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In April, Pacific Union College biology professor Brian Wong and two of his students traveled to Washington, D.C., for the 2010 American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) general meeting. Wong is known for his on-going research into cancer prevention, and proficient biology students have the opportunity to work with him as assistants. This year, Wong and student co-authors Christal Nishikawa, Brian Kim, Jeeyon Jung, Alyssa Zima, and Lucas Kim had two research posters accepted at the conference. Wong, Nishikawa, and Lucas Kim traveled to the conference in person to attend seminars and present their research. The two posters, with Wong as first author on one and Nishikawa as first author on the other, show research on the cancer prevention properties of two Chinese medicinal herbs against colon cancer formation in mouse and human cells. Wong, Nishikawa, and Kim presented in the large exhibit area with other researchers, explaining their findings. Nishikawa appreciated the opportunity to attend the conference. "It was a great experience getting to listen to speakers talk about cutting-edge research on cancer," she says. "I realize that I am very privileged to go to these meetings as an undergraduate." Lucas Kim began working with Wong at the beginning...

From April 21 to 25, sixteen psychology majors and four professors from Pacific Union College took a short, mid-term break to attend the Western Psychological Association (WPA) convention in Cancun, Mexico. At the convention sponsored by Psi Chi, the national honor society of psychology, the students presented two posters, met recruiters from graduate schools, and even listened to PUC alum Cara Tan give a symposium, all while enjoying the tropical sun and the beautiful beach of their hotel. "Cancun was beautiful and awesome, but it was also a very good learning experience," says sophomore Jessica Cerda. "It was really important that the professors in our department really encouraged this." Last year, these students took a lab for their child development class, in which they were assigned articles and instructed to conduct research on them. For both groups, the findings were significant. Because of their results, the professors urged them to submit an application to present at WPA. After sending in an abstract, they were accepted, and the process of perfecting their presentation began. At WPA, Cerda and her fellow group members presented their research on the effect of ethnic awareness on job association, while the other group presented their study...

During April, several PUC students and staff joined in a two-week effort to clean and repair the dilapidated homes of elderly and disabled citizens living in nearby Calistoga. Teaming with Rebuilding Calistoga, a volunteer organization under the sponsorship of Calistoga Affordable Housing, Inc., they contributed to the restoration of nearly 50 residences, half of which were mobile homes. PUC chaplain Roy Ice helped get the college involved and contributed his own efforts to the rebuilding project. “I think that it’s important to show that PUC is a resource to our community, and not the other way around,” Ice says. The project was conceived by Larry Kromann, a retired school principal and PUC church member, who wanted to find a way to help the elderly. He gathered the help and support of community members for the home repair project, and received the sponsorship of Home Depot, which donated a $5,000 gift card and promised to send out 30 of its employees. A ceremony was held on April 25 to recognize everybody who volunteered. Calistoga mayor Jack Gingles publicly recognized PUC’s contribution and expressed his gratitude towards the college’s involvement. “I want you to take a message back to PUC and your...

The evening of Sunday, April 25, brought hundreds of students (and other members of the campus and local community) to the outdoor area at the center of the Pacific Union College campus for the grand REVO PUC 2010 event. Following the tradition of the past two REVO PUC events, there was a rummage sale, silent auction, information booths, food sales, concerts, and a fashion show exhibiting innovative student designs. The outdoor stage at the main REVO event hosted three bands: a student band called G.S.S.M., a student-and-alum band called The West Atlantic, and a new Los Angeles band on tour in Northern California, She Screams Remedy. For the fashion show, six student designers were each allotted $50 to spend at thrift stores and five models. Each designer chose a theme, models, and music and coordinated meetings and rehearsals. Two faculty members and REVO founder Nina Brav served as judges. In addition to the fun and entertainment that drew people to REVO events, student leaders felt that there was a deeper sense of the project's value. "Students are willing to turn out in droves because they understand the point of it all," says Tyler Cantrell, who recently finished his PUC classes...

This year, Pacific Union College celebrated Earth Day with a fair, a clean-up project, and a special speaker. L. Hunter Lovins, a globally recognized leader and consultant in sustainable practices, arrived with her signature cowboy hat to speak to members of the campus and community during the morning's all-school colloquy and a special evening lecture on “Sustainability in Napa County." At the colloquy program, before Lovins spoke, environmental studies majors Dustin Baumbach and Molly Reeves shared about their internships, one working at the Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito and one at the Safari West wild animal preserve. Lovins then began her address by introducing the argument for why life as we know it cannot sustain itself; but rather than citing just environmental "drivers of change" and "intolerable signs," she addressed the spectrum from nature to economics to social equity. Then, rather than asking individuals to reduce their carbon footprint or some such practice, she suggested that if we are to meet the challenges and goals of the future and adapt to sustain the planet, we must do so on an entirely new paradigm. This includes "world best practices" for addressing human needs, smart development that is truly sustainable, redesigning education....