Campus News Headlines: Two Andrews University English Professors Win Award for Fiction & Film Article (and more!)

Two Andrews University English Professors Win Award for Fiction & Film Article. Scott Moncrieff, Andrews professor of English, and Vanessa Corredera, Andrews assistant professor of English, received recognition by the Associated Church Press (ACP) for their coauthored article, “Fiction and Film: Thoughts on Teaching Potentially Controversial Narratives,” originally published in the October/November 2015 edition of “The Journal of Adventist Education.” In the article, the professors discuss what it means to teach fiction in an Adventist setting and the problems that can arise when addressing controversial topics. “I felt that this topic was important, both personally and professionally,” says Corredera. “In other words, it was certainly worth the time. I had spoken on the topic on campus, so this was an opportunity to refine my thinking. Furthermore, coauthoring is uncommon in the humanities; it was a great opportunity to try something new with a colleague and friend.” An online version of Moncrieff and Corredera's article will be available in the Fall from the Journal of Adventist Education. Read more from Andrews University here.

Walla Walla University Student Receives Oxford SCIO Award for Exceptional Academic Performance While Abroad. Karl Wallenkampf, graduating senior at Walla Walla University (WWU), received a de Jager prize from the Scholarship & Christianity in Oxford (SCIO) center. Wallenkampf spent last fall studying abroad in Oxford through SCIO, the United Kingdom subsidiary of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities. Wallenkampf’s dedication to school and learning is evident both in his work at WWU and Oxford.“[The de Jager prize] is an in-house prize, so I’m not some amazing Nobel laureate or anything!” Wallenkampf said. “However, it was the result of a great deal of work, and it meant that the board of tutors at SCIO, in consultation with my research advisor, thought my research essay was one of the best out of the 50-some that were submitted,” he continued. “Out of such a pool of excellent individuals, I am truly humbled. I am thankful mostly for the affirmation I received through this reward.” Wallenkampf will be graduating in June with a Bachelor of Arts degree in humanities and a Bachelor of Science degree in biology. More from Walla Walla University here.

Pacific Union College Hosts Eighth Annual REVOfest. For the past eight years, Pacific Union College (PUC) has participated in a student-led philanthropy event named REVOfest. The biggest part of the event is the annual fashion show, designed as a fundraiser for an international project. This year over 300 people attended the fashion show to support Freeset, an organization that provides job opportunities for women hoping to overcome sex trade captivity. After several students went to the organization’s headquarters in Kolkota, India, last summer, they were inspired to partner this year’s REVOfest with Freeset. “For me, the most rewarding thing is knowing that it’s real,” said Trent Broeckel, senior PUC student. “This wasn’t just a class assignment with fake goals just to make the grade. Sex trafficking is real, and REVO is real. The $10,000 we raised together is real. The 27 women who can now stop being trafficked and work more sustainable jobs are real.” More from Pacific Union College here.

La Sierra University’s Academy of Visual and Performing Arts Gears Up for Summer Music Activities. The Academy of Visual and Performing Arts, an academy of performing arts at La Sierra University, is expanding its program for the summer. From June 13 - 24, AVPA offers Junior Music Camp for Kindergarten – 2nd grade, Music Camp for grades 3 - 6, a Core+ Program for grades 7 - 12, and summer academies in piano and voice. The camp program for kindergarteners and 1st and 2nd graders is a new addition to the academy. “We are very excited to add this program,” said AVPA Director Martin Glicklich, a faculty member with the university’s music department. “There is a true need for early childhood music as the benefits are lifelong. It has been proven that children involved with music at an early age develop increased math and language skills. Participants will have the opportunity to learn with guest artists M.B. Gordy, a Los Angeles percussionist and drummer, and violinist Sam Fischer, concertmaster for the Riverside Philharmonic, through performance clinics and master classes during the two-week program. More from La Sierra University here.

Newbold College Launches New Honor Society Program. In May, Newbold College in England inducted five students into the international honor society, Sigma Beta Delta. This honor society recognizes accomplishments among business, management and administration students, encouraging both personal and professional development as they continue to study. Esra Eliasson, Newbold business student and one of the first inductees of the Newbold Chapter said, “Being a member of the Sigma Beta Delta Society will add to my credibility and provide an additional edge when it comes to securing employment or continuing with further studies.” More from Newbold College here.

Hallie Anderson is a student intern for Spectrum and a senior communications student studying journalism and public relations at Walla Walla University.

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This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at http://spectrummagazine.org/node/7486
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Congratulations to Profs. Moncrieff and Corredera. All Adventist academics and scholars should be writing with the larger world of arts and letters in mind; obsessively talking to oneself is a sign of madness. I encourage them to publish far and wide, and they certainly have both the ability, and, now, the interest in doing that. Bravo/a!

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REVOfest is such a worthy cause and it is good to see PUC get involved in something that combats sex trafficking and turning lives around.

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Congratulations to Scott and Vanessa! This is a great advance on earlier decades. More power to the pen!

I remember receiving a rejection for a theological article I wrote (for adults) as a dialogue between two animals. I spoke personally to the editor of the magazine when he came to college and he replied that he appreciated the narrative but the guidelines did not permit him to accept an article that featured talking animals!

Rene G.

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I am confused. A professor may be terminated if they express disbelief in EGW. True it is.

Yet Andrews has nothing to say about teachers writing works of fictions that EGW clearly, frequently, disallowed. Not once but many times she declared that fiction destroys spiritual life. She was opposed to popular books of fiction such as:

“Years ago reproof was given our editors in regard to advocating the reading of even such books as Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Aesop’s Fables, and Robinson Crusoe.** Those who begin to read such works usually desire to continue to read novels. Through the reading of enticing stories they rapidly lose their spirituality. This is one of the principal causes of the weak, uncertain spirituality of many of our youth.” EGW

“ Even fiction which contains no suggestion of impurity, and which may be intended to teach excellent principles, is harmful. It encourages the habit of hasty and superficial reading, merely for the story. Thus it tends to destroy the power of connected and vigorous thought; it unfits the soul to contemplate the great problems of duty and destiny.” EGW

As religious leaders, we have a fine way of choosing which part of inspiration we support and follow, while we neglect other parts without an afterthought. This is a form of lying to ourselves and others for the sake of reputation or employment. Does not 99% of SDA members, teachers and leaders read books or watch movies that are fictional. (In honesty, I do.)

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As someone who has studied English, it’s pretty clear that EGW didn’t understand how literary novels are best read. This seems to directly counteract the advice of paul, which would seem to take precedence.

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