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Tracy Kidder, renowned author and Pulitzer Prize winner, will speak at Pacific Union College on Thursday, October 27, at 10 a.m in the PUC Church Sanctuary. A special question-and-answer session with Kidder at 11:00 a.m. in Scales Chapel will follow his presentation. The public is invited to attend, and admission for both events is free. Author of eight books, Kidder’s text “Mountains Beyond Mountains” follows the life of Paul Farmer, a physician with a passion for international outreach, notably in Haiti. “Mountains Beyond Mountains” is the 2011-12 selection for PUC Reads, a campus-wide book club that incorporates a chosen text into general education courses. Tracy Kidder has won the National Book Award, the Robert F. Kennedy Award, and many other literary prizes....

At a presentation at Pacific Union College yesterday, NASA astronaut Jose Hernandez encouraged students to persevere in their lifelong pursuit of ambitious goals. “Don’t ever, ever, ever give up on yourselves, because you can do it,” he said to an overflow audience in the PUC Church. Hernandez addressed PUC students, faculty, and staff at the morning Opening Convocation, the ceremony that represents the formal start of the school year. Beginning with a clip from his TV interview on Oprah, Hernandez recounted his inspirational journey from the strawberry fields of California’s Central Valley all the way to his 5.7 million mile voyage with the International Space Station in 2009. The astronaut, who has received a flood of media attention because of his inspiring story, also revealed that at the urging of President Barack Obama, he is considering a run for Congress in California. He plans to announce his decision on October 11. The son of migrant farm workers who traveled with the growing seasons from Michoacán, Mexico to the farmlands of California, Hernandez grew up picking produce alongside his brothers and sisters. His parents, despite having only a third-grade education themselves, did their best to keep the children in school as...

The college research service Student Horizons has named Pacific Union College one of its “Colleges of Distinction,” with a feature profile of the school posted on the service’s website, collegesofdistinction.com. Student Horizons and Colleges of Distinction provide students, parents, and counselors with information about excellent colleges based on four distinctive factors: engaged students, great teaching, vibrant communities, and successful outcomes. The selection is designed to feature both well-known colleges and smaller, “hidden gems” of which college-bound students may not be aware. View PUC’s profile at collegesofdistinction.com....

The residence halls at Pacific Union College were a storm of activity Wednesday, September 21, as the year’s crop of freshmen arrived on their new campus. Faculty, staff, and many upperclassmen welcomed the new faces to campus, helping the freshmen move into the dorms as a volunteer service known as Porter Power. “This is great! I wish people had done this for me when I started college!” said Student Association Vice President Jessica Kremer, who transferred to PUC as a sophomore. The entire SA government turned out to assist their new classmates into the dorms and welcome them to the student body. “Porter Power is a reflection of our very mission at PUC—to live a life of service!” says Lisa Bissell-Paulson, Vice President for Student Services. “Why not put our mission into action from the moment students set foot on campus? Parents love the assistance, students see faculty, staff, and students joining together to help them, and in turn, new students immediately embrace serving others. One good deed really does lead to another.” Now that they’re settled on campus, the freshmen are headed for a campground in the Mendocino forests for a retreat with Fusion, the freshman orientation program that...

Academy students from across the western states learned tips from design and editing professionals September 6-8 at PUC’s annual Publication Workshop. This year’s crowd was the largest in the 21-year history of the program, with 26 schools in attendance. Publication Workshop provides invaluable experience for high school yearbook, video yearbook, and newspaper publishers, and for many students is a first step into a lifelong career in publishing or journalism. “PUC does an amazing job at providing support through the workshops and especially the opportunity to network with each other,” said Stanley Matsuda, yearbook sponsor at Redding Adventist Academy in Redding, Calif. This year’s program instructors included professors from PUC’s communication and visual arts departments, working professionals in the public relations and student life offices, and upper division design students—some in their first teaching experiences. The program also tapped resources from off campus, including keynote speaker Donna Rooney, who has been a writer for a variety of TV shows and websites; Jesse Duarte, a reporter for the local newspaper St. Helena Star; and John Tagamolila, an assistant director with credits including The Fighter and Dear John, and an adjunct professor in PUC’s visual arts department. “Publication Workshop was a great mix...