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News and event Recap

November 2009

  • Continuing it's successful debut semester of Monday night movie screenings, the Center for Entertainment, Media and Culture at Pepperdine University screened The Blind Side on Monday, Nov. 23, followed by a Q&A with the film's director John Lee Hancock. And on Monday, Nov. 30, a post-screening conversation with James Keach (director/producer) and Trevor Albert (producer) was held for the film, Waiting for Forever.
  • Chinese pianist Di Wu, a finalist at the recent 13th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, opened Pepperdine University's 2009-10 Stotsenberg Recital Series with a performance at Pepperdine's Raitt Recital Hall on Sunday, Nov. 22.
  • Andrew Forcehimes, a senior philosophy major at Seaver College, was one of 10 candidates interviewed for prestigious Rhodes Scholarships from District 16 representing Southern California.
  • The Pepperdine Music Department presented a jazz ensemble performance on Monday, Nov. 23, in the Raitt Recital Hall, conducted by Brian Scanlon, who directs the jazz ensemble program and teaches saxophone.
  • The 2009-10 Clinical Connections series at the Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology hosted psychotherapist Evie Shafner presents, "Imago Relationship Therapy: It Works," on Saturday, Nov. 21, at the Encino Graduate Campus.
  • Published on Nov. 24, 1859, Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species turned 150 in 2009, and on November 20 to 21, Pepperdine University hosted a two-day conference to explore its continued grip on our intellect and imagination.
  • Ronald Numbers, an eminent figure in the history of science and religion, as well as an authority on the historical significance of creationism and creation science, presented "Antievolutionism in America," as part of the Seaver College 2009-10 W. David Baird Distinguished Lecture Series on Thursday, Nov. 19.
  • On Thursday, Nov. 19, assistant professor of religion Dyron Daughrity presented his research in a colloquium titled, "From Sect to Secularization: How Christianity Became the Largest Faith on Earth," as part of the Seaver Faculty Colloquium series.
  • To commemorate November as Native American Heritage Month, Pepperdine University hosted the celebrated Native American actor and physician Evan Adams on Wednesday, Nov. 18, followed by a Native American Heritage Chapel service on Thursday, Nov. 19.
  • The Seaver College Natural Science Division presented a lecture by Stuart Russell, consumer safety officer for the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on Wednesday, Nov. 18. Russell's lecture, "FDA: Opportunities and Challenges," was held in the Keck Science Center on the Malibu campus.
  • The Davenport Institute at Pepperdine's School of Public Policy hosted a Space Policy Symposium on Tuesday, Nov. 17, to address the future of space use and exploration. Students attended a screening of award-winning documentary In the Shadow of the Moon, followed by public lectures from former NASA administrator Bill Bruner and Gil Klinger, director of the Space and Intelligence Office for the Under Secretary of Defense.
  • Four MBA candidates at the Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business and Management took first place in the MBA National Case Competition in Ethical Leadership at Baylor University. The competition included students from business schools around the country, including the University of Notre Dame, the University of Florida, Wake Forest University, and the University of Washington.
  • A new documentary focusing on the travels of actor Gary Sinise and the Lt. Dan Band was pre-screened on Monday, Nov. 16, in Elkins Auditorium, Malibu. Hosted by the Center for Entertainment, Media, and Culture, the film, Lt. Dan Band: For the Common Good, was followed by a Q&A with Sinise, producer/director Jonathan Flora, and executive producer Jay Hoffman.
  • The Women and Public Policy student group hosted Claire Morgan, director of the Social Change Project at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, in a lecture titled, "Ideas for a Free Society," on Monday, Nov. 16 at the School of Public Policy.
  • Daniel A. Rodriguez, associate professor of religion and Hispanic studies, explored what makes Christianity so attractive to a growing population of Chinese people in a lecture to be held on Monday, Nov. 16 on the Malibu campus.
  • During the week of November 12-19, the Pepperdine Volunteer Center coordinated events for the National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, including a Malibu campus camp out, in Joslyn Plaza, starting the night of Sunday, Nov. 15, in which students spent a few days and nights in the shoes of the homeless. On November 19, Al Sturgeon, a law clerk program volunteer with the Public Counsel of Los Angeles—the largest pro bono public interest law firm in the world—spoke to students as part of the Hunger and Homelessness Speaker Series.
  • The Pepperdine men's and women's basketball teams began the 2009-10 season of play with home openers on Friday, Nov. 13, taking on Pacific and Northern Arizona, respectively, in the Firestone Fieldhouse.
  • Approximately 200 high school students and accompanying faculty from 12 different local Southern California high schools visited Pepperdine University on Saturday, Nov. 14, for the third annual Pepperdine Math Day sponsored by the Natural Science department.
  • The musical met the macabre on Thursday, Nov. 12, when the Fine Arts Division at Pepperdine University debuted its fall musical, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on the stage of Smothers Theatre.
  • The Pepperdine Boone Center for the Family presented the sixth annual Savvy Chic, a celebration of fashion, fare, and friends in support of healthy relationships and strong families, on Thursday, November 12, at the Beverly Hills Hotel. This year's theme was "Mothers and Others: Celebrating Women who Shape our Lives."
  • The Office of Intercultural Affairs screened the Christian film, Oversold, on Thursday, Nov. 12 in Malibu's Elkins Auditorium, and hosted a discussion of the film with leading actress Crissy Moran, writer Dave Cowan, and producer Paul Morrell. Former adult entertainment star Moran was interviewed about her religious conversion and exodus from the sex industry.
  • Pepperdine University, in partnership with the Malibu Chamber of Commerce and the City of Malibu, hosted a stirring tribute to America's Veterans on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at the Heroes Garden on the Drescher Graduate campus. Members of the public attended the ceremony, which marked its 10th year of honoring veterans.
  • Pepperdine Libraries presented alumnus Leo Mallette on Wednesday, Nov. 11, at the West Los Angeles Graduate Campus, for a discussion about his two latest books and a Q&A about how to develop ideas for scholarly projects and see them through to fruition.
  • Economist Jerry Ellig came to the Pepperdine Drescher Graduate Campus on Monday, Nov. 9, to discuss the nuts and bolts of how regulation currently works in Washington, D.C., provide information about the trends over the past few decades, and suggest ideas for changing the regulatory process. His presentation begins at 12 noon, in the Drescher Graduate Campus Auditorium, Malibu.
  • The fourth issue of the 2009 Graziadio Business Report, which publishes four times annually, hit the Web in early November and can be read, shared and commented on at http://gbr.pepperdine.edu.
  • Players, sponsors, and auction donors will gather for the 11th Annual Pepperdine Wave Classic Golf Tournament takes place on Monday, Nov. 9, at the Sherwood Country Club, Calif.
  • The Center for Entertainment, Media, and Culture at Pepperdine University hosted a screening of The Stoning of Soraya M., a drama about human rights abuses in Iran, on Monday, Nov. 9 in Elkins Auditorium on the Malibu campus, followed by a panel discussion with directors Betsy and Cyrus Nowrasteh, producers Steve McEveety and John Shepherd, and the stars of the film, Mozhan Marno and Navid Negahban.
  • As part of the Pepperdine University Graduate School of Business and Management's newly revamped emphasis in entrepreneurship, the school hosted a one-day conference, "The Entrepreneur's Journey: Finding, Launching and Growing the Next Big Thing" on Friday, Nov. 6 at the Drescher Graduate Campus in Malibu.
  • The Graduate School of Education and Psychology Clinical Connections series presented psychologist Dr. Margreta Klassen and registered marriage and family therapy intern, Jennifer Catabas, for a workshop about the long-term emotional, social, and physical symptoms of childhood sexual abuse. "Victimized or Victorious" took place at the Irvine Graduate Campus, on Friday, Nov. 6.
  • Pepperdine University School of Public Policy students were featured speakers at the annual conference of the Pacific Coast Council of Latin American Studies (PCCLAS), held on Friday, Nov. 6 at El Camino College in Torrance, California. Led by Luisa Blanco, assistant professor of economics at Pepperdine, the students offered an analysis of current public policy issues in Latin America.
  • The Associated Women for Pepperdine hosted its 2009 Fall Festival boutique from on Friday, Nov. 6 on the Malibu campus as a fundraiser for the organization, which offers financial assistance and service for the Christian students at Pepperdine University.
  • On Thursday, Nov. 5, the Pepperdine Libraries and Graduate School for Education and Psychology hosted an interview and book signing with author and alumna Leslie Landis about her new book, The Art of Overeating: A Bellyful of Laughs About Our Food Phobic Culture.
  • Kristine Kaiser, a doctoral candidate in biology at UCLA, discussed the findings of her research on noise and amphibian decline in a lecture as part of the Natural Science Division's ongoing seminar series. The lecture, "When Sounds Collide: Anthropogenic Noise and Amphibian Declines," took place on November 4.
  • On November 4, public leaders joined Anthony Collatos, assistant professor of education at the Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Pyschology, in a public event titled, "Bridging the Divide: Shifting Demographics in Los Angeles."
  • The master of fine arts (MFA) program in Screen and Television Writing at Seaver College hosted Dean Batali, a writer for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and executive producer of That 70's Show, who shared his experience as a Christian in a Hollywood writers' room on Wednesday, November 4.
  • The Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University continued the Dean's Executive Leadership Series on November 4 with Brian T. Moynihan, president of consumer and small business banking at Bank of America.
  • Professors Gary Cobb and Jane Ganske performed an organ recital of music in the Reformation tradition on November 3, in Malibu's Stauffer Chapel. The "Reformation Celebration" performance featured Grant Bryan accompanying Cobb and Ganske on the trombone.
  • The Diane and Guilford Glazer Institute for Jewish Studies hosted its inaugural conference on November 2 to explore its central mission of reconciliation of the children of Abraham. "Finding Common Ground: Reconciliation Among the Children of Abraham" brought together leaders from the three great monotheistic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—to focus on shared issues that unite the three communities.