Knight Times (October 2015)

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night Times

October 22, 2015 • Volume 7 • Issue 1 • Warner Pacific College

The Landscape of War: Seeking Refuge Beyond Syria’s Borders See story page 2-5

THE WAR ON HUMANITY INSIDE THE SYRIAN REFUGEE CRISIS

by Stephanie Davis

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n the winter of 2014, I joined a six month long missionary program called YWAM (Youth With A Mission). YWAM is an international organization with over 300 bases that span the entire globe. The first three months of orientation were spent at a base in Northern Ireland where we as volunteers learned who God is, who we are because of him, and what that means for our mission in the world.

After that, my team and I traveled to the nation of Lebanon in the Middle East to live out the gospel and be the hands and feet of Jesus in whatever way we could. However, nothing could have prepared us to face the reality of the Syrian refugee crisis sweeping the nation.

our apartment I could see the Mediterranean Sea and three large summer beach resorts amidst acres and acres of banana plantations.

The resorts were closed for the winter, which left the beaches completely free to roam. The warm Mediterranean Sea and palm tree lit shores welcomed us as though we were family.

The beauty was outstanding, but within the banana plantations was a less than beautiful truth. Thousands of Syrian refugees now lived in makeshift shacks within the plantations.

After fleeing their homeland, most of the Syrian refugees came to Lebanon with little more than the clothes on their backs and the tales of the nightmares they had lived through.

My team of nine lived in a two bedroom apartment in the quiet town of Damour, forty-five minutes from the capital city of Beirut. From

During our time there, my team worked at a school for refugee children who lived in the banana plantations, teaching classes, giving

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devotionals, helping teachers, and cleaning up.

We had the opportunity to care for the teachers with times of prayer and love the children who had suffered mass trauma and neglect due to the civil war. We were involved in local churches, and we helped a former Lebanese YWAMer pioneer a non-profit organization which advocated for reconciliation throughout the Middle East. Personally, my favorite ministry was refugee home visits. Crammed tightly into a van, we would take food, clothing, bedding, hygiene products, and other items to refugee houses in the plantations. The chance to sit in their makeshift homes, built from tarps and scrap metal, and hear their stories of perseverance through the face of adversity was inspiring.

The first time I had the chance to meet any of the refugees was during the week we moved in.

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After fleeing their homeland, most of the Syrian refugees came with little more than the clothes on their backs and the tales of the nightmares they had lived through.

That is the story of an entire nation.

It was a bitter cold afternoon, and we had just arrived back at our apartment after preparing an old building to be a new refugee school.

There was a knock on the front door. When I opened it, I found a middle aged man and two young girls who I had never seen before.

As they pleaded to me in a language I did not understand, my eyes scanned their attire: broken flip flops, torn pants, and dust coated shirts. I yelled into the other room for my Arabic speaking friend to come quickly, then we walked the family to the building across the street where we kept donations of clothes and blankets YWAM had received for the refugees. The man who had come to the door told us how they had just recently arrived from Syria and the brutal story of how his son was murdered while trying to escape. I had never seen hurt and desperation in someone’s eyes the way I did in his. As he spoke, I knelt down to smile at the two young girls, but all I received in return were blank stares. I looked into their eyes and realized these children had seen more violence and felt more pain than I probably will in a lifetime. We gave them all the supplies we could, and after they walked out the door, I sat on the floor and cried. My Lebanese friend turned to me and said, “That is the story of an entire nation.”

Before that moment, these people were simply numbers in a statistic to me. Now, they had faces, they had names, and I could no longer turn my back on their crisis.

Syria’s civil war started in 2011 during a nationwide protest rallying for resignation of President Bashir Al-Assad’s regime. The people were tired of a stagnant political process and demanded democratic reform.

The government responded with harsh brutality. killing, kidnapping, and torturing protesters. Much to the dismay of the government, this only led to more civilians taking to the streets in opposition. Since then, radical extremist groups, such as The Islamic State (ISIS)—formed from the Al-Qaeda group in Iraq, Hezbollah, and other jihadists—are now capitalizing on the war. Syrians are not only fighting the corruption of their own government but also the terrorism of many extremist groups. According to Knight Times

the United Nations, as of August 2015, 250,000 people have died due to the civil war. In response to these atrocities, Syrians are fleeing their homeland in staggering numbers. More than four million people have fled Syria since the start of the conflict, making this the largest refugee exodus in recent history. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), over three million have fled to Syria’s immediate neighbors: Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq. Meanwhile, just under 150,000 Syrians have declared asylum in the European Union, while member EU states have pledged to resettle a further 33,000 Syrians.

The nation of Lebanon is the size of Southern California and is home to four million people. Though it is the smallest country in the Middle East, it currently houses more refugees per capita than any other place in the world. Due to sheer numbers, thousands of refugees are finding themselves with nowhere to turn but city slums or large camps, primarily in the region’s northern mountains, where space is limited and illness and disease run rampant.

Continued on page 3.

Syrian refugees live in makeshift shacks within banana plantations in Lebanon. Photos by Stephanie Davis.

Warner Pacific College

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CONTINUED: REFUGEE CRISIS While in Lebanon, I became very close with a particular Syrian family, the Tohmes. They had fled to Lebanon two years prior when their town of Homs was destroyed by war. Rose Tohme, the mother of four children, was an English professor when she lived in Syria. Sarah, their middle child, was enrolled in university but was forced to drop out when they left the country. The family doesn’t know if she will ever have the chance to finish her education. I spoke with Rose in a recent long distance conversation. “The Syrian people never thought that this could happen to their country. It was such a lovely place full of lovely people.

It was safe there,” Rose said. “Leaving Syria meant leaving my home, the friends, family, and work I loved,” she continued. “We don’t feel settled here and we can’t plan for the future. Medication is expensive, food is expensive, it’s hard to dream because they seem impossible to fulfill.”

Like any mother, Rose desires only the best for her family and their future. The family of six has recently applied for asylum in Germany, but was accepted on the terms that only some of the family could go. They are struggling with the decision to either choose safety for some of them, or to keep the family together. “In Lebanon we have learned how to live by faith,” Rose said. “Our faith has grown. He is the God of Healing. He is our

doctor. The God who comforts His children.” The Tohme family is just one example of the countless stories this war has created. However, they have an abounding faith that has kept them going through the most difficult time of their lives.

While working one-on-one with Syrian families in the banana plantation, my team and I grew very fond of our interpreter, Jonah. Because of his full heart and joy-filled smile, we did not expect that he, too, was a victim of unimaginable atrocities. “I came to Lebanon voluntarily many times, but leaving my country as a refugee was much harder because I didn’t have a choice. Leaving my friends and family and not being able to visit them was heart breaking. Some of them even died while I was in Lebanon,” Jonah said. “Sometimes I wish I could delete my memory. The things I’ve seen…” His voice trailed off. Some of what he did share with my group about his capture and torture by terrorist groups and his life in refugee slums were some of the hardest stories I’ve ever heard.

However, this man’s heart of gold continues to shine even in the face of adversity. “God wants to do something big in the Middle East, and here in Lebanon there is a revival going on. And that’s

In Portland alone, over 1,000 refugees from all over the Middle East and Burma arrive every spring.

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my prayer: to see people truly following Jesus in the Middle East,” he said. In 2011, a Christian on the streets of Syria gave Jonah a pamphlet about Jesus. “When I brought the tract home to my aunt, she told me to throw it away. But I read it anyways. The content made me even more curious and after a while I went back to the spot where the guy gave me the tract and met two other Christians who told me more about Jesus.

So, I became more interested.” Even though Jonah has faced torture, persecution, and many near death experiences because of his faith, he has remained a Christian. Jonah continues to spread the word of God across the Middle East and works closely with an organization that delivers relief aid to refugees in Lebanon.

Knight Times

Although there is no easy solution to this growing war, it is possible to make a difference, even here in Portland. In Portland alone, over 1,000 refugees from all over the Middle East and Burma arrive every spring.

Organizations such as Catholic Charities help new refugees to grocery shop, pay bills, learn how to ride the bus, and get connected to a community. Even though I’m no longer in the Middle East, I know my call to advocate for and bring aid to the refugees of the Syrian war is not over. I urge anyone considering getting involved to do so. We are no longer ignorant, therefore we can no longer turn our backs.

If you are interested in getting involved with the Catholic Charities Refugee Re-

settlement Program, contact volunteer coordinator Michelle Welton at MWelton@ CatholicCharitiesOregon.org to get on her volunteer mailing list.

You can help by donating clothing and home goods, cooking a meal for new arrivals, assisting with a cultural literacy class once a week, or signing up to be a one on one Cultural Navigator to a refugee family. Working with Catholic Charities can be a great service learning or internship opportunity.

If you’d like to donate financially to the Tohme family or Jonah and his refugee ministry, contact me at photobucketsteph@hotmail.com.

Warner Pacific College

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Share the Road: Making Division Street W

arner Pacific College is located on 68th and Division, one of the busiest thoroughfares in the city of Portland. Our campus is just over a mile from a Max station with a Park and Ride, and there is a wellused bus stop directly in front of the campus.

WPC’s location is convenient, and after two and a half years of roadwork, the Division corridor is also a lot safer than it used to be.

When I came the college as a freshman in the fall of 2012, Division Street was a four-lane road. There were no bike lanes, so bikers were either forced to ride in the streets, or on the sidewalks with pedestrians. There was no median, so turning east onto Division from 68th was a nightmarish adventure. The community recognized these dangers and began a process to make Division safer. That process began when local community members from the South Tabor and the Mt. Tabor Neighborhood Associations, as well as other local residents, brought the issue forward to the city. Warner Pacific College Vice President of Operations, Steve Stenberg was also a part of this process, and attended many of the meetings, some of which were held in Egtvedt 203, the community meeting room on campus.

In April of 2013 at the “High Crash Corridor Program Southeast Division Street Safety

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Project Public Meeting,” an $850,000 plan was finally presented to community members.

The main goal of the project was turn Division into a three-lane road which would include a median and one lane of traffic in each direction, along with adding one bike lane on each side of the road. This was estimated to reduce crashes by 19-46%. The project also planned to place three islands with crosswalks on Division Street at 64th, 68th, and 79th.

There was some debate about whether the proposed island and crosswalk at 68th should actually be a traffic light. Steve Stenberg explained that islands were chosen for a number of reasons. A light could slow down the flow of traffic, and also cost significantly more than an island. Also, a project at a sister institution had been successful; Seattle Pacific University had been through a similar process and was a participant in the choice to put in an island rather than a traffic light. The Seattle project had quantifiable results, so that contributed to the decision here in Portland. “It’s not perfect, but at the end of the day, it actually works and people use it,” said Stenberg.

The project proposal was approved in 2014, but was put on hold in late 2014 and early 2015 due to work being done with the reservoirs. The three Mt. Tabor reservoirs were

being disconnected from the City’s water system, and a new one was being added at Powell Butte Nature Park.

Why did this stop roadwork? In an interview with Steve Stenberg, he explained (by use of fantastically drawn whiteboard diagrams) that Division and 68th Avenue both have pipes underneath them where the water from the reservoirs is routed. Water had to be rerouted to the new pipeline. Returning students may remember all of the draining done last year. In order to cross the east side of 68th, we had to walk over ramps because of the rushing water coming down the street.

After this work had been done, the city could move along with fixing up Division.

In 2013 and 2014, it seemed like I could never leave campus without having to drive through some kind of work being done. I am not a fan of driving anyways, and the roadwork always annoyed me. I never stopped to think about why the work being done was so important until one day at the end of the summer in August of 2014. I was making brunch with a close friend and we forgot to get one of the ingredients for the dish we were making. We headed to the convenience story/gas station across the street, but as we got closer, it was obvious something had happened.

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Safer for Pedestrians and Cyclists T

here was yellow police tape up and we couldn’t cross the street. There were police cars, and when we looked ahead there were people trying to help a man who was lying on the ground in the apartment lot across the street. I distinctly remember noticing that his leg was bent at an angle that shouldn’t be possible. I looked over to the right and saw an ambulance and a car that had crashed into the fence and pole near the Saxon apartments on the corner of 66th.

When I looked back over towards the man on the ground, the EMTs were putting a tarp over him. All I could manage to say to my friend was a mumbled, “Oh my God.” It wasn’t until later after reading the news reports that I found out the accident was caused when an 84 year old woman suffered some kind of medical emergency while driving. She ended up veering across the two eastbound lanes and up onto the sidewalk where the man was walking. I couldn’t believe something this tragic could happen so close to our campus.

Even though this was a freak accident, it opened my eyes to the need for safer streets.

I no longer feel annoyed when there is roadwork, because I knew the city has a goal and a plan to make Division safer. Even though it Knight Times

is impossible to ever fully prevent accidents from happening, ODOT and PBOT are working to take preventative measures. I’ve heard the term “Warner Bubble” used a lot, but every once in a while the bubble bursts and something happens to remind us that we are part of a much larger community.

As of September 2015, quite a bit of the project has been completed. The road has changed to three lanes. There is a bike lane on each side, and the speed limit has been lowered from 35MPH to 30MPH. Two speed readers have been added (one near 82nd for traffic heading west, and one near 64th for traffic heading east). One of the three planned islands has been added recently near 68th, and the crosswalk has been repainted. Portland Bureau of Transportation plans to add two more islands with crosswalks at 64th and 79th. Though there is still work to be done, since these changes, speeding has decreased 56%.

What else is in store for the future? Stenberg explained that Division is just one street and one issue. “There’s this overarching issue of transportation in Southeast Portland in general. The city is trying to make more modes of transportation possible,” Stenberg said. In Portland, transpor-

by Hannah Mierow

tation issues are related to housing. A study by the National Association of Realtors found that over the last five years Portland’s rental rates have increased 20-45 percent.

Because of this, Portland renters and firsttime home buyers are being forced farther to the outskirts of the city. Steve Stenberg explained that a majority of jobs are in the “core” of the city, so this makes transportation to and from a job even more difficult.

Although car accidents are what prompted the city to make the streets safer for pedestrians, safety is never guaranteed.

Motor vehicles can be dangerous, even if preventive measures are taken. The city and TriMet plan to revamp the old, and create new ways of making traffic faster, safer, and better for the environment.

These plans are mainly focused on modes of transportation such as biking, busing, and more lines for the MAX. There is even the possibility of dedicated bus lanes. The city wants to get more people using public transportation. The more people on public transportation, the fewer cars driving on the roads, and the safer the roads will be. But in the short term, the city, the neighborhood associations, and community members are also doing what they can to make the roads as safe as possible.

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in profile:

Dr. Reginald Nichols New Vice President brings significant experience serving first generation students

by Julia Toscano

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n September 1, 2015, the first day of fall semester, Dr. Reginald Nichols took the stage of McGuire Auditorium during convocation. His tall and strong presence immediately commanded the room, and the audience fell silent. “You know everybody knows about a nursery rhyme about a round everyday object with a fate worse than death” Nichols began. “This poor little sap was seemingly doing nothing and then all of a sudden, splat! And all the people around him couldn’t help him. ‘Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great

fall. All the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t put Humpty together again.’”

Nichols stopped as the audience gathered themselves in curiosity at where this man was going—at where our new Vice President of Academic Affairs planned to take us with this simple nursery rhyme.

After a pause, Nichols began again with his booming voice: “Well, I have a few questions!

What was Humpty doing on the wall? Why wasn’t he working or going to school? Did Humpty have a family? Did he have children? How are they going to survive without him? You see, I believe Humpty got pushed.

And all the king’s horses and all the king’s men could have intervened earlier, but they came too late.”

Nichols’ argument began to take form. No one was there to intervene when Humpty fell. Humpty was broken and could not be put back together. Humpty “did not have the opportunity to live out his noble purpose,” Dr. Nichols said. “You know, a lot of our people today are dying. They will never see or realize their hopes because they have been pushed and are living splattered lives.”

Dr. Nichols began his role as the Vice President for Academic Affairs on June 29, 2015.

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Dr. Nichols quoted from a Pell Institute fact sheet from 2011: Only eleven percent of first generation, low income college students graduate with a four year degree, and first generation students are twice as likely as those with parents who graduated from college to drop out of school There are racial disparities to consider too, since Latinos represent the

highest proportion of first generation college students and African American students are also overrepresented among the first generation student population. Like Humpty, whole generations of talented, purposeful people are being pushed off the wall, Nichols said.

After hearing his speech, I was thrilled that I was going to get the chance to meet Dr. Nichols and sit down with him for an interview. I walked into his office knowing I only had a few minutes with him to capture the wisdom that came from that speech and learn how Warner Pacific became so lucky to have hired such a great advocate for equal education.

I found that Dr. Nichols is very passionate about giving people opportunity to live out their hopes and dreams in the context of higher education. Nichols has been working for the past 30 years as a senior educational executive and international program initiator in the United States and around the world.

“As a representative of the Kellogg Fellows International Leadership Program focusing on education, I was invited to be a part of the discussion on how to provide equal educational opportunities to the newly apartheid free South Africa,” Nichols said. On the same trip, the mayor of Gauteng Province of South Africa wanted ideas on how urban educators handled educational equality in the United States. “We talked about democracy and educational equity. The United States had and still has a unique voice in this regard due to the fact that we are still dealing with educational equity and racism as it relates to educational policy and providing equal, Vol. 7, Issue 1

Dr. Nichols speaks at convocation on September 1, 2015. Photo by Kathy Covey.

quality educational access to all of its citizenry.” Nichols’ work for the underrepresented and unvoiced is, as he put it, his “calling.” “My role is to speak peace and justice to the academic process.”

Not only is Nichols an advocate for equal opportunity in education, but he pushes students to find their passions and go after them. Nichols chose to do this during his first speech to the student body; he took advantage of the very first opportunity he had to motivate and give wisdom to students. “God’s call is for us to stretch. Go beyond our comfort zones. God’s call is liberal learning which gives us a context of hope and requires some confidence in the future… to discover what one is fitted to do and to secure an opportunity to do it, is the key to happiness,” said Nichols during the convocation speech. I experienced this first hand during my interview with Dr. Nichols. I came in prepared with questions for him, but he beat me to it. He began showering me with questions of who I am and what my interests are. I had this feeling that he was more interested in finding out about me as a person and student than he was about talking about himself.

located from San Antonio, Texas to Portland, Oregon because he noticed a distinct difference that sets us apart from other institutions. “Warner Pacific is serious about its mission, and serious about diversity, he said. “I don’t know how many African American academic officers there are in the country, but I know that there are very few represented in Christian colleges. The only reason I came was because I felt Warner Pacific was serious about working through their mission.”

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men could have intervened earlier, but they came too late.

Because of his passion for equal education, Nichols felt Warner Pacific College was the place for him. Nichols and his wife reKnight Times

As VPAA, Nichols plans to further the work that Warner Pacific has done. He wants to encourage staff and faculty to make deeper connections with their students. “I want people to be their best selves. This means honoring them and celebrating them and affirming them for who they are, not just for the work they are doing.” Nichols also wants to encourage students to find their passions: “God has allowed us to dream and I want to give everyone that opportunity. God expects me to do what I need to do to help the next generation.” Dr. Nichols believes that higher education is the key to making a difference in the world. “We must celebrate and be joyful. That’s why I always say ‘Good morning,’ because it’s always a beautiful day.

Good morning. God is good.”

Warner Pacific College

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Dining:

Special events and grilled to order meals

by Brandon Bush

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ver the summer, the WP Dining Hall went through what Joel Santana, General Manager, calls a “face lift.” Throughout the dining area there are new signs, logos, and china for student and staff use. “It was about revitalizing what we had,” said Santana in an KT interview. The Dining Hall is now paying more attention to holidays such as Cinco de Mayo, Oktoberfest, Earth Day, and even National Doughnut Day. A monthly calendar on the WP Dining web page outlines special events and meals. “We are also looking at a new focus on the nutrition and allergen side of things,” Santana said. He explained how many of their sauces, like barbecue sauce, salad dressing, and

cheese sauce, are now being made in house with the goal of eliminating gluten for those who have allergies. Homemade basil pesto is now available at the Deli, created especially for those who must leave nuts out of their diet. “I’ve got to give major kudos to Chef Tim because he’s brought a lot of good ideas, which is great.”

Tim Bartunek is the new executive chef and is responsible for many of the new improvements to the Warner Pacific dining experience. Bartunek transferred to Warner Pacific from the University of Denver and brought with him a wealth of knowledge and experience. He learned to cook from watching his grandparents. “It started when I was a kid. As soon as I could reach the stove, I started cooking. Once I began cooking, I did most of the meals at home.” Over the years, Tim Bartunek has been a banquet manager at a hotel in Seattle, the director of catering at Western Washington University and Resident Dining at the University of Denver, and has now been with the Sodexo Company for nine years.

I asked Bartunek what he liked the best about Warner Pacific so far.

“The size. I try and always build relationships with the clients and with the students so I can talk to them and they can talk to me and I can make sure they are getting what they need,” he said. In Bartunek’s previous work, he was accustomed to feeding 2,000 people a day, and it has taken some time for him to get used to the smaller client base. “It’s nice to be able to relate to the students and get to know what they like and what they don’t like,” he said.

When Bartunek was hired, another one of the changes he implemented was to make Gerard Black his Sous Chef. Black is now second in command within the kitchen and worked with Bartunek over the summer to create new recipes for the coming school year. “I was able to get him a different job code because he was doing the job already, he is good at it, and I want him to continue doing it.” Bartunek said. The new recipes include Smoked Tillamook Cheddar Mac & Cheese and Grilled Salmon with a Berry Balsamic Reduction. Another new feature this year: gourmet meals about five times a semester. Served on October 14 was a Slow Roasted Prime Rib with Whipped Potatoes and Steakhouse Creamed Spinach, and on October 22, a special seafood meal was available. To get these special meals, students can swipe their meal card and then add $5-$8 from their flex dollars account.

Grilled to order Flat Iron Steak with Potatoes and Vegetables served on September 29, 2015. Photos by Kayla Wells.

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Bartunek’s main goal is “to make sure the campus community, students, faculty, and staff don’t get bored. That’s a big problem that anybody in food service on a college campus has. You open up strong and have all this cool stuff at the beginning and then you get into the middle of the semester and it starts to get routine, it starts to get boring, and you either finish strong or you run out your freezer the last week you’re open. My job is to make sure you guys don’t get bored and that you still like the food.”

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The most important goal for the WP Dining Hall going forward is to eliminate processed products from vendors and allow the chefs to prepare the food themselves. “It changes the quality like you wouldn’t believe when we can control how it’s seasoned and how much salt there is,” Bartunek explained.

As always, nutrition is also a top priority for the team as well. “I’m big on nutrition, I like to cut the fat, I like to cut the salt, and I like to cut the sugar whenever I can,” he said. Also important to Bartunek is education. That is why he enjoys working in the college environment. He has already explored with residence hall staff the possibility of Saturday cooking classes. Bartunek is also willing to work with and provide assistance for campus clubs and other groups wanting to serve food for their events.

Contact him at Timothy.Bartunek@sodexo.com.

Along with the changes to the food, a new system for meal plans has been put in place for faculty, staff, and commuters. Rather than a staff/faculty plan separate from the commuter plan, packages of 12, 25, or 52 meals are now available to anyone who lives off campus.

“This saves everybody on average about four dollars versus the normal rate,” Santana said.

Commuters seem to like the recent change. “It’s an affordable meal plan, and the food is incredible,” said Matt Dotson, a commuter student. From what I have heard from the students at my lunch table, the changes have been much appreciated by the students, faculty, and staff, and we are looking forward to more tasty meals cooked up by the chef team. It’s good to know that the people feeding us are passionate about what they do.

The most important goal is to eliminate processed products from vendors and allow the chefs to prepare the food themselves.

Knight Times

Warner Pacific College

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ENCOUNTER:

Drama program devises testimonial theatre as part of a collaborative, grant-funded project

by Adrienne Alexandre and Julia Feeser

The cast and crew of Warner Pacific’s Fall drama production, ENCOUNTER. Photo by Kayla Wells.

P

ortland is a city with some of the largest numbers of homeless in America.

The homeless in this city are commonly (or perhaps diplomatically) dubbed “urban campers” or “our friends who live outdoors.”

Despite the city’s efforts in planning and budgeting to undo homelessness, about 4,000 people sleep on the streets or in shelters across Portland on any given night, according to the Portland Housing Bureau.

Few individuals in the WPC community have ever had the experience of sleeping on concrete, surrounded by fast food trash and trying to protect all of their belongings in a

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bag or shopping cart. Many of our students, staff and faculty have been privileged enough to not endure such hardships, including the two of us writing this article. This fall, we have joined the WPC Drama Ensemble for a journey outside ourselves.

In the fall drama production, an ensemble of six actors will share their experiences of making friends at The Underground, a Wednesday night dining and living room space for homeless youth in downtown Portland. “Devised theatre,” according to Robin Gordon, drama program director, “is theatre created in collaboration typically around a central question,

problem, or focus. Testimonial theatre is based largely on verbatim transcripts of interviews.”

The Underground was established by Professors Ken and Deborah Loyd, and, according to the St. Stephen’s Episcopal Parish website, “is committed to caring for the unhoused community.” The Underground has proven itself safe and comforting to many young people in the area, and this semester, theatre students are guests in this house. WPC Drama Program Scholars are stepping outside—of themselves, of their comfort zones, of their familiar ways—to open themselves to new encounters and to make new friends.

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Each Wednesday, Professor Gordon accompanies three or four students on a bus trip to The Underground. They are there to reorient to a new environment, meet people, and make friends. Forrest Nameniuk, a member of the ensemble, describes these trips as “the privilege of meeting people who are in the midst of the roughest parts of their lives.”

On the Thursday night after each excursion, these students are interviewed about their experience. They are asked questions—provided by Gordon—such as, “Who did you meet?” “What did you learn about him or her or yourself?” “How do you make friends?” and “Can you imagine developing a quality friendship at The Underground?”

The recorded answers to these questions will serve as raw material for a script, based the actors’ experiences and their transformative moments of encountering strangers and making friends. To develop a plot structure, we are relating our theatre students’ journeys and the journeys of Underground members to the typical hero’s journey in Greek mythology. As Gordon put it, “We’re no heroes, but we are on something of a hero’s journey. Mythology scholar Joseph Campbell has identified key events of this journey, as the hero/ heroine is called from the known status quo world to go on an adventure to an unknown place and encounter unknown beings, before discovering a boon and returning home, transformed and reconciled.”

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ENCOUNTER is produced as part of a collaborative project funded by the Change the World grant, established by the Church of God. The winning proposal was submitted

by Religion and Christian Ministries Adjunct Professor Ken Loyd, Associate Professor of Speech and Drama Robin Gordon, and Portland filmmaker Stuart Eagon. This proposal was one of sixty-three applications for the Change the World grant submitted in October of 2014 and was chosen in January of 2015 as one of six winners sharing a $20,000 grant. The grant-funded project consists of Ken Loyd’s six-week lesson plan entitled “Do No Harm,” the theatrical work ENCOUNTER created by Robin Gordon and WPC Drama Scholars, and a film by Stuart Eagon revealing the beauty of those who live outside. Together, the works serve as an invitation to step outside— of the church, of one’s comfort zone, of the familiar—and make a friend.

We’re no heroes, but we are on something of a hero’s journey. the hero/heroine is called from the known status quo world to go on an adventure to an unknown place and encounter unknown beings, before discovering a boon and returning home, transformed and reconciled.

Nicholle Ortiz, another ensemble member, has been traveling to The Underground for a number of weeks.

When discussing her first experience, she said, “I tend to stand in the corners in new social situations, because I’m not quite sure what to do. This is what I did at first at The Underground.” It was difficult for Nicholle to connect with this new group of people, as it was for the other theatre students. Forrest noticed he was talking to people who were homeless in a different way than he talks to others, albeit unintentionally. Both theatre students ran into obstacles, but their task was to make friends and learn about a new culture. Once they became more comfortable, Nicholle and Forrest were able to begin building trusting and hopeful relationships.

Members of the drama ensemble are not trying to gain service hours, nor directly fix the problem of homelessness in Portland. We are trying to change the world in a different way. “We are trying to discover,” said Robin Gordon, “how we are transformed when we encounter one another.” The resulting play, titled ENCOUNTER, will be presented to the Warner Pacific community November 5-8 in the McGuire Theatre.

During the Drama Program’s creative process, writer/producer Wayne Harrel and digital designer Jerry Green shared their video projection knowledge and skills with drama students while using McGuire Theatre to prepare Harrel’s play, Remme’s Run, for its fall run at CoHo Productions in NW Portland. The students will use their new knowledge and skills to incorporate video projection in ENCOUNTER. Performances are Thursday, November 5, Friday, November 6, and Saturday, November 7 at 7:30 PM and Sunday, November 8 at 2 PM in McGuire Theatre. A talkback follows each performance. Parking is free, and $5 tickets can be purchased at the WPC Bookstore or by calling 503.517.1100.

The Knight Times is a publication of The Sword, a student organization supported by ASWPC.

Shawna Downes Julia Toscano Dr. Connie Phillips Adrienne Alexandre, Brandon Bush, Stephanie Davis, Julia Feeser, Taryn Frey, Hannah Mierow, and Julia Toscano Cover Photo: Stephanie Davis

Contact Us: knighttimes@warnerpacific.edu Warner Pacific College 2219 S.E. 68th Ave Portland, Oregon 97215

Warner Pacific College

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Walkabout: Training student leaders to create

by Julia Feeser

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efore the start of each academic year, the Student Affairs division of the college brings back the new ASWPC student leaders 10 days early to prepare them for the upcoming year. This year, the leadership training took place August 18th through 28th. The purpose of this ten day training was to get the student leaders out of their comfort zone and to equip them for their roles through a series of reflective and interactive activities. All 30 students were selected at the end of 2014-15 after going through an application and interview process. ASWPC, Associated Students of Warner Pacific College, consists of six different leadership teams: Campus Ministries, College Activities Board, Service Learning, Student Diversity Council, Student Government, and Residence Life. Each team is unique in the way it engages the campus and in the value it has within ASPWC. “Walkabout was an adventure,” said Kayla Wells, a senior and new Resident Assistant this year.

“From river rafting to some of the most self-revealing moments I’ve ever experienced, I literally hit rough water on the trip, but some of the most intelligent, strong-willed leaders Warner Pacific has to offer got me through it.” On the Deschutes River, Kayla got on a raft with several other soon-to-be student leaders. It was a nice adventure, until the journey took a turn that was almost too much for Kayla. The raft came to a very rough portion of the river, sending Kayla straight over the side of her raft and knocking the wind out of her. For a split second, she feared for her life. However, Kayla was with some friends who pulled her up quickly.

In a KT interview, Kayla was asked how the rafting trip helped form her readiness for a new leadership role. “Being an RA, you can never really be prepared going into a situation.

The rafting trip was very similar to what I was feeling going into my position in residence life. It gave me a major perspective-change on how ready I was, and you can bet that I absorbed the next three days of training to get closer to being the best RA I can be,” she said.

Throughout the training, student leaders were developing the skills needed to create an envi-

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and sustain positive change

ronment where students find community and belonging. The soon-to-be leaders participated in an activity that asked them to reflect on their own complex identities. In this activity, posters with single words and phrases, such as “Spirituality,” “Gender/Sexuality,” “Appearance,” “Race/Ethnicity,” and “Economic Status” were placed around the room. ASWPC leaders were asked questions regarding what they are most aware of and least aware of in particular situations (i.e. “I think most about this when I’m at school…”). After each question, they would stand under the identity that most accurately answered the question. This exercise helped the ASWPC leaders to understand how they and other students on campus feel included and possibly excluded.

Resident Assistants do so much more than answering their flip-phones and unlocking doors. They make our campus a safer, more positive and effective place to learn, with someone to talk to around every corner. RA’s are great sources for comfort, advice, and help.

I’ve always known that I could go to my RA with anything from a roommate squabble to an emotional dilemma, because they are always available, willing, and very safe to talk to. Without proper training, this role could be very difficult for them. The training provided at Walkabout is meant to not only bond all the leaders together so that they can work effectively as a team, but also to help them understand what is in store for them and what it truly means to be a leader.

The ASWPC leaders were also led through different sessions that focused on each of the four core themes of the college: Christ-Centeredness, Diversity, Liberal Arts, and Urban Identity. Chris Emdin, Hip-Hop pedagogy and education expert was brought in as a special guest to encourage and give tips on being a student leader. They also took a tour of the city that focused on the history of gentrification and racial division. The training provided at Walkabout was meant to bond all the leaders together so that they can work effectively as a team, but also to help them understand what it truly means to be a leader who is able to engage students from all different backgrounds and make sure that all students find community and support at Warner Pacific College.

In addition to Walkabout, all first year student leaders are expected to enroll in Leadership and Social Change, a course taught by Kyra Pappas, which is meant to teach students leadership skills and empower them to create and sustain positive change. The course is framed by the Social Change Model for Leadership Development. The students are asked to reflect on their beliefs, values, and assumptions, their upbringing, and how they engage in social change.

Kayla Wells stressed that each part of Walkabout was essential to her becoming a successful RA, even with all of her other pressures as a senior in college. “It’s hard not to be anxious about your senior year with all the deadlines and 410 paper to finish up,” she said, “but knowing that God has something amazing going on at Warner Pacific with all of this year’s incredible leaders keeps me going. Getting to know the girls on my residence hall has been very rewarding, and I wouldn’t have the smile they put on my face each day if I hadn’t been given the wonderful opportunity to be a Resident Assistant.”

I was enrolled in this class in the spring semester of 2015, so I had the opportunity to learn a lot about many different perspectives of leadership. Kyra Pappas has very intentional reasons for being a part of the program. Pappas believes that leadership is important, not only for our campus, but also for our world: “With leadership, we can create a positive climate and tone for how we live out our core values in our lives. Leadership creates the framework for how we include, create access for, and humanize all people. With it, we can create an honorable, respectful campus where all students feel valued and safe.” Pappas defines leadership as “the ability to see and empower movements toward positive change being made on our campus that see to the needs and wants of students and create a positive community.” Through the Walkabout training and continued support in the class, leaders like Kayla Wells are equipped to live out this dynamic concept of leadership and engage students.

Vol. 7, Issue 1

Six teams of student leaders attend Walkabout each fall: Campus Ministries, College Activities Board, Service Learning, Student Diversity Council, Student Government, and Residence Life. Photo by Aaleyah Patterson I asked various students from around campus for single words that come to mind at the mention of leadership. Results included words like “responsibility,” “organization,” “selflessness,” “confidence,” and “learning.” Leadership does not have a one-size-fits-all definition, which is part of what makes it possible for anyone to be a great leader in their own way. Lisa Cash Hanson, the CEO of a very successful Baby Gear company called Snuggwugg, defines leadership as “the ability to guide others without force into a direction or decision that leaves them still feeling empowered and accomplished.” Our classes, clubs, sports Knight Times

teams, drama productions, and all of the other pieces of the Warner Pacific community contain strong student leaders who have developed their skills and awareness for the care and service of others. There are many effective and important leadership roles on our campus which are not recognized as such, and college faculty and staff work hard to prepare students for these roles. Students must each find unique venues in which to use their leadership skills to better our community. Kayla Wells found out that she is truly destined to be a successful leader and that this community is the perfect place to start.

Warner Pacific College

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Photo by Flickr user Perfectance.

How to be #basic

by Taryn Frey

A

cold wind blew swiftly across her nose as she opened the glass door. The aroma of coffee welcomed her, and she promptly got in line and loosened the scarf around her neck. Her eyes barely glanced at the menu before they grew large with excitement. A chalk drawing of a orange and white latte decorated a black board sign and announced in big letters, “Pumpkin Spice Latte is Back.”

Oh my gosh, she thought, I have to share this! She immediately pulled out her iPhone and took a picture of the sign and added it to her snap story, with a “It’s back ” The barista looked at her and asked “What can I get you?” already knowing the answer from the look on her face.

“A pumpkin spice latte,” she replied.

The weather has changed. It’s gone from being sunny and warm, to cold, wet, and dreary.

The basics have come out of hibernation. It doesn’t take much to be basic. All a girl really needs is a vest, flannel shirt, or sweater; leggings, UGGs, Starbucks coffee, stud earrings, her iPhone, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and lots of hashtags. It’s hard to pick

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October 22, 2015

her out of a crowd, mainly because when she’s basic, she surrounds herself with basic friends, and you can’t tell which one is which.

To start off the basic season, the favorite coffee at Starbucks must be announced to commence with fall: the pumpkin spice latte. Now I am aware that other coffees are made that taste exactly like the pumpkin spice from Starbucks. However, do not fall for this, ONLY BUY FROM STARBUCKS. This is a necessity!

So you’ve got your coffee, and let’s assume the weather is rainy and around 65 degrees; this is where the outfit comes into play. First thing you need to do is pull out a pair of black leggings from the thousands of pairs you have. Put them on, and dig through your closet and pick out your favorite sweater from the hundreds you have. However, make sure to try all of your clothes on before deciding on the one outfit that makes it look like you are trying the least. After this, dig through your assortment of boots and shoes to finally decide on your neutral, short UGGs that match everything in your closet.

Now throw on a vest and some earrings, and grab your iPhone. Make sure your hair and

makeup is done so well that is doesn’t look like you did it at all.

Remember to take a selfie. If you didn’t selfie, you didn’t really look like this. Your coffee must be in it. Post it on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and other social media platforms and hashtag it, #iwokeuplikethis, #starbucks, #fall, #pumpkinspicelatte, #selfie, #nomakeup, and #nofilter. It doesn’t matter that most of the hashtags aren’t true; it’s all for show.

Please note that even though this is the usual day to day outfit, there will also be scrub days. These are the days you woke up just a little late, and didn’t have time for your regular routine. This outfit consists of black Pink yoga pants, a large sweatshirt, hair up in a bun, Nike Frees, your iPhone, and a vest.

You still need to add a selfie, and hashtag it a whole host of things, including #lazyday.

By the end of the day I’m sure you’re tired of all the shopping, and selfieing, texting, and hash tagging, so just cozy up in a large sweatshirt, leggings, maybe some fuzzy socks, and turn on some Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix and binge watch for a few hours. Then get ready to repeat the entire process the next day.

Vol. 7, Issue 1