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News and Events

News & Events Recap

March 2009

  • Kevin S. Groves, an assistant professor of Organizational Theory & Management at the Graziadio School of Business and Management, received the Ascendant Scholar Award from the Western Academy of Management, a non-profit regional division of the US-based National Academy of Management.
  • In a culture saturated with imagery of the ideal physique, many view their bodies as the enemy rather than a sacred temple. The counseling and health centers at Pepperdine University explored this psychological and emotional battle in a convocation event on March 31, in Stauffer Chapel on the Malibu campus.
  • The Latin American Law Students Association celebrated the birthday of civil rights activist, the late Cesar Chavez, on March 31 during a lunch event with former immigration judge and Judge Bruce Einhorn, the Director of the Asylum Clinic and a former immigration judge.
  • Pepperdine University president Andrew K. Benton convened a group of higher education leaders in Los Angeles on March 30 to discuss the potential challenges from the Obama administration's proposals to increase access to higher education. The meeting was attended by more than a 36 college and university presidents and administrative leaders from public and private colleges and universities across the state.
  • Members of the Delta Gamma sorority held their annual philanthropy event, Anchor Splash, on March 28, at the Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool on the Malibu campus, with proceeds benefiting Blind Children's Center, Delta Gamma's chosen charitable cause. The popular event pits sororities, fraternities, and various other campus groups against each other in a synchronized swimming contest.
  • Senior citizens from the Malibu community were treated to a night in "Old Hollywood," at the senior prom held Friday, Mar. 27. The event, sponsored by the Pepperdine Volunteer Center, pairs Pepperdine students with senior prom-goers.
  • On Friday, Mar. 27, the honorable Sandra Day O'Connor gave the third annual William French Smith Memorial Lecture at the Pepperdine School of Law.
  • Pepperdine Executive MBA students Pratish Shah and Froi Lomotan won the $15,000 grand prize at the Fifth Annual Pepperdine University 2009 Business Plan Competition, held Saturday, Mar. 14, and sponsored by Santa Barbara Bank & Trust. The team's proposal for their recently launched venture, Locaxion, specializing in GPS-enabled smart phone applications for golfers, triumphed among the event's four finalists.
  • Dennis Robbins, adjunct professor of American politics at the School of Public Policy (SPP), discussed how constructive change can create a health care plan that Americans feel secure with in a Thursday, Mar. 26th lecture titled, "The Ethical Substrate of an Obama-inspired Health Reform."
  • On Thursday, Mar. 26, Pepperdine celebrated the Pepperdine Voyage program which has enabled students and faculty at Pepperdine to experience new places and reach new heights in their personal journeys. Sponsored by the Lilly Endowment, the initiative aims to provide a "theological exploration of vocation."
  • Pepperdine University's outdoor amphitheatre was transformed into a beauty salon on Monday, Mar. 23, when volunteer stylists set up shop to chop off 10 inches or more of willing participants' hair for Locks of Love.
  • The Seaver College Parents Program introduced the first annual "sealed with a parent's prayer" day on Wednesday, Mar. 25, when parents of Seaver College students gathered in Stauffer Chapel on the Malibu campus, nationally in prayer groups around the country, and internationally, in places as far-reaching as the Philippines and China, to pray for the safety and growth of Seaver students.
  • The Parkening International Guitar Competition, the world's preeminent who's-who of classical guitar, selected 15 stand-out performers representing 10 countries to compete for this year's prize, before the second triennial competition, May 28-30.
  • As part of the Wm. Matthew Byrne, Jr., Judicial Clerkship Institute, Pepperdine University School of Law hosted a discussion titled, "Supreme Court Nominations: The Confirmation Process," featuring ABC News Correspondent Jan Crawford Greenburg and Princeton University Provost Christopher Eisgruber and responses by Dean Ken Starr, Professor Doug Kmiec, and Professor Akhil Amar, on Friday, March 20, at the School of Law.
  • Pepperdine University was named the number two producer of Peace Corps volunteers among all small colleges in California, according to the annual list of Peace Corps' "Top Colleges and Universities."
  • Students from the David Starr Jordan High School and Woodrow Wilson Senior High School, located in South and East Los Angeles, visited Pepperdine University School of Law on Monday, March 9, and had an in-depth law school experience. The 28 students participated in a law class and heard from Antonin Scalia, associate justice of the United States, who spoke in conversation with School of Law Dean Ken Starr.
  • Pepperdine University School of Law welcomed more than 800 students, alumni, faculty, staff, and friends to the 32nd Annual School of Law Dinner on Saturday, Mar. 7, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. The event featured a keynote speech by the Honorable John R. Bolton, former ambassador of the United States to the United Nations.
  • On March 4, Victor Davis Hanson gave his first lecture at Pepperdine University in his capacity as the Spring 2009 William E. Simon Distinguished Visiting Professor at the School of Public Policy. In a lecture titled "Political Challenges Facing the Obama Administration," he argued the reasons why he believes Obama, despite Utopian rhetoric, will learn that many of the decisions he faces offer only bad and worse choices.
  • The School of Law at Pepperdine University was ranked number one for professor accessibility by The Princeton Review for the second year in a row.