Goshen College President Jim Brenneman, NIPSCO’s Manager of Public Affairs Angela Nelson and Goshen College Sustainability Coordinator and Utilities Manager Glenn Gilbert hold up a representational “green carbon footprint.”

Goshen College President Jim Brenneman announced today that the college has taken a major step by voluntarily purchasing all of its electricity from renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power. This single action will reduce the college’s carbon footprint by about 45 percent.

The college is the first major customer of NIPSCO, the regional electricity provider, to take this action and participate in its new Green Power Program.

“What this means for Goshen College is that going forward from today, no more coal, gas or oil will be burned, no more carbon dioxide will be introduced into the atmosphere to provide electricity for our campus,” Brenneman said during an all-campus convocation. Before this step, the equivalent of 24 train cars of coal were needed (or about 12 tons per student) to provide electricity to campus each year. Coal is Indiana’s primary energy source.

In 2007, Brenneman became a charter signatory to the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment. In doing so, he joined with leaders of 175 other higher education institutions in agreement to neutralize greenhouse gas emissions. Goshen College was one of two higher education institutions in Indiana and the first Mennonite college or university to sign the landmark climate commitment. There now are 664 signatories.

Goshen College President Jim Brenneman

“We did that because we are very concerned about life on this planet, it was one more way we can care for the world and it was part of our broader ecological stewardship commitment,” Brenneman said. “Goshen College, like the Mennonite Church which we are a part of, has always been committed to being global citizens. 

By signing up for this program – which is recently available to all customers – NIPSCO buys renewable energy certificates (RECs) on the college’s behalf. RECs are the environmental attributes associated with electricity that is generated from renewable sources. NIPSCO Green Power Program RECs are certified through Green-e® Energy, the nation’s leading renewable energy certification and verification program. Green-e® Energy provides independent, third-party certification to ensure that certified renewable energy meets strict environmental and consumer-protection standards.

Participants in the program pay a monthly premium in addition to the standard electric rate, which goes entirely to pay for the RECs. 

In response to the college’s energy efficiency efforts and commitment to sustainability, NIPSCO’s Manager of Public Affairs Angela Nelson presented a $5,000 check to the college’s Ecological Stewardship Committee to help with further initiatives on campus in the future.

Since 2007, the college has been very successful at energy conservation. “In that time, both natural gas and electrical consumption have been reduced by over 25 percent,” said Glenn Gilbert, the campus’ sustainability coordinator and utilities manager. “Conservation will continue to be a major component of our strategy.” The college is using about the same amount of electricity on campus today as it did in 1992, despite adding 290,000 more square feet of building space.

Gilbert added, “We seek to be leaders in environmental sustainability and to model a safe and effective way for our society to move away from dependency on fossil fuel-based energy sources that have proven to be so destructive to our environment.”

To learn more about the college’s various green initiatives – including composting, prairie planting, making biodiesel, powering hot showers with solar panels and others – visit http://www.goshen.edu/gogreen.

Goshen College Assistant Professor of Communication Jason Samuel (right) and senior Benjamin Kelly (left) work together in the studios of 91.1 The Globe, the college’s student-operated radio station.
(Photo provided by the Goshen College Communications and Marketing Office)

Goshen College’s student-operated radio station WGCS 91.1 The Globe (www.globeradio.org) just added two more huge accomplishments to its growing list: 2013 Best College Station in the Nation and Indiana’s Radio School of the Year.

Best College Station in the Nation

This is the second time the college radio station has received the top national award in three years from the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System (IBS), making it the first college to be a repeat winner in the competition, which is against every college and university in the country of every size. Last year, the station was a runner-up for the top award.

The station’s General Manager Jason Samuel and a group of his students who work at the station were on hand to win the award at the 73rd Annual Conference of the IBS in New York City on March 2. The Globe beat out two other finalists for the top award: William Patterson University (enrollment: 11,400 students) and DePaul University (enrollment: 25,000 students). In addition, students won six national awards and were finalists in 20 categories. IBS is the oldest college radio association in the country.

“I honestly thought we’d never win again, but they told us that the most significant factor separating WGCS from the other radio stations is our community involvement,” said Samuel, an assistant professor of communication. “We’re doing the best we can and it feels great to have others recognize our hard work.” The Globe’s community involvements include hosting a blood drive, airing local high school events, partnering with Ignition Garage to bring artists for local concerts and helping with Downtown Goshen’s First Fridays.

Indiana’s Radio School of the Year and Television School of the Year

Goshen College students are in front of and behind the cameras during a February 2013 taping of The Correspondent, the college’s bi-weekly television news broadcast, which is produced by students and distributed via the campus cable system and the Internet.
(Photo provided by the Goshen College Communications and Marketing Office)

And just a few weeks earlier on Feb. 15, for the second consecutive year, Goshen College earned the state titles of both Radio School of the Year and Television School of the Year in the 2013 Indiana Association of School Broadcasting’s (IASB) college broadcasting competition.

Last year, the college was the first school in the IASB competition to win the School of the Year awards in both radio and television in the same academic year, and in doing so, Goshen became only the second school ever to win the award in both categories since the first awards were given in 2005. Goshen College broadcasting students also won 22 other radio and television awards in the competition, including six first-place awards.

The Correspondent is the college’s bi-weekly television news broadcast produced by Goshen College students and distributed via the campus cable system and the Internet. Assistant Professor of Communication Seth Conley is the adviser for The Correspondent.

“We are honored to receive an award of this magnitude, especially two years in a row,” said Conley. “We realize that we are facing some very tough competition from other strong video programs across the state, so we are thrilled to be included in that group, let alone being named Television School of the Year for the third time in four years.”

Goshen College’s student-operated radio station WGCS 91.1 The Globe (www.globeradio.org) just won 2013 Best College Station in the Nation and Indiana’s Radio School of the Year. Station General Manager and Assistant Professor of Communication Jason Samuel (back) and students (front) Samantha Danforth, Maria Bischoff, (middle) Jim O’Day, Kelsey James, Ashley Davenport and Danielle Kerschhackl hold their national awards in New York City on March 2.
(Photo provided by the WGCS 91.1 The Globe)

The Globe has been on the air since 1958, is managed by members of the Goshen College Communication Department and is staffed by about 40 student workers and community volunteers. Each week The Globe features a fresh and eclectic mix of Americana, alternative acoustic, folk, singer-songwriters and world beat music. The Globe is one of a select number of reporting stations to the Americana Airplay Chart. It provides 24-hour programming, which includes music, news, public affairs and sports.

“We’re tickled!” said Samuel, about the repeat win. “We have students at all grade levels recognized with awards. If we didn’t have that deep of a roster of talent, we wouldn’t have repeated as Radio School of the Year. We tell students that when they come here they can get behind the microphone or the camera immediately and start working at their craft. So they gain four years of hands-on experience, instead of just one or two years like they would at much larger schools.”

Broadcast Education Association awards

Five Goshen College students and a faculty member will also receive awards at Broadcast Education Association’s Festival of Media Arts in Las Vegas in April. Kyle Hufford, assistant professor of communication and general manager of the college’s video production company FiveCore Media, and Daniel Penner, who graduated in May 2012, will receive an award of excellence for the video “Goshen College Theater Department: Take 1.” The award comes in the mixed (teacher/student co-production) video category. Meanwhile, on the audio side, sophomore Danielle Kerschhackl and senior Kelsey Morris took first place in best radio newscast; senior Benjamin Kelley, third place in radio and TV play by play; and senior Jimmy Cassoday, third place for the specialty program “After Hours.”

Professor of Accounting Michelle Horning teaches a class.
Photo by Jodi H. Beyeler

The Goshen College accounting program has received some very good and well-deserved news. Based on the results of the Certified Public Accountant exam that all accounting graduates take, the National Association of State Boards of Accountancy (NASBA) recently ranked the Goshen College accounting program as the 10^th best program in the nation in the small program category and the 2^ndbest program in Indiana overall (just behind Notre Dame).

The ranking is based on exam passing rates according to program size, which is determined by the number of individuals taking the exam, not the size of the school. There are 265 schools in the small program category, including: Duke University, Columbia University, Grace College and Taylor University. Interestingly, the Goshen College program missed being categorized as medium size by one student. Had it been ranked in that category, it would have ranked 11th nationally.

The national average pass rate for 2011 was 45.5 percent, but Goshen College’s pass rate for first-time exam candidates was 68.8 percent. Professor of Accounting Michelle Horning said, “We have always believed that our pass rates were above the national average, although this was based on anecdotal evidence only when students told us they passed and how many attempts it took them.”

Nearly 100 percent of graduates in the Goshen College program get jobs in accounting, with many students having offers prior to graduation and the rest finding jobs within a few months after graduating, according to Horning. Currently, 100 percent of senior accounting majors have accounting internships for next semester. “It is unusual for a school our size to have as many accounting firms and companies come to campus to interview and recruit students,” she said. “Three of the top ten accounting firms in the nation actively recruit students from Goshen College by coming to campus. Additionally, a handful of local and regional firms of various sizes recruit on campus.”

Goshen’s program has a unique element that gives graduates some of the best preparation: a required, full-time, paid internship built into our accounting curriculum, according to Horning. “This hands-on experience prepares students for a full-time position, often with the firm they interned with,” she said. “The interdisciplinary general education curriculum, especially the international experience, coupled with a strong accounting curriculum gives students an edge when they are looking for employment. Many firms tell us that there is ‘something different’ about Goshen College students, that they are ‘mature, confident and competent.’”

Sponsored by the Goshen College Alumni Board, the 2012 Culture for Service Awards will be presented to John Driver ’50 of Goshen, Ind., and Rebecca (Kreider) Pries ’66, of Cambridge, Mass. The 2012 Decade of Servant Leadership Award will be given to Grant Rissler ’99, of Richmond, Va. The 2012 Dr. Roman Gingerich Champion of Character Award will go to Keith Springer ’69 of Saybrook, Ill., and the Dr. Ruth Gunden Champion of Character Award will go to Sue Roth ’66 of Stryker, Ohio.

The awards will be presented on Friday, Oct. 5 at 10 a.m. in the Church-Chapel during convocation, with a reception following in the Church Fellowship Hall at 10:45 a.m. These events are free and open to the public.

John Driver ’50 – Culture for Service Award

John Driver ’50, of Goshen, Ind., has responded repeatedly to the call to service and ministry, giving his energy to the development of global and Christian relationships and learning throughout his life.

Prior to studying at Goshen College, Driver served in community development and as a pastor and church planter in Puerto Rico. After graduating from Goshen College in 1950, Driver attended Mennonite Biblical Seminary in 1951. He also attended Perkins School of Theology at Methodist Union Seminary in Dallas, Texas.

In 1967, Driver began working as academic dean and professor of church history and New Testament at the Inter-Mennonite Seminary in Montevideo, Uruguay. He continued to do church-related work in Spain from 1974 until the early 1980s.

Driver and his wife, Bonny, have since retired in Goshen, though Driver continued to teach periodically in the Hispanic Ministry Program at Goshen College from 1994-2003. Driver is a prolific writer, doing almost all of his writing in Spanish. He is the recent author of Life Together in the Spirit: A Radical Spirituality for the Twenty-First Century, published by Goshen College’s Institute for the Study of Global Anabaptism and available in both English and Spanish.

Driver demonstrates compassionate peacemaking in many ways as he thinks carefully about cultural and theological issues and promotes justice for “the least of these.” He has traveled extensively to work for peace and advocate for the poor and disposed, particularly in Latin America, South America and Spain. Driver’s ministry has been shaped by what he has learned around the world, and his vision for Anabaptism reflects his global citizenship and Christ-centeredness.

“No Mennonite theologian has had a greater impact within Anabaptist and evangelical circles throughout Mexico, Central America and Spain than John Driver,” said John Roth, Goshen College Professor of History. “The profound simplicity and clarity of his teaching is legendary. But in addition to his scholarly accomplishments, John is even better known as a person whose very life – in his generosity, simplicity, gracious spirit and evident love for all God’s people – embodies the message of his teachings.”

The Drivers have three adult children, Cynthia Driver-Rempel ’74, Fred Driver ’75 and Jonathan Driver, and attend East Goshen Mennonite Church.

Rebecca (Kreider) Pries ’66 – Culture for Service Awardee

In the face of juvenile and domestic violence in her community, Rebecca (Kreider) Pries ’66, of Cambridge, Mass., took action in 1976 and founded Adolescent Consultation Services, Inc., a non-profit mental health and social services agency that she continues to lead as its executive director today. Pries championed the agency’s expansion to address the multiplicity of issues faced by court-involved children and families, such as trauma, substance abuse, behavioral disorders and cultural issues due to recent immigration.

Pries’ agency partners with the Middlesex County and Greater Boston juvenile courts, and offers mental health evaluations and psychological counseling to troubled youth and their families. As a licensed mental health counselor, Pries oversees court-based mental health clinics that evaluate youth and link them with services in their communities. She is directly involved in helping to reconcile youth and their parents (many of whom come from the sizable Hispanic and Cambodian populations in the area). As co-chair of the Massachusetts Alliance of Juvenile Court Clinics, she advocates for funding to meet the mental health, social service and educational needs of these youth within the Department of Mental Health and the state legislature.

Pries studied English at Goshen and went on to receive her master’s degree from Tufts University and a certificate of advanced graduate study from Boston University. She co-authored the book Kids and the Law, a user’s guide to the court system, which is available in English, Spanish and Khmer, and offers information to parents of court-involved kids on how to navigate the Juvenile Court System.

“What distinguishes Rebecca is the vision, dedication and incredibly hard work that she pours into her work,” said Dr. Owen Gingerich ’51, Professor Emeritus for Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and member of Mennonite Congregation of Boston. “In many instances, the psychological counseling she provides keeps these troubled young people out of jail and places them in rehabilitation programs – a really strong case of conflict resolution. Clearly this is compassionate peacemaking in a fundamental way.”

Pries volunteers with the Mt. Auburn Neighborhood Association and is a board member for Citizens for Juvenile Justice. She has been recognized by the Department of Mental Health for her commitment to public service with the Richard Barnum Distinguished Service Award and by the Middlesex District Attorney with the Citizenship in Action Award.

Pries attends Mennonite Congregation of Boston, where she has served as a lay pastor. She is married to Weldon Pries and they have two daughters, Rachel and Eleanor.

Grant Rissler ’99 – Decade of Servant Leadership

Grant Rissler ’99, of Richmond, Va., seeks to live the life of a global citizen, working to promote justice and peace. Rissler studied history at Goshen College. Following graduation, he worked for six months at Mennonite Board of Missions. He spent two and a half years in Mennonite Voluntary Service, including a year at Mennonite Central Committee’s (MCC) United Nations Liaison office, a year as an immigration paralegal in South Texas and a half year spent traveling around the United States and Canada by Greyhound bus to report on the work of Mennonite service programs.

Rissler earned a master’s degree in international relations at Johns Hopkins School for Advanced International Studies, concentrating on Latin America. Following the completion of his degree, Rissler worked as Communications Director at the Faith and Politics Institute, where he helped to organize and participate in the Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage.

Rissler has held several positions with MCC East Coast relating to peace and justice work, donor relations, MCC Relief Sales and MCC thrift shops. His interests in peace and justice issues are reflected in the volunteer work he has done with his church and peace and justice related organizations.

Among those who influenced his life choices and worldview, Rissler highlights the role of his parents, Ed and Jean Rissler, who served under Eastern Mennonite Missions in Somalia and Kenya, where Rissler was born. Rissler has also lived or worked in Haiti, Italy, Peru and Switzerland.

“These experiences have especially equipped him to be a sensitive and thoughtful citizen in many contexts,” said Chad Martin, associate pastor at Community Mennonite Church of Lancaster. “He rides bike often to conserve resources, is a faithful financial contributor to the church and celebrates diverse cultures with exquisite documentary photography wherever he goes.”

Rissler is a member of Community Mennonite Church of Lancaster (Pa.). He lives in Richmond, Va. with his wife, Maia Linask, where they attend Richmond Mennonite Fellowship. Rissler is in his first year of a doctorate program in public policy and administration at Virginia Commonwealth University.

Keith Springer ’69 – Dr. Roman Gingerich Champion of Character Award

Keith Springer ’69, of Fisher, Ill., has dedicated his life to serving others, both locally and around the globe. While studying mathematics and secondary education at Goshen College, Springer participated in basketball and baseball. He set career-scoring records for men’s basketball, finishing with 1,531 points from 1965-69. Springer taught math and coached 9^th grade boys basketball at Concord Junior High School in Elkhart, Ind. from 1969-71.

In 1971, Springer and his wife, Kathy (Newcomer) Springer ’71, served for two years at the American School of Brasilia in Brazil with the Mennonite Board of Missions (now Mennonite Mission Network) as overseas mission associates. While there, he taught high school math and physics and coached boys basketball. In 2004 and again in 2011, the Springers travelled to Argentina to visit and share with churches of the Patagonia Mission Project. In 2012, they did volunteer work at Nazareth (Israel) Village.

Springer served for six years on the Christian Nurture Commission of the Illinois Mennonite Conference. Since 1977, he has operated a cash grain farm with his brother. He is a member of East Bend Mennonite Church in Fisher, Ill., where he is the chairman of finance and is vice president of the board of directors for the Illinois/Iowa chapter of Everence Financial. The Springers have two adult sons, Ryan ’96 and Eric ’99.

Sue Roth ’66 – Dr. Ruth Gunden Champion of Character Award

Sue Roth ’66, of Stryker, Ohio, helped pioneer organized sports opportunities for women, striving to give them equal access in the athletic world. While studying physical education at Goshen College, Roth was a member of the Women’s Athletic Association and participated in field hockey and softball, as well as several intramural sports. After graduating from Goshen College, she taught physical education and coached in Middlebury, Ind., and Stryker, Ohio, before returning to the college from 1976 to 1999 to teach physical education and coach field hockey, volleyball and track and field.

While teaching and coaching in high school, Roth worked hard to develop opportunities for girls. She increased the number of sports to make sure every girl had the opportunity to participate in the sport she wanted, even though Roth was expected to coach all sports alone.

As a volleyball coach at Goshen, Roth was named the Hoosier Conference for Women Coach of the Year in volleyball in 1985, 1988 and 1989. She initiated the women’s track and field program at Goshen and promoted student athletes as commissioner with the Indiana Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women. She also worked with Ruth Gunden in developing the Hoosier Conference for Women, which filled an organizational need for women in sport.

Roth is a track and field official for the Ohio High School Athletic Association. She attends St. John’s Christian Church in Archbold, Ohio.

Alumni Awards

The Culture for Service Awards were initiated in 1989 and are given annually to honor Goshen College graduates who have made lifelong commitments to service. Recipients distinguish themselves through commendable accounts of service and achievements at home or in their churches, colleges and communities and the larger world.

The Decade of Servant Leadership Award, created in 2004, recognizes a Goshen College alumnus or alumna whose contributions and achievements in career, public or church service and volunteer activities early in post-graduate life are worthy of recognition.

For the seventh year, the Goshen College Maple Leafs Athletic Club is presenting the Dr. Ruth Gunden and the Dr. Roman Gingerich Champion of Character Awards. The two awards, created in 2005, are presented to a male and female alumni athlete who exemplify the college’s core values in their lives, work and community service. Gunden and Gingerich were pioneers in Goshen College’s athletic history.

Building on the success of its master’s degree programs in environmental education and nursing, Goshen College will offer a new Master of Arts in Intercultural Leadership, starting in January 2013. It will be led by (left to right) Associate Dean of Intercultural Development and Educational Partnerships Dr. Rebecca Hernandez, Associate Dean Dr. Ross Peterson-Veatch and Academic Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs Anita Stalter.

GOSHEN, Ind. – Building on the success of its master’s degree programs in environmental education and nursing, Goshen College will offer a new Master of Arts in Intercultural Leadership, starting in January 2013. The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools approved the program on Aug. 22.

“This program is a natural extension of GC’s longstanding expertise in the area of intercultural and international education,” said Academic Dean and Vice President for Academic Affairs Anita Stalter. “The curriculum is designed to meet the demand for leaders with the knowledge, skills and capacity to lead increasingly diverse organizations.”

The program is designed for mid-career working professionals, including business managers, educators, health-care professionals and non-profit leaders, who want to enhance their preparation for engaging the multiple cultural contexts in which modern organizations operate. The 18-month program consists of three 9-day residential sessions on campus (in January, July and January) as well as online coursework. Tuition for the program will be $6,300 per semester (3 semesters total), plus textbook fees. Numerous current Goshen College faculty members will teach in the program, which will be led by Associate Dean of Intercultural Development and Educational Partnerships Dr. Rebecca Hernandez and Associate Dean Dr. Ross Peterson-Veatch.

“Students will gain practical skills as well as expertise in organizational theory, with a unique emphasis on understanding how culture informs effective approaches to leadership,” said Hernandez. “In addition, students will design and implement a major action research project which links learnings from the program to their professional contexts. Throughout the program, students will demonstrate and reflect on their growth using an electronic portfolio.”

This master’s degree is one of several initiatives that were part of a $12.5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., which Goshen College used to establish the Center for Intercultural Teaching and Learning (CITL). The work of the center, launched in 2006, has focused on three areas: researching the resources and challenges that changing demographics bring to a rural Midwest community and to higher education, creating an intercultural learning environment to benefit all students and strengthening current efforts in recruiting and retaining regional Latino and other minority students. More specifically, it has established scholarships and recruited minority undergraduate cohorts, provided cultural programming on campus, connected with the local Latino community, improved student support services on campus, offered opportunities for faculty to learn Spanish, developed multiple research initiatives, created a “bridge” program to assist minority students in preparation for college, presented research findings at national conferences, partnered with other educational institutions and helped assess and renew the college’s general education curriculum.

“With the launch of this program, we seek to address a major challenge of the 21st century, which is the need to promote systemic global awareness in all our institutions, organizations and communities,” said President James E. Brenneman. “This new master’s degree is closely tied to the college’s vision and our core values of Christ-centeredness, passionate learning, servant leadership, compassionate peacemaking and global citizenship will provide the framework through which the program will operate.”

For more information about Goshen College’s Master of Arts in Intercultural Leadership, contact Rebecca Hernandez at (574) 535-7800 or rhernandez@goshen.edu.

For more information about The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools go to www.ncahigherlearningcommission.org or call (312) 263-0456.

More than 35 people from seven countries gathered – including Mennonite theologian Rebecca Osiro from Kenya (standing). Photos by Kaeli Evans

GOSHEN, Ind. – More than 35 people from eight countries gathered at Goshen College on August 5-8, for an international consultation on the theme, “Bearing Witness: A New Martyrs Mirror for the 21^st Century?” Hosted by the college’s Institute for the Study of Global Anabaptism, the international gathering explored the possibility of a major story-gathering initiative, focused especially on the theme of “costly discipleship.”

According to conference organizer and Goshen College Professor of History John D. Roth, Anabaptist-Mennonite groups have had a long tradition of story telling, particularly stories of those who have suffered or died because of their convictions. In 1562, Anabaptists in the Netherlands secretly published a collection of martyr stories, known as Het Offer des Heeren (Sacrifice Unto the Lord). The book appeared in many subsequent editions, culminating in 1685 with an expanded version of stories called the Martyrs Mirror. The Martyrs Mirror is a richly-illustrated collection of narratives, hymns, confessions and devotional reflections with the theme of suffering for faith.

Since 1685, no further expansions of the book have been published, even though many Anabaptist groups continued to suffer for their faith. Suffering continues today, including in places that the church has expanded internationally, like Indonesia, India, Zimbabwe, Congo and Colombia.

Roth invited scholars and church leaders from a wide range of groups to discuss the possibility of gathering stories of costly discipleship. He described three main reasons for the consultation.

“First, we hope that the project might encourage deeper faithfulness to Jesus among all those who encounter the stories,” he said. “Second, the project should strengthen relationships within and beyond the global Anabaptist church. Finally, we think it is important to stand in solidarity with those who have suffered for their faith, particularly the vulnerable and the voiceless who are easily forgotten in history.”

Goshen College Professor of History John D. Roth, a consultation organizer, leads one of the conversations.

Participants in the consultation affirmed the project, encouraging Roth and co-moderator, Bluffton University Professor of Communication Gerald Mast, to cultivate a broad base of support for the research and gathering phase. The group also identified several important challenges that will need to be addressed as the project continues.

“There can be a danger,” said Jack Suderman, former General Secretary of Mennonite Church Canada, “of speaking about victimization from a perspective of power, or that we use the suffering of others to bolster our own positions.”

Other participants noted the logistical and practical challenges of gathering stories from a global body numbering 1.7 million members. Participants also wrestled with the question of who “qualifies” for inclusion in the project.

Some argued for narrow definitions—focusing the initiative only on individuals from Anabaptist groups who had died for their faith. The majority favored a broader scope that would include some stories of nonresistant Christians outside the Anabaptist tradition, as well as those whose suffering did not necessarily result in death. Roth noted that the title of the consultation, “Bearing Witness,” was an effort to shift the focus from physical suffering to the deeper reasons behind the suffering.

“Originally, the word ‘martyr’ simply meant ‘witness,’” he said. “This project should not be seen as an attempt to make a fetish out of torture, suffering or victimhood. Rather, we are trying to encourage the church to continue to ‘bear witness’ to the faith, even if it should entail great cost.”

A high point of the consultation came on Tuesday morning when various participants shared stories from their own experience. In addition to stories from the church in Ethiopia and the former Soviet Union, Alix Lozano, a Mennonite theologian from Colombia, related a story from her country of what she called “living martyrs.”

For more than a decade, paramilitary groups and the national army of Colombia have fought to control the land owned and farmed by a small rural community in the southern part of the country. Recently, a multinational company also expressed interest in the land, since it is situated in an area rich in minerals.

Last December, the local pastor, who also serves as a community leader, was told that he and his community would need to leave. When he refused, he and his family received a series of death threats. Initially, he took the counsel of outside supporters who encouraged him to take refuge. Recently, however, he has decided to return to his community, accepting the risk of death.

(Right) Bluffton University Professor of Communication Gerald Mast, co-moderator of the consultation, leads one of the sessions.

“He has returned despite all these threats,” Lozano said. “The situation right now is very difficult for him and his family because these armed groups are persistent in moving him and his community. In these communities, their land is their life. When you take their land from them, you take their lives from them as well. This is a story of this community. They’ve opted for a nonviolent way, even if it means individual sacrifice. They are the living martyrs in our context. Even though they are physically alive, the strategy of those who want to remove them has undermined their spirits and threatened their lives.”

When the members of the consultation listened to these stories, Mast said, “we became spiritually united as brothers and sisters in Christ. This experience of growing spiritual closeness convinced me that gathering and sharing stories of costly witness in the coming years will strengthen relationships throughout the global Anabaptist family of faith.”

Gathering these and other stories, Roth said, “will require an enormous amount of work along with great sensitivity and care.” But he and Mast are optimistic about the future and hope to continue moving the project forward.

“We heard from many people from all kinds of settings that they need this resource in their churches and schools and families,” Mast said. “This need was often expressed with some urgency and with the counsel to move beyond discussion toward action and organization and accomplishment of the emerging vision.”

Although the ultimate outcome of the “Bearing Witness” initiative has not been defined, Roth hopes to make significant progress by 2025, which marks the 500^th anniversary of the beginning of the Anabaptist movement.

– By Kaeli Evans

Editors: For more information about this release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Goshen College Assistant Director of Public Relations Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.

Bishop Simon Barrington-Ward

RELATED LINKS

• Photos of commencement weekend activities
• Baccalaureate sermon by Dr. James E. Brenneman
• Senior reflections at Baccalaureate
• Press Release: announcing the 114th Goshen College commencement

GOSHEN, Ind. — Goshen College’s Class of 2012 received degrees on Sunday, April 22 after being encouraged to become “ambassadors of reconciliation” and to experience the healing and fulfillment possible through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

The Class of 2012 consisted of 234 graduates who were awarded the following degrees: 146 Bachelor of Arts, 43 Bachelor of Science in Nursing, 22 Bachelor of Science, 13 Master of Science as family nurse practitioners and 10 Master of Arts in Environmental Education.

At a morning baccalaureate worship service in the college’s Church-Chapel, President James E. Brenneman delivered a sermon titled “Five-Core Diplomats,” based on 2 Corinthians 5:16-20, in which the Apostle Paul encouraged believers to regard themselves as part of a new creation and ambassadors of reconciliation.

Brenneman told the graduates that over the past fours years they had experienced tumultuous times, including two wars, rapid cultural and technological changes, a stock market crash, the second worst recession in U.S. history, a divisive presidential election and a breakdown in the nation’s civil discourse.

“In times like these, various fears and paranoia are nourished in the extreme by prophets on all sides of the ideological spectrum, exacerbated by the likes of Rush Limbaugh on one side and Bill Maher on the other,” he said. “Today, even our churches, for heaven’s sake, while less segregated by race than when I went to college, are more segregated by political ideology and political party than ever before.”

Amid such contentiousness, Brenneman said he was pleased that students selected 2 Corinthians 5:16-20 as their worship Scripture, because of its call for people to become “ambassadors of Christ, diplomats of hope and ambassadors of reconciliation.”

“In the closing days of our lives together here on this campus, our sending Scripture reminds us that we are called to be God’s representatives on earth as in heavenÉ ambassadors of reconciliation — the bringing of former enemies together, uniting friends and foes alike. How radical is that? Profoundly so,” Brenneman said. “There is no greater vocation on earth, no more timely calling than to be an ambassador of Christ, an ambassador of reconciliation.”

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus Christ called on his followers to befriend foes, Brenneman said, adding that it remains a great challenge for Christians to befriend those with whom they have profound disagreements.

Still, Brenneman said Christians could do this. He pointed to the example of the Rev. Zoughbi Zoughbi, founder and director of Wi’am, the Palestinian Conflict Resolution Center in Bethlehem, and father of Marcelle Al-Zoughbi, a junior at Goshen College.

“In the greatest of ironies, in the birthplace of Jesus, the little town of Bethlehem, a 30-foot high dividing wall between Israel and Palestine literally passes right along the property line of the center, with a machine-gun laden watch-tower looking down on to the garden of the center,” Brenneman said. “Zoughbi has spent a lifetime in ‘citizen-diplomacy,’ working to break down walls of separation between people – especially between Jews, Christians and Muslims —who claim a common God through their common ancestor, Abraham, but are now locked in and traumatized by violent confrontation.”

Although Brenneman conceded that it is difficult to be an ambassador and a reconciler in a world torn by division and demonization, he said that many Goshen College graduates have demonstrated the ability to befriend those with significant differences and to model gracious love.

“As you depart, may you leave as diplomats, ambassadors of a life-changing story – hopefully learned and reinforced throughout your years here – a story shaped by the five core values of which you are now so familiar: to be compassionate peacemakers, passionate learners, servant leaders, global citizens, centered in the life and teachings of Christ.”

Brenneman closed his sermon with a final wish: “Would that you find that friend, who is so different from you, that the opportunity to be an ambassador of reconciliation is truly an opportunity of a lifetime É such that your lives manifest the Kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven and healing and hope would come to this broken world little by little, peace by peace.”

At 3 p.m. Sunday, 138 current and retired faculty members led the graduates in a procession into the gymnasium of the Roman Gingerich Recreation-Fitness Center for the 114^th Goshen College Commencement. The Goshen College Commencement Orchestra, directed by Assistant Professor of Music Christopher Fashun, played pre-commencement music and a processional.

Brenneman welcomed a crowd of about 2,000 people gathered for the ceremony by recalling the many hardships, joys and tears over the past four years.

“Our journey together has been filled with lots of hard work, late nights, deep learning, joyful memories, 100,000 questions, and some helpful guidance, we pray, along the way,” he said. “We shared lots of fun, some pranks, loads of goodwill, times of profound sorrow and even a few severe mercies.”

Speaking for the faculty and staff as well, Brenneman shared that he continues to grieve the loss of Professor of Biology James S. Miller, 58, who was killed during a home invasion robbery at his Goshen home on Oct. 9, 2011. Brenneman led the audience in observing a moment of silence for Professor Miller, whose name and photo appeared in the printed commencement program.

After an invocation and the hymn, “I sing the mighty power of God,” Brenneman introduced the commencement speaker — Bishop Simon Barrington-Ward, the Bishop of Coventry, in England, from 1985 to 1997.

Barrington-Ward, who has been a regular speaker for Goshen College’s Arts in London May term course, received a bachelor’s and master’s degree from Magdalene College, University of Cambridge, where he later served as chaplain and dean. He served as Bishop of Coventry from 1985 to 1997 and currently is a bishop with pastoral care of the University of Cambridge. In 2001, he was appointed Knight Commander of the Most Distinguished Order of St. Michael and St. George by Queen Elizabeth.

In his commencement address, “Becoming What You Are: Exploring the Great Exchange,” Barrington-Ward talked about two personal discoveries — God’s meaning in the person of Jesus Christ and a simple prayer from the earliest days of Christianity. He called the interplay between the discoveries as two parts of an “exchange” between God and humanity arrived at through Jesus Christ.

When he was a young man teaching in Germany, Barrington-Ward said he was moved by a sermon in which the pastor described the “sweet exchange” of God becoming human in the person of Jesus Christ, accepting the depths of humanity and offering the hope of a final transformation as a new creation.

“All human experiences or glimpses of God or of the divine of all the faiths and philosophies that exist are really supported by this one happening,” Barrington-Ward said. “The reality of God, the divine eternal Spirit, whom many seek, is here universally confirmed as having entered into this new relationship with humankind.”

Much later in life, Barrington-Ward said he sought help because he was having difficulty praying. He found a solution — a one-sentence prayer constantly repeated — at a Russian Eastern Orthodox monastery. That is where he first heard the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

Barrington-Ward said listening to constant recitations of the Jesus Prayer transformed his faith by giving him a way to more fully connect to God and to reduce distractions.

Barrington-Ward closed his speech by hoping that the graduates and all others might find help “exploring more of the infinite resources which have been made available to us in the person of God in Christ, through the Spirit, and of the unsearchable riches of that ‘great exchange’ which are still open for us, to draw upon more and more deeply, as we grow ever more fully into union in the Spirit through Christ with God.”

After Barrington-Ward’s address, Ken Pletcher was honored for his diverse service to the college over three decades. Before working as a major gift officer for the last five years, Pletcher served for seven years as athletic director and for 10 years in a number of capacities, including as a teacher, coach, intramural sports director and in admissions positions.

The graduates on hand Sunday then received their degrees and signed their names in the Goshen College historical book – a tradition linking them to generations of alumni.

Presiding over the conferring of degrees was President Brenneman, who congratulated graduates after Academic Dean Anita K. Stalter announced their names. Assisting in the presentation of master’s degrees were David Ostergren, director of the graduate program in environmental education, and Brenda Srof, director of the graduate program in nursing.

After the degrees were conferred, the graduates, the faculty and the audience joined in the singing of the Goshen College Alma Mater.

Also taking part in commencement were two parents of graduating seniors: Marcia Yoder-Schrock, the mother of Isaac Yoder-Schrock, both of Donnellson, Iowa, who offered the invocation, and Ritch Hochstetler, the father of Austin Hochstetler of Goshen, who gave the benediction.

After the benediction, faculty and administrators lined the main corridor of the Recreation-Fitness Center and applauded the departing seniors. The “applause tunnel” tradition also takes place at the beginning of each academic year to welcome students back to campus.

Represented in this year’s graduating class were students from 25 states, including 115 from Indiana, and from 11 countries.

The class included 21 graduates with double majors. Twenty-three students graduated with highest honors – grade point averages of 3.9 to a perfect 4.0. In addition, 67 others were on track to achieve GPAs of 3.60 and above.

The academic program with the largest number of graduating students was nursing, which held its traditional pinning ceremony the day before commencement to recognize the 20 individuals who completed the traditional, four-year program. In addition, 23 individuals were granted degrees through the Bachelor of Science in nursing degree completion program and 13 individuals got Master of Science in nursing degrees.

Other top majors in the Class of 2012 were organizational leadership (22), biology (16), Interdisciplinary (14), history (10), psychology (10), English (8) and social work (8).

Of the graduates, 123 took the Graduation Pledge of Social and Environmental Responsibility, a national program at more than 100 colleges and universities. By signing the pledge, the graduates promised to “explore and take into account the social and environmental consequences of any job I consider and will try to improve these aspects of any organizations for which I work.”

Graduates and faculty members planned the morning baccalaureate service. It featured an instrumental prelude on piano by graduating seniors Lisa Horst, a music major from Dillon, Mont., and Elspeth Stalter, a music/English major from Iowa City, Iowa.

The service formally began with a welcome from Jessica Camacho, a nursing major from Goshen, followed by a congregational hymn, “Here in this place,” led by Jay Mast, a theater/music major from Goshen. Senior reflections were offered by Hannah Epp, a peace, justice and conflict studies major from Henderson, Neb., Daisy Gaspar, an elementary education/special education major from Goshen, Anna Ruth, an English major from Harleysville, Pa., and Isaac Yoder-Schrock, a physics major from Donnellson, Iowa.

After singing the hymn, “We are the people of God’s peace,” there was the reading of a Scripture litany, based on 2 Corinthians 5:16-20, written by graduate Stephanie Hollenberg. The litany was read by sisters Alyssa Goodman, a nursing major, and Lindsay Goodman, an American Sign Language major, both from Nappanee.

After President Brenneman’s sermon, a senior vocal ensemble — made up of 19 graduates — sang “Yesu Ninakupenda,” which means “Jesus I love you, you are my friend, I will serve you, throughout my life.”

After the benediction, the baccalaureate services concluding with the sending song, “Wake up Everybody,” by John Legend and the Roots, performed by eight seniors.

Other events during the busy weekend at Goshen College included a senior program, which showcased the artistic, comedic and musical talent of the Class of 2012, a senior art exhibit, academic department receptions for graduates and their families, a reception for adult programs and an evening reception hosted by President Brenneman and his wife, Dr. Terri J. Plank Brenneman.

CLASS OF 2012 HIGHLIGHTS
Total number of graduates: 234
Number by category: 13 candidates for Master of Science degrees, 10 candidates for Master of Arts degrees, 146 candidates for Bachelor of Arts degrees, 43 candidates for Bachelor of Science in nursing degrees; and 22 candidates for Bachelor of Science degrees
Number of double majors: 21
Number of students graduating with highest honors — grade point averages of 3.9 to a perfect 4.0 (based on grades as of December 2011): 23
Number of students graduating with GPAs of 3.60 and above (based on grades as of December 2011): 67
Number of states represented in this year’s graduating class: 25
Number from Indiana: 115
Number of countries represented (other than U.S.): 11
Number of graduates by top programs of study: nursing, 43; organizational leadership, 22; biology,16; interdisciplinary, 14; history, 10; psychology, 10; English, 8; social work, 8.

— Written by Richard R. Aguirre

EDITOR’S NOTE: For more information, contact Richard R. Aguirre, director of public relations, at (574) 535-7571 or rraguirre@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s ”America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.