Pepperdine Magazine Vol. 13, Iss. 1 (Spring 2021)

Volume 13 Issue 1 Spring 2021

THEIR IN

Day Court

Moments

Seaver College senior Joshua McCarthy, who ranks fifth in career scoring average (71.99) at Pepperdine, finished in second place at the televised Southwestern Invitational college golf championship hosted by Pepperdine in late January.

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Contents

F E AT U R E S

14 Back to School After 25 years of shepherd leadership at Pepperdine, Rick R. Marrs makes a longawaited return to teaching and his own scholarship

20 The Color of Money Alumni and faculty illuminate the persistent inequality that has suppressed economic opportunity for historically marginalized groups

26 Turn of the Half Century In celebration of its golden anniversary, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology reflects on five decades of communal impact while pursuing a transformative future

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VOLUME 13 | ISSUE 1 | SPRING 2021 Pepperdine Magazine editor

Gareen Darakjian

senior designer

Courtney Gero

writers

Sara Bunch Amanda Pisani Abigail Ramsey Jakie Rodriguez (MS ’13)

SPOTLIGHT

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Their Day in Court

Wright’s Waves

Across the developing world, the Sudreau Global Justice Institute at the Caruso School of Law is creating solutions for some of the most pressing problems in the criminal justice system

Renowned (and beloved!) coach and athletic director Wayne Wright (MA ’66) blessed Pepperdine Athletics with a rare and lasting culture of fellowship

graphic designers

Mallory Bockwoldt (’16)

Danae Doub

photographer

Ron Hall (’79)

copy editor

Amanda Pisani

production manager

Jill McWilliams

Published by Integrated Marketing Communications Matt Midura (’97, MA ’05) Associate Vice President for Integrated Marketing

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Team USA

Net Worth

In his latest book, Pulitzer Prize– winning professor Edward J. Larson examines the unexpected and unlikely—yet highly functional— partnership between two of America’s most notable founding fathers

NBA executive Rich Cho (JD ’97) reflects on his nearly three-decade career in professional basketball

Communications and Acting Chief Marketing Officer Nate Ethell (’08, MBA ’13) Director of Communications and Brand Development Keith Lungwitz Creative Director Allen Haren (’97, MA ’07)

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Road of Recovery To share the healing journeys of COVID-19 survivors, alumna Morgana Wingard (’05) is on a ride of her own throughout the entire country

Catching the Drift On the path toward a career in ministry, two graduate students seek to uncover why so many young adults have become disconnected from church communities

Director of Digital Media Ed Wheeler (’97, MA ’99) Senior Director of Operations Mauricio Acevedo Director of Digital Marketing Pepperdine Magazine is the feature magazine for Pepperdine University and its growing community of alumni, students, faculty, staff, and friends. It is published three times per year by the University’s Integrated Marketing Communications department

9 Headlines

6 Inside Voices

32 Snapshot

7 Campus Notes

48 The Cut

ADVERTISING Each issue of Pepperdine Magazine contains a limited number of half- or full-page advertising opportunities for University departments and initiatives. To learn more about advertising, contact magazine@pepperdine.edu.

and is produced with guidance from an advisory board representing a cross section of the University community.

Send address changes, letters to the editor, and other queries to: magazine@pepperdine.edu All material is copyrighted ©2021 by Pepperdine University, Malibu, California 90263.

Pepperdine is affiliated with Churches of Christ, of

MAGAZINE.PEPPERDINE.EDU

PA2101193

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which the University’s founder, George Pepperdine, was a lifelong member.

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C Editor’s Letter

Can you feel it? Something is shifting. Just as we collectively emerge from the days-long daze brought upon by the ever-controversial daylight saving time shift, it seems that a noticeable brightness is being cast over us all with a warmth that feels—dare I say—familiar. And we could all use a little bit of light now, just months after passing a sobering milestone that stirs up more pain than possibility for many. It could be that we are slowly moving into a post-pandemic reality that seemed to have come on more quickly than we anticipated. But we have all had to adjust our expectations and understanding of time over the last year, haven’t we? We have all been—whether by nature or circumstance—primed and positioned to pivot.

In the dance world, a pivot turn is when a performer’s body rotates on one axis, on one foot, without traveling very far. By placing one foot in front of the other, the dancer shifts their weight to move forward and then spins on one heel to face the opposite direction while remaining in the original spot. A simple move in theory, it requires much experience and coordination, especially when performed with a partner. While many of us may not be bound for the stage, over the last year we have all had a taste of the push-and-pull motion of attempting to move forward and change course without feeling like we were getting anywhere.

In this issue of Pepperdine Magazine, as in many of our own lives, we come to terms with the art of the pivot— why we must keep shifting and innovating and how to do so gracefully and with intention. Flip through these pages to discover journeys filled with soaring highs after disappointing lows faced by people of color who have created their own success in an economic system not built with them in mind; the full-circle pivot of a lifelong educator returning to his first love, the classroom, after a transformative career as an administrator; students who have taken their scholarship to their own backyards during an unexpected shift to distance learning; and a school that has moved and adapted with the needs of the community that it serves with a boundless spirit.

While these next few months will undoubtedly continue to test us and challenge us to keep moving, I suspect we will all feel that shift we have longed for over the last year. I suspect we will all feel like we are finally getting somewhere.

GAREEN DARAKJIAN editor

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Photo: Joseph Ramli (’17)

Inside Voices “As a child going through leukemia, I experienced joy. As a spouse, mother, and professor experiencing cancer, I experience joy.”

Joyful in Hope, Patient in Affliction

By Gretchen Batcheller Associate Professor of Studio Art Fine Arts Division, Seaver College

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As the daughter of a career navy fighter pilot, home was wherever my parents set up house. When we were stateside, my family spent summers with my grandparents, who, along with most of our extended family, lived in the Seattle area, so the Emerald City was home-ish. I grew up adoring my now-98year-old grandmother, Nonnie. While my geography regularly changed, a constant was Nonnie’s painting studio.

My grandparents lived on the water and ran a commercial fishing business. These summers are magical in memory—working alongside my family by day, swimming and playing on the water in the evenings.

In Nonnie’s studio, I learned about the importance of the principles and elements of design by using charcoal on paper before I was allowed to advance to paint. At the age of 5, I (finally) painted my first watercolor landscape of Mount Rainier.

Nonnie modeled what it meant to live out faith in community through creativity.

Within the walls of her studio, I learned how the visual arts tap into the core of humanity.

Made in the image of God, humans, in our diversity, have a mandate to create and uniquely express ourselves. As a painter, my work is greatly influenced by the location and space in which I exist—whether long term or temporary.

By the age of 13, a new tour of duty brought our family back to Washington State. It was during this time that I was diagnosed with leukemia. I was a healthy teen, and my family was blindsided by my diagnosis and horrible prognosis. Yet, after three and a half years of chemotherapy,

steroids, blood transfusions, pokes and prods, spinal tap injections, bone marrow aspirations, intramuscular shots, extreme and never-ending nausea, multiple trips to the emergency room, countless prolonged hospital stays, pills and more pills, multiple hair losses, teenage angst and self-loathing, and a bout or two of shingles, I was cancer-free.

My experience with cancer also set me down the path toward art and painting.

I lacked energy to do much of anything else, but I could certainly pick up a paintbrush.

In spite of it all, and with an infinite amount of prayer, God blessed our family with joy during this time—utter joy in the midst of terrible pain and suffering. Life lessons from this time continue to impact me today.

Today . . . well, yes, today. Once again, I have been diagnosed with cancer, and similar to the last time around, I have been completely caught off guard. This wasn’t supposed to happen—I’ve already been there, done that. The fight is also different this time around: I am no longer a dependent. Rather I have a family that depends on me. Each day we strive to be in what we call “positive fight mode,” which is an act of being that I learned from another family in the pediatric cancer community. Essentially it means that whatever we do, we do it to the best of our ability, with the best attitude possible and with the most energy we can muster. Above all, we bathe everything in prayer.

This difficult season has miraculously blessed me with time: once again, cancer has drawn me back into painting. My work has always been a personal and faith-filled reflection of the individual—me—born out of a deeply held desire to reflect and actively interpret situation and place. Now more than ever, it has become that . . . a place to pray, process, wrestle, think, and, in some ways, experience the healing nature of creating in a studio.

As a child going through leukemia, I experienced joy. As a spouse, mother, and professor experiencing cancer, I experience joy. Yes, there is suffering, but God’s joyful faithfulness is true, and I am so very grateful to be able to process through this time holding my brush to the canvas and discovering what is in store.

Campus Notes PEPPERDINE PEOPLE

Seta Khajarian (EdD ’11) Pepperdine’s new associate provost for institutional effectiveness and assessment is making sure the University is dotting its i’s and crossing its t’s The Office of Institutional Effectiveness (OIE) serves Pepperdine primarily through leadership in the areas of accreditation and assessment led by Seta Khajarian and institutional and educational research led by Jazmin Zane, director of institutional research.

instruction but also for assessment activities. These challenges are, however, finding a balance, and we are better equipped to adapt to and adopt new approaches.”

A graduate of the WASC Senior College and University Commission’s (WSCUC) prestigious Assessment Leadership Academy, Khajarian has also served on the WSCUC Visiting Team to reaffirm accreditation of other universities.

Khajarian has taught several courses at the Graduate School of Education and Psychology, including learning design and evaluation, and for the past five years has taught courses in organizational leadership and leading innovation and change as an adjunct professor at Woodbury University in Burbank, California.

“When you have seen both sides of the accreditation process, your vision expands to see the enterprise from every angle. You become more conscientious about representing the institution in the best way possible while being transparent about its challenges.”

As the accreditation liaison officer for the University, Khajarian provides insights into WSCUC policies for new programs, new course offerings or changes, changes in program names, and more. She also serves as the senior assessment director for the Advancement of Student Learning Council.

“The delivery of education is changing. Managing increased online programs or via online platforms is a considerable challenge not only for delivery of

While accreditation activities include monitoring and measuring educational effectiveness, they also include examining indirect measures related to academics, service, diversity, and purpose. This spring the Pepperdine community was invited to participate in an anonymous national survey related mostly to issues of diversity and equity that will assist the OIE with its assessment and research endeavors, but also to inform institutional decision-making.

Join the Club Through a Christian theological framework, the Office of Intercultural Affairs seeks to cultivate a community of belonging by providing cultural education to the campus community to build a diverse community of respect, learning, understanding, equity, and inclusion.

19

MEMBERS + 200

IDENTITY-BASED

800+

UNDERGRAD student members

2

in Black Student Association

organizations

8

CLUBS

with primarily international students

150+

NEW CLUBS in spring 2021

MEMBERS

in Chinese Students and Scholars Club Source: Office of Intercultural Affairs

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Campus Notes SOUND BITES Explore a collection of some of the most notable moments from recent events held across the University.

C H AT T E R The Pepperdine community remembers Tommy Lasorda, legendary Hall of Fame manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the recipient of an honorary doctor of laws degree at the 1996 Seaver College commencement ceremony.

ROSE SOLOMON RIP Tommy. Such a moving speech!

One of the best!

SAM LAGANÀ (MBA ’17, PKE 137) The first honorary doctorate that Tommy received was the one from Pepperdine, and [he] had it posted in a prominent spot in his office at Dodger Stadium.

KEITH MCNAMARA What great words of wisdom from an amazing and beloved man.

VAL SALOV (’96) That was my graduation. What a fantastic speech that was.

I remember feeling that I could achieve anything I put my heart into.

Tommy was an amazing person.

“Anybody should be free to advocate any position, so long as they are prepared to do business in the proper currency of intellectual discourse, which is a currency consisting of reason, evidence, and arguments.”

Robert George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions, Princeton University EVENT: President’s Speaker Series: Honesty and Courage, Humility and Hope: Robert George and Cornel West in Dialogue

“Most heroes’ stories come from humble beginnings. It’s going to be the same in the fields of business and law, and you have to be aware of their status and evolution . . . understand[ing] status and what to do with it will set you up for a win.”

Seán Kinney, Filmmaker/Creative Consultant/Creator, The Kinney Method EVENT: Introduction to Storytelling for Entertainment, Business, and Law

“You will be studying together, participating in classes together, working alongside each other, and living in houses together. Because of that connection, you’re in a unique position to . . . be there for your friends when you notice something is off and encourage them to connect with resources that can be supportive.”

Nivla Y. Fitzpatrick, Director, Pepperdine Counseling Center EVENT: Seaver College Spring New Student Orientation: Don’t Just Survive, Thrive!

“The word ‘diversity’ is just a door. It is not a building. When you open it and step in, you are honoring . . . the students, [who] then see . . . their professor now drawing their stories . . . and that is honoring who they are and who they are trying to become.”

Willie James Jennings, Associate Professor of Systematic Theology and Africana Studies, Yale Divinity School EVENT: Discussing Race, Faith, and Education with Dr. Willie James Jennings

FROM THE ARCHIVES

DID

YOU

KNOW

Photographed for the April 9, 1965, issue of the Graphic, former California governor Goodwin J. Knight (left), who served from 1953–1959, made a surprise visit to the Pepperdine campus to speak to an introductory government class taught by professor Gilbert Payton Richardson (right). Student Steve Elkins (center) arranged for Knight’s appearance.

Pepperdine is the only university to establish a chapter with the California Association for Bilingual Education to promote educational equity.

Source: University Archives Photograph Collection

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Headlines

J. Goosby Smith Named Vice President for Community Belonging and Chief Diversity Officer at Pepperdine University befitting the Pepperdine community’s unwavering commitment to J. Goosby Smith has been named the inaugural vice president radical Christian hospitality.” for community belonging and chief diversity officer at Pepperdine In her new role, Smith will report directly to President Gash, serve University. April Harris Akinloye (’00, MA ’05) will join Smith as a member of the University’s Steering Team, and be a principal as assistant vice president for community belonging. Smith and leader on the University Diversity Council for which she previously Harris Akinloye will commence their new roles on June 1, 2021. served as inaugural faculty co-chair in 2005.

Smith currently serves as associate professor of leadership; “Unexpectedly, God has called me back to my first academic home associate professor of management; assistant provost for diversity, to fulfill the calling on my life—to unite his people and empower equity, and inclusion; and director of the Truth, Racial Healing, them to be their very best selves,” said Smith, who previously served and Transformation Center at The Citadel, The Military College as a professor at Seaver College, an assessment coordinator for of South Carolina. the Seaver Diversity Council, and as an adjunct professor at the The selection of a vice president for community belonging Graziadio Business School. “I am humbled and and chief diversity officer is one in a series of excited to engage fully in this endeavor with my initiatives the University has been implementing Pepperdine family.” to cultivate a community of deep belonging and Harris Akinloye will join Pepperdine from to build and model a diverse, informed, loving, Social Good Solutions where she is currently and unified community at Pepperdine. a senior consultant for diversity, equity, and “In the first few months of my presidency, inclusion. She previously served as the chief I made it clear that hiring a chief diversity diversity officer at Vanguard University in officer would be among my top priorities,” said Costa Mesa, California. president Jim Gash (JD ’93). “Though we began “I am excited to return to my alma mater and our national search for a chief diversity officer, work alongside Dr. Smith in this new capacity,” after getting to know these two extraordinarily says Harris Akinloye. “We are ready to complete qualified leaders, each of whom has a deep love the work required to cultivate an environment for Pepperdine and our mission, we decided to that is truly inclusive and will manifest a hire a team—and what a team it is! Drs. Smith sense of belonging for every member of the and Harris Akinloye will be a venerable force Pepperdine community.” to help lead Pepperdine to a new level of Harris Akinloye (’00, MA ’05) inclusion, excellence, and genuine belonging,

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Headlines Robert George and Cornel West Discuss Current Political Climate Through Lens of Humility and Hope at Inaugural President’s Speaker Series Event On January 12, 2021, more than 1,300 members of the Pepperdine University community gathered virtually to view the inaugural event of the President’s Speaker Series, “Honesty and Courage, Humility and Hope: Robert George and Cornel West in Dialogue.” George, the McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University, and West, Professor Emeritus at Princeton University, analyzed the deep character required to engage thoughtfully and respectfully in vibrant conversations that examine diverse viewpoints.

West expressed his passion for the freedom of speech and its integrity in allowing for the flow of all ideas. Highlighting that the defense of liberties cannot be just for tribal, racial, or ideological matters, he shared that he would feel uncomfortable with the repression of speech whether it is applied from the left or right side of the political spectrum.

George explained that universities have a sacred mission to open students’ minds to the truth, and that Christian universities like Pepperdine are ideally situated to encourage the inquisitiveness and openness that leads to a better understanding of the truth.

Cornel West

Robert George

Weisman Museum to Display Kinsey African American Art & History Collection in Spring 2022 From January to March 2022, the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art will display the Kinsey African American Art & History Collection, America’s largest privately held anthology of African American art, history, and ephemera. The exhibition was announced on February 24, 2021, during the President’s Speaker Series event featuring philanthropist and entrepreneur Bernard Kinsey (MBA ’73), his wife, Shirley (MA ’76), and their son, Khalil, in discussion about the “myth of absence” concept that has played a significant role in America’s view of African Americans and the many and often untold examples of African American achievement.

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The award-winning Kinsey Collection celebrates the accomplishments and contributions of Black Americans from 1595 into the contemporary era. Widely considered to be one of the most comprehensive surveys of African American history and culture outside of the Smithsonian Institution, the collection features more than 150 paintings, sculptures, photographs, rare books, letters, manuscripts, and more. A groundbreaking exhibition that has been viewed by more than 15 million people and received national media attention, the Kinsey Collection is currently spearheaded by Khalil, who serves as its general manager and curator.

Pepperdine Board of Regents Chair Dee Anna Smith (’86) Named AACSB 2021 Influential Leader On February 16, 2021, the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business International named Dee Anna Smith, chief executive officer of Sarah Cannon, the Cancer Institute of HCA Healthcare, and chair of the Pepperdine University Board of Regents, one of the association’s 2021 Influential Leaders.

Along with 24 other business school graduates across the nation, Smith is recognized for her positive

contributions to her industry and society.

“For years we have witnessed the outcomes of Dee Anna’s commitment to education and enterprise,” shares president Jim Gash (JD ’93).

“We at Pepperdine are proud of her contributions to both and are grateful for the ways her public leadership aligns with her extraordinary service to the University.”

Graziadio Business School Introduces FinTech and Digital Marketing Boot Camps

Legal Scholar Robert George Named Honorary Distinguished Professor at Caruso School of Law and School of Public Policy Beginning fall 2021, Robert George will serve as the inaugural Nootbaar Honorary Distinguished Professor of Law at the Caruso School of Law and the Ronald Reagan Honorary Distinguished Professor of Public Policy at the School of Public Policy.

During his five-year term at both schools, he will be invited to give academic lectures, lead student colloquia, and participate in other speaking engagements with members of the Pepperdine community.

“We are thrilled to have Robby join us as our inaugural Nootbaar Distinguished Visiting Professor,” shared Paul L. Caron, Duane and Kelly Roberts Dean of the Caruso School of Law. “He is one of the leading voices in the country on the intersection of law and religion as well as the important role for faith in the public square. We are all very

much looking forward to his time as part of the Caruso Law community and the opportunities it will provide for deep study and engagement on some of the most important issues of the day.”

Pete Peterson (MPP ’07), dean and Braun Family Dean’s Chair at the School of Public Policy, expressed, “From the late James Q. Wilson to Bill McClay and Steve Hayward, our Ronald Reagan professorship has been held by some of America’s great scholars who have made the lessons of history and the Great Books relevant to our next generation of public leaders. We’re honored to welcome Robby George— an acclaimed academic with a commitment to viewpoint diversity— to serve as our next Ronald Reagan Honorary Distinguished Professor of Public Policy.”

In December 2020 the Graziadio Business School partnered with 2U, Inc. to launch two new executive education offerings for working professionals in Southern California.

Beginning in April 2021 through a dynamic virtual classroom experience—including live instruction with industry professionals, webinars with employers, and coursework with tutoring assistance—the Pepperdine Graziadio FinTech Boot Camp and Pepperdine Graziadio Digital Marketing Boot Camp will teach students the technical skills necessary for success in the financial and marketing sectors.

Students in the Pepperdine Graziadio FinTech Boot Camp learn how to use cutting-edge tools and technologies in the financial services sector, including programming languages Python and Solidity, financial libraries, machine learning algorithms, Ethereum system software, and blockchain. Those in the Pepperdine Graziadio Digital Marketing Boot Camp explore in-demand digital marketing skills, including marketing strategy and campaign development, user acquisition, digital advertising, content marketing, retention strategy, and search engine optimization.

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Headlines Moderna CEO Leads Panel Discussion on COVID-19 Vaccine Development and Future The March 2021 installment of the President’s Speaker Series featured a moderated panel of leading medical, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology experts who shared their professional knowledge and experience with COVID-19 vaccines and examined what society might expect from vaccines in the future.

Moderated by Dee Anna Smith (’86), CEO of Sarah Cannon, the Cancer Institute of HCA Healthcare, and chair of the Pepperdine Board of Regents, “Vaccines: Where Are We and Where Are We Going?” connected the audience with Stéphane Bancel, CEO of Moderna, Stephen M. Hahn, former commissioner of food and drugs at the US Food and Drug Administration, and Jonathan B. Perlin, president of the Clinical Services Group and chief medical officer of HCA Healthcare.

As the rate of vaccination increases across the country, Bancel shared that he is hopeful that by 2022 vaccination rates will increase so much that the mutation of the COVID-19 strain will be minimal. Bancel also shared his confidence in the development and distribution of a COVID-19 booster within the influenza vaccine to continue to stay ahead of the virus. He hopes that Moderna and US government officials will be able to find ways to export vaccines to other countries to support global public health.

“We really have a chance, with the abundance of the vaccine, next year, to nail down the virus, so that the mutation rate of any is very slow,” Bancel said.

“And we can go back to an endemic world where you get your flu shot and you have a nice winter.”

ཁ Learn more: magazine.pepperdine.edu/pss-vaccines

Pepperdine Veterans Council Promotes Community of Belonging for StudentVeterans and Military Families In a University-wide effort to provide an active voice for student-veterans and militaryconnected students—including military family members and Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets—in fall 2020 a group of student-veterans representing all five Pepperdine schools launched the Pepperdine Veterans (PeppVet) Council, a leadership committee that focuses on developing new initiatives to help ensure these nontraditional students feel valued, included, and supported throughout their academic journey.

“Pepperdine is deeply committed to providing quality services and resources to our diverse military-connected community,” explains director of student-veteran affairs Eric Leshinsky, who served in the United States Air Force for nearly 30 years. “This includes finding new ways to reach our veteran students so they can connect, engage, and get involved in making positive change in their school and local community. The PeppVet Council provides student-veterans with a new platform to discuss, develop, and implement ideas to build fellowship and improve the lives of our militaryconnected students.”

Caruso School of Law Hosts Inaugural Belonging Awards Ceremony In celebration of diversity and belonging among students, faculty, staff, and alumni, the Caruso School of Law hosted the firstever Belonging Awards on February 25, 2021.

Throughout the ceremony, students, faculty, and alumni shared inspirational stories and discussed their approaches to prioritizing diversity and belonging within their academic, professional, and personal lives.

“I truly believe that we can tell what an institution values by what it celebrates.

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An essential component of belonging is celebration, so that all members know that they are not only tolerated or welcomed, but truly celebrated,” says Chalak Richards (JD ’12), assistant dean of student life, diversity, and belonging and director of the Parris Institute for Professional Excellence at Caruso Law. “We are thrilled to highlight an impressive community of students and alumni who advocate for change and promote belonging in their studies, professions, and lives.”

Graduate School of Education and Psychology Hosts Women in Leadership Event As part of the Margaret J. Weber Distinguished Lecture Series, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology hosted “Women in Leadership: Navigating Through Power Structures, Personal Challenges, and a Pandemic” on March 11. Moderated by family law attorney Stacy D. Phillips, the virtual event featured a dynamic panel of female leaders who explored their experiences and perspectives to inspire all genders and offered advice to attendees about growing professionally, expanding their network, and accessing resources.

The panel members shared insights from successes and setbacks in the workplace and in life, and revealed how the pandemic has amplified obstacles and created opportunities that did not previously exist.

They also highlighted strategies for navigating the contours of power related to gender, race, and the political structure in an organization, and the role male advocates and managers play in addressing workplace challenges faced by women and other underrepresented employees.

“Our male colleagues can become allies, sponsors, and advocates to amplify the voices of women,” said panelist Christal Morris (EdD ’17), senior vice president and global head of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Peloton. “[This allyship] might look like introducing someone to your network who would benefit from your skill set for a project, or understanding your motivations and your career mobility options so they can be thinking of you for the next opportunity.”

Preparing Leaders for a Post-Pandemic World The School of Public Policy teaches future public leaders who are uniquely prepared to pursue effective solutions to tough political challenges. Through our liberal arts approach to the MPP, students consider both the moral and analytical aspects of politics and policy. In an era marked by a global pandemic and political polarization, we prepare public leaders who can work across sectors in the quest for the elusive common good.

OUR GRADUATES ADVANCE TO A VARIETY OF CAREER PATHS, INCLUDING: u Federal

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Discover the Next Generation of Policy Leadership publicpolicy.pepperdine.edu

Features After 25 years of shepherd leadership at Pepperdine, Rick R. Marrs makes a long-awaited return to teaching and his own scholarship

BY ABIG AIL RAMSE Y

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BACKto

SCHOOL A

s spring concludes and another class of graduates completes its scholastic experience, Rick R. Marrs, the provost and chief academic officer of Pepperdine University, will begin a transition of his own. Serving for nearly three decades in various capacities that have made a significant impact on Pepperdine’s academic enterprise, Marrs has illustrated how effortlessly his faith, teaching, scholarly research, and leadership are braided together. As he makes his long-awaited return to the classroom in fall 2022 after a yearlong sabbatical, he continues to shape his legacy at the University.

When Marrs began his own academic journey as an undergraduate in 1970, he expected to live and work in Latin America upon his graduation from Abilene Christian University (ACU). Influenced and mentored by notable professors—such as Old Testament scholar John T. Willis, beloved theologian Thomas Olbricht, Churches of Christ historian Everett Ferguson, and especially his Greek language professor R. L. Johnston—Marrs was encouraged to instead focus his major on Koine Greek to gain a deeper knowledge of the Bible’s original texts.

“They were all incredible teachers in the classroom and wonderful mentors outside the classroom,” Marrs reflects. “I remember thinking I would love to become a professor like them.”

Their relationships were marked with an energy for scholarship and research and bolstered by the intersection of their scholarly work with their faith and lifelong vocation. Each mentor recognized and reinforced Marrs’ talent for research and love for languages that informed his deep understanding of original texts.

“Each of them came alongside me, offered patient feedback, and kept pushing me forward in my academic career,” Marrs says. Their continued encouragement led him to complete his master of divinity at ACU, allowing him to strengthen his scholarship in Old Testament literature, history, and theology before he pursued his PhD at Johns Hopkins University (JHU), known as the nation’s first research

university and widely acclaimed as one of its top research institutions. At Johns Hopkins, he gained yet another lifelong mentor and friend, J. J. M. Roberts, who prepared Marrs to contribute original research with the potential to make lasting impacts on his discipline.

After receiving his PhD, Marrs held various teaching positions at St. Mary’s Seminary and University, Villa Julie College, and the Institute for Christian Studies at the University of Texas to name a few. As he developed his unique teaching style informed by each of his mentors, he continued to regularly publish exceptional scholarship, speak at conferences, serve in his local churches, and guest preach at Church of Christ congregations across the nation.

In 1987 Marrs began making his first mark on Pepperdine’s history. Olbricht, his mentor and friend, was then serving as the chair of Pepperdine’s Religion Division and encouraged Marrs to join the University’s small group of religion faculty. Already an experienced educator and nationally recognized scholar, Marrs quickly became a paramount member of the division. As an associate professor of religion, Marrs jumped into his classrooms with energy and passion and engaged with undergraduate and graduate students in unforgettable ways.

In 1993 Pepperdine began one of its most unique international educational experiences—the biblical sites tours. In this inaugural year, a little more than a dozen students completed two of their religion

courses abroad and experienced eye-opening tours of biblical sites throughout Greece, Turkey, and Israel. Harnessing an adventurous spirit, Marrs hiked alongside students, spelunking in ancient caves and revealing to them the historical and cultural contexts of the ancient Near East.

Though the setting of the tours certainly added to Marrs’ energy while teaching, his specialization in Old Testament literature, history, and theology paired with his fluency in ancient Near Eastern languages also brought deep, meaningful connections to his classrooms in Malibu. As the sites, sounds, and people of the Bible came to life in the classroom, so became apparent God’s heart for justice and calling to support those disenfranchised.

“Seeing students interact with the eighthcentury prophets, especially Amos, is thrilling,” Marrs shares. “You can see them find their callings for social justice and connect today’s issues with their faith.”

With his continued devotion to his scholarship, Marrs was constantly updating his approaches to course material. Even in large classrooms, he was expertly able to connect the course material to relevant themes for students no matter their background with the text. Their classroom discussions would form an almost symbiotic relationship between the reading and Marrs’ own scholarship—the two feeding and contributing to each other, every day creating a lively classroom.

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ust as his research wove its way through his teaching, it intertwined itself into his time as an administrator and leader, setting the tone for each day he stepped into the office. At the heart of Marrs’ motivation to move from professor to administrator was always the hope to elevate faculty members, whether in their teaching, their research, or in their pursuit of career advancement.

“I was supported by every scholarteacher throughout my career. So when I transitioned into administration, particularly into my role as provost,” he shares, “I felt a unique calling to start returning that same support to younger scholars as they began expanding their careers.”

With his broad experience as both a faculty member and administrator, Marrs had a deep understanding of the University. In 1996 he was appointed the chair of the Religion Division.

Then in 2003, he served as the associate dean of Seaver College before stepping into the role of dean when W. David Baird retired in 2008. After six years of strategically elevating the college by securing both internal and external funding, expanding programs, and supporting faculty, staff, and students, Marrs was eager to serve the University as provost in 2014.

Informed by each of his mentors and inspired by JHU’s principle that exceptional teaching and research are fundamental to a top-tier university, he had an exceptional understanding of what Pepperdine would need to rank as one of the nation’s leading universities.

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His position was that teaching and research needed to coexist, and that success in one didn’t mean the other had to falter. To support educators in their efforts, he championed faculty research and professional mentorship programs.

“It goes beyond recruiting exceptional faculty, as important as that is. We also need to make sure they have the resources they need to keep going,” Marrs says.

I was SUPPORTED BY EVERY SCHOLAR-TEACHER throughout my career. So when I transitioned into administration . . . I felt a UNIQUE CALLING to start returning that same SUPPORT TO YOUNGER SCHOLARS as they began expanding their careers.

—RICK R. MARRS

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He also took note of how Pepperdine’s five schools were often working independently instead of as one cohesive unit. Marrs began pursuing initiatives that increased collaboration across all five schools. Among these initiatives were the Pepperdine CrossSchool Collaborative Research Program and Community-Based Research Program.

Both of these programs award up to three grants each year for joint research efforts and have allowed faculty to interface with peers and colleagues across all schools while also allowing students to gain experience in executing original research.

“I live vicariously through our faculty’s achievements and seeing students discover something new about themselves or their disciplines that eventually encourages them to go on to do even more,” Marrs shares with a smile and a gleam in his eyes. “It’s been thrilling to see us expand research initiatives this way and see faculty pursue more complex and innovative projects with increased resources.”

He ENCOURAGED ME to continue in academia and pursue a PhD at a time WHEN THERE WEREN’T MANY women in the field.

—KINDALEE DE LONG (’87, MDIV ’94)

hough Marrs’ tenure gives us much to celebrate, his years as provost have not been free of challenges. When he first stepped into the role, the US was still recovering from the steepest economic decline since the Great Depression, a decline that put the spotlight on the value of higher education and what it means for social mobility. To find Pepperdine’s place in the midst of this new critique of academia, Marrs recruited and mentored the deans of each of the five schools to further his commitment to strategically position the University and continue to prepare students for life after graduation.

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This year, as the COVID-19 pandemic required widespread transitions to remote instruction to protect the health and wellbeing of the campus community, questions arose about how to deliver rigorous coursework and excellence in research as community members were scattered across the globe. Under Marrs’ leadership, research and scholarly activity did not waver. Faculty have continued to produce exceptional research alongside student collaborators while also incorporating new technology to improve pedagogical practices in a remote setting.

In the face of these challenges, Pepperdine continues to rise in the academic ranks. With the focus on academic excellence in the context of a Christian university, Marrs believes this expands the University’s conversations about vocation, service, and global social impact while also allowing for more impactful relationships between faculty and students.

“One of the major ongoing challenges will continue to be how Pepperdine strives to be a top-tier institution academically in the quickly changing landscape of education,” Marrs shares. “The next steps from here will likely be even more challenging, although not insurmountable.”

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s graciously and passionately as he led each day as an administrator, “you could tell teaching was his first love and something he had every intention of returning to,” shares Lindsay Jacobs (MA ’16), who worked alongside Marrs for six years, from his last few months as the dean of Seaver College through his time as provost. “On the rare occasions that he was able to teach while in the provost role, I could sense a notable shift in his demeanor on the day of his classes.”

In 2019 Marrs took a short time away from his duties as the University’s chief academic officer to join the four-week summer international program—another installment of the biblical sites tour.

Seaver College student Ashtyn Adams remembers how dynamic his classrooms were and how his energy fueled the enthusiasm of her fellow students every day. The four-week intensive program covered a wide range of material in a short time frame, but Marrs always checked in with his students and reassessed the activities to ensure every student was cared for and understood.

When they trekked through their tours in Turkey, Greece, and Israel, Adams remembers Marrs walking right along with students, turning his ear to them and asking them what intrigued them or what was standing out to them. He shared stories and offered cultural insights. While everyone leaned in to hear more, they saw the historical landscape of the ancient Near East come alive around them.

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He was and is a FAITH-INFORMED EDUCATOR through and through.

His heart has always been set on how HE COULD BEST SERVE. —LINDSAY JACOBS (MA ’16)

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HE HELPED ME see myself incorporating my faith, SERVING MY COMMUNITY through medicine, AND LOOKING BACK TO HIS CLASSES to reorient myself.

—ASHTYN ADAMS

At the time, Adams was majoring in biology and had plans to attend medical school after completing her undergraduate studies. Near the end of their program, Marrs, just as his mentors did for him, took note of Adams’ talent for connecting religious studies to her vocation and the world around her and encouraged her to continue her work in the field.

“He saw something in me that I didn’t quite see in myself,” shares Adams. Now nearly two years later, she has shifted her major to religion, but still plans to pursue the medical field. “He helped me see myself incorporating my faith, serving my community through medicine, and looking back to his classes to reorient myself.”

Without question, his impact on Pepperdine as an institution—steering its trajectory to rank as a top-tier university and leaving it with the tools to continue that journey—is exemplary. However, his impact on Pepperdine as a community of people— each person contributing to the pursuit of academic excellence—is arguably even more extraordinary and unforgettable.

“If you asked him what he considered his legacy to be, I don’t think he would answer,” shares Jacobs. “He was and is a faith-informed educator

through and through. His heart has always been set on how he could best serve.”

Kindalee De Long (’87, MDiv ’94), who currently serves as associate dean for student and faculty development and professor of religion at Seaver College, joined that first biblical sites tour as a graduate assistant. “He encouraged me to continue in academia and pursue a PhD at a time when there weren’t many women in the field,” De Long reflects. “Now as a New Testament scholar who seeks to understand the New Testament in the context of Israel’s story, I still draw on his Old Testament classes, particularly what I learned about God’s mercy and concern for social justice.”

Ron Cox (MDiv ’96), who serves as associate dean of international programs and professor of religion at Seaver College, also recalls Marrs’ impact on his life. “I remember specifically his seminar on the Psalms changed the way I interact with the Bible,” shares Cox. “He has been a patient and gracious mentor to me throughout the years, offering invaluable feedback to improve my teaching and balance my faith, service, and my career.”

As Marrs wraps up decades of service to Pepperdine’s leadership, he is eager to return to the classroom to develop a new cadre of young scholars. Through his

exemplary teaching, Marrs will, as he has proven in the past, contribute masterful pedagogies, distinguished scholarly work, and unforgettable mentorship to students. While Pepperdine’s leadership will lose an irreplaceable voice, it has been left with the tools to continue on a path of ever-greater distinction.

“When you step into administration, you unfortunately get further away from our students each day. Their energy and passion as they begin to impact their communities is one of the most exciting things to witness,” Marrs reflects. “After so many years not in the classroom regularly, I have a lot of catching up to do, and I can’t wait to get started.”

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The

of

By Sara Bunch

Alumni and faculty illuminate the persistent inequality that has suppressed economic opportunity for historically marginalized groups

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hen aerospace engineer Agustín García emigrated from Mexico to the United States in 1968 to help develop the Boeing B-1 Bomber and AH-64 Apache helicopters, he initiated a chain of events that, many years later, would launch his family’s decades-long pursuit of economic equity for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities. In 1982 Agustin’s son, Cesar, was desperate to provide for his wife and children following a serious back injury.

He opened a printing business that inspired a new passion for supporting BIPOC-owned businesses in the midst of corporate competition and the disparate distribution of wealth among working-class Americans.

“Hardships create strength, and these men are shining examples of how immigrants are a vital part of our nation’s history,” says Chris García (’11) about his grandfather and father.

Inspired by their lifelong sacrifices, García was motivated to continue their legacy by creating several US-based manufacturing companies that have employed thousands of people of color over the years.

In 2020, in anticipation of the severe shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE) caused by the coronavirus pandemic, and witnessing nurses like his mother reuse their worn-out safety gear, García launched Health Supply US (HSUS), an American-based PPE-manufacturing company. After supplying dozens of hospitals and making substantial investments in facilities, equipment, and research and development, HSUS was awarded a $194 million contract by the US government to manufacture American-made PPE for the Strategic National Stockpile. Through its US operations, which include partnerships with small, BIPOC- and women-owned factories across five states, HSUS now produces medical supplies from sustainable, domestic sources. The company supports more than 5,300 direct and indirect jobs—an especially noteworthy accomplishment during a time when countless families are struggling to make ends meet and many manufacturing

jobs are either on hiatus or gone altogether due to mandatory shutdowns.

According to García, small businesses and businesses owned by underrepresented groups—who have historically encountered bias-related barriers to accessing the capital required to run their companies—are disproportionately impacted by the pandemic, as families cut down on discretionary spending while the costs associated with business operations continue to increase. Pointing out that US-based businesses owned by people of color are American businesses, he asserts that as the US continues to increase its competitiveness in the global economy, America’s BIPOC-owned companies with strong domestic relationships and multiple language capabilities are perfectly positioned to lead that charge.

“Our goal is to showcase that when given a fair and level playing field, these businesses can compete on the global stage,” shares García. “For decades, unfair competition from nonmarket economies decimated our domestic manufacturing capabilities for critical products like gowns, masks, gloves, and other PPE used in the fight against COVID-19.

With these investments— and clear examples of the quality work we produce—we are creating a more resilient public health supply chain for immediate and future needs.”

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I was tired of seeing that I was always the ONLY

WOMAN OF COLOR in this space, and I realized that there must be many other people of color who

NEED THE SAME OPPORTUNITIES I have had to be successful.

—Kim Folsom (MBA ’02)

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Kim Folsom (MBA ’02) can relate. A 25-year serial entrepreneur who began her career in the 1980s as a software engineer, Folsom is the cofounder and CEO of her seventh company, Founders First Capital Partners LLC. The virtual small-business growth accelerator and revenue-based venture fund is focused on helping businesses run by people of color, women, and military veterans, as well as companies located in low- to moderate-income locations—all of which have traditionally faced unfair obstacles when seeking capital to start their businesses.

With dreams to launch and operate large companies like Microsoft or CNN, Folsom immediately noticed that those in C-level positions were almost never women or people of color. Against seemingly insurmountable odds, Folsom, who was balancing the responsibilities of motherhood while working full time outside the home, was determined to break these barriers and one day manage a $50 million corporation. In 2019 Founders First, which Folsom categorizes as a socialracial economic equity company, received $100 million in debt funding to help its clients navigate the business world.

“I was tired of seeing that I was always the only woman of color in this space, and I realized that there must be many other people of color who need the same opportunities I have had,” shares Folsom about her early years in corporate administration, an opportunity she dedicated to making diverse leadership hires.

As a business insider, Folsom reveals that growth capital is often granted to a small group of mostly technology-based companies, whereas most diverse founders start their businesses in the services and manufacturing industries.

She explains that, with the right resources, Founders First seeks to help revenue-generating companies grow into $50 million businesses, which allows them to create jobs in underserved communities and fill the social-racial economic equity gap.

“My parents raised me in a way to use my blessings to serve others,” Folsom says. “There are many first-generation college students in underserved communities with unique challenges that hinder their success as they embark upon their careers, and I am fortunate to be able to help people like that.”

ENSURING that WOMEN OF COLOR can return to the labor force should be a TOP

PRIORITY for the current administration, not only for ECONOMIC REASONS but also for HEALTH REASONS.

—Luisa Blanco Raynal

According to Luisa Blanco Raynal, economist and professor of public policy at the School of Public Policy, the economic devastation of COVID-19 has affected Black women and Latinas more than any other groups because they are more likely to work in sectors significantly affected by COVID-19 and have young children, which presents childcare challenges due to school closures. Blanco Raynal, who has researched the financial impact of COVID-19 on Latinx families, has labeled these devastating financial circumstances a “she-cession.”

In fall 2020, unemployment rates among Black women and Latinas were estimated at 8 and 9 percent, respectively. Blanco Raynal contends that these women have become victims of occupational segregation, as they are more likely to be employed in the hospitality and retail sectors—industries that have suffered tremendous financial loss since shutdowns have been enforced by statewide and local government agencies. Because these jobs are far less likely to offer remote work options, many of these women have had to choose between their income and their health, which has resulted in higher rates of them contracting COVID-19 while on the job.

With school campus closures still in effect, many Black women and Latinas who previously relied on in-person education have also been forced to quit their jobs to look after their young children during the day.

In fact, a 2020 Hispanic Economic Outlook report, to which Blanco Raynal

contributed, reveals that Latinas cite family-related reasons for quitting their jobs at noticeably higher rates than white women.

“According to data from the Current Population Survey, Black women and Latinas are also more likely to be single parents and have young children living with them at home, so family circumstances create a different set of challenges for them,” Blanco Raynal says.

While men of color are also less likely to have jobs that allow them the flexibility to work from home, social and cultural norms demand a heavier reliance on women as their children’s primary caretakers.

To combat these financial issues, Blanco Raynal suggests that policy makers in Washington, DC, collaborate with state government officials with the purpose of arranging for the safe reopening of schools so that these women can soon rejoin the workforce.

“Ensuring that women of color can return to the labor force should be a top priority for the current administration, not only for economic reasons but also for health reasons,” she says. “The reopening of schools can help diminish financial stressors on low-income women of color to a large degree, given that childcare challenges have been a major factor explaining why these women are not able to work.”

Blanco Raynal notes that based on data she collected in November 2020 among 84 low- and moderateincome Latinx families

in California, families of color are experiencing high levels of stress from a combination of financial hardships and the demands of distance learning.

Beyond vaccinating individuals in the education sector, she contends that addressing vaccine hesitancy in communities of color should be included in this program to ensure that these communities reach herd immunity. Blanco Raynal notes, however, that educating these groups on the importance of vaccination is crucial in reengaging them in employment.

“People of color and residents of underserved communities have historically distrusted government endorsements of mass immunization,” she says, “and undocumented individuals are especially afraid of receiving the COVID-19 vaccine.”

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Direct gifts, donor-advised funds, and partnership networks can SUPPORT these organizations’

ADVANCEMENT while ultimately bringing forth the POSITIVE SOCIAL

CHANGES that JESUS has CALLED US to pursue.

—Kaci Patterson (’01)

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Kaci Patterson (’01), owner of Social Good Solutions, senior director of LA Partnership for Early Childhood Investment, chief strategist at the Black Equity Initiative, and founder of the Black Equity Collective, cites two converging pandemics that have gripped Black communities especially severely: the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 and the systemic racial, educational, and socioeconomic inequality that they experience every day.

“Black people continue to suffer, get sick, and die unnecessarily because, like an uncontained virus, racism spreads and mutates,” she says. “A mountain of data on any one of these issues demonstrates that racial injustice is a destructive force in society, undermining our economy, humanity, and selfprofessed values of liberty and justice for all.”

Amid systematic discrimination and lack of government protection, Patterson explains that Black-led and Black-empowering nonprofit organizations are key elements in the fight against ongoing discriminatory practices such as voter suppression and labor exploitation that limit the ability of people of color to thrive in their communities.

“These organizations, many of which are staffed by people from the community, are on the frontlines serving as ‘first responders’ to social crises resulting from oppression, political harm, and systemic neglect,” Patterson says. “They live the daily realities of inequity as they seek funding from a philanthropic sector whose very definition is ‘love of humanity.’”

Referencing published data from 2011, 2017, and 2020, Patterson notes that while Black-led organizations are deprived of the resources they require to thrive and are often subjected to the same racism the broader community experiences, they still continue to support, heal, and love people in their pursuit of social justice. Patterson explains that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced these organizations to suddenly have to pivot their routine operations, which has highlighted the fragility of their infrastructure.

“For Black-led organizations—many of which have been operating at razorthin capacity due to pernicious underinvestment—the compounding effects of COVID-19 and persistent racism pose a threat to their long-term sustainability and even their future existence,” she warns.

Through dedicated giving, Patterson explains that diverse communities can become allied in purpose and provision by supporting and funding Black-led nonprofit organizations. “Direct gifts, donor-advised funds, and partnership networks,” she says, “can support these organizations’ advancement while ultimately bringing forth the positive social changes that Jesus has called us to pursue.”

Waves around the world came together in an extraordinary display of support during GIVE2PEPP 2021.

2,210

$30,000

Number of gifts

1,657

Number of gifts under $100

Largest gift

$428,260 Dollars raised

455

Number of $5 gifts

Romania

Farthest donor from Malibu

Thank you for your sustained generosity—especially in this time of vital need for our students.

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TURN of the HALF

CENTURY In celebration of its golden anniversary, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology highlights five decades of communal impact while pursuing a transformative future

By Sara Bunch

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or the last 50 years, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology (GSEP) has developed innovative pathways to cultivate the compassionate educators, counselors, and social scientists that the world needs. Considered a pioneer in fostering community healing and celebrating diversity through a rigorous research- and faith-based education, GSEP continually provides students with opportunities that address and directly serve the changing needs of communities of all backgrounds.

On its golden anniversary, meet some of the individuals and initiatives that have established GSEP’s legacy and pursuit of excellence that will generate progress in the fields of education and psychology for years to come.

New School of Thought

With the advent of desegregation in schools following the civil rights movement and increased awareness of needs related to non-native English speakers and people with disabilities, the 1970s were considered a decade of transformation in education.

Due to a growing emphasis on providing educational opportunities and critical resources to previously underrepresented groups, the early 1970s saw a demand for improving educational techniques in public- and private-school systems statewide.

As the landscape of education shifted, Pepperdine recognized the changing demands for leadership in this space. On January 1, 1971, Pepperdine’s Department of Education was reestablished as the School of Education at Pepperdine’s Los Angeles campus, ushering in a new era of service-oriented educators prepared to make a difference in diverse communities.

In January 1981, after the School of Professional Studies was decommissioned, the Division of Psychology became part of the Graduate School of Education, which officially changed its name to the Graduate School of Education and Psychology (GSEP) in 1982. Following the closure of the Los Angeles campus in the early 1980s, the school relocated to Pepperdine University Plaza, known today as the West Los Angeles Graduate Campus.

The acquisition of the daytime psychology program in 1989 provided GSEP with a permanent presence at the Malibu campus—an expansion that resulted in a 1993 endowment honoring the Young family, the establishment of the Center for the Family in 1996 (now the Boone Center for the Family), GSEP’s

home on the Drescher Graduate Campus in 2003, and the dedication of the M. Norvel and Helen Young Center for GSEP in 2005.

Since the introduction of three online clinical psychology courses in 2017, GSEP’s virtual learning offerings now reach nearly 1,400 students in three degree programs, including an MA in psychology, MA in clinical psychology, and MS in applied behavior analysis.

James R. Wilburn (MBA ’82), Dean Emeritus of the School of Public Policy and former dean of the Graziadio Business School who served as provost of Pepperdine’s Los Angeles campus from 1973 to 1976, shares that most of the faculty who contributed to the development of GSEP’s EdD program in 1976—Pepperdine’s first-ever doctoral program—were professors from the Graziadio School who understood the importance of management training for educators aspiring to become educational administrators.

“Pepperdine led the nation in developing programs, qualified professors, and appropriate classes designed for the unique needs of adults, most of whom had fulltime jobs and families to support, and in many cases, leadership careers in the fields of education and business management,” Wilburn says. “These students require professors who can relate to their experiences, keep them focused, and maximize their time in the classroom—and that’s what GSEP offers.”

In collaboration with several Graziadio School professors teaching in the master of science in organizational development (MSOD) degree program, including current GSEP associate dean of the Education Division Farzin Madjidi (MBA ’88, EdD ’91), the MSOD program became the first in Pepperdine history to be nationally ranked number one in its field. As a result, numerous Graziadio School alumni enrolled in the EdD program at GSEP taught by several faculty from the Graziadio School.

As PSYCHOLOGISTS and people of FAITH, we must battle against the INEQUITIES and INJUSTICES that persist in our communities.

—Cary L. Mitchell (’76) magazine.pepperdine.edu

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When Robert deMayo became associate dean of the Psychology Division in September 2002, his mission was to expand GSEP’s psychology clinics across Southern California. With the goal to make therapy more accessible, deMayo’s vision has enabled clinics at multiple Pepperdine campuses and external clinics that train more than 100 students annually and provide thousands of hours of mental health treatment services to neighboring communities.

“The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted both the need for highquality mental health services and the profound disparity in access to those services,” deMayo explains. “Many of our marginalized communities have a great need for culturally responsive, strengthbased approaches to promoting wellness.

Our clinics play a critical role in meeting the needs of communities whose needs are not met by the public and private sectors.”

Two decades ago, GSEP partnered with the Union Rescue Mission (URM) of Los Angeles to establish the PepperdineURM mental health clinic. Each year, six first-year psychology doctoral students complete traineeships at the clinic, learning to provide therapy, psychoeducation, and assessment services to individuals in recovery programs at URM. “Homelessness is a catastrophic problem that reflects many inequities in our society. As psychologists and people of faith, we must battle against the injustices that persist in our communities,” shares Cary L. Mitchell (’76), a GSEP psychology professor and codirector of the Pepperdine-URM mental health clinic.

“The safety net for people experiencing homelessness and poverty needs a great deal of strengthening, and we hope GSEP alumni will be prepared to lead and serve in addressing these challenges.”

Aaron Aviera, director of the Pepperdine Psychological and Educational Clinic and co-director of the Pepperdine-URM mental health clinic, reveals that students are repeatedly reminded that pain and trauma reach all communities, regardless of race, culture, or religion. “Our work is intimate, and our clients come to trust their therapists and open up for the first time in their lives about their traumatic

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We train students to address the social inequalities that deeply affect our clients while emphasizing a STRENGTHBASED PERSPECTIVE that allows people to rely on their own resources to IMPROVE and TRANSFORM their lives.

—Miguel E. Gallardo

life experiences,” Aviera says. “We have seen that growth is possible even among the most hurting individuals.”

In Orange County, psychology students at the Irvine Graduate Campus work with underserved communities through the Pepperdine Resource, Youth Diversion, and Education (PRYDE) program to provide free prevention, intervention, and counseling services to at-risk youth and their families. In collaboration with the Orange County Sheriff-Coroner Department and local school districts, the program provides services and resources to help youth and their families make positive changes in their lives and prevent first-time youth offenders from entering the juvenile justice system.

According to PRYDE director and supervisor Kenneth Woog (MA ’01, MBA ’11), a recent data review of at-risk youth referred to PRYDE indicated that nonparticipants were three times more likely than participants to receive a law violation within two years of referral. He also shares that PRYDE has had a dramatic impact on immigrant populations, as services are available in Korean and Spanish as well as in English.

At Aliento, The Center for Latinx Communities at GSEP, students are specifically trained to address the needs

of underserved Latinx communities through the lens of liberation psychology, a framework that recognizes the significant impact of culture and socioeconomic status on psychological well-being, particularly in regard to Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities. In fact, the program requires that Spanish-speaking students complete Spanish immersion courses to master communicating with Spanish-speaking clients. While inperson services have paused during the coronavirus pandemic, Aliento has hosted several webinars and virtual group therapy sessions to alleviate the financial and emotional stress experienced by BIPOC individuals over the past year.

“Traditional mainstream psychology often only elevates the perspectives of white, educated, middle-class, heterosexual individuals, which can be harmful and oppressive because it excludes all other narratives and experiences,” explains Miguel E. Gallardo, a licensed psychologist, GSEP professor, and director of Aliento. “We train students to address the social inequalities that deeply affect our clients while emphasizing a strength-based perspective that allows people to rely on their own resources to improve and transform their lives.”

Diving into Diversity

For many years, GSEP’s Education Division has been a member of the California Association for Bilingual Education (CABE), a group that promotes educational equity through conferences and workshops that train teachers to close language barrier gaps for K–12 English learners and their families.

Education professor Reyna García Ramos, the faculty liaison of the association’s Pepperdine chapter and director of the MA in teaching program, contends that most parents of English learners are essential workers in service-based industries who often feel unequipped to help their children with virtual schooling.

Under García Ramos’ mentorship, Linda Guzmán, principal at St. Paul Dual Language Academy in Los Angeles, president of the Pepperdine chapter of CABE, and current student in the EdD program at GSEP, has connected with many educators about meeting the unique needs of bilingual students.

After two years of attending CABE workshops, Guzmán has become acutely aware of multicultural students’ diverse classroom needs. In assessing such needs, Guzmán shares the lessons she learns from CABE with her faculty in order to create goals for upcoming semesters. “Some teachers aren’t sure how to support students with language barriers,” she says. “CABE has helped us understand how to navigate that, especially through the lens of servant leadership, mutual respect, social equity, human rights, and community empowerment.”

In 2015 the Education Division launched the Scholarship Without Borders program for doctoral students from diverse backgrounds to expand their published research and professional networks. Spearheaded by Madjidi, alumna Lani Fraizer (EdD ’09), and Gabriella Miramontes (’01, MA ’02, EdD ’08), visiting professor and director of the Center for Global Partnership and Learning, the program allows students from underserved communities to engage in year-long research projects with the goal of presenting their findings at conferences.

Initially established as a challenge for 22 doctoral students to complete a dissertation in fewer than 12 months, more than 110 scholarly articles were published in journals and presented at conferences in the program’s inaugural year, several of which won “Best Paper” awards.

The following year, GSEP introduced the PhD program in global leadership and change. Accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission, the establishment of the program changed Pepperdine’s Carnegie Classification® to Doctoral Research, marking another historic accomplishment for GSEP and the University.

In fall 2020 Madjidi introduced a postdoctoral program in which five recent PhD graduates representing underserved communities partnered with GSEP faculty to either teach or participate in research endeavors. During the 2021–2022 academic year, the program will select a minimum of five new students to spend 12 months partnering with faculty to teach, participate in dissertation studies, and conduct original research.

Pray Tell

GSEP’s intentional pursuit of community healing and diversity is deeply connected to the school’s Christian heritage, which encourages students to lead with knowledge and wisdom. Outside the classroom, all students and employees are invited to join Sacred Centering, a monthly spiritually diverse devotional gathering launched in 2017 and hosted by speakers who reinforce the University’s commitment to Christian values.

Each session aims to intentionally gather as a community, reflect on God’s works, and seek the renewing of the inner self.

Vanessa Jahn (’99), GSEP’s cultural attaché who oversees Sacred Centering, shares that the program originally began as a lunchtime meeting at the West Los Angeles Graduate Campus library. Hosted by Lani Netter, producer of the film The Shack, themes from the film sparked dialogue about the role of spirituality and faith in the modern world.

In keeping with GSEP’s innovative approach to changing times, Sacred Centering participant Parsa Peykar, a GSEP psychology student and graduate teaching assistant, spearheaded PeppPray, a 48-member spiritual support team in response to the pandemic. PeppPray Care Team members, comprising GSEP staff, faculty, and students, pray for those who submit their requests to the team.

“PeppPray has been the manifestation of the call to bring God into our most challenging times as we started to have national lockdowns in the US due to COVID-19,” shares Peykar. “By inviting God into our lives, we are able to face difficulties, feel at peace, and express God’s unconditional love, which is our vision through PeppPray.”

CABE has helped us UNDERSTAND how to [SUPPORT STUDENTS], especially through the lens of servant leadership, mutual respect, social equity, human rights, and community empowerment.

—Linda Guzmán magazine.pepperdine.edu

29

Features Waves of the Future

Thoughtfully tuned in to the needs of the new generation of students, GSEP plans to remain on the path toward community healing and diversity, especially as faculty, staff, students, and alumni continue to shine in these areas.

One example is the collaboration between Adel Najdowski and Lusineh Gharapetian, who respectively serve as the director and associate director of the master’s program in applied behavior analysis. The professors, whose diverse backgrounds have informed their passion for social justice, recently partnered with behavior analyst Victorya Jewett (MS ’18) to educate other university educators on how to effectively incorporate multicultural learning techniques into their applied behavior analysis (ABA) graduate programs.

Throughout their research, they discovered that many of these ABA programs include culturally insensitive concepts in their curricula and that lessons do not integrate diverse viewpoints. To help broaden the coursework, they developed recommendations to promote multicultural learning, the details of which were published in the journal Behavior Analysis in Practice in January 2021. At the forefront of these recommendations are calls to recruit and retain more people of color, educate and train students and employees in cultural competence and humility, and incorporate multicultural concepts into all curricula, pedagogy, and research.

To explore these issues internally, a team of Psychology Division faculty participate in a group that meets biweekly to discuss how to incorporate multiculturalism into existing curricula within all the psychology programs at GSEP. GSEP also encourages the development of multicultural initiatives through student diversity committees.

One such committee member is Alvenus Hillis, a student in the master of science in ABA program and vice president of events for the Pepperdine Student Association for Behavior Analysis. Through his field experience, Hillis has noticed

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that many clinicians are culturally disconnected from their clients.

To counter this issue, his Pepperdine classes frequently welcome candid race-related conversations that are critical in providing insightful exposure to the lifestyles and cultures of people of color.

“I can see the awkwardness among my peers when we talk about these issues, but as future clinicians, we need to engage in this discourse,” Hillis says. “If we want to make changes, deeper connections must be formed to expedite that change.”

Like Hillis and Jewett, Education Division students and alumni have contributed significantly to bringing diverse perspectives into the workplace, most notably in the fields of academics, business, communications, healthcare, policy, science, and the arts.

One such alumnus is Charles E. Bray Jr. (EdD ’19), who has dedicated his 20-year career to solving business challenges pertaining to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Currently managing the Small Business Programs Office at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Bray strategically shifts corporate cultures to increase supply chain diversity and socioeconomic inclusion in the areas of research and development.

Author and producer Anita M. Cal (EdD ’17), who has written for the award-winning comedies Tyler Perry’s House of Payne and Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns, uses her creative storytelling skills to include diverse perspectives in filmmaking. As an adjunct professor at Chapman University, New York University, and Syracuse University, Cal educates students across the nation on the need for multiculturalism in entertainment.

In the political sphere, NiiQuartelai Quartey (MA ’12, EdD ’18) is a Washington, DC-based social impact advocate serving as the multicultural engagement lead on a COVID-19 vaccine education campaign for AARP, an organization representing the interests of individuals over 50.

Resulting from his innovative strategies, Quartey is recognized for his expertise in community building, LGBTQ+ inclusion, policy advocacy, and racial equity.

Dean Helen Easterling Williams meets with students at the annual international student reception hosted by the Office of International Student Services.

Spring Forward

In 1988 GSEP became the first Pepperdine school to hire a woman as dean with the selection of Nancy Magnusson Durham—a tradition that continues with current dean Helen Easterling Williams. Serving in the role since 2014, Williams reveals that the future of education and psychology at Pepperdine can be summarized in one word: technology.

Emphasizing the importance of maintaining community connections, Williams is exploring human services initiatives that align with evolving community needs. “Women won’t return to the workforce as readily as men will because society has shifted from prioritizing financial stability to individual and family health,” she says in relation to the coronavirus pandemic.

“GSEP has a role in helping women with that and stepping up to see where we can meet some of their unique needs.”

Amid last spring’s campus closures resulting from the pandemic, Madjidi developed the Optimal Engagement and Immersion Pedagogy (OEIP) program. Adapting to the changes that online schools and students require, OEIP allows faculty and students with a reliable platform to synchronously attend class from anywhere in the world, while being able to see, hear, and communicate with one another in real time. Considered a game changer by other educational institutions, several California school districts have approached GSEP about using this same platform for their online instruction.

Around that same time in 2020, psychology students began embracing telehealth as a way to continue providing therapy to local clients in need while moving forward with digitizing all client records rather than keeping paper copies. In early 2021, GSEP partnered with health practice management software company AdvancedMD to allow student-therapists to record and upload videos of their sessions online, where professors can access them for evaluations. Through the HIPAA-compliant program, students’ therapy notes are also documented and securely stored on AdvancedMD. Williams believes it is these innovative technological services and a steadfast commitment to strengthening the school’s culture, curricula, and community outreach initiatives that have contributed to GSEP’s forward trajectory.

She envisions that staying on this course may eventually expand Pepperdine’s footprint across multiple campuses, comparable to California State University and University of California campuses statewide.

“We continued on our purpose-driven path and prospered in spite of COVID-19 because of GSEP’s culture,” Williams explains. “We are intentionally collaborative, with Christ at the center of all our operations.”

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS! The Pepperdine Graduate School of Education and Psychology (GSEP) celebrates 50 years marked by a commitment to diversity, academic excellence, and a purpose-driven mission. As we embark on the next 50 years, we invite you to join us and be a part of this legacy.­

#GSEPTurns50

LEARN MORE GSEP.PEPPERDINE.EDU/50

Snapshot

B E YO N D Away from the classroom and their typical learning environment, students engage in scientific research in their

the

’BU

own backyards

Teaching ecology at Seaver College comes with a big perk— the University’s expansive location surrounded by the diverse ecological wonderland of the Santa Monica Mountains and Pacific Ocean. Javier Monzón, associate professor of biology, typically fosters students’ research by taking advantage of Pepperdine’s unique setting and focusing on the local landscape or seascape.

In fall 2020, however, he and co-professor Helen Holmlund, assistant professor of biology, had to pivot from the standard curriculum and create a learning plan that included remote field trips and virtual check-ins with 14 student research groups that had relocated to their respective homes across the country.

While the remote environment required adaptability and navigating working through

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different time zones and varying terrain, it also offered a unique opportunity. “When you have students working in teams in different states, you can ask questions that you could never have asked on the Malibu campus,” Holmlund shares.

Discover how two groups of students participated in valuable scientific discovery in their remote learning environments.

Phenotypic Plasticity in Ponderosa Pine Needles Across Biomes

GROUP ONE

Student Researchers: Yu-Jin Choi, John Komas, Remi Ogunremi, Annie Rogers

Hypothesis

Conclusion

Temperature and precipitation cause ponderosa pine needles to vary in length.

Although pine needles were found to be the longest in Texas and California, needle length and precipitation were not found to have a significant relationship.

Method Ecology students in Alaska, California, Montana, and Texas sought to determine if natural weather affects the length of ponderosa pine needles, the most widespread pine species in North America. With their limited research tools—a ruler and an iPhone—students measured and recorded the length of pine needles observed in their local environments.

Student researcher and junior Yu-Jin Choi recalls the most challenging aspect of the research project: finding a species that is native in all four states. Despite the difficulties, she says, “We took this as an opportunity to conduct a research project that would not have been possible if it were a normal semester at Malibu.”

How Does Noise Alter the Foraging Behavior of Birds Across North American Cities?

GROUP TWO

Student Researchers: Chris Jenkins, Keliya Perry, Catelyn Price, Chelsea Puncochar, Roan Ramsdall

Hypothesis

Conclusion

The intensity of foraging behavior by urban birds is highest at an intermediate noise level, regardless of location.

While the data supported the hypothesis in some cities, it could not be verified in all participating locations.

Method

Students observed and noted how noise affected the foraging behavior of various types of local urban birds, including pigeons, crows, and geese. To ensure birds were exposed to the same type of noise, students played the song “Blinding Lights” by the Weeknd on their iPhones. As the song played, students in California, Hawaii, Indiana, Nebraska, and Washington observed the birds for an extended period of time. On a weekly basis, researchers gathered together to share their notes and brainstorm about ways to overcome obstacles, such as attracting the birds to their experimental site. Working through time zone challenges, the weekly meetings were a fun way to hear about everyone’s experiences because “we all had stories to tell,” Puncochar shares.

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Spotlight

THEIR IN 34 Pepperdine Magazine

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Across the developing world, the SUDREAU GLOBAL JUSTICE INSTITUTE at the Caruso School of Law is creating solutions for some of the most pressing problems in the criminal justice system

By Gareen Darakjian

In 2018, Mary,* a gentle grandmother from Malawi with no prior criminal history, was traveling in Ghana for a church conference.

While in Ghana, Mary’s boss asked her if she could pick up medicine for him that was not available in Malawi. Although the medicine was not an illegal drug, Mary was stopped in the airport by customs officials and arrested for unknowingly breaking a new law in Ghana’s Public Health Act meant to target and fine large companies selling the types of unregistered medicines Mary was carrying.

The judge issued Mary the minimum sentence of 15 years in prison or a $15,300 fine. Unable to pay the fine, Mary, an unfortunate victim of a loophole in the new law that was never intended to target people like her, was incarcerated and has been in a Ghanaian prison separated from her family for more than two years. Although Mary’s case has not yet been resolved, a team of attorneys in Ghana has been working fervently to fight for justice on her behalf so she may be released from prison and reunited with her family.

“In many places around the world, if someone is arrested and incarcerated they will likely wait several years in pretrial detention before having an opportunity to speak to an attorney for the first time,” says Cameron McCollum (JD ’17), director of the Sudreau Global Justice Institute (SGJI) at the Caruso School of Law. “Imagine being falsely accused of a crime and arrested but being unable to access an attorney to help you because you can’t afford one, and the government can’t provide one.

On top of that, because of the systemic case backlog within your country’s justice system, your opportunity to prove your innocence at trial won’t come for years—you’re stuck. That is the reality for countless people around the world whose countries don’t offer a robust public defense system and that is why we engage in defense advocacy.

We think that in the countries we work, we can change the average wait time to speak to an attorney from a few years to a few days.”

Since 2007 SGJI has provided invaluable and transformative resources to governments and

legislators around the world through its initiatives in international human rights and religious freedom, advancement of the rule of law, and global development. The institute, formerly known as the Global Justice Program and endowed by alumna Laure Sudreau (JD ’97) in 2017, partners with organizations such as the International Justice Mission (IJM) to create a lasting impact in the lives of the Pepperdine law community and those experiencing injustices in the world’s most vulnerable places.

Currently SGJI is working with the Ugandan government to establish the nation’s first-ever public defender’s office. SGJI is nearing the end of the pilot phase of this project and plans to begin expanding across the entire country in the next few years. The team, which is composed of mostly Ugandan lawyers, recently visited four prisons in Uganda, engaging 105 clients and resolving 23 cases in one week. Many of the represented defendants have already been released or will be released and reunited with their families in a matter of days.

“We view ourselves as a catalyst to get the wheels of justice turning, but at the end of the day, this is all about serving and empowering our Ugandan partners to lead their own justice transformation,” says McCollum.

“Our goal is for the public defender’s office to be entirely Ugandan led and funded within five years.”

SGJI’s success in Uganda has led to several new opportunities for the institute to expand its reach and impact. In fall 2019 the institute signed an agreement with IJM to collaborate on several different initiatives around the world. These initiatives include faculty research collaboration, opportunities for students to engage in anti-human trafficking work, and a partnership to develop a framework for improving national prosecutorial systems through plea bargaining—an agreement negotiated between the prosecution and defense that grants the individual accused of a crime an agreed-upon period of incarceration or a range of potential imprisonment to remove the uncertainty of a trial.

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Spotlight AN INNOVATIVE EXPANSION

A year prior, president Jim Gash (JD ’93), then a professor of law at Pepperdine Law, was in Washington, DC, signing a memorandum of understanding between IJM and the Ugandan Justice, Law, and Order Sector. While there, the field office director for IJM in Gulu, Uganda, Will Lathrop, suggested that Pepperdine expand into West Africa and consider providing Ghana the type of transformative assistance the law school had provided to Uganda’s criminal justice system since 2009. Both countries, as well as many others in the region, are significantly challenged by the same difficulties in providing timely access to representation for those facing criminal charges.

After a day of meetings with various members of Ghana’s highest legal counsel, an agreement was made that secured the promise of assistance from Pepperdine faculty, staff, students, and alumni, as well as interns and fellows on the ground year-round, to assist with the country’s delayed justice system and establish a plea bargaining system similar to that which Gash had spearheaded—with extraordinary results—in Uganda. In the coming year, the institute plans to expand into countries such as Guatemala, El Salvador, and Rwanda to partner on similar legal initiatives.

While plea bargaining is a powerful tool on its own, McCollum says it must be paired with strong public defense advocacy. In Ghana, SGJI has partnered with the local government as well as the United States Department of State to enact public defense and plea bargaining advocacy and legislation with plans to expand even further across Africa. The first steps of these partnerships include training sessions with the various governments who are interested in adopting these effective crime-reduction and -deterrence practices in their own legislative processes.

In December 2020 and March 2021, SGJI met virtually with more than 50 Nigerian judges, prosecutors, and defense advocates for a plea bargaining capacity-building exercise in collaboration with the Ogun State Ministry of Justice in Nigeria so they could develop the skills to take on the process themselves in the future.

“Many of the countries we work with have plea bargaining legislation on their books, but it’s never been used, so we partner with the

government to provide training and expertise as they seek to get started,” McCollum says.

Using hypotheticals from mock files of common crimes, the workshops gave the Nigerian attorneys an overview and analysis of plea bargaining basics—both the theories and benefits of the process. The attorneys engaged in role-playing exercises and were coached on caseanalysis strategies.

“We asked everyone to play both sides,” says McCollum. “The prosecutors were asked to play defense advocates and vice versa because it’s important to stress that plea bargaining requires a collaborative approach. What we commonly see, here in the US as well, is a mindset focused on ‘winning,’ which often means getting the maximum sentence (on the prosecution side) or the lowest possible sentence (on the defense side) rather than what’s just and fair for a client who is willing to plead guilty. Playing both sides and demonstrating a collaborative approach to plea bargaining is an important part of the training process.”

JUSTICE should be available and accessible to everybody, and EVERYBODY should have their day in court.

—CAMERON MCCOLLUM (JD ’17)

Prison Project Twice a year the Sudreau Justice Institute partners with the Ugandan judiciary to host hands-on plea bargaining training inside Uganda’s prisons while handling real cases. The one-week programs connect Pepperdine’s global justice team and law students with volunteer American attorneys and judges and Ugandan attorneys, law students, prosecutors, and judges.

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SERVING CENTRAL AMERICA

An unexpected roadblock to introducing new legislation in regions with limited experience in alternative disposition mechanisms is public pushback on proceedings such as plea bargaining, which many perceive to be a method that reduces prison time for convicted criminals. In multiple countries in Central America, plea bargaining legislation was almost passed in 2018 but was ultimately shut down by local advocacy groups that were concerned the practice would lead to convicted criminals getting a get-out-of-jail-free card. To combat these inaccurate narratives, SGJI is involved in public awareness campaigns to educate, inform, and further understanding of the effectiveness of such legal practices.

McCollum explains that the concept of a reduced sentence is often misunderstood by the community and shares that plea bargaining not only initiates the conviction process, but it also introduces an appropriate conviction—for example, reducing a 50-year sentence to 46 years.

“The conviction rate for many crimes such as intimate partner violence is often really low because of evidentiary issues presented by the lengthy amount of time between arrest and trial,” says McCollum. “Many individuals —even those who have committed violent crimes—will not be convicted at all and will be released after sitting in prison for two years.

The data shows that plea bargaining is a very effective practice to deter and reduce rates of crime while also decongesting case backlog

and thus reducing arbitrary and unjust pretrial detention,” he says.

This spring law students Tara Aleagha and Rebecca Voth have been collaborating with several IJM offices in Latin America to provide research assistance on a policy brief.

Their current project involves working with a group of female legislators in El Salvador who are advocating for change in the country’s intimate partner violence laws.

“El Salvador treats instances of intimate partner violence as a private, family matter,” says Voth. “Most of the time, if a victim reports abuse, the case goes to a family court where the victim and abuser participate in a mediation. There is no court process, and the abuser suffers no punishment. This policy brief supports those legislators that are advocating for the abolishment of this mediation process.”

Aleagha and Voth supplemented the IJM attorneys’ draft of the brief with legal argument contending that the prosecution of perpetrators of domestic violence is a more effective legal process than mediation.

Currently in the process of editing the brief, Aleagha and Voth have collaborated with an attorney and other members of the IJM staff in Guatemala to better understand the cultural context. While the brief was drafted in English, the students are writing it entirely in Spanish and have had a few meetings in Spanish with the country directors and attorneys in Central America.

Through her work, Voth hopes to correct the power imbalance inherent in intimate partner violence situations that mediation cannot properly address. She explains that mediation causes the victim more trauma and fails to provide a solution to the abuse.

“Mediation assumes that parties are equal, and that is never the case when intimate partner violence happens,” she says.

“The failure to criminalize intimate partner violence sends the wrong message to society—that abuse isn’t really a crime.”

“We hope that this policy brief will give the El Salvador legislature a tool it needs to pass comprehensive reform on this issue,” Voth continues. “Ideally, El Salvador legislators will recognize the importance of imposing criminal sanctions on abusers and seek the safety of victims by implementing criminal penalties for intimate partner violence and eliminate mediation in this context.”

Aleagha, who anticipates that this experience will help her become a better civil servant, community member, and human being, hopes to impart her experiences at Caruso Law to a career that allows her to bring true justice to others. “This opportunity has opened my eyes to the countless ways we can help one another.”

JUSTICE FOR ALL

The percentage of the prison population on remand—people who are sitting in prison not actually having been convicted of a crime—in the developing world remains massive. When Pepperdine started its work in Uganda, 70 percent of those in prison had not been convicted of a crime.

That number recently fell below 50 percent nationwide. Partners across the University, such as Julia Norgaard, assistant professor of economics at Seaver College, have been assisting SGJI with gathering and analyzing data related to time on remand, case backlog numbers, and time on trial. In the near future, McCollum shares plans of SGJI’s expansion across the University in an effort to reinforce the idea that justice is not only a matter of law.

“We recognize that we live in a highly privileged and unique environment where we have access and the ability, if we do the hard work, to provide holistic justice solutions to communities,” McCollum says. “If you’re coming to Pepperdine as an undergraduate or graduate student, no matter what your passion or focus is, we want you to be able to use your skill set to serve people in need around the world.”

Beyond contributing legal expertise and training to regional governments and providing on-ground support from program directors, SGJI also creates jobs by hiring local attorneys in an effort to build thriving communities. More than that, SGJI’s primary measurable goal is to provide defense counsel and representation to anyone who can’t afford it. And while pretrial detention cannot be fully eliminated, McCollum hopes the efforts of SGJI can reduce or eliminate unnecessary pretrial detention to a reasonable rate.

“Too often in countries around the world, a person’s ability to obtain justice is directly proportionate to their ability to afford it,” McCollum says.

“Justice should be available and accessible to everybody, and everybody should have their day in court.”

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Spotlight

Team USA In his latest book, Pulitzer Prize–winning professor Edward J. Larson examines the unexpected and unlikely—yet highly functional—partnership between two of America’s most notable founding fathers

BY GAREEN DARAKJIAN

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BENJAMIN FRANKLIN was known in the prerevolution era as an urban intellectual who humbly served the communities from which he came with an admirable humanistic approach. GEORGE WASHINGTON was known for his solemn reverence and aristocratic nature, ever steadfast in his duty to country. In the early days of our nation’s founding, they forged a partnership that provides an exemplary case study in teamwork. In Franklin and Washington: A Founding Partnership, Ed Larson, the Hugh and Hazel Darling Chair in Law and University Professor of History at Pepperdine, offers a dual biography that illuminates the previously unexplored dynamic between the “two indispensable authors of American independence.”

What fascinated you about Franklin and Washington’s relationship?

This book was my personal intellectual challenge as a lifelong student of leadership. I challenged myself to examine how these two people worked together effectively. Nobody has really looked at the circumstances under which they met and how they were connected. No one has ever analyzed them together at all.

If you look at joint biographies, they tend to be based on two people at odds with one another or people operating in some sort of a hierarchical relationship, with one helping the other. Much has been written about Washington and Hamiliton or Jefferson and Madison or Lincoln and his team of rivals. This book examines the relationship between two people of enormous stature who operated together, not in any way taking orders from the other, but working toward a common goal.

Those sorts of relationships do exist.

A great example from the last century would be Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Winston Churchill. One didn’t work for the other, and it’s hard to imagine how the allies would have won the war without both of their contributions.

Britain wouldn’t have held up without Churchill.

Churchill needed Roosevelt, and Roosevelt needed him. They were both essential, and they were both independent. It’s not always possible to have a working relationship among equals because egos don’t always allow it. It did in that case and it did in the case of Franklin and Washington.

Why haven’t many historians studied how Franklin and Washington worked together in practice?

I think because they are so different, from their personalities to their social identities. Franklin was from the north, a printer and inventor who grew up in an urban environment. He escaped indentured servitude in Massachusetts for a better life in Pennsylvania. He viewed himself as middle class and called himself a “middling man” even though he became very rich. Washington, though he wasn’t always a member of the elite class, always viewed himself as colonial gentry. He was not a person of the people. That is partly because of the nature of Pennsylvania versus the nature of Virginia. They just seemed so different that people did not associate them. They were never in a hierarchical relationship.

They were always working in parallel.

How would you describe their different leadership styles?

Franklin led from below and Washington led from above. That was apparent during the French and Indian War. Franklin’s troops adored him. His wife would prepare food, and he would pass it out to the men. He would sleep among them. He didn’t care for pomp and circumstance and insisted on giving his men the glory. He would sneak out of the house to avoid being accompanied by armed guards when visiting them. When he would come out, the troops paraded around him because they loved him so much.

In contrast to Franklin, Washington liked formality and ceremony. He enjoyed wearing fancy uniforms.

Washington’s men respected him, and, of course he was brilliant, but they didn’t like him. He was a harsh disciplinarian. But they respected him because he made good judgments.

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Spotlight How did Franklin and Washington work together to be successful at accomplishing their individual and collective goals?

The three times they worked together, they had a shared goal. During the French and Indian War, their goal was to overthrow and defeat the French and take over Fort Duquesne, which is present-day Pittsburgh. During the Revolutionary War, they both, before they got back together at the Second Continental Congress, independently had decided on sovereignty for the colonies before many others had gotten that far. While they both had supported reconciliation with England, by 1774 they came around to the view (held earlier by John Adams) that America should be independent of England. That was a radical step. So when they got together, they already had a shared goal, and the only question became executing it. Because they both liked to listen and they both respected others’ opinions, it wasn’t hard to work together. They had the exact same end in mind.

Another trait they held in common was a willingness to compromise on means but not on ends. Whatever they did, they were always open to doing it any way that would work and to hearing each other out. They both believed in reason and in facts and were heavily influenced by the Enlightenment period. Neither of them was partisan, and that made it easier for them to cooperate since they weren’t wedded to their means. The chemistry just worked.

We can’t ignore the fact that Washington and Franklin differed significantly in their backgrounds and views yet worked together almost seamlessly. How can their legacy be applied to the division we see in today’s society?

Washington and Franklin were two clever people who were WILLING TO SACRIFICE for the common good.

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People are creatures of their time. But people can change, and that is one thing that we can take from them. Franklin and Washington also demonstrate that ideas matter. They both were motivated by ideas—of independence and individual liberty and individual responsibility.

They believed in reason and facts. They both believed in this sense of republican virtue that is ultimately that people should rule, but that people require leaders, and they were willing to devote an enormous amount of their time to being leaders.

They also both had a sense of responsibility and duty. At the height of his success, Franklin had more money than he could ever use and basically let others manage the business, which continued to generate money. He went into public service and joined the city council and the colonial legislature and later became the representative of the colony in London where he did a whole lot of public service work.

Washington left his home for nine years during the revolution to be the commander in chief and never came back. He served that entire time without pay. Neither of them accepted payment for their services. Franklin gave his money to veterans, and Washington just didn’t take any payment. Those are traits that can be applied to some of the issues we’re facing today.

The book’s synopsis touches on the idea that our current government is still challenged by the things Franklin and Washington set in motion, for example, the electoral college. How can looking at the origins of this initiative help us view its value today?

If you better understand why something was created, such as the electoral college, for example, you can better understand how or why it may function or malfunction today. Franklin thought the president should be elected directly by the people. Washington believed the electoral college would empower states that had a broad franchise.

Half of the people living in the South were slaves, so they weren’t allowed to vote. In Pennsylvania, nobody was a slave, and in neighboring New Jersey, women were allowed to vote. Think of all the votes that would have given the north.

Franklin decided that something like the electoral college was a necessary concession to make because the election process was not one of the essential items to him. He thought it was necessary to concede to it so the Constitution would be enacted, and then he would think about how it could be fixed later. That was the way he always thought: get what you can and then fix it later. He was a tinkerer. That was just the way he operated. But neither Franklin nor Washington would’ve thought that the Constitution would have lasted this long without more fundamental reform. Both of them viewed it as an answer for then, not an answer for all time.

If readers walk away with one thing after reading this book, what would you want that to be?

That leadership requires listening. It requires having a goal. But working with others to get to a goal requires compromise. Maybe it means adjusting the goal after gathering more evidence and more knowledge, which requires being open, listening, and working with others. Both of them were magnificent at working with other people to make the world better for society as a whole.

Washington and Franklin were two clever people who were willing to sacrifice for the common good. And while they themselves profited, they did so, inevitably, by making the pie bigger for everyone.

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Spotlight

CA CHING THE DRIFT On the path toward a career in ministry, two graduate students seek to uncover why so many young adults have become disconnected from church communities by sara Bunch

O

N PAPER, DANIEL RAMLI (’19) WAS LIVING THE DREAM.

After earning an undergraduate degree in mathematics, he secured a job as a systems analyst in San Diego, a career path that promised a stable and comfortable future. But in his heart, Ramli felt a relentless emptiness—a frequently avoided feeling he began exploring through prayer and meditation. Finding himself unfulfilled, he remembered that the most rewarding moments of his life were spent in the year he served as a spiritual life advisor at a residence hall for first-year students. While the role exposed him to some of the most difficult situations he had ever encountered, it was also a time of great joy, purpose, and encouragement and an opportunity that affirmed his gift for ministry.

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After enrolling in the master of science in ministry program at Seaver College, Ramli quit his new job to pursue his true passion: campus ministry. As part of the program, Ramli spent the January 2021 term as one of two students in a directed study religion course that examined why, compared with previous generations, adults between the ages of 18 and 29 no longer engage much with faith communities.

“Emerging adults experience societal and cultural pressures that have complicated the transition from adolescence to adulthood,” explains Sara Barton, University chaplain and the instructor of the graduate religion class.

“Opportunities such as higher education and challenges such as student loan debt contribute to students putting their spiritual lives on hold until those things get sorted out, which is now taking longer than ever.”

In the 2019 book The Twentysomething Soul: Understanding the Religious and Secular Lives of American Young Adults, authors Tim Clydesdale and Kathleen Garces-Foley point to data from the 2013 National Study of American Twentysomethings, which highlights that most twentysomethings in the United States believe religious people are perceived as “negative, angry, and judgmental.”

Because of this perception, emerging adults experiencing spiritual struggles or religious deconstruction are discouraged from seeking counsel among their churches’ congregants. In fact, the study estimated that while nearly 67 percent of twentysomethings identify as Christians, including affiliations with Catholicism, Protestantism, and Evangelicalism, this percentage is significantly reduced when asked about church attendance.

Barton mentions that technology also plays a part in this disconnect as the accessibility of faith-based podcasts and on-demand videos has further created more individualized religious practices for emerging adults. At 23 years old, Ramli attests that the abundance of unique life-changing choices available to emerging 21st-century adults can be overwhelming.

“During this formative decade, young adults must choose a college, choose a major, find a job, decide on graduate school, and decide who to marry, along with dozens of other decisions,” he says. “Faith is often placed on the back burner because it’s viewed as irrelevant.

When faced with all the important life decisions and opportunities, most Christian twentysomethings tend to sideline their faith tradition and use their time and energy to engage in what they view as more urgent matters.”

Student Shaya Aguilar (’20), a former psychology major and Hispanic studies minor who for years has looked to Barton as a spiritual mentor, reveals that while this age group has already been coined “the age of instability,” the coronavirus pandemic has sharply amplified the concept of life’s unpredictability among college students.

“While today’s twentysomethings are fiercely independent trailblazers who are leery of conforming to traditions, the desire for spiritual connection, community, and shared experiences continues to fuel their behavior,” Aguilar notes. “The struggle for most young adults is discovering what their faith looks like, how it influences their behavior, and how to embrace ambiguity rather than run from it.”

Aguilar further explains that church leaders tend to shy away from investing in young adults because they are perceived to be in a transient stage of life and therefore likely to leave that environment in a short period of time. She believes it is the responsibility of ministers and church leaders to examine why young adults are not finding a sense of community in the church in the first place, which results in their separation.

Prior to the start of the course, Barton partnered with the Pepperdine Office of Institutional Effectiveness to develop a spiritual life assessment survey and analyze its results as part of the class curriculum. Delivered to 634 Pepperdine undergraduate students and 622 graduate students in December 2020, the survey asked about the spiritual struggles students have experienced during the coronavirus pandemic. The survey also focused on determining how students have been engaging with different faith practices before and after the pandemic and during the transition to online learning and asked students to provide feedback on their personal spiritual fortitude.

Each analyzing a different section of the survey, Ramli and Aguilar copresented their findings to a group of Pepperdine faculty and staff during a 90-minute virtual gathering on January 29, 2021.

The struggle for most young adults is discovering what their faith looks like, how it influences their behavior, and how to embrace ambiguity rather than run from it.

SHAYA AGUILAR Through statistics provided by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, Ramli and Aguilar discovered that the impact of the pandemic on emerging adults will have ripple effects on their spiritual lives for years to come. However, whether these findings will motivate students to deepen their faith or turn away from it altogether depends on their capacity to develop spiritual fortitude within this season of struggle.

Excited to apply his math skills to assess the survey results, Ramli noticed that a large majority of students responded well to hardship and adversity, viewing them as opportunities for growth and renewed purpose. They also expressed a willingness to lean on their faith to overcome challenges, which is highly correlated with the religiously affiliated majority. In addition, Ramli found that respondents who identified as Black demonstrated the highest levels of spiritual fortitude in the face of hardship or adversity.

In addition, he found that in all the questions relating to spiritual fortitude, respondents who identified as Black demonstrated the highest level of agreement. Ramli contends that, “Although this is an area that can continue to be explored, my immediate response is to connect this high level of fortitude with the racial narrative of our country, which has been highlighted this past year through the national demand for social justice.”

In exploring how spiritual practices have changed since the University transitioned to distance learning, Aguilar reports that while there has been a significant decline in communal worship and prayer gatherings, students have spent more time meditating, reflecting, and praying individually than before. While these trends vary based on students’ faith affiliation prior to the pandemic, they suggest that even in isolation Pepperdine students are still searching for ways to meaningfully engage with their faith.

“The results are both encouraging and disheartening,” Aguilar admits. “We see that students are investing in their faith in new ways, but the loss of the communal experiences, along with being isolated from others, has taken a significant toll on their faith. We are hoping to meet the spiritual needs of students but know that the road ahead of us is one that will require spiritual fortitude.”

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Spotlight

Renowned (and beloved!) coach and athletic director Wayne Wright (MA ’66) blessed Pepperdine Athletics with a rare and lasting culture of fellowship

By Amanda Pisani

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R

etiring from Pepperdine in 1997 with seven NCAA Division I championships in four different sports to his name, athletics director Wayne Wright left a legacy of exceptional success on the playing field. With significantly fewer resources than the competition, Wright brought the Waves to a new level, playing against—and beating—schools with more highly developed sports programs.

“If I had one talent,” says Wright, “it was in hiring. Most of the people I hired turned out to be really good coaches.”

Those who know him say that Wright had many talents, among them his ability to home in on those who would best serve at the University. Steve Potts (JD ’82), today’s athletics director, agrees. “Wayne had a way of finding people who would fit; it wasn’t about finding the coach who would be most successful at another school,” says Potts. “It would be about finding the coach who would be most successful at Pepperdine—who fit our Christian mission, our commitment to academics, our commitment to competing for championships.”

Wright’s impact was evidenced by his masterful development of women’s sports at the University in the 1970s. In addition to establishing the women’s basketball team, Wright was also instrumental in adding women’s soccer, swimming, golf, volleyball, and cross country to Pepperdine’s roster of sports. His successor, professor of education John Watson (’72, MA ’75), points out that “Wayne very strategically selected the sports in which our women’s teams could succeed. And he brought in quality coaches to make that happen.”

“Wayne had a way of finding

people

who would fit; it wasn’t about finding the coach who would be most successful at another school. It would be about finding the coach who would be most successful

at Pepperdine."

—STEVE POTTS (JD ’82) His thoughtfulness about every decision he made was probably the greatest factor in the rise of the Waves’ presence in college athletics. As Pepperdine’s teams increasingly engaged in national (and some televised) competitions, East Coasters stopped pronouncing the school “Pepperdeen,” and a greater number of young student-athletes were enticed to pursue their education at a little school in Malibu. “Students like to come to a winning program,” notes Wright, “and the fact that we were winning a lot just recruited other kids who wanted to come and be a part of it.”

Wright’s greatest accomplishment, however, cannot be found in the wins and losses column. Wright’s manner, his charisma, his authenticity, his kindness, and the balanced approach he brought to every aspect of his life allowed him to create a

culture in the University’s athletics department that is truly unique in college sports. This culture—of respect, competence, and unity—was one that Wright carefully nurtured. “Everyone wanted to be respected by Wayne,” says Potts. Volleyball coach Marv Dunphy (’74) relates that regardless of the number of times a specific question was asked by a staff member, Wright always responded graciously. He maintained a decorous environment, and those around him followed suit, living his maxim to “shout praise and whisper criticism.”

Having played baseball for Lipscomb University, Wright understood student-athletes and how to relate to them. And having coached at Pepperdine for 12 years before he became athletics director, he was sensitive, as Dunphy puts it, “to the ups and downs that coaches go through.” These experiences helped make him an insightful mentor. “Where I am and where I’m going is due in large part to Wayne. He was great to me,” says Dunphy.

As the vice president for student affairs and Wright’s supervisor, John Watson had a good understanding of the world of college sports when he took over the department upon Wright’s retirement. But to ensure that Watson was as well prepared as possible, Wright met with him for days to talk about the department. “He went over every person, and he brought with him copious notes, and ideas, and thoughts, and recommendations. He knew what he was doing, and he wanted to pass it all on so we wouldn’t skip a beat,” says Watson.

According to Wright, “creating a spirit of cooperation” was important to him, and he made a point of inviting athletics and academic staff to outings where they could meet one another, such as his ironically titled biannual “Wayne Wright Memorial Golf Tournament.” He saw to it that the coaches and players of all the school’s sports formed a tight-knit group and that they perceived themselves as part of a larger team of Waves. Dunphy relates that coaches and student-athletes would attend each other’s games.

“Sometimes within an athletic department there might be jealousy or rivalry between various sports, but that was never the case here with Wayne,” Dunphy says. “With baseball, basketball, volleyball, and tennis, people pulled for each other, and I think that that started a nice tradition. That still exists.”

Looking back at this tenure, Wright says, “I never regretted a day working at Pepperdine. I think that one of the things that makes you happy is having a job you enjoy, and that certainly was the case for me. I was blessed with a lot more than I ever gave.”

It’s tempting to quibble with that last part, as 24 years after he left the University, his culture of kindness, fellowship, and indeed, competitive success, continues to shower Pepperdine with its gifts.

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Spotlight

NBA executive Rich Cho (JD ’97) reflects on his nearly three-decade career in professional basketball

BY SARA BUNCH

MVPs are made of more than just impressive statistics—even in fantasy sports.

Rich Cho (JD ’97), the vice president of basketball strategy of the Memphis Grizzlies NBA team, believes in a holistic, all-encompassing approach to team building.

“Fans tend to think building a professional basketball team is similar to fantasy basketball, but there are a lot of things that happen behind the scenes that people probably aren’t aware of,” Cho says. “We spend a tremendous amount of time analyzing player performance and key character traits to find out who exactly we are inviting onto our team.”

Cho’s meticulous methodology is crucial in drafting player contracts, exploring statistics and analytics, reviewing the financial landscape, and applying an “eyes, ears, and numbers” approach to preparing for the NBA draft, trades, and free agency.

A former Boeing engineer, Cho mentions that one of the most fulfilling aspects of his career is “combining pure basketball with the cerebral part of the business.” A popular guest speaker at colleges and universities nationwide, Cho shares that a strategic player evaluation system was an idea he initially pitched in 1995 to secure an internship with Wally Walker, a former NBA player and executive for the Seattle SuperSonics (now the Oklahoma City Thunder). Landing the internship immediately after sharing his forward-thinking solutions and while a student at Pepperdine’s Caruso School of Law, Cho eventually became the SuperSonics’ director of basketball affairs and the team’s assistant general manager for 10 years.

Before he accepted his job with the Grizzlies two years ago, Cho made history by becoming the first-ever Asian American to be named the general manager of an NBA team upon joining the Portland Trail Blazers in 2010. Following his

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time in Portland, he worked for Michael Jordan as general manager of the Charlotte Hornets.

Over the years, Cho has received countless letters from fellow Asian Americans who have expressed their admiration for him as a role model, offering their gratitude to someone who has inspired them to feel a sense of pride and belonging. Cho says that knowing his path has inspired others has been one of the most humbling aspects of his career.

On February 25, 2021, in recognition of his continued efforts to foster a community of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), Cho received the Alumnus Award at the inaugural Belonging Awards hosted by the Caruso School of Law. For Cho, maintaining a DEI perspective in his staff hiring process is an integral part of his leadership style and a practice he keeps close to his heart. Rather than following a traditional paradigm that frequently creates a narrow candidate pool, he assesses the underlying skills that each open position needs in order to maximize success.

“When you have a DEI mindset and actively seek competence beyond bullet points on a resume, the candidate pool widens because it is no longer constricted to any preconceived notions,” says Cho. “Having a DEI approach to problem solving—whether it’s on the court or off the court—brings a much broader and more valuable range of perspectives to any team.”

“We spend a tremendous amount of time analyzing player performance and key character traits to find out who exactly we are inviting onto our team.”

—RICH CHO (JD ’97)

Roa o

Recovery

To share the healing journeys of COVID-19 survivors, alumna Morgana Wingard (’05) is on a ride of her own throughout the entire country

By Amanda Pisani

are battling. “A lot of people we talk “It is through our stories,” says alumna Morgana Wingard (’05), to are struggling with depression. “that we see God at work.” A humanitarian storyteller, Wingard Many are struggling with anxiety and knows whereof she speaks, having helped an international feeling alone and isolated,” she says. media organization document Ebola survivor stories in West Depression rates have risen more Africa seven years ago. Wingard would have liked to pursue her than threefold in the US during the own personal project about the survivors, but didn’t have the pandemic, and feelings of stress resources to do so. Her work, however, made such an impact on and anxiety are considered natural diminishing the spread of the Ebola virus that she did not hesitate responses to it. Yet the belief that to record the experiences of those enduring a different disaster mental health issues are signs of in 2018—Cape Town’s “Day Zero” water crisis, when officials personal weakness is still widespread. announced that the city was three months away from running The survivors’ stories attempt to out of municipal water. remove the stigmas around emotional When COVID-19 started spreading in her current hometown and mental health difficulties and of New York City, Wingard, accompanied by her husband, Jaco “help others going through these Bester, immediately began work on her COVID-19 Survivor challenges realize that they’re not Diaries, telling the stories of those who endured the deadly virus Morgana Wingard (’05) alone,” Wingard says. and bringing humanity to the scary, unsettling, and often ugly (right) with her husband, The wisdom of treating ourselves gently disease. The duo has now interviewed more than 140 individuals.

Jaco Bester. is one of the lessons Wingard hopes to share.

In addition to sharing the stories on the project’s social media She notes that regardless of how physically sick account, she is also creating a book and film series. Wingard they were with the virus, those who seem to be contacted Jeep’s global creative director on Instagram in search faring the best emotionally and mentally are those who are very of sponsorship. The automaker agreed to provide them with a intentional about their healing process.

Jeep Grand Cherokee for six to nine One interviewee in her late twenties, who months to pull their Airstream around previously had lived the typical, active life the country to document the stories of of a young adult, is now using a wheelchair survivors from all 50 states. to get around. Her physical strength was The goals of the project are many. so diminished that in order to manage At a basic level, it’s an effort to spread her interview with Wingard, she stayed awareness. Wingard spoke with one in bed the entire day before and cleared healthcare worker who contracted the her schedule to do the same on the virus but who managed not to spread it day following the meeting. “She’s been to anyone in her household by wearing . incredibly intentional about learning what a mask at home and isolating herself. her limits are emotionally and physically “She protected her entire family that so that she wouldn’t crash.” says Wingard. way,” says Wingard.

—Morgana Wingard (’05) Wingard’s stories focus on those who Another goal is education about have contracted the coronavirus, but she the experience of the virus. Wingard points out that everyone is a survivor of the pandemic. “There has found, for example, that COVID-19 can lead to many side is so much division in this country, but this is something that effects, including sexual dysfunction. “This is not in the news we’re all going through together,” she says. “I’ve been very much yet,” observes Wingard, “but talking about it is important moved by seeing the commonalities in our experiences, both the so that those having this experience can understand it and start pain that we’re undergoing and the way that we’re encouraging their healing journey.” one another. We’re all survivors. I’m hoping my project will The stories are also designed to increase awareness of the demonstrate that and help unify us.” extensive nature of the other “silent illnesses” that so many people

“There is so much

division

in this country, but this is something that we’re all

going through

together ”

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The Cut

Reality

Check

In his latest book, We Built Reality: How Social Science Infiltrated Culture, Politics, and Power, Jason Blakely, associate professor of political science at Seaver College, illustrates how the convincing nature of pseudoscience has impacted multiple areas of our lives, including romantic relationships, economic downfalls, and tensions between civilians and law enforcement. Find out what Blakely says about the abuse of popular political and scientific theories and how hermeneutics can help put the human factor back into these philosophies.

IN THE BEGINNING

R E A D , W H I T E , A N D B LU E

When I was in my 20s I moved to New York City to work at a branch of the famed Strand Bookstore near Wall Street. At lunchtime the bookstore would be filled with investment bankers and venture capitalists who were purchasing countless copies of Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything. I realized that many people were not buying this book to understand the basics of neoclassical economics better, but looking to its content for moral and ethical guidance.

That’s when I realized something crucial: many people wanted to become part of the economic theories they were reading about.

The crisis of conspiracy theories being spread so rampantly is partly the result of people struggling to read and discern the significance of events unfolding around them. To solve this problem, the world of education must focus on literacy and offer people the ability to sharpen their skills at reading politics.

Literacy involves having the historical, cultural, and philosophical wherewithal to grasp the social world and events around us.

L O S T I N T R A N S L AT I O N Hermeneutics is a fancy philosophical term for the art of interpretation, which can be applied to understanding human behavior. Rather than focusing on interpreting meanings, too many people today impose a scientific language that supposedly explains human behavior without the need for deeper explanations and analysis. After the fall of the Soviet Union, for example, many believed a baseless social science theory that guaranteed liberal democracies would soon take over the world. This was a case where elements of human behavior, like anticipated reactions to this takeover, were removed from the equation, making this situation unrealistic, if not impossible.

O P E N T O I N T E R P R E TAT I O N What prevents us from understanding our neighbors is that we have lost our ability to interpret meanings. Unfortunately, we are living through a crisis of defunding and dismissal of humanities and liberal arts. The disciplines in which ordinary people hone their skills of interpretation are history, literature, languages, and philosophy. If we stop engaging in these disciplines and turn them into optional hobbies, we will continue to see a decline in the ability to run a successful democratic republic.

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F O R C E S O F N AT U R E The natural science revolution has produced astonishing accomplishments, like the development of the COVID-19 vaccine. While in a prior age we would have been without such understanding and protection, modern societies are so impressed with the natural sciences that they overextend their authority into areas that are not appropriate, like insisting upon a science of morality or a science that disproves religion. These are deeply misguided attempts to make science the measure of all things in humanity.

LISTEN LESSON Those in power frequently misunderstand the diverse perspectives of their constituents. It’s important to not immediately assume that people who fit a scientific description like “woman” or “working class” must therefore fit certain social and ideological categories.

To help close this gap, politicians would benefit from advisors who are practiced in the art of interpretation and who have a rich grasp of history and culture.

ives erspect

Interpre tation cal s i g lo orie o e id ateg c

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APPLAUDING OUR CLASS OF

2021

In a year unlike any other, you have shown us the meaning of resilience and tenacity.

C O N G R AT U L AT I O N S to our graduates as you bring your faith and fortitude to all your future endeavors.