In this issue...
- From the Director
- Graduation Highlights
- Faculty Kudos
- Senior Class Giving
- Campus Highlight: Hope Theatre
- Campus Service: Study Abroad
- Summer Send Off Picnics
- Refer a Student to Admissions
- Planning Calendar
- E-News Subscription
From the Director
The summer is quiet on campus – far fewer thuds of frisbees on the windows, many more available parking spaces, and a different atmosphere in every building. This is the way it is every summer when we wrap up the previous academic year and prepare for the next. There are still many students around working, doing research, and studying, through the all too fast summer. Campus will look a little different when your students return – the Graves Hall restoration project will be in full swing and Kollen Hall will have completed its upgrades. This issue of the parents' enews celebrates some of the achievements of the past year and looks forward to the next. I hope you all have a joyous summer with your student(s) and we'll see you in the fall!
 |
Mary Boelkins '96
Remenschneider Director of Alumni and Parent Relations |
Graduation Highlights
 |
2008 Baccalaureate Sermon:”Signs of Hope” Dennis & Betty Voskuil |
 |
2008 Commencement Address:”Living with Questions” Dr. Steven Hoogerwerf |
 |
2008 H.O.P.E. Award Recipient: Dr. Jennifer Young |
 |
2008 Baccalaureate and Commencement Photo Gallery |
Faculty Kudos
 |
Professor Edward Hansen Receives Fulbright Award |
Dr. Edward Hansen, professor of geology and environmental science at Hope College, will spend August to January conducting research in Sweden through an award from the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program.
Hansen is the fifth member of the Hope faculty to receive one of the awards in the past five years. Vicki Ten Haken, associate professor of management, held one of the awards earlier during the current school year to teach and conduct research in Krakow, Poland. Dr. Victor Claar, associate professor of economics, spent the 2006-07 school year teaching at the AmericanUniversity of Armenia in Yerevan, Armenia, through a Fulbright award. In 2004, Dr. William Cohen, professor emeritus of history, and Dr. David Klooster, professor of English, received Fulbright awards to teach in Japan and Austria respectively.
Hansen will be learning research techniques in support of his ongoing investigation of the movement of sand dunes along the southeastern coast of Lake Michigan across the past 5,000 years.
Hope Science Divisions Honors |
The Division for the Natural and Applied Sciences at Hope College has honored two faculty with awards designed to recognize excellence in teaching or research.
Dr. Miguel Abrahantes, assistant professor of engineering, has received the "Dean's Science Division Faculty Research Award." Dr. Amanda Barton, assistant professor of nursing, has received the "Dean's Science Division Mentoring/Advising/Teaching Award." Both awards were announced during a luncheon at the college on Thursday, March 13.
The "Faculty Research Award" is based on research accomplishments including publications, grant awards, significant presentations at professional meetings and external professional recognition, and the winner is chosen by an anonymous panel of faculty members from among nominees by the division's department chairs and the dean. The "Mentoring/ Advising/ Teaching Award" recognizes a faculty member who has gone beyond the call of duty in being an exceptional mentor, advisor and teacher to students, and the winner is selected by a panel of students.
 |
Rosanne Barton-DeVries |
Rosanne Barton-DeVries of the Hope College dance faculty has received three awards in conjunction with her studies at Western Theological Seminary.
Barton-DeVries is a part-time lecturer in dance at Hope and is also co-artistic director of the IDT dance company. She is pursuing a Master of Divinity degree at the seminary and received three awards during the seminary's honors convocation on Thursday, May 1.
She received the "Seminary Award in Christian Ethics," given for the highest achievement in Christian ethics; the "Seminary Award in Christian Education," given to the M.Div. candidate who has done outstanding work in the field of Christian education courses and formation-for-ministry assignments; and the "North American Professors of Christian Education Certificate," given for outstanding scholarship in the field of Christian education.
Four Professors to Retire |
A total of four long-time members of the Hope College faculty are retiring at the conclusion of the current school year. Retiring are Charles Aschbrenner, professor of music, who has taught at Hope since 1963; David Jensen, director of libraries with the rank of professor, who has been at the college since 1984; Roberta Kraft, adjunct associate professor of music, who has taught at Hope since 1975; and Dr. Nancy Sonneveldt Miller, dean for the social sciences and professor of education, who joined the faculty in 1968. Their combined service to the college totals 142 years.
 |
Kelly Jacobsma Appointed Director of Libraries |
Kelly Jacobsma has been appointed director of libraries at Hope College.
She succeeds David Jensen, who is retiring at the end of the school year after serving in the position since 1984. A member of the Hope library faculty herself since 1988, Jacobsma was chosen following a competitive national search during which her experience and vision made her the best choice for the position, according to the college's provost, Dr. James Boelkins, who chaired the search committee.
Senior Class Giving
The Senior Class Giving Campaign is an initiative of the Office of Alumni and Parent Relations and the Hope Fund. A committee of seniors organizes and promotes the giving campaign in order to educate seniors about the importance of financially supporting the college as alum. The campaign focuses on the importance of participation rather than a dollar amount. Proceeds from the campaign are used for a scholarship for an incoming freshman.
The Campaign also invites parents to participate in honor of their son or daughter’s graduation. Together, families can make a huge impact on the ability of one student to have a Hope education and hope experience.
This year’s campaign welcomed a new edition to the Senior Class Giving Committee, “The Hope Fund Fairy”. Using a series of videos showing examples of what the Hope Fund helps pay for, The Hope Fund Fairy helped to raise awareness of Class Giving and the impact it has on future Hope College generations.
Currently, the class of 2008 has a class participation rate of 26% and a total donation amount of $1,191.00! Thank you to everyone who participated in the campaign and for leaving a legacy at Hope. To see the latest Hope Fund Fairy video and check in on the Senior Class Giving Campaign, click here. If you would like to participate in senior class giving, click here.
Theatre Production Chosen for National Festival
The Hope College Theatre production of "Rose and the Rime" was one a select group of plays nationwide invited to the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (ACTF) National Festival in Washington, D.C., in April. Hundreds of alumni, parents, and friends gathered in D.C. to support the students and celebrate their performance.
"Rose and the Rime," which was written at the college, was one of only three full-length college/university-staged plays chosen for this year's national festival from among the best productions highlighted during the eight ACTF regional festivals held around the U.S. in January and February. "Rose and the Rime" was the only production from the ACTF Great Lakes Region festival in Milwaukee, Wis., to have the honor of being under consideration for the national festival.
Learn about the Off-Campus Opportunities Available to your Student
Building on the rich tradition of international education at Hope, the Fried International Center provide students with learning opportunities that promote global understanding in the classroom and beyond. The Fried International Center prepares students to step beyond the borders of Hope College, challenging them to integrate their academic and cultural learning, and empowering them to be informed, caring and active world citizens of the 21st century.
Hope College has long recognized the value of offering its students a wide range of off-campus study opportunities, both domestic and international. These are available to qualified students through the college's membership in a number of consortiums, including the Great Lakes Colleges Association, Inc. (GLCA), a Michigan non-profit corporation, which cooperates with the Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM), the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES), the Council on International Education Exchange (CIEE), the School for International Training (SIT), AustraLearn as well as a handful of other approved program providers.
Semester and year-long opportunities for off-campus study are available in virtually every part of the globe. Students can choose from over sixty international locations and one-hundred and eighty five different programs in locations such as Europe, Asia, The Middle East, Central and South America, Africa, and the South Pacific including Australia and New Zealand. Students also have the opportunity to choose from nine different Domestic Programs offered by the college including The Border Studies Program, Chicago Semester, and Washington D.C. Honors Semester to name a few. Over twenty summer programs offered through Hope, both domestic and international, are also an option for Hope students with international locations including Austria, East Africa, and England.
For the 2008-2009 academic years, Hope College anticipates sending 144 students on international off-campus programs. Some of the more popular programs, both domestic and international, that students take part in include The Philadelphia Center, Washington Honors, and international programs in France, Australia, Spain and the UK.
For more information about how your student can get involved in a Study Abroad program visit the International Education Office at www.hope.edu/beyondhope or email studyabroad@hope.edu.
Summer Send-Off Picnics
The Office of Alumni and Parent Relations, together with Orientation, host a series of picnics throughout the summer to welcome incoming students and their families into the Hope College community. Current students, alumni and parents are invited to the picnics to share their experiences with the newest members of the Hope Community. Orientation staff members are present to share information and answer questions about move in, orientation weekend, and how to get off to a successful start at Hope.
Picnics are planned in the following areas in Michigan: Traverse City, Kalamazoo, and Farmington Hills. Other areas include: Milwaukee, WI, Lake Forest, IL, and Roseville, MN. The picnics are held outdoors in most locations, and include a complimentary picnic for incoming freshman and their families. For details about a summer send off picnic in your area, please visit www.hope.edu/parents.
Refer a Student to Admissions
Visiting
Hope
One
great way to get a feel for Hope's campus is
to pay us a visit! The Admissions
Office offers a variety of ways to pay Hope
a visit throughout the year to introduce potential
students to campus life. You
can choose from the following list of visit
options:
Individual
Weekday Visit
Saturday
Morning Visit
Overnight
Visit
Summer
Visit
Call the Hope College Admissions Staff at 1.800.968.7850. They'll help you explore your options for a campus visit.
Refer a student to Hope!
Know someone you think would just love
Hope College? Let us know! We would be more
than happy to send him or her information about
Hope. Complete a student
referral form and we'll do the rest.
Planning Calendar
Campus
Calendar of events taking place on Hope's
campus.
Regional
Events sponsored by the Office of Alumni
& Parent Relations.
E-Newsletter Subscription
Would you like to receive future issues of the Parents' e-newsletter via email? To subscribe, please click here and complete the subscription form.
Current Subscribers -- Have you recently changed your email address? If so, please send the new information to parents@hope.edu.
If you no longer wish to receive the Parents' E-Newsletter, please email parents@hope.edu and provide your name and email address.