News Archive
College Offers Fall Continuing Education Classes
Westminster College announces several personal enrichment and fitness courses for community residents.
Continuing Education classes and seminars are non-credit and are open to all interested individuals for a nominal fee. Formal admission to Westminster College is not required.
Westminster College Announces Coordinator of the Young Presbyterian Scholars Program
Carey Anne Meyer LaSor has been named the full-time coordinator of the Young Presbyterian Scholars Program (YPS), a position that is responsible for the promotion and implementation of the YPS program.
In 2002, as Westminster College celebrated its 150th anniversary, the Board of Trustees took a serious look at the question of what it means to be a Presbyterian Church (PC) related college. As a result, the decision was made last fall to offer up to 150 scholarships, worth $11,000 annually, to outstanding PC (USA) students and offer them a way to continue to grow in faith and leaderships while on the Westminster campus. The scholarships are given to all PC (USA) congregations, in essence, to award to a student of their choosing who meets the qualifications of active memberships in a PC (USA) congregation, and exhibits a 3.5 or higher cumulative high school grade point average.
"The goals of this program and this first year are to provide each of the Young Presbyterian Scholar students with an experience that is uniquely a Westminster experience, intentionally Presbyterian connected, and motivated by an external and spiritual call for them," LaSor said. "The Program intends to provide for their personal, spiritual, and leadership growth, building on the abilities and potential they already possess."
There are currently 37 Young Presbyterian Scholars at Westminster doing the program's inaugural year. Westminster received over 120 YPS nominations from 20 states last year.
LaSor, a 1986 Westminster graduate, previously worked in the Princeton Theological Seminary's Office of Alumni and Placement, and was a volunteer for the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. before coming to Westminster as a part-time coordinator a year ago. She and her husband, Steve, reside in Greensburg with their two children, Nathan and Matthew, and their West Highland terrier, Kenzie. Her office is located in Thompson House, and she can be contacted at (724) 946-7365 or e-mail meyerca@westminster.edu.
Visit www.westminster.edu/yps for more information about the Young Presbyterian Scholar Program.
Westminster Biology Professor Uses Past to Determine Future of Trees
Dr. Clarence Harms, Westminster College professor of biology emeritus, will present a biology lunch seminar, "Historical Ecology, Using the Past to Manage the Future," Thursday, April 28, at 12:30 p.m. in Phillips Lecture Hall located in the Hoyt Science Resources Center.
"I will examine the ecological features of our immediate area, beginning with Native American practices of clearing the forest by fire and Europeans claiming ownerships by government fiat," Harms said. "The lands we now call Lawrence and Mercer Counties were among those given to Revolutionary War veterans in lieu of salary. These so called Donation Lands were surveyed in a system call Metes and Bounds,' where property was marked and measured from adjoining property using natural landmarks. Those landmarks were mainly trees that today we call Witness Trees.
"Those trees are gone now, but their record remains. By looking at the survey records and plots of the late 1700s and noting which Witness Trees were mentioned, we get a reasonable picture of species diversity in pre-settlement forests. We are using this data to configure a Microforest, a five-acre former pasture at the Field Station where we are planting only those species that could have been in our region."
The event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Harms at (724) 946-8520 or e-mail harmsc@westminster.edu.
Al Staggs to Perform at Westminster College
Al Staggs, a national entertainer from New Mexico, is bringing his nationwide tour to Westminster College Monday, Feb. 27, at 11:40 a.m. and 7 p.m. in Wallace Memorial Chapel.
Staggs, who served as a Baptist minister for 24 years prior to becoming a full-time performance artist, will present "Theologians in Residence: Clarence Jordan and Dietrich Bonhoeffer."
The morning performance will center on Jordan, author of "The Cotton Patch Version of Matthew and John." Jordan, along with Millard Fuller, co-founded the Fund for Humanity which later became Habitat for Humanity. Jordan's life and ministry were a contemporary demonstration of a radical commitment to follow the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount.
In the evening performance, he will portray Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was one of the only Lutheran pastors in Nazi Germany to speak out against the treatment of Jews and was executed for his efforts in 1945. Bonhoeffer is also the author of several books including: "Letters from Prison," "The Cost of Discipleship," and "Life Together."
Both events are free and open to the public. Contact the Rev. Jim Mohr, Westminster College Chaplain, at (724) 946-7116 or e-mail mohrjr@westminster.edu for more information.
Westminster College Presents Piano Showcase Nov. 10
Eleven Westminster College students will perform a variety of piano solos and duets Monday, Nov. 10, at 7:30 p.m. in Orr Auditorium.
The Glenn Miller Orchestra Swings into Westminster College
Westminster College will host the Glenn Miller Orchestra Tuesday, April 24, at 8 p.m. in Orr Auditorium. This benefit concert will provide scholarship funds to assist Westminster students from Lawrence and Mercer counties
Westminster College English Professor to Deliver Bleasby Colloquium
Dr. David Swerdlow, associate professor of English at Westminster College, will discuss his life as a writer Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m. in Hoyt Science Resources Center room 166.
Westminster College Ranked Third in Graduation Rate Performance by U.S. News
Westminster College is among the nation's best in enhancing the educational achievement of its students, according to a national study released today.
We Have Weather
As I write, on a Monday near the end of winter, we have snow on the ground and new flakes are falling. We sometimes attach value-words to weather - good weather, bad weather - as if our feelings or preferences should affect nature! Weather is to climate as one day on the job is to a career. Weather data, when accumulated, give us a picture of climate. We generally describe climate in terms of averages or means of temperature fluctuations, precipitation (including snow) and wind. We describe weather by the immediate, or daily, conditions that prevail.
Student Makes Presentation
Kristin Nelson, a Westminster College senior sociology-criminal justice and English major, presented her capstone research Oct. 27 at a meeting of the Pennsylvania Sociological Society.
Displaying 4711-4720 of 6509 total records