Westmont News

Westmont opens its observatory and powerful Keck Telescope for this month’s free public stargazing event Friday, July 18, beginning at 8:30 p.m. and lasting several hours.

The fifth annual Impact Conference, Cultivating Community in the Age of AI, brings together senior technology leaders in higher education to explore ways to apply AI to strengthen — rather than replace — human connections July 24-25 in Westmont’s Global Leadership Center. Purchase tickets, which cost $129 per person for two full days with breakfast and lunch included, at westmont.edu/impact.

Workers have begun constructing a new $7 million building on Westmont’s campus north of the Global Leadership Center to house the Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture. Crews expect to complete the 3,700-square-foot complex and 1,500-square-foot deck in about 15 months, replacing the existing structure at 909 La Paz Road. Private donors are funding construction of the new center.

Lee Park ‘22 marched into a career soon after graduating from Westmont and being commissioned as a second lieutenant. Participating in Army ROTC as a student first at Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) and then at Westmont led to his position as an assistant operations officer in an Army Combat Sustainment Support Battalion at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Washington. He’s also pursuing a master’s degree in supply-chain management and logistics through Georgetown University. Previously, he led in a Forward Support Company assisting U.S.

Female nurses who believe God intervenes to cure ill people are less likely to experience depressive symptoms, according to findings published in Mental Health, Religion & Culture.

Westmont has welcomed a herd of sheep to campus to eat non-native vegetation and reduce wildfire fuel in the barranca west of Voskuyl Library, adjacent to the dry Westmont Creek. Coordinated by Montecito Fire, the flock from Cuyama Lamb will consume the grasses before they dry out later this summer and have the potential to feed a wildfire.

Stu Cleek, who has more than 35 years of experience in Christian higher education, has been named vice president for student life at Westmont.

“This is a significant and exciting moment for our campus community, and I’m deeply grateful for Stu’s legacy of faithful service during the past 26 years at Westmont,” said President Gayle D. Beebe.

Westmont alumnus Paul Mori ’77 directs the Prime Time Band’s free Fourth of July Concert, presented by the Pierre Claeyssens Veterans Foundation, on Friday, July 4, at 5 p.m. at the Santa Barbara Courthouse Sunken Gardens. Guests are encouraged to bring a blanket or low-back chair.

The Westmont Observatory offers views of Mars, the moon and the Whirlpool Galaxy on Friday, June 20, beginning at 8:30 p.m. and lasting several hours. Westmont hosts a free, public stargazing event on the third Friday of every month in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Society, whose members bring their own telescopes to share.

Nearly 50 students participated in the 29th annual Student Research Symposium presenting their scholarly research in April. The 34 projects spanned the humanities, social sciences and natural and behavioral sciences. Topics included sports anxiety and athlete burnout, stress in spiny lizards, analysis of a reusable launch vehicle, and the ortho-arylation of aryl carbonates.

A large, enthusiastic crowd celebrated the 15 recent graduates of the Westmont Downtown | Grotenhuis Nursing program at a pinning ceremony on May 1 at Montecito Covenant Church.

A standing-room only crowd attended the Westmont Department of Education’s 21^st annual Celebration of Teaching to honor the 13 graduates and their cooperating teachers April 25 in Westmont’s Founders Room. The student teacher presentations were interspersed with heartwarming slideshows, videos and talks by professors Andrew Mullen and Carolyn Mitten.

Dozens of people packed into the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum on May 15 to see Adam Belt’s sections for “On the Edge” and hear the winners of the Tri-County artist exhibition.

Yulya Dukhovny, Westmont artist in residence, won a Santa Barbara Indy Award for Stage Artistry for her work on “The Wind in the Willows” on May 20 at Soho Restaurant & Club.

The Westmont Observatory hosts a summer star party that’s out of this world on Friday, May 16, beginning at 8:30 p.m. and lasting several hours. The observatory, home to Westmont’s powerful Keck Telescope, opens every third Friday to the public in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit, whose members bring their own telescopes and love of the night sky to share.

(Above: Marcia Rickard's "Lebanon 2024")

Montecito’s longest running juried exhibition for tri-county artists May 15-June 14 in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. A public opening reception for “On the Edge,” featuring juror Adam Belt, is Thursday, May 15 from 4-6 p.m.

Led by bagpipes under overcast skies, about 340 graduates made their Last March from Kerrwood Hall down to Thorrington Field where they walked across the stage to receive their diplomas on May 3.

About 340 graduates will participate in Commencement on Saturday, May 3, at 9:30 a.m. on Thorrington Field with 162 earning honors. More than 70 Golden Warriors, who graduated in 1975, will march in the procession to celebrate their 50th reunion. Fifteen nursing graduates, representing the fifth cohort of the Westmont Downtown | Grotenhuis Nursing program, will participate in the event two days after their pinning ceremony on Thursday, May 1, at 4 p.m. in Montecito Covenant Church.

Westmont’s annual Academic Awards Celebration honored some of the college's graduating seniors in front of the Westmont community, parents and guests on April 9 in Murchison Gym. "Celebrating excellence is a good thing," President Gayle D. Beebe said. "It reminds us of the joy of achievement and the opportunity we have to excel and fulfill the full range of the gifts and abilities that God has given each one of us."

Each department chair announced their Outstanding Graduate Award winners during the convocation ceremony.

An impressive lineup of world-class keynote speakers will share insights on effective and purposeful leadership at the 11^th annual LEAD Where You Stand conference on June 4-5 at Westmont’s Global Leadership Center. David Brooks, New York Times columnist and bestselling author, headlines an exceptional group of speakers that includes: Gayle D.

Two Westmont students received David K. Winter Servant Leadership Awards during chapel on April 7 in Murchison Gym.  Angela D’Amour, dean of student engagement and interim vice president for student life, honored Kate Robinson ’27 of Beverly, Massachusetts, and Andreas Olvera ’26 of Woodland, California, for demonstrating above-and-beyond commitment to serving the campus community with their exemplary servant leadership.

Meredith Whitnah, associate professor and chair of the Westmont sociology department, illuminates the role of race and gender in religious responses to social injustice in a reading and Q&A with Provost Kim Denu about Whitnah’s new book, “Faith and the Fragility of Justice: Responses to Gender-Based Violence in South Africa, “on Friday, April 25, from 3:30-5 p.m.

The Westmont Observatory opens to the public for a free stargazing event Friday, April 25, beginning about 8 p.m. and lasting several hours.

It was a picture-perfect evening at the Santa Barbara Bowl for Westmont’s 64^th annual Spring Sing, “Picture This,” on March 29. Off Campus earned bragging rights as the sweepstakes winner of the musical skit competition between students from each residence hall. Their skit, “Champagne Problems,” was a Montecito whodunit mystery based on the classic board game Clue with the task of “turning Westmont into its best most bougie self.”

(above: Tucker Howard’s “Red” is part of his “Visual Reverb” collection)

Twelve graduating art majors will display their capstone art projects April 3-May 3 at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. A free, public reception opens “Twelvefold: Westmont College Graduate Exhibition 2025” on Thursday, April 3, from 4-6 p.m.

In the last two summers, Westmont has hosted more than 100 evangelical students, professors and nationally recognized experts for conferences about Christian climate advocacy. The Faith.Climate.Action. Workshop, funded by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, now provides nearly $40,000 in grants to support sustainability initiatives for eight members of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU).

Westmont’s powerful Keck Telescope will zoom in on Jupiter and its Galilean moons on Friday, March 21, beginning at 7:30 p.m. and lasting several hours. The Westmont Observatory is open to the public every third Friday of the month and held in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit whose members bring their own telescopes to share with the public.

The Westmont Observatory opens for the viewing of a rare lunar event beginning Thursday, March 13, at 10 p.m. and lasting until Friday, March 14, at 1 a.m. The powerful Keck Telescope will zoom in on a total lunar eclipse, which will be visible throughout North American and in some locations in South American. The last total lunar eclipse in the U.S. was November 2022.

Click Here to Watch

Condoleezza Rice, the 66th U.S. secretary of state, shared insight into the Russia-Ukraine war as well as China and other international hot spots, while sprinkling wisdom about democracy, education and her childhood in segregated Birmingham, Alabama, at the Westmont President’s Breakfast on Feb. 28. More than 700 early-morning attendees enjoyed the sold-out event, now in its 20th year at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort.

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art hosted a powerful, heartful, outdoor event Feb. 20 that included stories, poems and live music about the significance of the 2008 Tea Fire. At the center of the gathering in Westmont’s formal garden was an installation, “Glowing Embers,” created by local artist Ethan Turpin and Jonathan PJ Smith, co-owner of the Environment Makers. The two used multiple video projectors to make the pine trees, which were scarred in the Tea Fire, appear as though glowing with fire from within.

In response to increasing demand and need for nurses, Westmont Downtown | Grotenhuis Nursing is growing the program. This May, 24 more students will begin their studies in the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

Westmont’s famed theater arts professor John Blondell, who will retire after 37 years at the college, directs “The Wind in the Willows” Friday, Feb. 21, at 8:30 p.m.; Feb. 22, 28 and March 1 at 7 p.m.; and March 1-2 at 2 p.m.; all in Porter Theatre. Purchase tickets, which cost $20 for general admission and $12 for students and seniors, at westmont.edu/box-office.

Bring the whole family to the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art for a day of fun, free activities with food, crafts, games, music and storytelling focused on our environment. Living Earth: A Family Day of Exploration on Saturday, March 1, from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. focuses on the immersive exhibition “WILDLAND: Ethan Turpin’s Collaborations on Fire and Water,” which combines science and art.

Westmont has launched a new major in worship leadership designed for students pursuing careers as pastoral musicians with an emphasis on the contemporary worship styles more prevalent today.

Westmont’s 36th annual Mathematics Field Day features about 100 students from eight regional high schools in a friendly competition Saturday, Feb. 8, at 1 p.m. in Winter Hall.

Drawing on his experience, Westmont President Gayle D. Beebe will share the power of life’s crucibles – those pivotal moments of trial and triumph – that have defined his personal and professional life and leadership. The talk, “The Crucibles That Shape Us: Navigating the Defining Challenges of Leadership,” has been rescheduled to Monday, March 3, at 5:30 p.m. at the Community Arts Workshop, 631 Garden Street, in downtown Santa Barbara.

The eighth annual Westmont Women’s Leadership Council Luncheon reached new heights with a goal of encouraging and empowering female students with scholarships and networking connections to help them thrive in their future careers. The event, which featured Henrietta Holsman Fore, a Santa Barbara native who served as executive director of UNICEF and USAID administrator, has grown so popular, organizers moved it to the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort to accommodate additional supporters.

Artist Ethan Turpin and scientist Naomi Tague explore their combined work for “WILDLAND” in a free, public lecture, “Beyond Data Visualization: Art-Science Collaboration with Ethan Turpin and Naomi Tague” on Thursday, Jan. 30, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in Westmont’s Porter Theatre. No RSVPs are needed; and light refreshments will be served.

Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art exhibits “WILDLAND: Ethan Turpin's Collaborations on Fire and Water” through March 22.

A Westmont student and professor have won the Hatfield Prize, which will allow them to conduct research this semester through interviewing churches, nonprofits and government agencies who are preventing and addressing homelessness in Santa Barbara.

Westmont’s first monthly stargazing event of 2025 features Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, Venus, Orion’s nebula and the Owl Cluster on Friday, Jan. 17, at 6:30 p.m. and lasting several hours at the Westmont Observatory. Along with the college’s powerful Keck Telescope, members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit bring their telescopes to share with the public.

A large crowd of about 175 people gathered to appreciate the multifaceted exhibition of “WILDLAND: Ethan Turpin's Collaborations on Fire and Water” on Jan. 9 at the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. The exhibition, which explores the complex relationships between fire, water and ourselves, is open through March 22.

A Westmont biology class is celebrating the growing success of an oak woodland restoration project in the barranca along the westside of Westmont’s campus. Nearly all of the 60 coast live oaks that were planted along the dry Westmont Creek in November 2023 are surviving and many have grown more than three feet tall.

Condoleezza Rice, the 66th U.S. secretary of state, speaks at the 20th annual Westmont President’s Breakfast on Friday, Feb. 28, from 7-9 a.m. at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. Tickets cost $175 per person and go on sale Friday, Jan. 31, at 9 a.m. at westmont.edu/breakfast. Seating is limited, and tickets are sold on a first-come, first-served basis.

The fourth cohort of Westmont Downtown| Grotenhuis Nursing graduates were celebrated at a pinning ceremony in front of friends and family Dec. 12 at Montecito Covenant Church.

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art features the multimedia creations of Ethan Turpin, whose works are grounded in the natural cycles of wildfire, devastation, and recovery and regrowth from Jan. 9-March 22. The public is invited to a free opening reception of “WILDLAND: Ethan Turpin's Collaborations on Fire and Water” on Thursday, Jan. 9, 4-6 p.m. at the museum.

Westmont honored alumnus Tine Hardeman ’55 prior to the women’s basketball game against Azusa Pacific University on Dec. 14 in Murchison Gym. Hardeman died on Dec. 2 at age 92.

Westmont’s final monthly stargazing event of 2024 features two gas giants, Orion, the Owl Cluster and the Andromeda galaxy on Friday, Dec. 20, at 6:30 p.m. and lasting several hours at the Westmont Observatory. Along with the college’s powerful Keck Telescope, members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit bring their telescopes to share with the public.