Westmont News

Less than two weeks after everyone’s attention was focused on the solar eclipse, the Westmont Observatory focuses on lunar craters and a red giant Friday, April 19, beginning after sunset at 7:30 p.m. and lasting several hours. The observatory, home to the powerful Keck Telescope, opens to the public every third Friday of the month in conjunction with knowledgeable volunteers from the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit. 

About 324 graduates will participate in Commencement on Saturday, May 4, at 9:30 a.m. on Thorrington Field with 147 graduating with honors. About 50 Golden Warriors, who graduated in 1974, will march in the procession to celebrate their 50th reunion. Eleven nursing graduates will participate in the ceremony, two days after their pinning ceremony on Thursday, May 2, at 4 p.m. in Montecito Covenant Church. Commencement, which is closed to the general public, will be livestreamed at westmont.edu/commencement.

The annual Spring Student Research Symposium features the work of more than 40 student researchers on 23 different posters Thursday, April 18, from 3:30–5:00 p.m.  in the Winter Hall Atrium.

Westmont’s 63^rd annual Spring Sing at the Santa Barbara Bowl was filled with singing, dancing, acting and hilarity. Students from each residence hall produced musical skits using the phrase “Out of Order” and competed for prizes and bragging rights.

Spring Sing is the college’s longest running tradition and involves more students than any other college event.

Over a 60-hour period before finals, the Weller Organ in Deane Chapel, controlled by professor Steve Hodson, will be playing “ORGAN2/ASLSP (As Slow As Possible)” by John Cage (1912-1992). This 1987 work, explores how slowly a piece of music might unfold. Westmont’s performance will begin at 8 a.m. on April 26 (with a rest) and end at 8 p.m. on April 28.

Nearly 20 Westmont political science students joined professor Katherine Bryant to serve on the National Model United Nations from March 24-28 in New York. The students, who represented the delegations from Solomon Islands and Thailand, discussed pressing global issues and stepped into the shoes of diplomats, using the art of negotiation to learn how to make a difference in the world.

The results are in and the awards handed out at the second annual Montecito Student Film Festival on March 23 at Westmont’s Porter Theatre. About 150 people attended the festival throughout the day to watch 41 films, pared down from the more than 500 that were submitted.

Six aspiring Westmont art graduates will exhibit their capstone projects at “Between Moments” from April 4-May 4 in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art. A free, public opening reception will celebrate the graduating senior art majors on Thursday, April 4, from 4-6 p.m.

The Fletcher Jones Foundation has awarded Westmont College $500,000 to provide students with education, training and industry readiness for the burgeoning field of artificial intelligence (AI). The funds will expand the scope of the Center for Applied Technology Lab (CATLab) to include AI, adding state-of-the-art hardware and software infrastructure to facilitate students’ hands-on learning and experimentation.

Malcolm Foley, special adviser to the president for equity and campus engagement at Baylor University, argues that race and racism are fundamentally not issues of pride but of greed in a lecture Wednesday, April 3, from 3:30-5 p.m. in the Global Leadership Center.

The talk, “Child of Mammon or Child of God?: The Anti-Greed Gospel,” is free and open to the public. The sociology and anthropology department, history department, Gaede Institute for the Liberal Arts and the Provost’s Office sponsor the lecture.

The music department has formed a partnership with the Rockley Family Foundation, which will hold a private sale of musical instruments at Westmont March 14-16, featuring starter-to professional-level instruments at a discounted price. Go to the website rockleyfamilyfoundation.org/Westmont to make an appointment. 

The second annual Montecito Student Film Festival has exploded in popularity and gone global. Student filmmakers from 65 countries have submitted more than 500 films for the free event. Attendees can watch films throughout the day, Saturday, March 23, from 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. in Westmont’s Porter Theatre.

Jupiter and the Great Orion Nebula, M42, will be part of this month’s free stargazing event Friday, March 15, beginning about 6 p.m. and lasting several hours at the Westmont Observatory. Along with Westmont’s powerful Keck Telescope, members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical Society bring their own telescopes to share with the public.

This spring, several of Westmont’s athletic facilities have seen dramatic upgrades to accompany the Warriors’ move to National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II in hopes of attracting exceptional student-athletes who will thrive with a rigorous Christian liberal arts education. The Westmont community and supporters have stepped up to provide vital resources for the challenge.

The only active duty Air Force band west of the Rockies energized audiences at two free performances Feb. 27 at Westmont and Montecito Covenant Church.

Two Westmont voice instructors will join forces in a recital, "A Song Celebration," on Saturday, March 23, at 4 p.m. in Deane Chapel on Westmont’s lower campus. The performance is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact the music department at (805) 565-6040.

Richard Haass, who worked at the White House, State Department and Pentagon under four different presidents, offered a civics lesson on global diplomacy while bringing clarity to international conflicts at the sold-out 19th annual Westmont President’s Breakfast March 1 at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. Despite the Israel-Hamas war, the Russia-Ukraine war, contentious China-U.S. relations and the climate crisis, the veteran diplomat admitted that what keeps him up at night is domestic politics.

Adam Goodworth, a professor in the departments of engineering and kinesiology, and alumnus Maury Hayashida '95 examine balance and mobility and how they’re affected by aging in a talk Thursday, March 21, at 5:30 p.m. at the Community Arts Workshop, 631 Garden Street, in downtown Santa Barbara.

The Westmont Music Department offers its orchestra concerto concert, featuring the winners of its concerto/aria competition, Nathan Carlin, Karla Munoz, Tasha Loh and Leah Nieman, on Friday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. at the college’s Page Hall and on Sunday, Feb. 25, at 3 p.m. in Hahn Hall at the Music Academy. Both performances are free and open to the public. For more information, please visit westmont.edu/music.

One of the best American beach volleyball players will speak in Westmont chapel on Friday, Feb. 16, at 10:30 a.m. in Murchison Gym. Alumnus Avery Drost ’07 led the Association of Volleyball Players (AVP) with 350 digs and was second with 551 kills last season. He coaches boys volleyball at Mira Costa High School in Manhattan Beach while serving as a youth director at New City Church in El Segundo.

If the weather cooperates, and that has been a big if this winter, the Milky Way’s open clusters will be the focus of the monthly stargazing event on Friday, Feb. 16, beginning after 6 p.m. and lasting for several hours. The observatory, home of the powerful Keck Telescope, is open to the public every third Friday of the month and held in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit (SBAU) whose members bring their own telescopes to share with the public.

Westmont’s John Blondell, a longtime professor of theater arts, puts his own contemporary, site-specific spin on Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” as part of a mini-festival about the famous tragedy Thursday, Feb. 29, at 7 p.m.; Friday, March 1, and Saturday, March 2 at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.; and Sunday, March 3, at 7 p.m. in and around the Community Arts Workshop (CAW), 631 Garden Street, in downtown Santa Barbara.

(Updated Feb. 5 at 2 p.m.) After assessing the rain storm impacts on the campus and the community as a whole, Westmont will resume in-person work and classes tomorrow, Tuesday, February 6. Please continue to monitor your email for additional updates related to this weather event, and note that while Westmont will resume normal operations, additional rains are forecasted through Wednesday, so please plan accordingly and travel safely.

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Westmont’s 35^th annual Mathematics Field Day features students from nine regional high schools in a friendly competition Saturday, Feb. 10, at 1 p.m. in Winter Hall. Alphan Altinok, a senior data scientist at NASA Jet Propulsion Lab, will speak about “Mathematics of Artificial Intelligence” at the awards banquet at 5:30 p.m. in the Global Leadership Center. 

Jennifer Ito, Westmont assistant professor of physics, explores the history of the cosmological model in a free, public talk Wednesday, Feb. 7, at 7 p.m. in the Simmons Center at the Global Leadership Center. The Paul C.

The Martin Institute for Christianity and Culture and the Dallas Willard Research Center have chosen Michael Stewart Robb’s book, “The Kingdom Among Us: The Gospel According to Dallas Willard,” as the winner of the

Hopi Katsina dolls, carved and colorfully decorated wooden figures, are more than just beautiful works of art: They represent Katsinam spirits believed to bring blessings of good health, growth and fertility. A unique exhibition, celebrating the resurgence of a traditional carving method, features dozens of the Katsina (or “Kachina” to non-Hopi people) dolls and is open through May 4 in the lower level of the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art.

A renovation of the first-floor recording studio and music lab in Westmont’s Music Building will provide state-of-the-art equipment for students thanks to a generous gift from longtime Santa Barbara resident and alumnus Rolland Jacks '55.

Wendy Eley Jackson draws on three decades of experience in film and television in her talk, “The Transformative Power of Storytelling” for a Westmont Downtown Lecture on Thursday, Feb. 1, at 5:30 p.m. at the Community Arts Workshop, 631 Garden Street, in downtown Santa Barbara. The event is free and open to the public; no tickets or reservations are required.

“I was surprised at the sheer size of the math world,” said first-year student Isaiah Conway, reflecting on his trip with fellow students and faculty to the world’s largest mathematics conference Jan. 3-6 in San Francisco. Ten students and three faculty members were among nearly 6,000 other mathematicians at annual Joint Mathematics Meetings (JMM), hosted by the American Mathematical Society.

A double feature operatic performance opens the curtains on the Westmont music department’s spring concert season with productions of Gian Carlo Menotti’s “The Telephone” and Douglas Moore’s “Gallantry” Jan. 19 and 21 at 7 p.m. in Porter Theatre. Purchase tickets, which cost $20 general admission and $15 for students and seniors, online at westmont.edu/boxoffice.

Richard Haass, a veteran diplomat, respected scholar of international relations and president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations, speaks at the 19th annual Westmont President’s Breakfast on Friday, March 1, from 7-9 a.m. in the Grand Ballroom of Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort. The event has sold out.

This month’s Stargazing at the Westmont Observatory features Jupiter and its four Galilean moons as well as M42, the Orion Nebula, on Friday, Jan. 19, beginning after 6 p.m. and lasting for several hours. The observatory, home of the powerful Keck Telescope, is open to the public every third Friday of the month and held in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit (SBAU) whose members bring their own telescopes to share with the public.

Lady Leslie Ridley-Tree’s entire collection of Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, which includes 11 paintings, 12 lithographs and a drawing, goes on display Jan. 11-March 23 in the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art.

For two decades, Siegwart ‘Zig’ Reichwald, Westmont’s Adams professor of music and worship, engrossed himself in the sacred music of German composer and performer Felix Mendelssohn. But when he came to his works written for the Berlin Cathedral in 1843-44, he was struck by how unusual they were compared to the rest of Mendelssohn’s musical creations.

Crews have begun a $2 million renovation project to Westmont’s Dining Commons with the majority of the work being funded by Bon Appetit, the college’s food service provider since August 2022.

Westmont celebrated the accomplishments of 18 new graduates of the Westmont Downtown | Grotenhuis Nursing program at a pinning ceremony Dec. 14 at Montecito Covenant Church. This is the second cohort to graduate from the 16-month accelerated bachelor of science in nursing program, housed at 26 W. Anapamu.

Two Westmont students presented their research at a joint meeting of the Nuclear Physics Divisions of the American and Japanese Physics Societies Nov. 26-Dec. 1 on the Big Island of Hawaii. Natalie Fogg '24 and Reese Toepfer '26 joined Robert Haring-Kaye, Westmont professor of physics and department chair of physics and engineering, at the event that featured more than 100 undergraduates from both nations.

Bundle up and head to the Westmont Observatory, which opens to the public for its free, monthly Stargazing event Friday, Dec. 15, beginning at sunset and lasting several hours. Saturn and many other celestial delights will be targeted by Westmont’s powerful Keck Telescope and the other scopes owned by members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit, whose members set up around the observatory.

Westmont junior Analee Josselyn '25, a history and economics and business double major, and Conrad Morgan '23, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies, are attending the U.N. Climate Conference (COP28) in Dubai.

Overcoming obstacles was the challenge of the day as the Westmont Engineering Department hosted its third annual remote control car competition Dec. 7 in front of Kerrwood Hall.

New this year, students competed in a bowling pin knockout following the traditional figure eight race. The competition was tight and a final race with all three cars was needed to determine a winner.

With the arrival of Advent, Paul Willis, professor emeritus of English and former Santa Barbara poet laureate, has co-edited an anthology of readings “A Radiant Birth: Advent Readings for a Bright Season.” Madeleine L'Engle, Marilyn McEntyre, Eugene Peterson, Tania Runyan, Luci Shaw, Jeanne Murray Walker, Walter Wangerin, Lauren Winner and Philip Yancey contribute to the book, which provides daily readings for the four weeks of Advent and two weeks of Christmas.

Westmont is on the board! Monopoly: The Santa Barbara Edition includes a space featuring the Montecito campus in the light purple section where Virginia Avenue sits in the classic game. The only college featured on the board, Westmont appears between two iconic locations: the Santa Barbara Harbor and the Santa Barbara Airport. The square features a Brad Elliott photo highlighting the college’s iconic Italian fountain, a replica of one dating from the 19th century that graced the Dwight Murphy estate, which Westmont purchased in 1945.

A study of older U.S. South Asians examines relationships between religious service attendance (temple, mosque, etc.), anxiety and feelings of emotional neglect by fellow congregation members. The research finds that among U.S. South Asians, those who attend religious services more often are also more likely to experience higher levels of anxiety. Further, much of this relationship can be attributed to feelings of being ignored or neglected by other members of the congregation.

Westmont Festival Theatre reimagines the life of Saint Clare of Assisi as if she spoke like a Beverly Hills teenager in Chiara Atik’s “Poor Clare” on Dec. 7-9 at 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 9 at 2 p.m. in Porter Theatre. Tickets, which cost $20 for general admission and $12 for students and seniors, may be purchased at westmont.edu/boxoffice.

Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded Westmont College a $1.25 million grant to create a unique program exploring the meaning and value of in-person Christian preaching. At a time when much communication takes place online, remotely and impersonally, the Incarnational Preaching Project will invite active and aspiring preachers to investigate the value of preaching live to a church community.

The Commission of Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) voted to approve accreditation for Westmont’s Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program. Westmont had to clearly demonstrate that its nursing program, which launched in January 2022, met all four of the CCNE standards: mission and governance, institutional commitment and resources, curriculum and teaching-learning practices, and assessment and achievement of program outcomes.

For Giving Tuesday, a generous donor has pledged $50,000 to double the impact of gifts made to the Westmont Fund between Nov. 21-28 until midnight or until the pledge amount runs out.