The Daily Bruin

Thank you to all who participated in marketing communications’ annual Deck the Halls Christmas Decorating Contest. We were so moved by the Christmas spirit throughout campus! This year brought in 18 participating departments.

Congratulations to our winners! The top three placers were:

• First place: Advancement (The “Rootin’ Tootin’ Best in the West” Award)
• Second place: Finance (The “Internationally Acclaimed Christmas” Award)
• Third place: Financial Aid (The “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Financial Aid Secrets” Award)

There were several honorable mentions across campus, including the Department of Education (The “Jim Henson Would Be Proud” Award), the Department of Social Work (The “Cozy Christmas” Award), the Maker Hub (The “Santa’s Workshop” Award), and many more.

And a huge shoutout to plant services for keeping all of campus merry and bright!

Be sure to swing by the various departments to get a look at all the work that went into making their spaces so festive.

Thank you!

Amanda Howard, Marketing, and the Christmas Committee

Today (Tuesday) from 5 to 9 p.m., the Chipotle in Newberg will be hosting a fundraiser to support George Fox’s physical therapy service trip to Uganda!

There are a couple of ways you can support us. If you tell the person at the register you are there for the George Fox DPT trip to Uganda, your order will contribute. Another way is to order for pick-up online using the code EXC4LTL.

If you use one of these avenues, then Chipotle will donate 25% of your sale to our trip! Please tell people you know that every order helps!

Contact Evan Robinson at evanr24@georgefox.edu with any questions.

The Office of Spiritual Life is looking for staff and faculty members to participate in the SpiL Mentoring Program this spring.

This program provides an opportunity for students to have meaningful conversations about faith and life while receiving encouragement and support from a George Fox staff or faculty member. Students in the program will be matched with a dedicated mentor, with whom they will have weekly meetings lasting approximately one hour, spanning a duration of eight weeks within the semester.

The program begins the week of Jan. 26 and ends the week of March 16.

To support you in your mentoring role, we will provide a booklet with weekly suggested spiritual formation practices for you to engage in with your mentee. Additionally, there will be a training session prior to the start of the program to ensure you feel prepared and equipped.

We are looking for staff and faculty who would like to serve as mentors. If you are interested, please fill out this application by Friday, Jan. 16. Your involvement will make a meaningful impact on our students’ lives!

If severe weather makes travel to or from campus unsafe this winter, the provost will make the decision to announce a shift to remote classes and work. In nearly all cases, classes will continue to be offered online and employees will work remotely.

In the case of a delayed in-person start, university offices will not open until an announced time in the day, most often 10 a.m. or noon. Students, faculty and staff are not required to report to campus prior to the announced start time, but are expected to attend class online or work remotely before the start time. If in-person classes are not held that day, students, faculty and staff are expected to attend class online or work remotely.

Those who cannot perform their duties at home should report to campus if they can arrive safely. If an employee cannot arrive safely or must remain home for any other reason, they may use a sick or vacation day to cover the absence. If no vacation time is available, the employee can make up hours during the same week or record the time off without pay.

The following is our process for announcing when there is a delayed in-person start or a shift to remote classes and work. The provost will make the decision by 6:30 a.m. for the Newberg campus and Portland Center for daytime classes or 2:15 p.m. for evening classes. Decisions on weekend classes and at the Redmond site will be made by the professor.

Stay notified: Here’s how to find out if a decision has been made when severe weather occurs:

• Visit the George Fox flashalert.net page. This is the first site updated. Enter your email address to create an account and receive notifications from FlashAlert Messenger.
• If you wish to receive a notification on your mobile device, download the FlashAlert smartphone app for iOS or Android. Either log in or create an account if you haven’t already.
• Listen to local radio and television stations or visit their websites (this info comes via FlashAlert).
• Call the George Fox University switchboard at 503-538-8383.

More information on this change in procedure can be found on our winter weather policy page.

Please note the accelerated payroll deadlines for December. Due to Christmas break, we will have fewer days to process the December payroll. Please have all check requests submitted and approved by the end of today (Monday, Dec. 8).

Employees with timesheets that span Nov. 16 to Dec. 15 should forecast their hours, lock and have their timesheets approved by today. Automated emails will be sent according to these accelerated deadlines.

Regular employee and student timesheets can be locked at the end of the month as usual. The student payday will be on Monday, Dec. 15, and the regular employee payday will be on Tuesday, Dec. 23.

Questions? Contact the payroll team at payroll@georgefox.edu.

Want to get involved and feel connected this spring? Join a vital part of our campus community by volunteering with the Bruin Community Pantry!

We are welcoming new volunteers for the upcoming semester. There are a variety of meaningful opportunities that you can choose from to match your interests. If you are interested in lending a hand and becoming part of our supportive pantry family, we invite you to take a look at the available roles:

• Food bank: Volunteer for shifts at the food bank!
• Food bank substitute: Sign up to substitute at the food bank when the regular volunteer is unable to make their shift.
• Food drive organizer: Work with Jere Witherspoon to find ways to implement food drives across campus (flexible hours).
• Fundraising: Work with Jere to find ways to raise money for the pantry (flexible hours).
• Social media: Work with Jere to create informative messaging for the community on Instagram and Facebook (flexible hours).
• Leftovers pick up and distribution: As needed, work with Jere when leftover food is available from Bon Appetit or Friendsview (flexible hours).
• Weekly cleaning: Flexible hours
• Restocking and facing products on shelves: Flexible hours

If you’re interested in volunteering with the Bruin Community Pantry, please fill out this form. More information can be found on the website.

You are welcome to contact Jere at jwitherspoon@georgefox.edu if you have any questions.

The Maker’s Market and Bridge Cafe will be opening late on Monday, Dec. 8, at 8 a.m. The dining room will have normal hours until Friday, Dec. 12.

Please see Bon Appetit’s hours at georgefox.cafebonappetit.com or on our Instagram (@bonappetitgfu).

The holiday season represents one of the highest-risk periods of the year for cybersecurity, and new AI-generated attacks can be expected. With the increase in online shopping and package tracking, attackers are actively disguising malicious links as shipping notifications and invoices.

Your diligence remains our first and strongest line of defense. Taking a moment to verify a sender or an unusual request can prevent a major security incident for our community.

Email Safety Do’s: Verify and Protect

• Do hover your mouse over the sender’s name/address to see the full, actual email address. Watch for subtle misspellings (e.g. acme.co instead of acme.com).
• Do inspect links before clicking. Hover your mouse over the link to see the destination URL displayed, usually in the corner of your browser. If it looks suspicious, don’t click.
• Do verify any unexpected or urgent requests for confidential data, password changes or fund transfers by using a different method of communication (e.g., call the sender on a known phone number or message them on an internal chat system).
• Do treat any email requesting your password or sensitive personal/company information with maximum suspicion.
• Do report all suspicious emails immediately by using the “Report Phishing” button in the three-dot stack menu within the email, or contact servicedesk@georgefox.edu.
• Do check the time and tone of the email. Is it demanding, overly urgent or coming at a strange hour? This is a common tactic used by scammers.

Email Safety Don’ts: Avoid Risk and Reactivity

• Don’t click on links or download attachments from senders you do not recognize or from emails that seem “off,” even if they appear to come from a known colleague.
• Don’t reply to an email asking for sensitive information like passwords, credit card numbers or internal account details.
• Don’t assume an email is legitimate just because it uses company logos or appears to come from an executive (CEO, CFO, etc.). This is known as “spoofing.”
• Don’t be pressured by threats or urgency (e.g. “Your account will be suspended in five minutes!”). Scammers use fear to make you act without thinking.
• Don’t forward suspicious emails without first checking with servicedesk@georgefox.edu. We need to be able to investigate and take action.

Thank you for your partnership in keeping our community secure. Your vigilance makes all the difference.

Talk with first-year engineering students today (Friday) from 5 to 6 p.m. as they display their oscillating air engine designs in the Maker Hub. Following the display, the students will compete with their air engines for maximum speed, coast, air efficiency, power and craftsmanship in the “Wobble-Off” from 6 to 8 p.m. All are welcome!

If you have questions, contact Jennifer McCollum at jmccollum@georgefox.edu.

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions and the honors program will be hosting Fellowship Day and Friday @ Fox on campus today (Friday).

With over 300 visitors expected on campus, we are asking George Fox students and employees to consider parking in alternative parking lots to ensure parking for visitors in the Stevens, Hoover and Bauman lots. Alternate parking can be found in the 99W lot (Steve’s Auto), Morse lot by Plant Services, or street parking.

If you have questions, email mdowns@georgefox.edu or call Missy Downs at 503-554-2247.

The Office of Spiritual Life would like to invite students and employees to join together for a day of service, learning and reflection. The event is set for MLK Day on Monday, Jan. 19, from 9 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.

Fill out this form to register and view the tentative schedule! Undergraduate students who participate will be eligible for elective chapel credit.

Contact spirituallife@georgefox.edu with any follow-up questions.

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions and the Honors Program will be hosting Fellowship Day and Friday at Fox on campus tomorrow (Friday).

With over 300 visitors expected on campus, we are asking George Fox students and employees to consider parking in alternative parking lots to ensure parking for visitors in the Stevens, Hoover and Bauman lots. Alternate parking can be found in the 99W lot (Steve’s Auto), Morse lot by Plant Services or street parking.

If you have questions, email mdowns@georgefox.edu or call Missy Downs at 503-554-2247.

On Tuesday, Dec. 9, from 5 to 9 p.m., Chipotle will be hosting a fundraiser to support our Doctor of Physical Therapy’s service trip to Uganda! There are multiple ways to get your order to support the cause:

• Tell the person at the register you are there to support the George Fox DPT trip to Uganda
• Order for pickup online using the code EXC4LTL.

If you use one of these avenues, Chipotle will donate 25% of your sale to our trip! Please tell people in the area that you know, because every order helps!

Do you long for time and space to be still and experience Christ’s presence with others? All are welcome to join Quaker worship in the chapel from 11 to 11:30 a.m. today (Wednesday). Elective chapel credit is available for students.

Contact Jay Miller at jaym@georgefox.edu with any questions.

We are still in need of several volunteers to serve as ushers at Midyear Commencement on Saturday, Dec. 13. We will hold two separate ceremonies (undergraduate at 11 a.m. and graduate at 3 p.m.) in Bauman Auditorium.

Come help us greet our guests, hand out programs, direct graduates’ families and friends to their seats, and make graduation a special event for everyone!

It’s fun to be a part of our students’ graduation experience! If interested, check out our Commencement Compensation Guidelines. If you sign up for both ceremonies, lunch will be provided too!

Please sign up here to serve our grads and their families on this memorable day!

Contact Laurie Fair at aao@georgefox.edu if you have questions.

Richter Scholars proposals will be due Jan. 26, 2026. The Richter Scholars program distributes funds to support student research activities that are devised, initiated and carried out by individual student researchers, with mentorship, guidance and expertise provided by a faculty mentor.

The purpose of these funds is to support educational research opportunities that encourage the practices of independent thought, leading to independent achievement and personal responsibility. For the purpose of this program, research is defined as a knowledge-generating activity that is designed to provide new information on a topic, tool or process, and that proceeds according to established and accepted research methods.

Before advising on a proposal, please read through the full proposal guidelines, eligibility requirements, and review criteria at georgefox.edu/academics/richter.

All applications must be submitted through our Google Form. The link to the form will be activated on the website when the spring semester begins.

For more information, contact Hannah Greene at hgreene@georgefox.edu.

The Maker’s Market will be closing early tomorrow (Thursday) at 4:30 p.m. to allow for the set-up of the Christmas Extravaganza.

Be sure to stop in early to grab your snacks and study fuel before we close!

Your Providence Health Plan provides important support through the Care Management Diabetes Program. This comprehensive program is designed to assist you if you are newly diagnosed, at risk, or living with prediabetes, offering focused help particularly for managing Type 2 diabetes.

You will have access to crucial resources, including:

• Certified nurse diabetes educators
• Registered dietitians
• Provider coordination
• Assistance in identifying resources for exercise and overcoming barriers to nutritious food

This program is available to help you take action toward achieving optimal health and effective diabetes management. Find out more here.

This Wellness Wednesday, we’re introducing the Providence Basecamp recipe collection, a valuable resource designed to emphasize how your food choices significantly impact your overall health and disease risk.

This valuable resource emphasizes how your food choices significantly impact your overall health and disease risk. The collection offers flavorful, heart-healthy ideas inspired by the Mediterranean diet:

• Maximizing flavor with spices and less sodium
• Prioritizing fresh over processed foods
• Offering comforting dishes with less saturated fat
• Being mindful of your grocery budget

We encourage you to explore the main categories or use the search bar to find new recipes that support various dietary needs (with modifications often noted). The collection also offers cultural notes for familiar flavors, making it easier than ever to find delicious meals that contribute positively to your well-being.

Now that December is here, it’s time to start celebrating Christmas! To commemorate the occasion, the marketing communications department has created a special webpage – complete with information about this week’s Christmas-related events, reflections on the significance of the holiday, and videos that capture the spirit of the season.

Be sure to check it out!