Westmont News

The co-founder of the Northern Ireland Peace Movement and winner of the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, will be speaking at Westmont next week. The free lecture, “Spirituality and Social Justice,” will be Wednesday, Feb. 22, at 7:30 p.m. in Hieronymus Lounge.

Maguire is one of several speakers who will come to Westmont this year through a grant from the Irvine Foundation titled “Building a Mystery: Theological and Practical Explorations in Reconciliation, Community and ‘the Other.’”

More than a hundred singers will be featured in Westmont’s free Masterworks Choral Concert, Friday, Feb. 24 at 8 p.m. in Trinity Episcopal Church, 1500 State Street.

Students will perform a world premiere play by an internationally acclaimed playwright later this month in Westmont’s newly remodeled Porter Theatre. “The Saint Plays” consist of four Erik Ehn plays, including his latest, “Rogue.” Performances will be February 24 and 25 at 8 p.m., March 2 and March 3 at 8 p.m., and March 4 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 for students/seniors and $15 for general admission.

A local panel of historians will discuss “Patriotism in America and the Importance of Compromise” at an upcoming Westmont Downtown Conversation. The free lecture, Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 5:30 p.m., will be held at the University Club, 1332 Santa Barbara St.

The conversation follows the Feb. 10, sold-out President’s Breakfast with Pulitzer Prize winning author and noted historian David McCullough.

There will be no calculators, but numbers will be flying as nearly 100 students from 10 public and private high schools in Southern California converge at Westmont for a battle of mathematical brains. The 20th annual High School Mathematics Contest, Saturday, Feb. 11, will feature several different events, including the quiz-show-style-competition, College Bowl.

A renowned Native American ministry leader, Richard Twiss, will speak at two free public events at Westmont, Wednesday, Jan. 25. He will lecture on “Christianity, Native American Culture and Worldview” in Kerr Student Center (KSC) at 3:15 p.m. He will then speak about Native American forms of music and dance for Christian worship at 4 p.m. in KSC.

The founder of the African American Art Song Alliance, Darryl Taylor, will perform at a free recital Wednesday, Feb. 8, at 8 p.m. in Westmont’s Deane Chapel.

Former Major League Baseball announcer and Hall of Famer Ernie Harwell will be the keynote speaker at a benefit reception at Westmont. Former Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Ross Porter and film director Ron Shelton will also be part of the event, Sunday, Jan. 29, at 1 p.m. in Page Hall. Suggested donation is $20 for adults and $10 for children and will directly benefit Warriors baseball.

Three unique artists with very diverse backgrounds will be under one roof at Westmont’s Reynolds Gallery. “Faith, Culture, Calling: The Irvine Guest Artist Show” will be at the gallery, Thursday, Jan. 19, through March. 10.

He’s considered the most significant logician of the 20th century and one of the greatest modern mathematicians, yet most people have never heard of Kurt Gödel or his famous incompleteness theorems. Westmont will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the theorems and the 100th anniversary of his birth.

The two-day, interdisciplinary forum will be held Feb. 3 and 4. It will include Westmont’s mathematics, computer science, theater arts and philosophy departments.

Westmont student art projects are sprouting up across campus this week, depicting biblical stories and interpreting moments in Christ’s life. The project, “Stations of Christ’s Life,” won a $10,700 Worship Renewal grant last May from the Calvin Institute of Christian Worship.

Each of the 14 student artists will describe their “station” at a dedication walk Friday, Jan. 13, at 3:30 p.m. The tour will begin from the Kerrwood Lawn. The art projects are expected to remain on campus through the spring semester.

A day of events later this month will formally welcome Westmont’s new Adams professor of music and worship. However, Michael Shasberger has already been winning the ears and hearts of the local community.

American historian and bestselling author David McCullough will be the guest at Westmont’s annual President’s Breakfast, Friday, Feb. 10. McCullough will speak about, “The Spirit of 1776 Then and Now,” at 7 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom at Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort.

Westmont’s baseball coach was able to make Christmas a little brighter for two families displaced by Hurricane Katrina. Thanks to donations from the Santa Barbara community, Rob Crawford sent gifts and money to the families who have been forced to relocate to Shreveport, La.

Warren Rogers, Westmont physics professor, has been appointed to the prestigious position of fellow of the American Physical Society (APS). Each year, no more than one-half of one percent of the current membership of the society receive this recognition.

The eighth edition of Barron’s “Best Buys in College Education” has listed Westmont among the 260 best buys in college education. The book’s editors select colleges based on tuition rates, size and academic emphasis. Barron’s also factored in percentage of faculty with doctorates, percentage of entering freshmen who graduate, and percentage of graduates seeking advanced degrees.

A magazine focusing on Hispanics in higher education has included Westmont in its 10th Annual Publisher’s Pick List. The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine ranks Westmont among the top colleges “doing a commendable job of recruiting, retaining, educating and graduating Hispanics.”

Westmont continues to make progress attracting and keeping diverse students. Currently, students of color make up 20 percent of the student body. The first-year class diversity population is 26 percent. Hispanics make up the largest diversity group on campus, 9 percent this fall.

Four Westmont students ran over the competition in the 16th annual Westmont Collegiate Entrepreneurship Business Plan Competition. The student venture, Polaris Athletic Training Systems Inc., took first place with its high-tech training device for runners and other athletes.

A magazine focusing on Hispanics in higher education has included Westmont in its 10th Annual Publisher’s Pick List. The Hispanic Outlook in Higher Education Magazine ranks Westmont among the top colleges “doing a commendable job of recruiting, retaining, educating and graduating Hispanics.”

Westmont continues to make progress attracting and keeping diverse students. Currently, students of color make up 20 percent of the student body. The first-year class diversity population is 26 percent. Hispanics make up the largest diversity group on campus, 9 percent this fall.

Four teams of Westmont students have been chosen to present their proposed business ventures in the 16th Annual Westmont Collegiate Entrepreneurship Business Plan Competition, Thursday, Dec. 8. The free presentation will be in Hieronymus Lounge at Kerrwood Hall at Westmont. Refreshments will be served at 4:45 pm and the program will begin at 5:15 p.m.

Westmont’s baseball coach and a popular Montecito musician are teaming up in hopes of helping families affected by Hurricane Katrina. Rob Crawford and Bobby Shand will present “One Family at a Time,” a special benefit show with The Shand Band at SOhO, 1221 State St., Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets will be sold at the door for $20, children half price. All proceeds will benefit the relief effort. Doors open at 5 p.m.

Tickets are no longer available for the First Annual Westmont Christmas Festival, Saturday, Dec. 10 at First Presbyterian Church in Santa Barbara. However, seating is still available for the performance, Friday, Dec. 9 at Westmont’s Murchison Gym.

The celebration is titled “The Word Made Flesh” and is presented by Westmonts’ music, art and theater departments. It is directed by Michael Shasberger, Adams professor of music and worship.

A group of Westmont students is getting a unique opportunity to work with an internationally acclaimed playwright, crafting a new production students will eventually perform in February. The Westmont Theater Arts department has commissioned playwright Erik Ehn to develop a new play as part of his ongoing Saint Play series.

Movers will be packing up a special Westmont wardrobe this week for a brief engagement at the Cerritos Library in hopes of inspiring youngsters to read. Westmont’s wardrobe was once owned by C.S. Lewis and closely matches the description of the one in his book, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.”

“The Chronicles of Narnia, the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe” hits the big screen, Friday, Dec. 9. Westmont’s wardrobe was featured in this month’s National Geographic.

Hundreds of students, alumni and neighbors donning mittens and scarves will celebrate the start of the Christmas season at the fourth annual Christmas Tree Lighting on Westmont’s Kerrwood Lawn next week. The 70-foot redwood tree on the lawn will come aglow at 5 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 30.

Santa Claus will stop by for free pictures with kids inside Kerrwood hall. Warm apple cider and cookies will also be available.

Westmont alumni are invited to mingle in the president’s office at 4:30 p.m. before the tree lighting ceremony.

Westmont’s Wind Ensemble and Chamber Orchestra will present a joint concert this week on campus. The free, public concert will be Friday, Nov. 18, at Deane Chapel, 8 p.m.

The wind ensemble will be under the direction of new Westmont music instructor Paul Mori. The 20-piece large ensemble is made up of brass, woodwind and percussion players. The large ensemble will feature compositions such as “Ode to Greensleeves” and Alfred Reed’s “Russian Christmas Music.” Trio and quartets from the ensemble will perform pieces by classic masters, such as Debussy and Mozart.

Roger Voskuyl, who served as president of Westmont College from 1950 to 1968, died Nov. 9 in Santa Barbara at the age of 95. The Harvard-educated chemist, who participated in the Manhattan Project during World War II, led Westmont during a crucial time in its history.

Westmont is hoping the allure of slime and liquid nitrogen ice cream will get youngsters interested in science. The college’s chemistry students recently held a Family Science Night at Westmont with another event scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 9, from 7-8:30 p.m.

About 35 fifth grade students and their parents came to the first event and made dry ice balloons, methane bubbles and explosions along with slime and ice cream.

Representatives from at least 29 graduate programs from around the country will be taking part in Westmont’s annual Graduate School & Seminary Day Fair. The fair will be held from 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. on the Magnolia Lawn. In case of inclement weather, the event will move to the Kerr Student Center.

Representatives will speak to students and alums about what their programs have to offer.

For more information, contact Carrie Rydman-Hanley in the career and life planning office at (805)565-7333. For directions to campus, visit the college Web site at www.westmont.edu.

Westmont’s Reynolds Gallery will display the works of California painter R. Kenton Nelson beginning next month in an exhibition titled “Narrative Idealism.” The free exhibit runs Nov. 10-Dec. 16 at the gallery, which is open to the public Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.

There will also be a public opening reception and book signing with the artist, Thursday, Nov. 10, from 4-6 p.m. A new large-scale painting will be premiered at the opening reception.

President Abraham Lincoln’s greatest speech wasn’t the Gettysburg Address, it was his Sermon on the Mount. That’s the belief of Ronald C. White, professor at San Francisco Theological Seminary. White will discuss the topic as part of Westmont’s Erasmus Lecture series, Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 3:30 p.m. at Hieronymus Lounge. The lecture is titled, “Abraham Lincoln’s Sermon on the Mount: The Second Inaugural Address.”

Patty Martin of Woodside, Calif., has been installed as the newest member of the Westmont College Board of Trustees. Martin, 56, is a certified spiritual director and teaches classes at Menlo Park Presbyterian Church in spiritual formation.

“I think Westmont has a great balance of encouraging critical Christian thinking without being legalistic,” she says, “and looking at the whole person in terms of growing to become God-like within whatever realm God calls you to.”

The Westmont theater season opens next week, Friday, Nov. 4, with Shakespeare’s achingly beautiful history play “King Richard II” at Santa Barbara Trinity Episcopal Church. It is the first in a yearlong season of events that centers on contemporary, international approaches to Shakespeare’s plays.

Politics and religion will mix at a lecture in downtown Santa Barbara next week. The Westmont Downtown Conversation will include several local community leaders of different faiths and focus on the interactions and conflicts between faith and politics in our community. It will be held, Thursday, Nov. 3, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m, at the University Club, 1332 Santa Barbara St.

Three local high school choirs will join voices with singers from Westmont later this month for the Fall Choral Festival Concert. The concert is Friday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m., at Trinity Episcopal Church, 1500 State St. Adams Professor of Music and Worship Michael Shasberger will direct guest choirs from San Marcos, Paso Robles, and San Luis Obispo High Schools. The concert will also feature the Westmont College Choir and Chamber Singers. The evening will include a cameo appearance by the guest high school choirs and will conclude in a mass choir presentation.

Two separate estate gifts totaling $3.3 million will help endow student scholarships and the Institute for the Liberal Arts at Westmont. In its sixth year, the institute explores and promotes liberal arts education, which offers knowledge in a broad range of subjects as well as skills students need to succeed at work and in life.

Westmont President Stan D. Gaede announced he will conclude his presidency at the end of the academic year in June. He has served as the college’s president since July 2001. Previously, he was provost, the top academic officer, for five years. The 58-year old will return to Gordon College in Wenham, Mass., where he joined the faculty in 1974 and became provost in 1993.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has selected Westmont to receive a
prestigious $178,000 grant for computer science research over two years. The NSF’s
Cyber Trust Program will fund the Westmont project, “Survivable, Adaptive and
Scalable Distributed Systems.” NSF expects to fund fewer than 50 of the 487
proposals it reviewed this year.
“It’s exciting for such a small college like Westmont to receive this award,” says
Kim Kihlstrom, associate professor of computer science, “Although other Westmont

A specialist in 19th century British cultural and literary studies will deliver a lecture at Westmont next month. Associate Professor of English at U.C. Davis Catherine Robson will speak in Hieronymus Lounge, Monday, Oct. 24, at 7 p.m as part of Westmont’s Erasmus Lecture Series. Her lecture is entitled “Memorization and Memorialization: Poetry and the Burial of Heroes.”

Local residents will soon be able to connect with about 40 victims of Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita. Westmont Head Baseball Coach Rob Crawford will arrive in Santa
Barbara, Saturday, Oct. 1, after returning to the Gulf Coast for a week. He spent
several days videotaping and interviewing the evacuees who he and 21 other local
volunteers got to know in September.
“There’s so many gaps,” Crawford said. “I hope that Santa Barbara will respond to
this. I’ll show the video and hopefully get some sponsorships. We now need to

San Diego author and physician David Peck will present a slide show and lecture on his book, “Or Perish in the Attempt: Wilderness Medicine in the Lewis and Clark Expedition,” 7 p.m. Oct. 6 in Hieronymus Lounge in Kerrwood Hall on Westmont’s upper campus.

Peck has turned his love of the outdoors, history and medicine into a book that details the expedition with wit, explaining that embarking into the wilderness of the 1700s with few medical supplies or medicines was tantamount to suicide.

Princeton Professor Albert Raboteau will speak on “Healing the Wounds of Racism: The Role of Memory and Mourning” 4 p.m. Oct. 2 in Hieronymus Lounge in Kerrwood Hall on the upper Westmont campus.

The lecture, sponsored by the Erasmus Society, is free and open to the public.

Raboteau, the Henry W. Putnam professor of religion at Princeton, will discuss the ongoing effects of racism upon the nation and will suggest that Americans are still struggling to come to terms with the history of slavery and the racial hatred sowed by slavery.

Westmont will focus on the global presence of Christianity by hosting speakers from India and West Papua, Indonesia, this October. The college launched the lecture series, World Christianity and Global Encounters of the 21st Century, in 2002. The goal is to learn how Christian movements affect relationships between rival ethnic and religious groups in the non-Western world.

Thanks to a $50,000 matching grant, the Institute for the Liberal Arts at Westmont will reach out to underserved students this fall through an innovative Liberal Arts Ambassadors program. The collaborative project between Westmont and the University of La Verne involves college students from underserved groups engaging with prospective students in junior high and high schools.

This important college fair is part of a national program which brings information regarding over 30 regional and national Christian colleges to high school students and their parents. A successful event in the Tri-Counties and across the country, this event offers the opportunity for prospective students and their families to meet with college representatives and attend a financial aid session.

Date of the fair: Tuesday, October 4th

At: Montecito Covenant Church

From: 6:00pm to 8:30pm.

Two Westmont theater arts professors will offer their creative insight and discuss the artistic choices involved in staging a Shakespearean play. John Blondell and Mitchell Thomas will host the opening 2005-2006 Westmont Downtown Conversation, Thursday, Oct. 6, at 5:30 p.m. at the University Club, 1332 Santa Barbara St. The lecture is entitled: “Sad Stories of the Death of Kings: Approaches to Staging Shakespeare’s ‘King Richard II.’”

Westmont Head Baseball Coach Rob Crawford is returning to the hurricane ravaged Gulf Coast this week to help 16 families who were forced to evacuate. Crawford is following up with about 40 people he and other local residents helped on a trip earlier this month. Crawford hopes to take the victims shopping for food and clothes with money donated from the Santa Barbara community. Crawford is concentrating his efforts on the families that 21 local volunteers relocated to hotels where they are being allowed to stay for 30 days.