years prior, I took a gamble.

I grew up on Cape Cod in Massachusetts and to defy my parents’ push to attend a university, Pacific was the furthest and only school accepting of me. I had East Coast written all over me: white polo shirt, popped collar, tucked into my cuffed jeans with a pink and chartreuse printed flip-flop patterned belt. I looked like a tourist.

Three years later, and a lot of shredded up transfer paperwork, homesickness, and lasting friendships, I brought my senior year schedule to the registrar office. I kept telling myself, “well, you got through one semester and it wasn’t so bad, just do one more.” Submitting that senior schedule was me finally admitting, “I am a Boxer.”

Something that made me feel like I had a purpose, other than getting an education, was having a job on campus. I was a student worker in the Office of Alumni Relations every year and gradually increased my responsibility into something resume worthy. Some degrees don’t have specific future careers out there to pick from and for a Creative Writing major, I had to be even more creative.

Becoming the Communications Assistant for Alumni Relations, along with interning at university events such as Homecoming and the Masters in Fine Arts of Writing residency, gave more meaning to my degree’s stereotype of adjectives and sonnets. But, and that’s a big but, I wish I did more networking.

I wouldn’t describe myself as shy, but I was intimidated by people who have a stable career. I mean, who was I? Some transplant from the East Coast with no set career path just a thesis filled with essays that had a lot of typos. I was one of many college graduates without a clue.

Most people doubt their career path. Some transfer to new careers, just like majors, because it doesn’t jive with them anymore. That’s normal; there are valuable skills you can learn by taking a gamble. A degree is a specialty, but it’s not everything. Sometimes I forgot that I earned a liberal arts education, not just a Creative Writing degree.

So after bartendering for six years, volunteering at masquerade balls and charity road races, and selling a lot of wedding gowns and tiaras, I have returned back to Forest Grove still with a collared shirt, but it’s black with a red emblem. It’s been fun finding my strengths and weaknesses at dead end jobs, but I’m ready to start my career with non-profit public relations back at Pacific University.

Rachael Burbank '09 wrote this as a guest piece of the Pacific Index issue on Feb. 16, 2012. She is the Alumni Relations Coordinator for the Office of Alumni Relations. You can contact her at rburbank@pacificu.edu or 503-352-2969. She also volunteers with a melanoma awareness nonprofit, The Glenna Kohl Fund for Hope: www.glennasfund.org

Pacific Student Comments on Preventing Childhood Obesity

2011-11-14T12:34:00.000-08:00

By Jenna Boundy
Originally for the News-Register

Last fall I had the wonderful opportunity to complete a clinical internship at Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. The facility provided a healthy lifestyles clinic where a physical therapist, physician, psychologist and dietician collaborate to provide care for children who are overweight and/or obese. Two of our patients were 10 and 11 year-old sisters. Each weighed around 170 pounds and showed early signs of Type II diabetes.
After my visit with these young girls, I wondered about the future health struggles they will endure over their lifetimes if they do not make changes early. Not yet teenagers, they may have to worry about multiple daily insulin shots. By age 40, they may face peripheral neuropathy, blindness or amputation.

I give a lot of credit to the healthy lifestyles clinic to help overweight/obese children and their families adopt healthy behaviors. Unfortunately, we are not promoting prevention of childhood obesity at early ages. Obesity at any age can cause cardiovascular disease, many forms of cancer, Type II diabetes and hypertension, all of which will greatly increase medical costs. Being an advocate and a positive role model for your own children and the children in our community is essential. It is the only way we will create change and reduce the obesity epidemic.

Since, 1980 childhood obesity rates have tripled. Currently, 17 percent of children ages 2-19 are obese nationwide (www.cdc.gov). Many overweight children often are not given the opportunity to develop a lifestyle of balanced, healthy meals and physical activity that they enjoy. There are many reasons and barriers why obesity levels have risen over the past 30 years. We can blame it on an abundance of processed foods, a decrease in the physical activity provided in our schools, the increase in screen time and prevalence of sedentary jobs, increase in the cost of food, the decreased time we have to be active and cook healthy meals. The list goes on. The great thing is we have control to solve some of the issues which have led to the high obesity rates, while others provide opportunity for adaption.

Here are some tips to help build a well-rounded healthy lifestyle for you and your family.

• Instead of watching TV every night, go for a family walk. You can always record or watch your show online later. If you live in a neighborhood that is not conducive for family walks, ride your bikes or drive to a school track for some quality exercise time.

• Take the time to cook a nutritious meal. Many websites offer healthy, low-cost recipes that are easy to fix. If you don’t have access to a computer, use the local public library’s computers or check out a cookbook.

• Sit down as a family for dinner time. Multiple studies have shown that eating together as a family not only decreases obesity rates, but can also build a positive support system.

• Limit screen time (TV and computers) to less than 1 hour per day. Evidence shows that increased screen time increases the risk of obesity.

• Decrease the amount of time you sit at work. Stand up to do some of your work and walk during your breaks and lunch.

• Make a contract. Contracts make us accountable for our actions. As a family, sign contracts stating all the realistic changes you want to make in your life.

• Create a reward system. A great family motivator may be a visit to a water park, a family hike or a day trip at the beach. All of these activities are fun and promote a continuation of physical activity.
With the new school year starting, I challenge you to make healthy changes in your life. Not only will you be happier with yourself, you’ll be a great role model for your family and our community. Become a catalyst that will empower others to make changes and decrease the risk of obesity. Just remember to make little changes every day, create realistic goals and be accountable for your actions. Be the change!

Guest writer Jenna Boundy currently is a third-year physical therapy student at Pacific University. She will graduate in May 2012 with a doctorate in the subject. After graduation, she plans to work in the realm of orthopaedics and hopes one day to provide low-cost preventive services that will reduce the risk of childhood and adult obesity.

Pharmacy Graduate Uses His Skills to Give Back

2011-11-02T12:31:00.000-07:00

By Dr. Payam Ghorbani

Founder and President
of the Tati Tati Foundation

The mission of the Tati Tati Foundation is to provide food, educational material, and support to those in need of these services, as well as information regarding graduate programs, career choices, and many other educational disciplines.

Tati Tati fosters learning and academic excellence by working with a variety of individuals. Each of these individuals come from a different cultural and career background, which makes our members so valuable. Our sole purpose is to create a safe, fulfilling, and academically enriching environment for students.

Similar to many others in my profession, I have always wanted to do what I could to help people. I considered every career choice possible that I felt would be rewarding to me, but due to an unfortunate illness that occurred in my family, I was drawn towards the healthcare profession. Suddenly, my goals were clear to me, and I knew exactly what I wanted to accomplish.

Not long ago, a great opportunity was presented to me. My elder sister, who was at the time completing her rotations in Domincan Republic suggested a community service project for us to participate in. The project involved providing patient assistance and helping out in her hospital in Dominican Republic. Due to the poverty level in the city she was in, an extra set of hands within the hospital could be quite helpful. The experience was rich and rewarding, and only motivated me even more.

In 2009, my siblings and I, along with our dedicated friends founded Tati Tati Foundation meaning step by step. We had a vision of what we wanted this organization to represent. It was to provide healthcare and educational assistance to patients and also continue to educate the next generation of healthcare providers as they are our future. Every step we take makes a difference, even if it’s just one. Step by step, and hand in hand, we have continued with this journey and I am honored to have worked with such great individuals.

I’d like to take the rest of this blog post, to thank the people that made this dream come true--Aram Ghorbani, Pharm.D. Candidate; Elham Ghorbani, M.D.; Raman Dadayan, Pharm.D.; Pejman Mesdaghi, Pharm.D.; Tu Nguyen, Pharm.D.; Raphael Resto Vazquez, M.D.; Samuel martinez Jimenez, M.D.; Ebuwa Joy Obaski, M.D. Candidate.

www.tatitati.org

University Fundraiser Encourages Pacific Students Involvement and Reflects on her College Experience

2011-10-06T10:02:00.000-07:00

By Denise Banh

If you had asked me when I first started college what I wanted to do with my life, I had two answers: a CEO for a high powered company or a housewife. Yes, yes, I know those things are not even remotely related, but I guess when you first start out you really have no idea what you actually want to do. Now, it’s more than four years later and I find myself as the Annual Giving & Alumni Relations Coordinator at this fine institution. Am I disappointed I’m not headed in the direction of either of my original choices? Not even a little bit.

In my freshman year of college I applied to work at the Phonathon at my now alma mater. Sexy headsets, tons of snacks, and the highest paying job on campus? I was down. But, sometime in the following four years, something happened. Working for the Phonathon wasn’t about my hourly wage and on-job perks anymore. I was doing something greater than myself. I was making a difference. Now, I know that sounds exceptionally cheesy but it’s true. I fell in love with philanthropy.

What is philanthropy? Ask me that four years ago and I could have presented you some vague definition probably not worthy of print. That’s something I’ve slowly learned through the years. Philanthropy comes in many forms and manifests differently for each person. Etymologically it means the love of humanity. But, let me tell you what it means to me. Philanthropy is the desire to better mankind, to better the life of at least one person. And I’m not talking about world changing, barrier crushing, world peace kind of betterment but the philanthropy that reaches people on an everyday level. Although, if you could find a way to bring world peace to fruition, that would be great too. It can be a monetary contribution to a cause you believe in, time spent supporting the causes close to your heart, donations of supplies and equipment for those who are without. The possibilities are endless. You just have to find the right fit.

Now, I’m not saying that being a CEO or a housewife would not allow me to lead a philanthropic life, but I realized that my passions are now elsewhere. At Pacific, 93 percent of students receive financial aid. A part of those funds come from generous gifts from alumni, parents and friends of this University. I love that I can say that my job (along with my amazing team) is to work every day to make that happen. Education is the cause closest to my heart and that is where I found my fit.

An element of philanthropy I would like to highlight is the importance of being involved. My family is Chinese but both my parents were born in Vietnam. During the war, they left Vietnam and became citizens of the United States. More than 20 years later, my dad recently decided to move back to Vietnam and I couldn’t really understand why. He said, “It’s lonely in the US. People drive in their own cars, to their own offices, and return to their own homes. It’s lonely.” A couple years ago I had the amazing opportunity to study for a semester in Vietnam and I understood what he meant. Apart from the fact that the density of people in Vietnam far outnumbers that of Portland, there was a greater sense of involvement among the people. You knew everything about your neighbors, you leant a hand when they were in need, you almost did not have the choice to be lonely. There was a greater sense of community among the people and I found that to be an amazing thing.

What I love about Pacific is that there is already a great sense of community among the students, faculty, staff, and other community members. But, we can always be more involved. Looking back, I definitely wish I was more involved at my college. Talking with other students in my graduating class, I realized I missed out on so many opportunities to not only make a difference at the school though governance but I also missed the opportunity to get to know the other people in the community.

The world is filled with almost 7 billion people. It would be impossible to know everyone, but there’s absolutely no harm in trying. I am a fairly well traveled individual and the number of amazing people I’ve met around the world surprises me every time I think about it. The number of breathtaking experiences those people have brought me means the world to me. Sometimes I forget that there are just as many amazing people in my immediate community and those people also have amazing experiences to offer.

So, take it from me. Be more involved on campus, join a club, meet new people, gain new experiences, take everything this world has to offer but never forget to give back.

Pacific Alumni Gives Back as Student Psychologist

2011-09-21T14:23:00.000-07:00

By Jeff Guardalabene

These days, I spend my time as a staff psychologist in Pacific's Student Counseling Center. I love my job. I love working with students, love my co-workers, love being on campus. I graduated with my doctorate in clinical psychology in 2001, and I've considered myself part of the Pacific family ever since I enrolled in 1996. My time here, however, no matter how cherished it has been, has really been the result of random chance and the most careless career planning in the history of employment. When I sit down with a student who is agonizing over a class-scheduling choice, or wondering whether to switch majors, I can't help but think back to how I got here. I think about The Phone Call That Changed Everything.

In 1986 the Mets were being amazin' again, the Reagan Era was sputtering to a finish, and I was working in a small public TV station in Medford and wondering what the heck I was going to do with my life. I'd tried college on and off for the last decade. I'd held jobs of all kinds, from managing a fast-food place to working in a lumber mill and everything in between. And I mean everything. At one point I made my daily bread by keeping an eye on (read: sleeping in my car) a stack of wooden pallets during a summer arson spree. I worked at a car wash. I hit the "pause" button on a rich guy's VCR during the Winter Olympics one year. Everything.

One day at work, the phone rang just as I was getting off shift at the TV station. I hesitated to answer it, not being the hardest-working guy in show business at that time. But, on a whim, I picked it up. It was a guy looking for someone "who knew how to use a camera," as he was shooting a low-budget movie. I volunteered. We made the movie. That summer, I went to LA to get paid for making the movie, unleashing the chain of events that led me where I am today, typing up this post.

In rapid (and not-so-rapid) succession, the following things resulted from that phone call. I met up with a friend in LA. After one particularly long evening of celebrating our aimlessness we agreed to sell everything we owned and move to Portland, where my sister lived and ostensibly waited for us to come mooch off of her. I had forgotten all about our plans by the next morning. He hadn't. I got a call from him a week later, letting me know that he had sold everything he owned and was on his way up I-5. I responded to my panic by selling everything I owned and quitting my job. We moved to Portland, slept on a few couches, got a place, found jobs. I worked in TV for the next decade, growing tired of it, and decided to finish my bachelor's degree. That wasn't enough. I applied to grad school. If I'd have known how remote my chances were, I'd have never applied. But I was blissfully ignorant, and was accepted to Pacific's School of Professional Psychology.

Five years later, I graduated. Seven years after that, I heard of an opening in the Counseling Center by complete chance. There were just a few days left in the job posting. I applied. Had I known how many applicants there were for the job, I may have never even tried. I got the job.

Some days, when I'm sitting with a student and they're writhing with stress, trying to figure out a big decision, I tell them that sometimes the biggest decisions are the ones we never give much thought. You know, like whether or not to pick up the phone.

Jeff is a regular blogger. Check out his blog at drjeffblog.blogspot.com.

Old Stories, New Dreams

2011-08-24T11:39:00.000-07:00

Tonya Macalino '96

Tonya Macalino '96, BA in Creative Writing, English Literature, Philosophy, and Foreign Language

As a novelist, I’ve always believed that integrating the folk stories of the past into our future-facing lives makes them richer, more meaningful—a glass of nuanced wine as opposed to a bottle of syrupy grape juice. As such, I am forever looking for patterns in the stories people tell me, looking for ways to intertwine them and create something new.

In the course of developing my writing career, I ran into a pattern in my own story.

The rejections grew kinder, the critiques less bloody every year. But on the submissions front, the speculative fiction agents and publishing houses grew fewer; the major bookstores teetered more violently with the passing of those same years. And the ereaders started showing up in the hands of Trimet commuters.

I saw the pattern, but what did it mean for my writing career?

So like any good researcher these days, I got on the Internet. More patterns: Amazon buys Createspace, the print-on-demand house; develops its own Kindle’s direct publishing platform. Barnes & Noble follows suit with its Nook direct publishing platform. But that was self-publishing! That was vanity press for suckers and the self-delusional! No, my life-long goal was the lofty validation of the industry powerhouses.

And then I saw the first established author jump ship, abandoning their publisher to go it alone. Others followed. Another pattern. Ebook sales had begun to overtake print. These authors asked questions that had already been whispering in my ear: Why earn twenty-five cents a book when you could be earning two dollars (or more)? Why relinquish creative control to a publisher? Why resign yourself to disappointing cover art? Between ebooks and print-on-demand, those questions grew in power.

But wait! I demanded. You people already have the audiences your publishers built for you. You’re cheating!

More pattern: Most first time authors handle all their own marketing. And many of these authors never make it past the first book, because of an outdated print-run model favored by the publishing industry. They never have the chance to develop the audience they may very well deserve.

It took time, but eventually I conceded that future technology had layered over the landscape on which I’d built my dreams. It had placed a new setting on an old story. It would call on me to bring to bear my old mythology of communications and events manager, project coordinator, and entrepreneur on a story that I had once thought would simply unfold before me, guided by hands greater than my own.

I guess I should have known better.

And I think I like it better this way.

If you want to know more, be sure to join me on Tuesday, August 30th in The Artfull Garden at 222 E Main St in historic downtown Hillsboro for the inaugural book signing and reception for SPECTRE OF INTENTION, my latest futuristic paranormal thriller released June 2011. You can also reach me at www.facebook.com/TonyaMacalino and at www.tonyamacalino.com.

Boxer Book Club | Reading Response Questions

2011-08-16T09:50:00.000-07:00

If you've read or are reading our current selection for the book club, Zeitoun, please share your thoughts and spark a discussion!

Zietoun | Reading Response Question 1

2011-08-16T09:47:00.000-07:00

1. What lessons does this novel offer? What lessons do you think it is trying to teach its readers, our government and American citizens?

Zietoun | Reading Response Question 2

2011-08-16T09:45:00.000-07:00

2. How did the experiences you had with this real-life event (including visiting the city, talking with acquaintances in New Orleans, reading news reports, seeing the destruction on television, being present when it happened or shortly after) affect your reading of the novel? What influenced you the most?

Zietoun | Reading Response Question 3

2011-08-16T09:42:00.000-07:00

3. How did the author's writing create sympathy for the main character and his family?

Zietoun | Reading Response Question 4

2011-08-16T09:41:00.000-07:00

4. In this novel, what symbols reoccur to create the mood and support the theme of the novel?

Pacific Graduate Starts Her Own Company to Help the Developmentally Disabled

2011-07-26T08:58:00.000-07:00

Sasha (Storm) Vidales, Pacific Class of 2003, BA in Psychology; Marylhurst MBA Class of 2011

With a BA in Psychology, an almost-completed MBA under my belt, and a lay-off ahead of me, I knew it was time for a career change. Anticipating my lay off, I had started looking for work, but was frustrated by the lack of interesting and challenging jobs. I decided to start my own company.

Having worked in social services for over a decade, I envisioned an organization which did things differently: working with clients’ intrinsic motivation, integrating technology and multi-media learning, and providing services in natural community-based settings. These ideas came together as I opened Creative Goal Solutions, an organization providing motivation, education and training to adults with developmental disabilities. While many services focus on the use of behaviorism, I have decided to focus more heavily on motivational strategies and multi-sensory learning to achieve results. In a short time, I have noticed very encouraging results from this approach.

The process of starting my own company has been an exciting way to combine my education in Psychology and my recent MBA with my diverse experience. In developing programming and curriculum, I am able to “test” the psychological and business theory that I have learned through both educational programs.

Currently, I offer four programs to clients. The Community Involvement Program engages clients in their communities through volunteerism, physical activity, and neighborhood exploration. Education focuses on social skills, community navigation, and strengthening community ties. I offer an RSVP program which allows clients to engage in evening and weekend community activities which fit their schedule. The Self-Employment in the Creative Arts program (SECA) provides visual artists, musicians and writers, and crafts the training, networking and technical assistance they need to be self-employed artists. Finally, Independent Living classes educate clients on all the topics they need to live successfully on their own. From Small Appliance Cooking and Basic Home Repair to Conversation Skills and Sexual Health and relationship topics, we arm clients with the information, confidence, and motivation to achieve independence.

Three weeks after opening my doors, I employed two Skills Trainers and am at full client capacity, and am looking to expand soon. In a job market with sometimes limited opportunities, it has been highly rewarding to venture out on my own. I look forward to the challenge and possibilities of this new adventure.

For more information, visit www.creativegoalsolutions.org

Boxer Book Club | Reading and Discussion Questions

2011-07-06T13:40:00.000-07:00

Lean on Pete

1. One of the main characters of this novel is an animal, a horse. How is this character developed? How is he developed differently than a human character? How does this primary equine character affect the development of the novel?

2. What literary devices does the author use to evoke sympathy for Charley?

3. The novel partly takes place at the Portland racetrack and in local surrounding areas. What landmarks mentioned in the novel do you recognize?

4. This novel has been described as a "modern retelling of Huckleberry Finn." Do you agree or disagree? Why?

Pacific's Class Trip to Vancouver BC: Year 21

2011-07-06T12:02:00.000-07:00

By Stephanie Haugen '12

A couple weeks ago, I returned from Vancouver BC with a new excitement for continuing my education and the possibilities for my chosen career path.

I participated in Pacific’s photography field class in its 21^st year. The intense week-long workshop was more valuable that I could have ever anticipated. I learned so much in that one week—as much as I could’ve learned in an entire semester.

While in Vancouver, we got to experience A LOT. These experiences were both fun and eye-opening.

The week we spent in Vancouver BC was intense. We started early and ended late. We shot all day, and uploaded and edited our photos when we returned to our rooms at night.

Upon our arrival, most of us were shocked by the size and atmosphere of the University of British Columbia, where we were going to be staying. In stark contrast to Pacific, UBC is big and bustling, looks like a city, and is located right on the coast. It was educational to be able to experience college life in such a startlingly different way. In that week, we all got a taste for what it would be like to attend a university that is opposite to Pacific in many ways.

The next day was a full day. We visited the Buddhist temple and the Japanese gardens. Both were beautiful and educational in their own ways. Both offered a look into another culture while providing the opportunity to take great photographs.

Throughout our trip, we visited more tourist destinations including the Bloedel Floral Conservatory where we photographed exotic birds and flowers, and the Museum of Anthropology where we got to see and take pictures of ancient artwork.

We also visited Stanley Park, where we waited until it got dark, looked across the water and photographed the Vancouver skyline. While we perfected our nighttime photography skills, we also bonded with each other and viewed the breathtaking city from another angle.

My favorite parts of the trip were the spur-of-the-moment ones. We went to Granville Island where the indoor market, resembling Seattle’s Pike Place, bustles with people and the flavor of different foods, products and cultures. The market opens up onto the docks where seagulls fly and beg for scraps of food, families eat their market meals, street musicians sing (in French when we happened to be there), and brightly colored water taxis take customers from dock to dock. The joy of the market shows on everybody’s face, making them prime photographic subjects.

Each individual had their own favorite stops, but I think all of us left with new photography skills and an appreciation for each others’ talents.

My trip to Vancouver BC will always stand out as one of my favorite and most influential memories from my time at Pacific University.

MFA Life: Maisha Johnson

2011-06-22T13:24:00.000-07:00

I'm here in the adorable town of Forest Grove, Oregon for my MFA residency at Pacific University. It's my first residency, my first visit to Oregon. Actually, it's a lot of firsts for me, and it's every bit as exciting as I anticipated.

A few highlights of my reflections after the first few days:

The campus is lovely.

I just got back from a really great reading by Ann Hood, Dorianne Laux and Craig Lesley. I spent the first half listening with tears in my eyes, the second half laughing the tears away, and the walk back to my room thinking about how lucky I am to be studying with these insanely talented people.

Our spirit animal. The fierce Boxer.

Today I survived my first poetry workshop, and without any tears! Workshops continue over the next few days, though, so we'll see if that "no tears" thing holds. Just kidding - it's going to be fine, my workshop members and leaders are fabulous and we're all supporting each other through it.

I'm learning a lot from this guy.

I definitely feel like I made the right choice in the Poetry program. With faculty like Kwame Dawes, Dorianne Laux and Marvin Bell, how can I go wrong? My workshop leaders are Kwame and Ellen Bass, and I'm eagerly awaiting word about who my advisor will be for the semester. I'm also glad to be able to sit in on enlightening craft talks with the fiction and nonfiction faculty.

Everyone, including faculty, staff and returning students, has been wonderful about welcoming me and the other first semester students. Today I listened to two graduating students present their theses and describe their journey through the program, from the moment I'm experiencing now to this summer's final residency. It was all incredibly inspiring, and I have a whole lot to look forward to.

I'll have more soon, including reflections on what I'm learning and more photos of the beautiful campus. For now, I'm heading to bed early to rest up for another long day tomorrow. Whew!

Visit Maisha's blog at http://www.maishazjohnson.com/index.html and look for future posts about her experiences as a Pacific MFA student.

Ashley Culver ’09 and Mandy Littlewood '07 Travel to China

2011-05-18T13:11:00.000-07:00

By Ashley Culver '09

Ashley Culver '09 (left) and Mandy Littlewood '07 (right)

Mandy Littlewood ’07 and I are graduating in May with a Master’s in Occupational Therapy from Pacific’s School of Occupational Therapy. As part of our degree requirement to complete an “innovative practice project,” we have teamed up to develop a sustainable therapy program at an orphanage (the Social Welfare Institute) in Fuling, China. We are traveling to China this July with an interprofessional team from Pacific to provide therapy to children with special needs living at the orphanage, and to train the orphanage’s caregivers.

The Social Welfare Institute (SWI) is located in China’s countryside and is home to a growing number of children, particularly children with disabilities. Cerebral palsy, autism, down syndrome, and various other mental disabilities not well diagnosed are common conditions seen at the orphanage today. Many caregivers within the orphanage have limited knowledge and experience working with developmental disabilities and do not have the training to take care of them. The therapy team is creating a therapeutic program for SWI to help the children progress as much as possible toward educational and academic, physical, social, and cognitive independence.

Collaboration between Pacific University and the orphanage began in 2009, when the therapy team began partnering with Fuling Kids International (FKI), a 501(c) 3 U.S registered not-for-profit organization who partners with the orphanage to provide education and support. Kathlene Postma, an English professor at Pacific’s College of Arts & Sciences, is the co-founder and board chair for FKI. She contacted Mandy with concerns of the increasing number of children with disabilities living at the orphanage. From here, Mandy introduced Kathlene to the OT professors, and the collaboration began to grow. Over the past two years, occupational therapy professors Sandra Rogers and Sandra Pelham-Foster, and physical therapy professor Nancy Cicirello have visited the orphanage and a nearby hospital to provide initial therapy services to the children. This year, the team has grown and will now include Pacific’s director and professor of special education, Chris Macfarlane. Mandy and I will be the first students to join this team of professionals.

Mandy and Ashley have been preparing for their trip to China by learning about the Chinese culture and common Chinese views about disabilities. Our goal is to create and implement a culturally sensitive therapy program that meets the needs of the children and the caregivers. We are currently raising funds to supplement travel costs and welcome any donations.

To learn more about their project and to make a donation, please visit the website at: http://ashleymandyfki.yolasite.com

Book Club to Read Oregon Book Award Selection

2011-05-04T15:18:00.000-07:00

The Boxer Book Club has selected Lean on Pete for its next novel and encourages the Pacific community to read, enjoy and engage in a discussion about the text.

Lean on Pete recently won the Oregon Book Award's Ken Kesey Award for Fiction and the Reader's Choice Award. The author, Willy Vlautin, currently resides in Scappoose. He includes his passion for horse racing in this award-winning novel as a young man struggles with poverty.

Lean on Pete is Vlautin's latest work and is leaving an impact.

Emmy-Award Winning Kwame Dawes Visits Pacific

2011-03-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

Kwame Dawes is an Emmy Award winner for his interactive website "Live Hope Love: Living and Loving with AIDS in Jamaica." He is the author of numerous novels spanning genres including fiction, non-fiction and drama as well as books of poetry.

Dawes spent most of his childhood in Jamaica which has influenced many of his works. He is considered an authority on Bob Marley's work. His book, Bob Marley: Lyrical Genius, studies the artist's lyrics. His critical analysis of Caribbean Literature, African Literature and race issues is published in numerous publications worldwide. In addition, Dawes has acted in and produced a number of his 15 plays.

Join us on April 5, 2011, for his visit to Pacific Forest Grove campus as part of the university's Visiting Writers Series. Members of the Pacific community will have the opportunity to participate in a reading of his works and a question and answer session. The is free and open to the public.

Current Student Challenges Comfort Zone

2011-03-10T13:02:00.000-08:00

I come from Kailua-Kona, Hawai’i. I have a native Japanese mother and an American father (from California).

As I grew up, I was fortunate to have parents who found it essential to be able to communicate with my Japanese family. They chose to raise me learning both English and Japanese since birth. I have been lucky to be able to visit my Japanese family steadily throughout my life and to be immersed in the language and culture of both Japan and Hawai’i.

However, as I grew up, I never had much of a chance to visit my father’s side of the family on the mainland very often. So when I first came to Pacific University I had the natural shock, which many Hawaiians do, of the cultural differences between Hawai’i and mainland United States.

Although Hawai’i is part of the United States, I was able to see a very big difference in the lifestyles of those who live here and those back home. This may be true for everybody when they go off to college, but because of the remnants of the native Hawaiian culture, Hawai’i has a culture of its own. Although it’s not the strongest example, Pacific’s lu’au does give some idea of certain cultural aspects of what I am used to at home.

However, I can’t say I was completely shocked by the difference in lifestyles. My father’s parents, who are originally from New York, lived down the road from me and would occasionally watch my siblings and me while my parents were at work. They always stressed the importance of education and the power of knowledge. They walked the walk just was well as they talked the talk.

They would tell us stories of the places they had been and the people they had met, and they emphasized the importance of leaving home to truly understand and learn more about the world we live in, stories that made me want to go explore, learn, and experience for myself.

So here I am, thousands of miles from home, a Hawaiian, Japanese, and an American who is learning about the world through exploration, education, and experience. I am an International Business and Japanese double major and since being here I have taken advantage of being in the mainland and traveling in and around Oregon.

Have you stepped out of your comfort zone lately?

Leilani H. Powers ‘13 holds an internship as marketing assistant in the Office of Alumni Relations. She chronicles her adventures on her personal website.

Sydney's Night Colors

2011-03-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

When I was a junior at Pacific, I decided to do a travel abroad semester in Australia. Why Australia? Well, first of all, I was very curious about the Australian culture and landscape, given its significant isolation throughout history. Secondly, Australians spoke English, which I needed since I wasn’t a language minor or major. Lastly, and most importantly of all, I wanted to meet Bianca and Bernard from Disney’s Rescuers Down Under (just kidding!).

All that aside, I must say that my experience in Australia completed my college experience. It broadened my vision of what was beyond my own country, and presented me with new friendships and experiences. I studied at Flinders University in Adelaide, South Australia, and met a wide range of international students, while getting the chance to take some very specialized history courses in genocide and Australian history.

Before I flew back to Hawaii, I stopped over in Sydney for four nights. I felt like my Australian experience wouldn’t be complete without Sydney, and was determined to explore the city to the fullest of my ability during the four days. With camera and map I hand, I embarked on an adventure each morning, leaving at 8 a.m. and returning around 9 p.m. I went inside the Sydney Opera House, which apparently two-thirds of the world’s population can identify. I took rides on the famous Sydney Harbor ferries, exploring several beaches that give Hawaii a run for its money. I walked through downtown Sydney, watching street performers playing didgeridoos and selling CDs. But the experience that stood out the most to me was my night exploration of the city.

On Friday night, I decided to shoot long exposures of the Sydney Skyline from a remote viewpoint in the Botanical Gardens. I huffed it over to the location with my tripod and camera, just in time to get the turquoise dusk light. I took some 30 second exposures, but had to time them because boats would pass through the frame and ruin the shot. After I got the shots I wanted, I prepared to leave, but realized there was a tiny, little problem.

Security had closed down the park! I frantically tried to find a way out, but all the main gates were closed. Being locked in a park at night is one thing, but being locked in a park at night, in a foreign country is quite another. I was weighing my options when I saw a jogger going by. She must know the way out! I thought, and tried to see where she was going. Sure enough, a few minutes later, she went out a small, side entrance that only the locals would know about. I was overjoyed, and followed the path to freedom. As soon as I stepped out, I realized I was in a district of Sydney I had never seen, and spent the next hour and half, wandering past Friday night parties, trying to find my way back to the hotel. Got back around 11 p.m., totally exhausted, but totally stoked about the skyline images.

The next night went a lot better, and I was very fortunate to watch a fireworks show over the Opera House! I also got to see the colorful night lights of the Circular Quay, the central hub of night life in Sydney Harbor. My camera was snapping like crazy, but I also made sure to spend some time taking in the sights myself. Sometimes, you get so caught up in trying to photograph all the cool sights around you that you forget to savor the moment, the fleeting slice of time, in which you are surrounded by beauty. But I savored that moment. And looking back, I’m glad I did.

Reese Moriyama '10 holds a degree in history and uses photography to become more observant and appreciative of the world. When he is not photographing weddings or simply daily life in Honolulu Reese is pursuing a graduate degree. More of Reese's work can be viewed on his blog Observe. Compose. Capture.

Pacific Alumna Teaches in South Korea

2011-03-02T09:07:00.000-08:00

"Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step." – Martin Luther King Jr.

Suffering fresh jetlag, I was jolted awake by the cruel sound of my alarm clock. It was my first day teaching at a private school in South Korea and I wanted to make a good impression. The dress I put on came straight from the suitcase I had packed in Oregon three days earlier. For breakfast, I ate cold tofu because it was the only familiar food I recognized.

With butterflies in my stomach, I said silently to myself “be brave” as my shaky hand locked my apartment door. On the outside, I was elated to have a real teaching job, but inside I was terrified. My ability to communicate with my students and can I survive living in a foreign culture were only some of many questions racing through my mind that morning.

Like a school of fish flooding onto the immense sea of sidewalks, I joined hundreds of blue and white uniformed Korean children walking to school. I felt curious stares as I adjusted my messenger bag. Classical music was piping through loudspeakers over the sidewalks, which were lined with trees full of pink cherry blossoms, and for a moment I forgot my angst and simply enjoyed.

Six months ago, I was a different person. As I look back, I want to tell my old self “just enjoy the ride.” At the beginning, I had no way of knowing the amazing adventures that awaited me. Simply visiting a foreign land only offers a taste, whereas immersion in a culture is life changing. And (let’s face it) while the prospect of getting a teaching job in this economy can be quite daunting, international teaching opportunities abound in many fantastic countries around the world.

In 2007, when I began the MAT program at Pacific, Dean Ankeny professed to our fresh cohort seated in the room that first day: teaching will take you on many adventures.

It turns out he was right. Sometimes I shake my head laughing at the randomness of life as I find myself gazing at a Buddhist temple or hear my students giggle and yell “teacher, teacher, anneyonghaseyo,” or as I ride my bike through the neon lit streets of South Korea inhaling the smells of exotic street food.

Although Heather E. Douglas, MAT '08 originally graduated as a Language Arts teacher in the MAT program, through this international experience she has discovered her passion in working with ELL students. She is currently working on an ELL endorsement, and hopes to continue to work with students from other cultures. In her free time, Heather enjoys photography and nature.

Advocate for Middle Eastern Women and Acclaimed Author Visits Pacific

2011-02-28T08:59:00.000-08:00

Masha Hamilton will be visiting Pacific University on March 3, 2011, as part of the Visiting Writers Series. She will be discusses her various personal projects and one of her newest works, 31 Hours, which is the Boxer Book Club’s featured novel. After her successful career as a journalist and working as a foreign correspondent for five years in the Middle East, Hamilton has made a successful career as an award-winning novelist.

During her visit, Hamilton will share one of her world literacy projects with the university—The Afghan Women’s Project. The Afghan Women’s Project is an online magazine supported by volunteers dedicated to providing Middle Eastern women with a safe place to write and share their work with the world. The women are mentored by American authors of all genres. The women of this organization work under isolation because they are not allowed to express their creativity openly. On March 3, Hamilton and attendees of the Visiting Writers Series will Skype with the women members of the Afghan Women’s Project. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect and share a passion for literature with writers across the world.

To learn more about Masha Hamilton visit her website.

Learn more about Pacific’s Visiting Writers Series.

Tutorial on How to Make Lotion

2011-02-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

Although I do sell my soaps and luscious lotions at market (and online!), I thought it would be nice to share a tutorial with my readers and other folks looking to live more sustainably and frugally.

Making lotion isn't difficult, it IS messy. You can use 'emulsifying wax' but it is NOT all natural.

My mission to fill our kitchen and bathroom cupboards with all homemade products is not just for frugality or self sustainability, but also to transition to as many all natural products as possible to further enhance our health and hygiene as well as the health of the environment.

Less packaging purchased is less waste in the landfill, fewer chemicals used on our bodies leads to increased health and less toxic runoff into the environment, and the fewer things I have to buy at the store helps my bank account stay more robust.

On top of all of that - knowing how to make your own lotion, soap, tooth powder, jam, bread, etc leads to a more satisfied living experience: I'm no longer limited to what scents or flavors are available in the store because I can create recipes suited to my palette and need.

Slathering my hands with homemade lemongrass lotion isn't just delightful smelling, but fills me with pride. Keep Reading at An Austin Homestead.

Miranda Mueller '04 maintains a blog dedicated to promoting frugal and sustainable living and her many other passions. By trade and passion, Miranda is a children's book illustrator and artist. She lives in Austin, Texas where she has vegetable and herb gardens in her front yard, a gourd arbor, compost heap, chickens and a dog. She utilizes as many homegrown ingredients as she can in her cooking and craftsmanship, and loves teaching people how to live frugally and in sync with the planet and seasons. She also sells her handcrafted soaps and other body products at local farmers markets and online.

Learning As I Go

2011-02-01T10:59:00.000-08:00

With only three semesters at Pacific remaining, I am forced to look ahead to life after school. This is the first time in my life when I don’t have the next step all planned out. Like many college students, even after declaring a major I still don’t know what career path I want to embark on. When my friends and I get together we don’t talk about the “F-word”—“Future.” The future, looming over me like a cloud of uncertainty, motivates me to peruse the internet for career options, companies that are currently hiring, schools with graduate programs and, when I’m feeling especially discouraged, means that would allow me to sell postcards out of a shack on the coast.


Fall Club and Organization Fair

Although the future continues to scare me every time I let thoughts of it infiltrate my mind, I feel as if my preparation for the “real world” becoming increasingly concrete. In the last couple years I have been forced outside of my comfort zone. My reporting classes asked me to talk to many people, try things I am not familiar with and familiarize myself with others’ ways of living. Once shy and unskilled at conversing with new people, I now find that, against all the advice I received as a child, I actually enjoy talking to strangers. I like hearing their stories, where they’re at in life and how they got to this point. They often inadvertently share life lessons with me they have discovered through their experiences. I am lucky because most of the time I am talking to someone because they are passionate about something. Whether it is their research, their work, the cause they are dedicated to, another person they are dedicated to, or the message they want to share with others, the people I have the pleasure of meeting are almost always passionate and knowledgeable about what life has thrown their way.

Noise parade 2010

I have always been the type of student who insisted that learning through books and lectures and in the classroom was perfectly adequate. I have changed my outlook on this matter. It is the times I have been pushed to find learning techniques for myself that I have learned the truly valuable lessons I was never expecting.

At the basketball game!

I am not sure if I want to go to graduate school right away after my undergraduate studies are completed in the spring of 2012, but I know I want to continue my education. I know I want to continue meeting new people and venturing to new and unfamiliar places. I know want I want to continue to appreciate other people, their work, their passions, their struggles, their lessons and the responsibility I have been given as a journalist to portray people and information in an accurate and significant way. I realized nobody is just an ordinary person. You can learn something from and appreciated something about everyone you meet, which has not only helped me become a better journalist, but also a better person.

Boxer Bash this fall

I have been working with real people in the real world my whole life, which I now realize. So far, college has drawn things out of me I didn’t know were there and I am grateful for this. When I look back on the interviews I have conducted in the last two years I look back with gratitude that every person I met added to my education and my understanding of the world. I hope in the years to come I can look back at my last three semesters at Pacific and the beginning years of my career and feel the same way.

Stephanie Haugen '12 is a junior majoring in journalism.

River House--A Meaningful Book for Current Students and Alumni Alike

2011-01-19T15:28:00.000-08:00

River House might be of particular interest to Pacific students not only because the author is a native Oregonian, but also because it is a detailed account of a young adult’s life journey. College is an enabler of life experiences, but what about after graduation? Hopefully, reading about one young woman’s remarkable journey inspires students to reach for the seemingly impossible, go for that one great escapade they always dreamed about or look into options that always seemed out of reach. As graduates go their separate ways, on a distant voyage or the road back to their home town, maybe just like Lawrence, this memoir will inspire an appreciation not only of great adventure, but also the value of going home again.

A Meaningful Life

2010-12-02T12:46:00.000-08:00

In the fall of 1972, I met Eric Witt '76. He was actually from my hometown of Kailua, but we went to different schools. Eric was a hippie/surfer type, who had a very peaceful look on his face and a gentle nature. He had a great smile and was always friendly to me. We both arrived at Pacific in the fall of 1972 and were neighbors on the first floor of Clark Hall.

Eric played the guitar and I could hear him playing occasionally. But he got everyone’s attention when he started to sing. But not in a good way. His voice was a cross between an animal caught in a leg snare and a mile long locomotive slamming it’s brakes on. Condensing it down into one word: painful.

But it didn’t seem to bother Eric, who kept right on singing despite the expletives being spewed in his direction from every corner of the dorm. I ran into him in the hall one day and asked him the present day equivalent of, “Dude, what’s up with the singing?”

He broke into a wide smile and said, “I love music and I love to sing. It doesn’t matter if you can sing or not, what matters is that you do it for the love of it.”

That encounter changed my life because it gave me the confidence (“If Eric can do it, I can do it”) to start playing the guitar and singing myself. Almost 40 years later, I occasionally think of him whenever I pick up the guitar. But beyond music, Eric knew the meaning of “living your passion” way back in the ‘70s, long before it became the buzzword for a meaningful life.

In my four years in Forest Grove, I had many similar experiences that were life altering, though I didn’t know it at the time.

At Pacific, I got around black people for the first time and saw how closely they stuck together and how they had such a strong sense of culture. Though many people were put off by the arrogance of the “Black Power” movement, it made me understand the attitude it took to make social change a reality. Several years later, when we were going through the “Hawaiian Renaissance” I was thankful for the important lessons I learned from my BSU (Black Student Union) buddies.

I learned that I loved to write while I was at Pacific but I needed Mike Steele to help me hone my passion into a skill. He taught me to get to the point quicker and to pay closer attention to the mechanics of writing. He recognized my raw talent but wasn’t going to allow me to coast my way through his Advanced Writing course. In my professional life, I’ve always gravitated toward a person like Mike Steele, an expert with high expectations, but a willingness to be helpful.

Working in the cafeteria during the breakfast shift, I learned how to frost maple bars, a pastry I never saw until I got to Pacific. Since there were only a handful of us that could get up at 6 a.m. to work, I met a simple, yet beautiful co-worker from a small farming community in Nebraska. She taught me to love and appreciate Oregon, a place I initially hated, but ended up spending 36 years of my life there. Rhea became my wife and the mother of our son and stands today as one of my greatest teachers, even though our marriage ended years ago.

As an academic institution, Pacific was a wonderful small environment that launched me into the working world with a coveted bachelor’s degree. But more importantly, it was the “social petri dish” I needed to expose myself to new ideas and experiences, meet people who would have a lasting impact my life and provide a reference point where I can see how much I’ve changed and grown over the years.

And what about Eric Witt? He lives happily with his family on the Big Island, plays a mean guitar and still sings at the top of his lungs.

Benson Medina '76 lives in Honolulu and writes a blog called Any Moment, where he chronicles thoughts on the enormous changes and challenges of human life. People die, lose jobs, get their property destroyed, get cancer, lose limbs, go to war and come back to a completely different scenario than what they left. This blog looks at people who have had massive changes and examines how they have adjusted or learned to cope.

Searching for the Best Light

2010-11-11T13:56:00.000-08:00

During my four years at Pacific University, in the midst of the classes, the socializing, and the adventures, I discovered I had an unwavering curiosity and fascination with photography. Pacific helped foster my love for the camera for which I am forever grateful.

Thanks to MarCom and the Photography Department, I attended more events, met more people and pushed myself more than I had ever imagined because of my photography. Many people spend their lives searching for something that really inspires them and I’m fortunate to have found a passion that has both guided and enriched my life.

Today I will cover a topic that makes many photographers cringe: weddings. My exploration in this venture began about a year ago, and eight weddings later, I realize that I’ve found a dynamic and challenging world to immerse myself in.

Weddings are exhausting, but energizing, stressful, but rewarding. As a wedding photographer, I am being entrusted with the delicate task of capturing images that narrate the unique story which accompanies every wedding. To the bride and groom, the biggest day of their lives is often a massive blur, and images become central to reminding them of how special their wedding truly was. If my clients can laugh and cry and reminisce about the wedding when they view my photos, then I have done my job as a wedding photographer.

Shooting weddings is commonly held as one of the most stressful endeavors in the photography industry, and this is absolutely true. You have one chance to shoot the bride coming down the aisle, one chance for the first kiss, one chance for the first dance. A broken lens, an overheated flash, or a corrupted memory card is no excuse for missing those fleeting moments, so as a wedding photographer, I try to prepare for multiple scenarios. This is what I normally bring to weddings:

2 camera bodies
4 lenses
2 flashes
2 lightstands
shoot through umbrella
softbox
5 sets of AA batteries for flashes
6 batteries for camera bodies
cleaning supplies
48 GB of memory cards
gels
rain covers

However, wedding photography is also incredibly rewarding. When you think about it, everyone at a wedding is looking their absolute best, especially the bride and groom, and this provides some truly unique opportunities for photos. In addition to the dazzle of colors and dress, the entire gamut of emotions is present at a wedding, and when I am able to capture a sliver of this visual energy and convey it in a beautiful light, I am as eager to pull it off my memory card as a kid opening presents on Christmas Day.

Alumna Explores the Path Less Taken

2010-10-18T16:31:00.000-07:00

I recently read "The greatest inspiration is the deadline." Somehow, just knowing that whatever it is that you are working on or towards must be done, provides the necessary inspiration. A line is drawn in the sand and the moment it is reached, you have either succeeded or failed.

The statement may seem like a simple journalist’s mantra, but in fact, it made me think about various stages of my life. What happens when there is no deadline? Who determines these deadlines and for that matter, the word itself, line of death, seems incredibly un-inspirational does it not?

Growing up in the United States, we generally have a very defined path to follow which is filled with deadlines. The proverbial primary education, secondary education, university, job, marriage, children... forget about the mysterious road less traveled. There is a reason it is less traveled. It is rife with confusion and struggle. Stick to the path and it will lead you to happiness.

I followed that path to Pacific University, am very proud of the education that I received there and am equally proud that upon graduating, I tossed my cap into the air and ran straight off the path into the mysterious unknown. I left behind the deadlines of reports and projects and homework and applications. Deadlines set by parents and teachers and employers and ran - I was free! My run soon slowed to a jog and again slowed to a stroll, where was I going?

I realized that I was suddenly faced with not only defining my own goals, but also creating the road itself and setting my own deadlines to reach those goals.

With every step forward and every small goal reached, the new goals seemed to have more nebulous deadlines. Rather than specific dates, my peripatetic lifestyle was beginning to lend itself to desires that had no inherent deadline. And yet, I found no lack of inspiration. The journey had become the inspiration. For example, my desire to one day travel to India, led me first to New Orleans to work for a company that would eventually send me to India and upon arriving, the goal itself became a journey for I explored India for nearly a year, inspired every day by a new language, culture, scent, flavor or smile.

Whereas some may be inspired by the finality and instant recognition of failure or success, a deadline can be a fantastic motivation as well as an intimidating limitation. At this point in life, I am more inspired by the surprises encountered along the way and that upon reaching one destination, for I believe deadline is a misnomer, the line is not dead, but rather an intriguing change in direction elicited by each success.

Jessie Wachter '03 is a passionate, curious, active, empathetic and easily amused perpetual traveler. She has been to 42 countries so far and 38 of the United States and has not stopped traveling since graduation. She is currently based stateside, but will soon begin a position that will take her to back to Africa.

Young Alumnus Finds Ways to Stay Involved

2010-09-28T16:41:00.000-07:00

I've been a Pacific alumnus for a little over two years, and whenever I go back to visit my friends and professors, something is different.

Sometimes it's subtle, like the new signs on the light posts around campus. Other times it's blatant, like our "new" football team. With all the change, I'm always trying to figure out what's going on and what I can do to help. The conclusion I have come to seems fairly simple: combine what I've done, and what's happening now, to help drive the future of Pacific. But how?

What happened at Pacific in the years before I attended shaped my experience. While I was a student -- I began in 2004 and graduated in 2008 with a degree in journalism -- I didn't realize that. In fact, I was too busy scrambling my brain trying to nail down the importance of a thought-provoking Mike Steele quip, or perhaps wondering if I would ever pass Dave Cassady's print-media writing quizzes. Well, probably neither of those scenarios actually, but something more important, like why can't the Grand Lodge's soaking pool be within walking distance from campus? I digress.

As alumni, we are all deeply entrenched in the past of the university and what it has become, but at the same time, we are involved in shaping the future and what it can become.

Does it mean we need to donate our life savings to the cause? Of course not, but a little here and there helps out.

Does it mean to come back to campus every now and then and catch a sporting event? If that's appealing, then sure.

Does it mean to take a young adult aside, perhaps one who hasn't quite found its way as an example, and share with them the times and experiences you had as a Boxer (or Badger)? Absolutely. That's how we can be "agents of change." I hesitate to use that term in fear of making it cliche, but it couldn't be more appropriate.

In order to do this, however, alumni need to be in touch. Whether it's making an address available through Alumni Relations, or keeping tabs on what's happening through Pacific magazine, our past experiences and current situations can change a life. If we keep up on the present, combined with all the days, nights, late-nights and early-mornings we spent at Pacific, we can set the footings for a very rewarding future for not only Pacific, but ourselves.

BillyGates '08 holds a Pacific University bachelor of arts in journalism. He is currently working in Hermiston, Ore., as the sports section editor for the Hermiston Herald newspaper. Feel free to contact him at wc.gates@gmail.com.

Cherry Poppin' Daddies - "Zoot Suit Riot" (original video)

2010-09-23T15:24:00.000-07:00

Cherry Poppin' Daddies will perform at Homecoming & Family Weekend 2010 on Saturday, October 23.

Boxer Book Club: Eating Animals | Question 1

2010-09-16T09:15:00.000-07:00

Is there anything the author left out that you think would be important to include like another point of view or any important facts?

Boxer Book Club: Eating Animals | Question 2

2010-09-16T09:14:00.001-07:00

Which portions of the novel had the greatest impact on you as a reader and as a consumer?

Boxer Book Club: Eating Animals | Question 3

2010-09-16T09:13:00.001-07:00

Does the novel try to inform the reader in order to make it easier for them to make educated choices or is the author’s motive simply to get his readers to agree with his point of view?

Boxer Book Club: Eating Animals | Question 4

2010-09-16T09:12:00.001-07:00

How does the author’s style of writing add to the reader’s experience?

Boxer Book Club: Eating Animals | Question 5

2010-09-16T09:11:00.001-07:00

How do the author’s personal beliefs influence this book? Do you think the author’s strong opinions bias the content of the book?

Back to School: Looking Back and Looking Forward

2010-08-18T15:28:00.000-07:00

By Stephanie Haugen '12

It’s hard to believe, but I have made it halfway through my undergraduate college education. As I stand here in the middle of my college years, I am reflecting on the past and curious about the future.

If you asked me two years ago what I thought my college experience would be like, I would have described something very different from what actually happened.

I walked onto Pacific’s campus in the fall of 2008 for my freshman orientation nervous and clueless. I had never visited Pacific before deciding to attend and knew very little about the university and even less about how to interact with the campus and its occupants.

I knew Pacific was in Forest Grove, I knew they had an Optometry school, I knew it was where my brother went to school, I knew it was where my parents wanted me to go, and I was fairly sure how to get there.

I thought I knew a lot of other things too, but it turned out I had a lot to learn. I learned that it was possible to make friends and meet new people even if you were forced to live at home to save money.

After I learned that Pacific had a Greek system, I learned two other things about the sororities. The first thing is that they are about as far away from “Legally Blonde” as you could get. The second is that when I joined Phi Lambda Omicron sisterhood, I actually joined a family and the Pacific community.

I learned how it felt to really struggle in a seemingly impossible class. Fortunately, I also discovered what it felt like to be successful in difficult courses.

I learned that writing for the Pacific Index is a great way to learn about the university and to meet faculty outside of my major.

I found out I was good at things I never knew about before I came to Pacific. My professors made it clear they would always open a door for me when they could and that their doors were always open. I learned how to take advantage of opportunities, but also how to create opportunities for myself.

After two years I really feel like I have a place at Pacific and I look forward to two more years, I know they will pass quickly. The mental image I have of the next two years will most likely end up to be very different from the reality, but hopefully they will be like the last two—more rewarding than I ever could have imagined.

Boxer Book Club: Demon Days | Question 1

2010-07-28T10:47:00.002-07:00

How is the idea of a near death experience in this novel different than in many other works? Why do you think the authors explored the idea of a near death experience and suggested that “the light at the end of the tunnel” could be evil instead of good?

Boxer Book Club: Demon Days | Question 2

2010-07-28T10:47:00.001-07:00

Could the idea of demonic possession after a near death experience be a symbol for something else? For example, after a character experiences trauma, could they change because of what they have experienced? What could these changes be attributed to if not demonic possession?

Boxer Book Club: Demon Days | Question 3

2010-07-28T10:45:00.000-07:00

How is the concept of the end of the world in this novel different than in other writings? Is there a new point of view or new suggestions of causes that are presented in this novel?

Boxer Book Club: Demon Days | Question 4

2010-07-28T10:42:00.000-07:00

Does the character’s belief in his conversation with God and the presence of demons in this novel make this a story about religion? Is this a story about religious beliefs or is it a story about how we see the world?

Boxer Book Club: Demon Days | Question 5

2010-07-28T10:38:00.000-07:00

What elements place this novel into the genre of horror?

Boxer Book Club: The Ghost Map | Question 1

2010-03-02T10:48:00.001-08:00

Stevens begins the book by describing a modern city using a medieval sanitation system. What comparisons can be made of twenty-first century cities?

Boxer Book Club: The Ghost Map | Question 2

2010-03-02T09:32:00.002-08:00

Clergyman Henry Whitehead offers a pivotal contribution to solving the mystery of cholera, despite a lack of medical training. How can individuals who are not medically educated contribute to public health?

Boxer Book Club: The Ghost Map | Question 3

2010-03-02T09:32:00.001-08:00

Common explanations for disease in the The Ghost Map include the assertion that the poor are somehow morally bereft and therefore deserve their sickness. Have we moved beyond this type of logic in the modern era?

Boxer Book Club: The Ghost Map | Question 4

2010-03-02T09:17:00.000-08:00

What contemporary medical conditions can we compare to cholera of the 1850s? How are these conditions similar and how do they differ?

Boxer Book Club: American Salvage | Question 1

2009-12-01T11:43:00.000-08:00

Which of Campbell's stories in American Salvage resonates most strongly with you and why?

Boxer Book Club: A Leader's Legacy | Question 1

2009-05-29T12:50:00.000-07:00

What is the greatest lesson you learned in reading a Leader's Legacy?

Boxer Book Club Sparks Interest of Students

2009-03-17T15:01:00.001-07:00

Tyler Atwood '09, student coordinator of the Writing Resource Center, recently submitted a Letter to the Editor of the Pacific University Index opposing the Boxer Book Club selection of Twilight by Stephanie Meyer.

Read Tyler's comments here.

The following issue of the Index featured two Letters to the Editor and an editorial on the topic.

Read the Letter to the Editor by Jan Nerenberg '09.

Read the Letter to the Editor by Tabitha Rogers '11.

Read the editorial.

Comments of this type (and reactions to them) are welcome on the Boxer Book Club blog. The blog is meant as a medium for conversation. Boxer Book Club is open to the entire University community.

Boxer Book Club: Twilight | Question 1

2009-02-16T18:50:00.001-08:00

Twilight is the first of a four part series. It was released in 2005 and instantly reached #5 on the New York Times Best Seller List. The Twilight series reportedly sold 22 million last year. Meyer has claimed that she did not intend to write the book for a particular audience, and although it is categorized as young adult fiction, it has garnered popularity across generations. What makes this book so compelling?

Boxer Book Club: Twilight | Question 2

2009-02-16T18:48:00.000-08:00

One of the strongest themes throughout Twilight is resistance of temptation. What relevance does this have in modern culture?

Boxer Book Club: Twilight | Question 3

2009-02-16T18:46:00.000-08:00

Many critics of Twilight cite Meyer’s writing as low-quality. What expectation or standards should the reader have for this type of book or books in general?

Boxer Book Club: Twilight | Question 4

2009-02-16T18:42:00.000-08:00

Twilight and Stephanie Meyer have gained as many foes as fans. What makes the public so vehement about this work?

Boxer Book Club: Twilight | Question 5

2009-02-16T18:41:00.000-08:00

Bella is shown to be weaker than her vampire counterparts, male and female. Bella is also shown to be accident prone and in constant need of rescue. As a consequence Twilight has often been criticized as anti-feminist and offensive to women. Do you think this is true? What relevance do gender roles in contemporary literature have in contemporary society?

Book Club: Indian Creek Chronicles | Question 1

2008-11-03T15:20:00.000-08:00

Indian Creek Chronicles is now in its second printing. What makes this book so successful?

Alumni Holiday Wishes

2008-11-02T17:02:00.000-08:00

Although the calendar tells us that winter is more than a month away, it feels like winter today. Halloween is just barely behind us yet the stores have already had winter holiday decorations and wrapping paper in stock for weeks. Egg nog prevails at every coffee shop.

As the holiday season begins, we in the alumni office would like to know -- what do you wish for this season?

There are many things the alumni office can assist with:

•we can connect you to those who provide official transcripts
•we plan reunions and other events to help you connect with Pacific University and with your classmates
•we can help you locate a friend from school who you may have lost touch with
•we can keep you updated on the latest events and news at your alma mater
•we congratulate all new parents with a baby t-shirt to welcome their infant in to the Pacific University family
•we can connect alumni with resources to advance their career

But is there something more you wish for this year?

Whether or not we can help, we want to hear your wishes. All wishes submitted to will be entered to win a Pacific University pride pack, including a Pacific University sweatshirt.

•Do you wish for your favorite team to win this year?
•Are you wishing for world peace?
•Are you wishing for a new flat screen tv?
•Are you wishing for airfare to go down so you can visit your grandchild an extra time this year?

Submit your wishes by commenting below.

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 1

2008-08-04T16:54:00.001-07:00

Did Chris McCandless love "truth" more than relationships? Are they mutually exclusive?

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 2

2008-08-04T16:53:00.003-07:00

What mistakes, if any, did Chris make before going to Alaska?

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 3

2008-08-04T16:53:00.001-07:00

What do think caused Chris to embark on his journey?

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 4

2008-08-04T16:52:00.003-07:00

What do you think of Krakauer’s insertion of himself into the narrative? Did it add or detract from Chris’ story? Did it help you understand Chris’ own motives?

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 5

2008-08-04T16:52:00.001-07:00

What significance, if any, do you attach to the note Chris left in the margins of Dr. Zhivago: “Happiness only real when shared” as he neared the end of his life?

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 6

2008-08-04T16:51:00.002-07:00

Did you find the book suspenseful? Why or why not?

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 7

2008-08-04T16:51:00.001-07:00

Contrast McCandless' feelings about his family with his family's feelings about him in Into the Wild.

Book Club: Into the Wild | Question 8

2008-08-04T16:50:00.001-07:00

How did Into the Wild impact you?

Book Club: Boom! | Question 1

2008-04-02T10:30:00.001-07:00

Brokaw covers many issues in Boom! including race, politics, Vietnam, women’s rights, drug culture and counter culture. Do you feel he leaves anything out? What else might Brokaw have used to define the 1960s?

Book Club: Boom! | Question 2

2008-04-02T10:29:00.003-07:00

Brokaw has mentioned several times that the acts that took place in the 1960s are shaping our lives today. Do you agree?

Book Club: Boom! | Question 3

2008-04-02T10:29:00.001-07:00

Former president Bill Clinton is quoted in Boom! saying, “If you thought something good came out of the Sixties, you’re probably a Democrat; if you thought the Sixties were bad, you’re probably a Republican.” What do you think of the Sixties? Were the results positive or negative?

Book Club: Boom! | Question 4

2008-04-02T10:28:00.000-07:00

Boom! is often described as a “reunion of the Class of 1968.” Are you from this generation? What are your thoughts on the book as a “reunion?”

Book Club: Boom! | Question 5

2008-04-02T10:25:00.000-07:00

Did you miss the 1960s by being born too late? Does this book still resonate with you?

Book Club: Boom! | Question 6

2008-04-02T10:20:00.001-07:00

Were you a student at Pacific University between 1963 and 1974? How do Brokaw’s descriptions of the time fit in to your memories of life at Pacific?

Book Club: Boom! | Question 7

2008-04-02T10:13:00.000-07:00

Where were you when? Share your story of the 1960s

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 1

2008-01-31T17:03:00.000-08:00

The novelist, who herself fled Paris on the eve of the Nazi invasion, wrote the book virtually while the occupation was happening, most likely making Suite Française the first work of fiction about World War II. How do you think she managed to write while she herself was in jeopardy? Do you think it was easier for her to capture the day-to-day realities of life under occupation? In what ways might the book have been different if she had survived and been able to write Suite Française years after the war?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 2

2008-01-31T17:02:00.001-08:00

Suite Française is a unique pair of novels. Which of the two parts of Suite Française do you prefer? Which structural organization did you find more effective: the short chapters and multiple focus of Storm in June, or the more restricted approach of Dolce?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 3

2008-01-31T17:01:00.001-08:00

What is the significance of the title Dolce?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 4

2008-01-31T16:59:00.001-08:00

How does Suite Française undermine the long-held view of French resistance to the German occupation?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 5

2008-01-31T16:57:00.001-08:00

Discuss Irène Némirovsky’s approach to class in Suite Française. How do the rich, poor, and the middle classes view one another? How do they help or hinder one another? Do the characters identify themselves by class or nationality?

(You might consider the aristocratic Mme de Montmort’s thought in Dolce: “What separates or unites people is not their language, their laws, their customs, but the way they hold their knife and fork.”)

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 6

2008-01-31T16:56:00.001-08:00

In Dolce, we enter the increasingly complex life of a German-occupied provincial village. Coexisting uneasily with the soldiers billeted among them, the villagers—from aristocrats to shopkeepers to peasants—cope as best they can. Some choose resistance, others collaboration. Each relationship is distorted by the allegiances of war. What happens when someone—who might have been your friend—is now declared your enemy during a war?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 7

2008-01-31T16:55:00.000-08:00

The lovers in the second novel question whether the needs of the individual or the community should take priority. Lucille imagines that “in five, or ten, or twenty years” this problem will have been replaced by others. To what extent, if at all, has this proved the case? Has Western society conclusively decided to privilege the individual over the group?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 8

2008-01-31T16:53:00.001-08:00

How does Suite Française compare to other World War Two novels you have read? How would you compare it to the great personal documents of the war (for example, those written by Anne Frank and Victor Klemperer), or to fiction?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 9

2008-01-31T16:51:00.000-08:00

“Important events—whether serious, happy or unfortunate—do not change a man’s soul, they merely bring it into relief, just as a strong gust of wind reveals the true shape of a tree when it blows of all its leaves.” —Storm in June, p.203

Do you agree?

Book Club: Suite Française | Question 10

2008-01-31T16:50:00.001-08:00

Consider Irène Némirovsky’s plan for the next part of Suite Française (in the appendix). What else do you think could happen to the characters?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 1

2007-11-02T08:31:00.001-07:00

At the novel’s onset, most of the characters are outside New York: Danielle in Australia, pursuing an idea for a story and finding someone to have a crush on; Marina at her parents’ summer house in Stockbridge, accompanied by Julius; and Bootie in his mother’s house in upstate New York. Why might Messud have chosen to begin in this manner? At what other points in the book do the characters leave the city and with what results?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 2

2007-11-02T08:30:00.000-07:00

Which of the novel’s characters strikes you as its moral center? Is it Bootie, who comes to New York with such high ideals and easily rankled feelings? Is it Danielle, who has lived there long enough to feel at home there but who still sees its pretensions and absurdities? With which of these characters is the reader meant to identify? Whose judgments seem the most reliable? And what flaws or blind spots afflict even him or her?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 3

2007-11-02T08:29:00.001-07:00

Almost everybody in The Emperor’s Children envies, and is intimidated by, somebody else. Julius, for instance, is in awe of Marina’s self-confidence and envious of her sense of entitlement. Marina is cowed by her father. And poor Bootie is a virtual pressure cooker of indiscriminate awe and resentment. What sort of things do Messud’s characters feel insecure about? Is there anyone in the book who seems truly comfortable with him or herself or any relationship that seems to be conducted by equals? Would you say that awe and envy are this novel’s dominant emotions?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 4

2007-11-02T08:28:00.003-07:00

When pressed to take a job, Marina confesses, “I worry that that will make me ordinary, like everybody else.” [67] To what extent are other characters possessed by the same fear, and how do they defend themselves against it? Do they have a common idea of what constitutes ordinariness? Can ordinariness even exist in a social world in which everyone is constantly, feverishly striving to be unique? Is it possible that Marina is just lazy and prevaricating in her charming way?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 5

2007-11-02T08:28:00.001-07:00

With his high-flown ambitions, his indolence, and his appalling sense of hygiene, Bootie initially seems like a comic character. But in the course of the novel Messud’s portrait of him darkens until he comes to seem either sinister or tragic–perhaps both. How does she accomplish this? Which other characters does she gradually reveal in a different light? Compare Messud’s shifting portrayal of Bootie to her handling of Julius and Danielle. In what ways do they too evade or defy the reader’s initial expectations about them?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 6

2007-11-02T08:20:00.001-07:00

Ludovic repeatedly declares that he wants to make a revolution with his magazine The Monitor, but what is the magazine supposed to be about? Lest we think that The Emperor’s Children is merely a satire of the New York media, what other highly touted ideas in this novel turn out to be light on substance, and what does this suggest about the value of ideas at this historical moment?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 7

2007-11-02T08:19:00.003-07:00

Some of Messud’s characters begin the novel in a state of happiness and others attain it, but nearly all of them see their happiness threatened or even shattered. How does this come about? Which of them is the victim of outside forces and which is responsible for his or her fall? How would you describe this novel’s vision of happiness? Considering that the typical comedy has a happy (or happy-ish) ending, what do you make of the fact that so many of Messud’s characters end up bereft or disappointed?

Book Club: The Emperor's Children | Question 8

2007-11-02T08:19:00.001-07:00

What role do the events of September 11, 2001, play in The Emperor’s Children? Are there other points when history–or, put another way, reality–impinges on the safe and mostly privileged world its characters inhabit? What is the significance of Annabel Thwaite’s client DeVaughn or results of Julius and David’s affair? Does the ending make sense when compared with the rest of the novel?

What Makes You Proud?

2007-10-01T13:52:00.000-07:00

The Alumni Office is seeking answers to the question "What makes you proud of Pacific?" All members of the Pacific University community are welcome to respond. A winning answer will be selected this month and announced in the November e-newsletter. The winner will receive a hooded sweatshirt compliments of the the Alumni Association.

To enter, simply post a comment telling us what makes you proud of Pacific University and proud to be a part of the Pacific community.

We seek answers from:
College of Arts & Sciences Alumni & Students
College of Education Alumni & Students
College of Health Professions Alumni & Students
College of Optometry Alumni & Students
Current and Past Faculty
Current and Past Parents
Current and Past Staff

Do you fit in to more than one category? Make sure to let us know how you're related to the Pacific community, along with your name and class year or position, so we know how to contact you.

Questions about the contest can be directed to Martha Calus-McLain '03, assistant director of Alumni Relations, 503-352-2764 or martha@pacificu.edu.

Book Club: The Road - Question 1

2007-08-01T14:10:00.001-07:00

Why do you think McCarthy wrote The Road?

Book Club: The Road - Question 2

2007-08-01T14:09:00.002-07:00

What did McCarthy attempt to do in the book? Was it successful?

Book Club: The Road - Question 3

2007-08-01T14:09:00.001-07:00

What do you think McCarthy is saying about humanity in "The Road"?

Book Club: The Road - Question 4

2007-08-01T14:08:00.004-07:00

Why do you think McCarthy has chosen not to give his characters names? How do the generic labels of "the man" and "the boy" affect the way in which readers relate to them?

Book Club: The Road - Question 5

2007-08-01T14:08:00.003-07:00

What do you think the coast represents (physically and literally)? Why?

Book Club: The Road - Question 6

2007-08-01T14:08:00.001-07:00

Why did the father choose to survive and not the mother? What did he see that she could not?

Book Club: The Road - Question 7

2007-08-01T14:07:00.003-07:00

One man they meet on the road says "There is no God and we are his prophets." What does he mean by this?

Book Club: The Road - Question 8

2007-08-01T14:07:00.001-07:00

What are the key moments that help push the father to keep striving on?

Book Club: The Road - Question 9

2007-08-01T14:06:00.002-07:00

When does the boy become a man? What does he see that his father can’t?

Book Club: The Road - Question 10

2007-08-01T14:06:00.001-07:00

What do you think of the end of The Road? After such a fate, could things be "put back again?" Could they be "made right?"

Book Club: The Road - Question 11

2007-08-01T14:05:00.000-07:00

What would you do in a world like this? Would it change your beliefs? What would you hope in?