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Articles
From the Director
What I Learned on My Summer Vacation
By Robby Larson, Director of Alumni Relations
 The weather is getting cooler, the leaves around Newberg are turning fantastic colors, and I find myself thinking about summer. It’s not that I don’t appreciate fall, it’s actually my favorite season. Instead, my thoughts are due to a remarkable experience I had this summer. As a part of my graduate program here at George Fox, I traveled to China for a ten-day study trip with 8 members of my cohort and Linda Samek, dean of the School of Education. This was an incredible trip that broadened my perspective of the truly global nature of higher education. Looking back, I’m also struck by what this trip taught me about relationships and the way that I approach my job as director of alumni relations. More…
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News
Professor Emeritus Mackey Hill Passes Away at 100
Professor Emeritus Mackey W. Hill passed away on Sept. 17, 2009, at the age of 100. Mackey was a professor of history and political science from 1949 until his retirement in 1974. He also served in pastoral roles at the Free Methodist Churches in Carlton and Woodburn during that time. Mackey had six children, all of whom are George Fox alumni: Reginald (‘62), Marilyn Pruitt (‘64), Patricia Craven (‘67), Sara Grant (‘68), Tom (‘69) and Sylvia Boyd (‘74). He is survived by his second wife, Rosa Trammel Hill. His first wife, Bertha, passed away in 1976.
Lead Gift Received for Austin Sports Complex
A combined $1.2 million lead gift from Brad and Katharine Stoffer and their Boedecker Foundation will allow George Fox University to begin the first phase of construction on the Austin Sports Complex and moves the university closer to adding NCAA Div. III football and women’s lacrosse teams. The gift, announced at a fundraising event held July 9, is the first major donation toward the $6.5 million project. To read more about the project, click here.
George Fox Ranks High
This fall, several publications have recognized George Fox as a part of their annual college rankings. Here are several of the highlights.
Forbes
George Fox is listed among the top 60 colleges in the United States in Forbes’ August 2009 ranking of "America’s best colleges." According to Forbes, its ranking system is designed to stress the outputs of a college education rather than the inputs stressed by the U.S. News & World Report college rankings. George Fox ranks No. 58 overall and second among Oregon colleges, behind Reed College (No. 44), and received the highest ranking among institutions in the 111-member Council for Christian Colleges & Universities.
Princeton Review
For the sixth consecutive year, The Princeton Review honored George Fox as one of its "Best in the West" schools. The rankings consider academics, quality of life, admissions selectivity and financial aid. George Fox received a score of 88 out of 99 in admissions selectivity, 84 out of 99 in academics, and 84 out of 99 in quality of campus life.
U.S. News & World Report
According to data compiled by U.S. News & World Report magazine for its 2010 "America’s Best Colleges" issue, George Fox ranks No. 22 out of approximately 1,400 accredited institutions in the nation in percentage of students studying outside the country. Sixty-four percent of the university’s traditional undergraduates study abroad before graduation. George Fox also was among the top five Christian colleges in study abroad participation.
George Fox is the only Christian university in the Pacific Northwest classified by U.S. News & World Report as a national university. Also, in a U.S. News & World Report national survey, high school counselors who advise their students on college choices say George Fox offers one of the best educations in the nation. George Fox is ranked 73rd in the country, highest among the members and affiliates of the Council for Christian Colleges & Universities included in the national university category. The survey was sent to counselors at 1,600 public high schools that made the magazine’s "America’s Best High Schools" rankings.
Washington Monthly
Washington Monthly ranked George Fox No. 2 among CCCU schools and No. 120 overall in its annual ranking of national universities, released in September. In contrast to rankings that focus on what colleges can do for students, Washington Monthly’s assessment focused on which colleges are best serving the country based on three criteria – by improving social mobility, producing research and promoting public service.
Enrollment Holds Steady
George Fox University didn’t break its enrollment record this fall, but came close. Overall enrollment is 3,368, down 0.4 percent from last year’s record 3,382. George Fox enrollment is more than six times larger than it was in 1986, when 549 students attended. The university’s 17 graduate and seminary programs grew 1 percent to 1,389 students. The George Fox School of Business, which offers a full-time MBA in Oregon, part-time MBA in Portland and Boise, and a Doctor of Business Administration, saw 16 percent growth in its graduate programs. Following the graduation of the largest class in school history, the traditional undergraduate population dipped by 1 percent with 1,685 enrolling on the Newberg campus. To read more, click here.
Alumni Board Undergoes Change
Nearly 30 percent of the George Fox Alumni Board underwent a change this summer, as six people on the 22-member board completed their board service at the end of June. Completing service were: Brian Beals (‘65), after six years and two previous board stints; Keith Merritt (‘74), after six years; Elizabeth Peters (SPS ‘92, MBA ‘94), after six years; John Bellamy (‘81), after five years; James Homolka (‘97), after four years; and Chris (Fitch) Nordquist (‘80), after three years. Beals, Merritt, Peters and Bellamy all served at least one year on the board’s Executive Committee, and all but Peters had served as president. Filling these positions are Roy McConaughey (‘66), Steve Hockett (‘77), Darrel Lamb (‘85), Chuck Clarkson (‘89), (MA‘95), and Jamie Boutin (‘94). The School of Business graduate representative position remains open. To see the roster of the Alumni Board, or to contact your representatives, click here.
School of Management Renamed School of Business
George Fox University’s School of Management has a new name: School of Business. The name change was made to recognize a number of changes in business education at the university, according to Ken Armstrong, dean of the George Fox School of Business. "The move from a School of Management to a School of Business has both real and symbolic significance for George Fox," he said. "It is symbolic because it comes at a time when the university is making a new, sustained commitment to build a premier School of Business based on a Christian worldview." To read more about the name change, click here.
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Events
New Abolitionists Conference
 On Saturday, Oct. 24, George Fox will host a one-day event, the New Abolitionists Conference, to raise awareness of the global sex-trade industry, with specific attention to the Portland metro area. The conference is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Bauman Auditorium on the university’s Newberg campus. The cost to attend is a $20 suggested donation, $10 of which will go to a Portland-based activist agency of the attendee’s choice. For more information, click here.
Alumni Basketball Games
Watch the Bruins from the past as they dust off their Air Jordans and Reebok Pump hightops for their return to Miller Gym for their annual showdown against the current players on Saturday, Nov. 7. The women’s game takes place at 3 p.m., with the men’s game following at 5 p.m. Do the former players have what it takes to defeat the current squad? Or will youth prevail? Come cheer on all the players and find out!
Theatre Production of ‘The Diviners’
The George Fox theatre department presents The Diviners by Jim Leonard, Jr. Nov. 5-7 and 12-14 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 15 at 2 p.m. Tickets may be purchased online or through the Bruin Bookstore by calling 503-554-3844. $10 general admission, $8 seniors and alumni, $6 for George Fox students and children under 12.
Brief Synopsis Buddy Layman almost drowned as a toddler. Now, as a teenager, he can feel the rain coming from miles away and is the best water diviner in the county. The small farm community of Zion, Ind., (population 40) trusts Buddy’s water instincts, but they also marvel at his terror of water and his inability to bathe. When a charismatic but backsliding preacher drifts into town and befriends Buddy, the two lost souls find a common bond as they help each other divine for truth, faith and hope. But the play drifts toward irreversible tragedy when the townsfolk demand that the young preacher returns to the pulpit.
Family Weekend
Current students will share the spirit of campus life with their families, Nov. 6-8. Musical and theatrical performances round out a full weekend of family-style events, including faculty lectures, a festive fall lunch, ‘50s-style Bingo to raise funds for the Student Emergency Fund, and worship with the George Fox community on Sunday morning when President Robin Baker will speak. For more information and to register, click here.
Professional Preview Day
Career Services is seeking alumni to participate in its annual Professional Preview Day, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Nov. 18. This event connects alumni with one or two George Fox students who are interested in the profession or occupational field of the alumni. The day begins with a "get acquainted" coffee hour at the George Fox Portland Center. Students then spend the rest of the afternoon accompanying the alumni to their workplace in order to get a glimpse of the daily aspects of that profession. Lunch will be provided or alumni may choose to treat their assigned student(s) to lunch on the town. Please register by Oct. 26. For more information and to register, click here.
Homecoming
 Wear your school colors proudly when you return to campus Feb. 5-6 for Homecoming 2010: Designed to Serve! This is a great opportunity for all alumni to visit George Fox and reconnect with old friends. To capture our theme, and demonstrate the university’s intentional commitment to serving others, special affinity reunions are being held for May Serve and engineering alumni. Class reunion events will also be held for alumni from the classes of 1950, 1970, 1980, 1985, 1990 and 2000.
Regardless of when and what you studied, we hope you will come home to your alma mater and join in this year’s exciting homecoming festivities! For more information, click here.
Kaleo
 The annual Kaleo conference for people who engage with youth will be held on Feb. 20, 2010 on the George Fox Newberg campus. This year’s conference with the theme "When Kids Hurt" will feature Chap Clark and Steve Sherwood. Chap and Steve will share how to respond to kids who have been abandoned by the church’s program-driven culture, and provide practical solutions for dealing with prolonged adolescence – a phenomenon that impacts youth and youth leaders.
Kaleo ("called") is for people who minister to youth – pastors, parents, teachers, mentors and friends – who are called to be challenged to think and live differently for the sake of Christ and the youth they love and lead. For more information, click here.
Alpine Europe Tour
There are still spots available for the George Fox tour of alpine Europe to see the Passion Play at Oberammergau, Germany, in early-summer 2010. Open to all alumni, parents and friends of George Fox, our 11-day tour, departing May 31, will include visits to the beautiful alpine European cities of Frankfurt and Munich, Germany; Salzburg, Austria; and Lucerne and Interlaken, Switzerland. Among many other highlights, the tour will include travel through the Rhine Valley, Black Forest, as well as the Swiss, Austrian and Bavarian Alps. Additionally, visits are planned to Neuschwanstein and Heidelberg castles, and Rothenburg, Germany’s best-preserved medieval town. The highlight of the trip will be the Passion Play, an inspiring one-day play, dating back nearly 375 years, which is performed for sold-out audiences every 10 years in a magnificent outdoor covered amphitheater with the Bavarian Alps as a backdrop. To read the full itinerary, request more information, and register for the trip, click here.
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Announcements
Alumni Relations Seeks Championship Stories
Many George Fox alumni watched with pride as the women’s basketball team rode an undefeated season all the way to its first-ever national championship in March. Now, we want to hear your story. Did you watch the game on television? Online? Did you listen to the KFOX broadcast or follow the live stats or Twitter updates? Who were you with? Where were you? What was the celebration like there? E-mail your stories and photos to bruinheritage@georgefox.edu.
George Fox Alumni Facebook Page
 Do you use Facebook? Become a fan of the George Fox University Alumni Association! This page is a great way for you to find out what’s going on at the university, see photos and videos, and share your thoughts and memories of your time at George Fox. Become a fan today and join the conversation. We currently have over 1,200 fans since we launched in August! To become a fan, visit facebook.com/georgefoxalumni. This page replaces our Facebook group, which is no longer being used. The Alumni Association can also be found on other social networking sites using the following links: LinkedIn, Twitter, and MySpace.
Alumni Association/Liberty Mutual Partnership
 The George Fox Alumni Association has partnered with Liberty Mutual Insurance to provide discounted group-rate insurance to our alumni. Our alumni can purchase homeowners, renters, or automobile insurance through this program. To find our more or to request a quote, click here.
Farewell Bruindata, Hello myGFU
With the implementation of a new university-wide computer software system, Bruindata, the university’s web-based portal system, has been decommissioned, with its replacement system myGFU still in development. The Online Alumni Directory, e-mail forwarding, unofficial transcripts, and other tools that had been available to alumni in Bruindata are currently being built in the new system, with their completion anticipated in December. We apologize for the inconvenience that this causes and are available to help you find what you need in the interim. Please contact alumni@georgefox.edu with questions.
Changes to Alumni Course Auditing Benefit
Starting in summer 2009, the tuition free course auditing benefit for alumni has undergone a few changes. This program continues to provide graduated George Fox alumni the opportunity to investigate courses of interest and to continue their lifelong learning at their alma mater. However, the administrative fee for this program has increased, the first such increase in 11 years. The program fee is now $50 per credit. Also as a part of this change, there is no longer a limit to the number of classes that can be audited in a given year. Questions regarding this change can be directed to alumni@georgefox.edu or 503-554-2131.
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George Fox University | 414 N. Meridian Street | Newberg, OR, 97132
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