The Pacific Union College Pioneers women’s volleyball team ended their season at the National Athletic Intercollegiate Association (NAIA) California Pacific Conference Volleyball Tournament in Riverside, Calif. The Lady Pioneers lost to Menlo College on October 13; Menlo went on to beat UC Merced for the Cal Pac Championship on October 15. At the Championship Awards Banquet, Pioneer players were honored with postseason honors. PUC women’s volleyball ended their season 15-12 overall and 5-6 in Cal Pac play. They entered the Championships as the three seed before falling to Menlo College in the first round. “We are a young team, and a young team with a lot of talent,” shared head coach Brittany Brown. “I am looking forward to building off the success of this program going into next year.” At the Cal Pac Championship Awards Banquet, Lady Pioneer Viridiana Gallardo, a senior, was recognized the Cal Pac Libero of the Year and named to the All Conference First Team. Gallardo led the Cal Pac in digs per set at 6.02 and tallied a total of 602 digs in the season. She was seventh in the NAIA in digs per set. In addition to Gallardo’s award, Amanda Loeffler was named Cal...

Josue Hernandez would have never imagined being the religious vice president of PUC’s Student Association his freshman year of college at UC Davis. After he transferred to PUC his junior year, Hernandez changed his major from mechanical engineering to theology. “I knew the ministry would be more fulfilling,” Hernandez says. Hernandez describes his role in SA as “a fun experience with no stress and a good team.” Coordinating vespers and ministering to different groups on campus, Hernandez integrates his main goal for students in every event he plans. “I want to see individuals mature spiritually, have an open mind, and be able to look at life and faith from new perspectives,” Hernandez explains. His vision for the campus as a whole is to see a diverse spiritual community come together. Hernandez recently returned from a trip to Silver Spring, Md. for the North American Division Year-End Meetings, where he represented Pacific Union College and the youth of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. For the first time, 15 of voting delegates were young adults from Adventist colleges and universities. Hernandez and his peers shared their voice and voted on issues that ranged from mission projects to women’s ordination. Hernandez saw the experience...

“In our most stretching times … we find that there is a greater plan,” shared Sarah Hill at the November 6 installment of PUC’s Colloquy Speaker Series. Hill, a youth leader and missionary on the island of Kauai, is best known for her relationship with surfer and shark-attack survivor Bethany Hamilton. During her presentation, “Lost Limbs but Not Lost Hope,” Hill used her experience comforting a girl whose life completely changed when she tragically lost an arm in a shark accident to inspire the PUC community to put their hope in Christ, even in crisis. In Soul Surfer, the film portrayal of Bethany Hamilton’s accident and recovery, Hill was played by singer and actress Carrie Underwood. Hill spoke of her role in Bethany Hamilton’s life, and the difficulty she had trying to find the right words to say as she drove to the emergency room following the accident. “Lord, what do I say in this time? How do I comfort her family when I’m not okay with this?” Hill questioned. It was that moment that she realized God had a plan for Bethany, and He was going to use her. Hill, who was the Hamilton’s youth leader, spent countless hours...

Squirmy kindergartners and healthy first graders aren’t typical patients for nursing students used to interacting with sick or injured people in hospital settings. However, on a series of schooldays in October, bachelor of nursing students taking a Community Health course visited a series of private elementary schools to screen the hearing and vision of each student. The Community Health course is part of PUC’s bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) curriculum, and the service-learning opportunity at the local schools gave students a chance to be hands-on and apply what they learned in the college classroom to the elementary classroom. The BSN students conducted screenings at Pacific Union College Elementary in Angwin on October 14, Napa Christian Campus of Education in Napa on October 15, and Foothills Adventist Elementary School in St. Helena on October 21. “Learning it in the classroom is far different from actually doing it with a kindergartener,” shares Susan Allen, D.N.P. Allen, professor for the Community Health class and a former school nurse, saw the screening as a great opportunity for both college and elementary students. Unlike public schools, private schools like these don’t have free screenings in certain grades. Catching hearing and vision problems early can...

Pacific Union College’s full residence halls and busy academic buildings are the result of a remarkable increase in retention. Following the October 12 census date, when the college analyses fall enrollment data, PUC is reporting the highest on-campus enrollment since 1995. This fall quarter, 1,634 students are enrolled at PUC’s Angwin campus. Adding off-campus programs such as the RN-BSN program in Napa brings the college’s total enrollment to 1,674 students. "We are blessed that so many students and their families have chosen Pacific Union College,” states Jennifer Tyner, vice president for enrollment management and marketing. “PUC's outstanding academics and Seventh-day Adventist faith community make it an excellent investment, and I am excited to see what we will accomplish this year as we fulfill the college's unique educational mission." The college is especially proud of the high number of students who chose to return to PUC to continue their undergraduate education. "The return of such a high percentage of last year's freshmen, sophomores, and juniors is a great indicator that PUC is continuing to provide the excellent, Christ-centered education we promise,” comments Nancy Lecourt, Vice President for academic administration and academic dean. “The high impact learning practices and incredible faculty mentoring...