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Trinity recently held its annual Scholarship Dinner, which honors students who have received scholarships and those who have generously funded those scholarships.

“For the 2017-18 school year, Trinity Christian College had 111 different donor-funded scholarships, with a total of 295 awards to students,” said Rick Van Dyken, Vice President for Advancement.

This year, the College was able to offer nine new scholarships, including the first ever endowed scholarship given by an association of alumni from a specific academic program: The Trinity Alumni Nursing Association (TANA), which raised $23,445 for a nursing scholarship fund during the “I Support Nursing” campaign last spring.

Trinity’s Scholarship Endowment Fund is currently valued at $7.5 million, helping to ensure that generations of Trinity students can continue to learn and work for good, for God, and for the world.

“The need for additional scholarships for deserving Trinity students has never been more important than it is right now, and we are blessed that so many alumni and friends are supporting current and future Trinity students,” said Van Dyken.

Trinity was pleased to host author Uwem Akpan to campus recently for a reading and question-and-answer session. Akpan, a native of Nigeria, is a Jesuit priest and author of Say You’re One of Them, an award-winning collection of short stories set in war-torn Africa that are told through the eyes of children.

Professor of English Michael Vander Weele, Ph.D., told the audience that packed Van Namen Recital Hall on Oct. 26 that he connected with Akpan after writing an essay on Akpan’s work that was published in Religion & Literature last fall. Vander Weele and Akpan began corresponding, which eventually led to Akpan’s visit to campus. “Uwen has written some really tough stories, with a really big heart,” said Vander Weele. “He is a servant of God.”

Akpan read “What Language Is That,” one of the stories featured in Say You’re One of Them, which tells the story of a young Christian girl and her Muslim best friend whose parents forbid them to speak to each other after riots break out in Ethiopia.

“I wanted to write about difficult things,” Akpan told the students, faculty, staff, and community members in attendance. “These are stories about children, but they are not children’s stories.”

Akpan also discussed his faith and religious training, how he came to earn an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan and the experience of having short stories published in The New Yorker.

After debuting the title roles of two operas, recently completing her Artist Diploma, and signing with a prestigious artistic management company, Jenny Schuler ’08 returns to the stage at Ozinga Chapel Auditorium on Nov. 6 as part of Trinity’s Artist Recital Series.

At the free event, Schuler, who is a soprano, will perform pieces by Debussy, Strauss, and Turina, accompanied by pianist Candace Peters. “I have some truly special music planned that I absolutely love, spanning French, German, Spanish, and English,” she said. “The music covers a broad range of styles as well as language. The Debussy in particular is especially beautiful. I would encourage all types of music lovers to come experience this special music!”

Schuler has had a busy year. In 2017, she debuted the title roles of Ariadne auf Naxos and Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas, both with the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute. Schuler also recently placed as a finalist in the Marcello Giordani International Voice Competition and was the first prize recipient in the Heafner–Williams Vocal Competition.

She has also recently signed with management company Couret & Werner. “Couret & Werner reached out me out after many recommendations through colleagues, conductors, and directors. I spoke with Justin Werner about his agency and got to know him a bit,” said Schuler. After a formal audition in New York, she was offered a spot on the agency’s roster. “Having a great management team is really key to the continued development of a singing career. My management team secures auditions and works in partnership with me to develop long-term strategic plans for my career. It’s a very exciting step.”

Along with double majoring in music and graphic design at Trinity, Schuler earned her Artist Diploma from the A.J. Fletcher Opera Institute and her Master of Music from Chicago College of Performing Arts.

As part of Trinity’s WorldView series, the College was pleased to recently host two speakers who discussed the impact of the Reformation on both Reformed Protestantism and Roman Catholic viewpoints: Dr. Suzanne McDonald and Dr. Eduardo J. Echeverria ’73

On Oct. 16, McDonald addressed the topic: “Does the “Does the Reformation Still Matter? (Really?!)” McDonald is a professor of systematic and historical theology at Western Theological Seminary and is ordained in the Christian Reformed Church.

Echeverria, who earned a philosophy degree from Trinity and is now professor of philosophy and theology at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, discussed “Is the Counter-Reformation Over? An Evangelical Catholic Perspective.”

WorldView is Trinity’s annual community and college series for film, word, and music. The next WorldView event is scheduled for Monday, Nov. 27 and will feature Wayne Messer. Messmer is a local legend—famed singer, exciting speaker, acclaimed author, and talented broadcaster. The “Voice of the National Anthem” will bring his timeless message of hope and resilience to Trinity during a 7 pm lecture in the Grand Lobby of Ozinga Chapel.

In addition to his Worldview address, Messmer will also present “Damien,” a one-man play based on the life of Father Damien de Veuster, on Tuesday, Nov. 28, in the Marg Kallemeyn Theatre. Proceeds from the performance will benefit the work of Dr. David Weinstein, the world’s leading researcher for a cure for Glycogen Storage Disease. Messmer’s granddaughter suffers from this disease. Visit here for more information and to purchase tickets to “Damien.”

Providing business solutions to social problems—that was the goal of the first Chicago Innovation Tournament, which Trinity hosted on Oct. 7. And the goal was met and surpassed, according to Prof. John Wightkin, assistant professor of business and chair of Trinity’s business department.

Seven teams from five different colleges competed in the Chicago Innovation Tournament, which addressed the issue of refugee resettlement in the United States.

“I was particularly excited to see how entrepreneurship can be used to make a difference in the world,” he said. “Entrepreneurship is not only about starting a business. It’s more about innovating, thinking creatively, experimenting, collaborating, problem solving, and presenting effectively. Using entrepreneurship as a way to look at the world, we can solve more than just business problems.”

Two experts spoke on the refugee resettlement problem: Kenneth Elisapana, Executive Director & Founder South Sudan Voices of Hope, and Alison E. Bell, Senior Resettlement Manager of World Relief DuPage/Aurora. Then, student teams had three hours to arrive at a solution and develop and practice their presentation. After two rounds of pitches, winners were selected. The team from the University of Chicago placed first, a team from Trinity placed second, and a team from Roosevelt University took third.

Marketing major Komaria Carpenter ’21 heard about the tournament in one of her business classes and decided it sounded like an interesting opportunity. She was partnered with other Trinity students, including  Eden Foreman ’18, a communication arts major, Kailah Price ’19, an English major, and Jose Silva ’21, a music production major. “It was super fun, and it was great that not everyone was a business major,” said Carpenter.

Price agreed that the interdisciplinary nature of their team was one reason the team came in second place. “We all brought different perspectives.”

Silva encourages others to participate in next year’s tournament. “It was a great growing experience, and it allows you to think outside your personal bubble.”

Trinity Christian College is a community that recognizes a variety of God-given gifts. We celebrate those gifts, as evidenced in the scholarship of our professors. Here is a look at some of the activities our professors have been involved with recently.

Thanks to the generosity of visionary friends of the College and the hard work of Trinity faculty and staff, the Ed Vander Weele Curriculum Center and the Alexander De Jong Center for Special Education now share an expanded footprint on the second floor of Jennie Huizenga Memorial Library.

Work completed over the summer enhanced the center by embedding a flexible learning space within curriculum materials.

“It is always exciting to see the outcome when creative people collaborate on a project for the enhancement of the academic experience for our students,” said Rick Van Dyken VP for Advancement. “This project took two important, but under-utilized, spaces and created a fantastic learning environment for all of our students.”

Updates to the room include:

• New furniture to supports the current trend in education of flexible seating
• State-of-the-art educational technology that students will learn to incorporate meaningfully before they enter their future classrooms such as a new 75-inch Smartboard, five iPads, and AAC communication devices
• Large windows to enhance visibility of the space and the resources within
• A fresh coat of paint
• New flooring
• Repurposed shelving
• A new collection layout
• Other improvements that are on the way include assistive technologies that will help students learn how to increase participation and independence for students with disabilities such as switches, adaptive scissors, and pencil grips.

Adaptive resources were also added to enhance hands-on learning opportunities for teachers in training and provide greater hospitality for students visiting from local partner Elim Christian School. For example, a desk in the new space can be adjusted to comfortably accommodate right-handed or left-handed students.

“The newly remodeled Curriculum Materials Center and Center for Special Education are quickly becoming a favorite place for students to study,” said Cathy Mayer, Library Director. “The ample natural light and vibrant colors of the children’s book collection make the space an invigorating and inviting place to work.”

Several classes are being held in the space, which has shaped the way students perceive instruction. In a recent class discussion, one student noted that combining the Vander Weele Curriculum Materials Center and DeJong Center for Special Education testifies to belief that all students are created in God’s image and should be seen as valuable and worthy of inclusive education.

The De Jong Center for Special Education

The De Jong Center is a partnership between Trinity and Elim Christian Services, a ministry that exists to equip people with disabilities to achieve their God-given potential by offering person-centered services and partnering with their communities.

The mission of the Center for Special Education is to prepare current and future teachers with the highest quality instruction and training to develop fully the God-given potential of individuals with special needs.

It is named in honor of the College’s first president Alexander De Jong, Ph.D., who served from 1966-68.

The Vander Weele Curriculum Center

The mission of the Curriculum Center is to support the Education Department and Adult Studies Education programs by providing educational materials for the use of teachers in training.

The center is named in honor of Ed Vander Weele, who served the College in a variety of roles including dean of students and education professor.

“Movies as Prayers of Anger and Reconciliation” was the topic of the second WorldView lecture of the 2017-18 year, where Josh Larsen ’96 highlighted scenes from Spike Lee’s Oscar-nominated 1989 film “Do the Right Thing.”

Discussing the film he called Lee’s masterpiece, Larsen said the movie is often seen as an expression of righteous social anger. “But it offers a prayerful hint of reconciliation,” said Larsen, who is co-host of the radio show and podcast “Filmspotting” and film critic of the faith and culture magazine “Think Christian,” and who recently published a book, “Movies Are Prayers.”

Throughout the highly interactive presentation, Larsen showed several clips from the movie, which takes place during one sweltering day in Brooklyn, where conflicts between groups of different races ultimately explodes into violence. After scenes of death and rioting, the movie ends on a potentially more hopeful note. “I’m not saying it’s a happy ending,” Larsen said. “But it doesn’t end with the riot. It ends with the possibility of reconciliation, not anger.” Larsen referred to it as the Bedford-Stuyvesant version of Ephesians 2:14: “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility.”

Along with the issues of anger and reconciliation in the film, the discussion spanned the choice of music in the soundtrack, Lee’s camerawork, and the significance of one character’s decision to wear a Dodger’s Jackie Robinson jersey.

Larsen also addressed the Trinity community at Chapel on Sept. 20, where he talked about “Angry Prayers.”

WorldView is Trinity’s annual community and college series for film, word, current events and music, held at the college.

The next series of WorldView sessions will take place on Oct. 16 and Oct. 18 and commemorate the 500^th year of the Reformation with the perspectives of Protestant and Catholic theologians.On Oct. 16, Dr. Suzanne McDonald, professor of systematic theology at Western Theological Seminary, will discuss “Does the Reformation Still Matter? (Really?!).” On Oct. 18, Dr. Eduardo J. Echeverria ’73, professor of philosophy and systematic theology at Archdiocesan Seminary of Detroit and Sacred Heart Major Seminary Graduate School of Theology, will talk about “Is the Counter-Reformation Over? An Evangelical Catholic Perspective.” Both lectures will take place in the Grand Lobby of Ozinga Chapel.

Trinity Christian College has been ranked 20th among Regional Colleges—Midwest by U.S. News & World Report in “Best Colleges” for 2018, continuing a years-long streak of recognition by the prestigious rankings organization.

“At Trinity Christian College, we know that the world needs wise, faithful, well-educated people—and we are enthusiastically preparing women and men ready to lead with character into whatever field God calls them,” said President Kurt D. Dykstra. “We are proud that U.S. News & World Report has once again ranked Trinity among the best colleges in the Midwest.”

The annual report ranked 1,389 colleges and universities across a range of categories, including regional liberal arts colleges and national universities. Across the entire Regional Colleges category, 324 colleges are ranked in this year’s survey.

The U.S. News rankings are based on qualitative and quantitative information in several categories, including peer assessment, graduation and retention rates, faculty resources, admissions selectivity, financial resources, and alumni giving. Trinity stands among other institutions in the Regional Colleges category that offer a wide range of degree programs in the liberal arts and in fields such as business, education, and nursing.