Archives

The Pacific Union College campus was enlightened on the effects of American consumerist behavior at colloquy on Thursday morning. In the annual “PUC Reads” edition of the campus-wide assembly, students, faculty, and staff had the chance to view a short documentary entitled The Story of Stuff by Annie Leonard. The film, which has quickly become the go-to guide in the sustainability movement, explains the lifecycle of material goods in a “material economy,” addressing the detriment to people of third world countries and the Earth caused by wasteful habits of American culture. Leonard breaks down the process into five segments: extraction, production, distribution, consumption, and disposal. Her work is both critical of excessive consumerism and the power of corporations over the American government, and advocates environmental and social justice. Leonard’s original book with the same name was assigned to first-year students in their English 101 classes by a committee called PUC Reads that, according to English professor Cynthia Westerbeck, “discussed the concept of having the entire freshman class read a single book as a way to expand the concept of PUC as a learning community.” While the student response to the book have been mixed, with some individuals inspired to make...

Every year the NAIA names scholar-athletes to represent them on the Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes list. To be eligible for nomination a student-athlete must be a junior or senior in academic standing, attend an NAIA nominating institution for one full year, and have a minimum GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. Seven student-athletes were chosen to represent the women's basketball and the California Pacific Conference. Two Pioneers were chosen among the honorees.Junior guard Carla Bartlett and senior guard Julie Ford were among the athletes chosen as scholar athletes this year. They helped lead the Pioneers to a 2-22 overall record and 2-10 conference record. The Pioneers concluded the season with a loss to Menlo College in the first round of the Cal Pac tournament.The Pioneers are joined by Lesley Vodicska (HNU), Rachel Estabrook and Janessa McGirt (BU), Corie Thompson (MC), and Maria Viola (WJU), as representatives from the California Pacific Conference.Congratulations to all athletes on their very noteworthy achievement.Click on the following link to view the entire 2011 Daktronics-NAIA Division II Women's Basketball Scholar-Athlete list.http://naia.cstv.com/sports/w-baskbl-div2/spec-rel/031411aaa.html» Read about the Pioneers Men who received recognition....

Pacific Union College launched its own application for iPhone and other iOS-enabled devices. The new application, PUC Mobile, will keep students connected easily and efficiently, on and off campus. PUC Mobile is now available for free download at the iTunes App Store. Features on the app include quick access to college news updates and photo galleries; a schedule of upcoming campus events; a real time menu for PUC’s Dining Commons; a phone and e-mail directory that initiates contact with one click; and an interactive map of the campus and surrounding attractions. “With the explosion of mobile devices in the past few years, PUC wanted a way to stay connected with users and allow them to easily get information from and about PUC on their phone,” says PUC webmaster Nic Hubbard, who developed PUC Mobile. “Students want to be able to be able to check the cafe menu and view the events calendar quickly while on the go, without having to get onto puc.edu.”...

Every year the NAIA names scholar-athletes to represent them on the Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes list. To be eligible for nomination a student-athlete must be a junior or senior in academic standing, attend an NAIA nominating institution for one full year, and have a minimum GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale. In the sport of men's basketball the California Pacific Conference had six scholar-athletes, (four from Pacific Union College), receive recognition for their hard work in the classroom. The Pioneers tied the record for most scholar-athletes named to the Men's Basketball Daktronics NAIA Scholar-Athletes list for 2011. Dickinson State University, in North Dakota, was the only other institution to have four student-athletes make the list.Michael Giang, Josh Jewett, Aren Rennacker, and Brent Wild were named as scholar-athletes by Daktronics and the NAIA, recognized for their academic achievement and hard work. They helped guide the Pioneers to a 7-18 overall record this season and a 5-7 conference record. The Pioneers concluded the season with a loss to Holy Names University, who the Pioneers swept during the regular season, in the first round of the Cal Pac tournament. The other two California Pacific Conference representatives include, Menlo College guard and Cal Pac...

Pacific Union College’s Biology Club sponsored a work bee Sunday, February 27, in which 16 students, staff, and faculty members volunteered with the Berryessa Trails and Conservation organization to help restore the wildlife habitat of local Lake Berryessa. The group gathered to remove weeds, such as star thistle and fennel, and replace them with plants that are native to the area, such as foothill pine trees, manzanita, leather and scrub oak, and coyote brush, on the northwestern side of Lake Berryessa. They learned about the process of habitat restoration through hands-on experience. “We’re hoping this is the first of many partnerships between PUC and conservation organizations,” says biology professor and club sponsor Aimee Wyrick. She believes that such activities provide valuable opportunities for PUC students, especially environmental studies majors. The work bee is part of the initial stage of a larger combined effort between the Bureau of Reclamation, Berryessa Trails and Conservation, and the Audobon California Landowner Stewardship Program to act on the bureau’s commitment to preserve and protect natural resources around the lake. Ultimately, the project will plant more than 100 native trees, shrubs, and grasses to reestablish the lake’s native vegetation and wildlife habitat. “It was great to...