The Daily Bruin

After 22 years of service to George Fox, Janelle Freitag has decided to retire. For those of us who know Janelle, this is bittersweet. We are sad to see her go, yet excited for this next chapter in her life!

The Graduate School of Counseling and the Office of Academic Affairs hope you will join us to help celebrate this momentous occasion on Thursday, Feb. 1. Please stop by Canyon Commons 101, between 2:30 and 4 p.m., to congratulate Janelle and wish her well!

Contact Laurie Fair at lfair@georgefox.edu with any questions.

When we think about lifestyle wellbeing, we usually think of balance within physical and mental health. However, it can be difficult to find that balance, and understand where to focus our efforts.

In a free webinar offered through Canopy, we will discuss different areas of health where wellness habits can be formed, including brain health, constructive breathing, mindfulness, and utilizing more of our physical potential.

Attendees will also be provided with a 15-minute and 60-minute morning wellness plan to help with getting started. The session will be presented from 11 a.m. to noon on Thursday, Feb. 15. You can register here.

Is it too wet or cold outside to go for a run or take a walk? The Wellness Committee understands! We’ve recently heard that some team members have been participating in some great alternative, indoor activities and converting them into steps as part of the “Step into 2024 Challenge.”

Some examples include bouldering at Hadlock, pilates or HIIT (high-intensity interval training) workouts at home, basketball, rowing machine, and weightlifting. You’d be surprised at how many “steps” can be converted from time spent doing these types of activities. Keep it up and log those steps!

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions will be hosting Scholarship Summit today (Friday). With around 775 visitors expected on campus, we are asking students and employees to help extend the Be Known promise throughout the day.

Here’s what you can keep in mind:

• Use street parking instead of campus parking lots. Guests will be arriving on campus between 7:45 and 8:30 a.m. and will fill all the main campus parking lots.
• Be mindful of guests in your housing area. We will have housing tours circulating through Edwards, Gulley, Pennington, HMS, and Newlin from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tour groups will be viewing dorm lobbies and a room on the first floor of each dorm.
• Plan for a busier-than-usual Canyon Commons. Guests will be going through the main servery line. If you see a family looking for a spot to sit, invite them to join you!
• Offer a helping hand if a student or family appears lost and give directions around campus!

If you have any questions, email visit@georgefox.edu or call Lauren Hill at 503-554-2245.

As part of our strategic plan to “advance a thriving student experience,” we are tasked with improving our existing delivery of exceptional academic outcomes by providing 90% of full-time faculty and athletic coaches with training for fully utilizing Fox360 for early intervention with students who are struggling. Our goal is to get this done by the fall of 2024.

If you want to learn how to use FOX360 more effectively, please schedule an appointment with Jere Witherspoon. Use this link to schedule a tutorial session.

Two options are available to all employees.

• Schedule a session with your department
• Schedule an individual tutorial at your office

The session lasts about 30 minutes. Please contact Jere at jwithers@georgefox.edu if you have any questions.

The university will welcome Dr. Jonathan Kuttab as a guest panelist and lecturer as part of its Woolman Peacemaking Forum on Tuesday, Feb. 13. He will be on campus Feb. 12-14. Would you like him to speak in your class? If so, email Tamara Wytsma at twytsma@georgefox.edu for more info.

Kuttab is a Christian Palestinian human rights attorney and executive director of Friends of Sabeel North America. He is cofounder of the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq as well as Nonviolence International, and serves on the board of Bethlehem Bible College and as president of the board of Holy Land Trust.

In addition, he was the head of the legal committee negotiating the Cairo Agreement of 1994 between Israel and the PLO. He is author of Beyond the Two-State Solution, suggesting that any solution be predicated on the basic existential needs of the two parties.

Is peace possible in Israel/Palestine? It’s a question that will be discussed at the Center for Peace and Justice’s Woolman Peacemaking Forum featuring guest lecturer and panelist Dr. Jonathan Kuttab, a Christian Palestinian human rights attorney, peacemaker and educator.

Two events are scheduled as part of the forum. The first is a panel event set from 3:30 to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 13, in Hoover 105. The entire university community is invited to hear from those who have dedicated their lives to nonviolent activism in the pursuit of the mutual flourishing of all. The panel discussion topic will be “The Israel/Palestine Conflict and Prospects for Peace.”

You can submit your questions via this panel event registration form. Panelists will include Kuttab, executive director of Friends of Sabeel North America; Todd Deatherage, executive director and cofounder of The Telos Group and former chief of staff for the State Department; and Mark Braverman, executive director of Kairos USA and advisory board member for Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions USA.

That evening, Kuttab will present a lecture, “Is There a Balm in Gilead? Prospects for a Palestinian/Israeli Peace,” at 6 p.m. in Hoover 105. The lecture will be followed by a Q&A and reception. There is also a livestream link to the lecture here.

Chapel credit is available for evening lecture attendance.

Kuttab was the head of the legal committee negotiating the Cairo Agreement of 1994 between Israel and the PLO. He is co-founder of Nonviolence International as well as the Palestinian human rights group Al-Haq. He serves on the board of Bethlehem Bible College and is president of the board of Holy Land Trust.

Questions? Contact Tamara Wytsma at twytsma@georgefox.edu.

Volunteer with the Stewards of Sustainability Club tomorrow (Saturday) for our Cocoa and Cleanup event!

We will meet up at 2 p.m. in Klages 231, then go out and pick up trash around campus, and return to Klages afterwards to celebrate with hot cocoa and donuts. We plan to be done by 4 p.m. To help us with our goal of reducing waste, bring your favorite mug for hot cocoa!

Help us make a tangible difference on campus and keep our local community clean, safe and beautiful. Employees are welcome to join us as well!

Contact Lilly McAfee at lmcafee19@georgefox.edu with any questions.

Want to learn how to knit or crochet? Intimidated by the thought of learning how? The Arts & Crafts Club is hosting a cozy winter event featuring hot chocolate and an introductory lesson on how to knit and crochet!

Everyone (including employees) is welcome to join us today (Friday) from 4 to 6 p.m. in Hoover 203. This lesson will be geared toward absolute beginners, and we will learn the basics together.

Please sign up here if you are interested. Already know how to knit or crochet? You can sign up, too, and help teach others how to do it!

Feel free to contact Lilly McAfee at lmcafee19@georgefox.edu with any questions.

We are excited to host author Kaitlyn Schiess in chapel on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 10:50 a.m. in Bauman Auditorium. Her sermon will be based on her most recent book, The Ballot and the Bible: How Scripture Has Been Used and Abused in American Politics and Where We Go from Here.

All are welcome as we explore what it means to follow Christ in this upcoming election season.

Employees and students are also invited to a complimentary lunch following Kaitlyn’s chapel address, hosted by the Cultural Enterprise and the Department of History and Politics. Join us at noon that Thursday in Canyon Commons 103.

During lunch, Kaitlyn will speak on the topic of the Bible and the American presidency. Guests are invited to go through the cafeteria line and join us for the talk, which will begin shortly after noon.

Schiess is the author of The Liturgy of Politics: Spiritual Formation for the Sake of Our Neighbor. To read more about her, visit this President’s Speaker Series page.

The Office of Undergraduate Admissions will be hosting Scholarship Summit tomorrow (Friday). With around 775 visitors expected on campus, we are asking students and employees to help extend the Be Known promise throughout the day.

Here’s what you can keep in mind:

• Use street parking instead of campus parking lots. Guests will be arriving on campus Friday morning between 7:45 and 8:30 a.m. and will fill all the main campus parking lots.
• Be mindful of guests in your housing area. We will have housing tours circulating through Edwards, Gulley, Pennington, HMS, and Newlin from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tour groups will be viewing dorm lobbies and a room on the first floor of each dorm.
• Plan for a busier-than-usual Canyon Commons. Guests will be going through the main servery line. If you see a family looking for a spot to sit, invite them to join you!
• Offer a helping hand if a student or family appears lost and give directions around campus!

If you have any questions, email visit@georgefox.edu or call Lauren Hill at 503-554-2245.

After almost 11 years in the registrar’s office, Rachel Ryan is departing George Fox for a new position at OHSU. Please join us between 3:30 and 5 p.m. today (Thursday) for a come-and-go reception in the Stevens Atrium as we say farewell and celebrate her new adventure.

“Soul Food Friday” is underway once again! Join us tomorrow from 2 to 3 p.m. in the IRC for an opportunity for students of color, and others who feel called to join us, to be in community with others and care for the soul.

At the end of full, challenging and fruitful weeks, whether it’s talking through particularly salient topics, laughing, crying or venting, Soul Food Fridays is a space to just be. We hope you will join us!

Please feel free to email Ayahna Bahati at abahati21@georgefox.edu with any questions.

It’s about that time again! Out first Mathetes of the semester! It’s gonna be a great discussion at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 31, as we participate in a fishbowl-based discussion and learn ways you can mirror God’s heart. We’ll meet in the Intercultural Resource Center (IRC).

You’ll walk away with a greater understanding of how you can engage in inclusive conversation. So mark the date and bring a friend, then ask that friend to bring a friend. We’d love to see many beautiful faces!

Please feel free to email Ayahna Bahati at abahati21@georgefox.edu with any questions.

After 22 years of service to George Fox, Janelle Freitag has decided to retire. For those of us who know Janelle, this is bittersweet. We are sad to see her go, yet excited for this next chapter in her life!

The Graduate School of Counseling and the Office of Academic Affairs hope you will join us to help celebrate this momentous occasion on Thursday, Feb. 1. Please stop by Canyon Commons 101, between 2:30 and 4 p.m., to congratulate Janelle and wish her well!

Contact Laurie Fair at lfair@georgefox.edu with any questions.

Students and employees, join University Recreation for a free one-hour workshop on backcountry snow safety! Our knowledgeable instructors will walk you through a presentation and activities about how to best travel in the backcountry safety.

The workshop is scheduled for tonight (Thursday) from 7 to 8 p.m. in the Hadlock Student Center (check in at the front desk).

This is an excellent workshop to familiarize yourself with avalanche risks and hazards unique to winter travel. Come with something to take notes, and be ready to ask your questions. Attendees must RSVP by going here.

As a bonus, everyone who attends will receive a free voucher to rent snowshoes from the Hadlock Rental Center!

Contact AJ Heil at aheil@georgefox.edu with any questions.

Black History Month starts next week! Do you have any recommendations for the George Fox community on how to engage in celebrating it this February?

Whether it be podcasts or reading, events or restaurants, music or entertainment, the Intercultural Resource Center would love to capture your ideas for engagement. Let us know here.

Want to chaperone at one of our most popular events? If so, sign up to be a chaperone at the Sadie Hawkins dance Friday and/or Saturday, Feb. 9-10, on the Portland Spirit. If interested, please complete this form.

If you have any questions, please contact Kara Holcombe at kholcombe@georgefox.edu.

Credit report scores hold a lot of power. They can help buy that first home but can also take away financial opportunities.

In a free Canopy webinar session, Solving the Mystery of Credit Reports, we’ll provide an overview of credit bureaus, credit scoring, guidance to dispute inaccuracies, improving credit scores, and dealing with identity theft and fraud.

The session meets from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 13, or from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 22. You can register for either webinar here.

The Department of Language and Literature is excited to announce that registration is open for our third term of language enrichment classes for K-12 students.

If you have a child in elementary, middle or high school interested in learning Spanish or expanding their knowledge of literature and writing, you will find something here for them. Classes are taught by George Fox students and will take place in Minthorn Hall over six weeks, starting Feb. 12. The cost is $80 per class.

For more information, email Susana Barnreuther at sbarnreuther@georgefox.edu. To register, follow this link.