Westmont News

The ringed, gas giant Juniper will be the star attraction at this month’s free public viewing on Friday, March 20, beginning at 7:30 p.m. and lasting several hours at the Westmont Observatory. In case of inclement or overcast weather, please call the Telescope Viewing Hotline at (805) 565-­6272 and check the Westmont website to see if the viewing has been canceled.

Westmont CIO Reed Sheard has been named a Computerworld Premier 100 IT Leader for 2015. He accepts this award in March with other top IT professionals from the business, education, government, service, technology and non-profit sectors.

Jodi Magness, a renowned archaeologist and Kenan distinguished professor in early Judaism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, examines the validity of claims that Jesus’ burial has been found in Jerusalem during a lecture on Thursday, M

Six high school seniors will compete for Westmont music scholarships at the third annual Music Guild Competition on Saturday, March 7, at 7 p.m. at Westmont’s Deane Chapel on lower campus. The event is free and open to the public.

Nineteen student actors and the same creative team behind the national award-winning 2013 production of “The Pirates of Penzance,” stages “The Insect Comedy or The World We Live In” Feb. 27 and March 6 at 8:30 p.m., Feb. 28 and March 5 at 8 p.m., and March 7 at 2 p.m., all in Westmont’s Porter Theatre.

Westmont’s Gaede Institute for the Liberal Arts hosts its 14th annual conference focusing on how a liberal arts education contributes to contemporary society Feb. 26­-28. The public is welcome to plenary sessions of “Liberal Arts and the Social Good.” A complete schedule is available online at westmont.edu/institute.

The Provost’s Office and the Gaede Institute for the Liberal Arts co-­host two free, public lectures Feb. 9 and 11 at Westmont, featuring Elaine Ecklund, Herbert S. Autry professor of sociology at Rice University, and David McNaughton, professor of philosophy at Florida State University.

Two new college rankings list Westmont among the top schools in the nation. Business Insider names it one of the 50 Most Underrated Colleges in America, and Princeton Review recognizes Westmont among Colleges That Pay You Back: The 200 Best-­Value Colleges, “the best overall bargains based on cost and financial aid among the most academically outstanding colleges in the nation.”

Westmont graduating seniors Brynn Mitchell, Elaine Pazaski and James Wong present a fresh, fierce homage to the central characters of Anton Chekhov’s classic, “The Seagull,” in “The Nina Variations” by Stephen Dietz on Friday, Feb. 6, and Saturday, Feb. 7, at 8 p.m. in Porter Theatre. The play, directed by Mitchell with scenography by Wong and starring Pazaski as Nina, is free and open to the public.

Bob Woodward, the Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter, examined “Presidential Leadership and the Price of Politics” for 300 people on Jan. 16 in the Coral Casino at the Four Seasons Santa Barbara Biltmore. The legendary journalist, who has worked for the Washington Post since 1971, said it is not enough for a president to simply provide moral and ethical leadership.

The Fletcher Jones Foundation has awarded a $750,000 grant to Westmont toward the renovation of the college’s biology and chemistry labs. The grant will improve classroom and lab spaces inside Whittier Science Building, which opened in 1985.

The Westmont Observatory is closed this evening due to poor visibility. Please check back next month for another free, public viewing on Friday, Jan. 16.

Thomas Whittemore, Westmont physics instructor, will operate the powerful Keck Telescope, a 24-inch reflector, while several members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit offer celestial views with additional smaller telescopes.

Four academic departments welcomed new tenure-track professors this fall. The five professors are Timothy VanHaitsma (kinesiology), Sarah Jirek (sociology), Enrico Manlapig (economics and business), Meagan Stirling (art) and Meredith Whitnah (sociology).

VanHaitsma, a graduate of Calvin College, earned a Master of Science at Indiana University and a Doctorate of Philosophy in Exercise and Sports Science at the University of Utah.

The Westmont Office of Alumni and Parent Relations hosts a unique venture to the Bajío region of Mexico for alumni and parents June 27-July 6. The trip, led by Mary Docter, Westmont professor of modern languages, includes stops at several UNESCO World Heritage Sites where Westmont in Mexico students live and learn.

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art, celebrating its fifth anniversary this year, hosts the West Coast premiere exhibition of internationally famous sculptor Chakaia Booker Dec. 11-Jan. 31. A free, public opening reception with Booker is Thursday, Dec. 11, from 4-6 p.m.

The Westmont women’s cross country team finished eighth out of 38 teams at the NAIA National Championship Nov. 22  in Lawrence, Kansas, its seventh best finish in program history and best placing since 1998.

Westmont kicks off the Christmas season with the 13th annual Christmas Tree Lighting on Kerrwood Lawn on Tuesday, Dec. 9, at 5 p.m. Following caroling and the annual Pickle Address, a mystery tree lighter will throw down the massive switch that lights a 150-foot redwood tree, affectionately known as the Pickle Tree. The event is free and open to the public.

This month’s public viewing of the stars will feature astronomical glimpses of a heart, owl and a Christmas tree on Friday, Nov. 21, beginning after 6:30 p.m. and lasting for several hours at the Westmont Observatory.   The free event is held every third Friday of the month in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit.

The Westmont Christmas Festival, one of the most popular holiday events in Santa Barbara, celebrates its 10th anniversary this year with performances Dec. 5-6 at 8 p.m. and Dec. 6-7 at 3 p.m. all at First Presbyterian Church, 21 E. Constance Ave.

Westmont student musicians and composers show off their talents at five free concerts this month, all in Deane Chapel on Westmont’s lower campus. For more information, please contact the music department at (805) 565-6040.

Westmont’s Music Drama Workshop offers a variety of songs from Broadway to opera Sunday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. in Deane Chapel. The Musical Revue, which will last about an hour, is free and open to the public.

The contemporary play "Almost, Maine" takes a joyful and poignant look at love on the stage of Westmont’s Porter Theatre Nov. 14-­15, 20­-22 at 8 p.m. and Nov. 22 at 2 p.m. General admission is $15; $10 for students and seniors. Tickets may be purchased online at westmont.edu/boxoffice or by calling (805) 565-­7140.