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Thanks to her recent participation in the prestigious Mary T. Washington Wylie Internship Preparation Program, accounting major Indira Escalante ’19 has secured an internship at Deloitte, made valuable connections, and gained a better understanding of the accounting industry.

Escalante, who is a native of Honduras and a graduate of Hoffman Estates [Ill.] High School, was one of only 25 students accepted into three-day program, which took place in January. The annual event, which is organized by the Illinois CPA Society (ICPAS) and sponsored by the CPA Endowment Fund of Illinois’ Mary T. Washington Wylie Opportunity Fund and other private firms and public accounting firms, is designed to launch minority college students into the accounting profession.

“I’m grateful for the team that worked really hard to support us through our application process, through the program, and after the program,” said Escalante, who first heard about the program from Dr. Lynn Spellman White, professor of accounting. “I learned valuable information about job opportunities in accounting, was given the opportunity to start networking and build relationships with people in the field, and I learned a lot about what I need to start working on to prepare for the CPA exam and my career.”

According to White, Escalante is the first Trinity student to be accepted into the program. “Indira is a fantastic student, and this is an incredible opportunity,” White said. “She has the heart to serve in God’s kingdom, and every industry needs accountants and those with financial literacy.”

Throughout the program, Escalante and other participants stayed in downtown Chicago and attended workshops and sessions at the ICPAS headquarters. “Each day, we heard from a panel of professionals in public accounting and accountants in private organizations. We also had presentations by guest speakers from PricewaterhouseCoopers, Sikich, Deloitte, Ernst and Young, Crowe Horwath, Abbott, and DePaul University on topics about resume building, interview skills, business etiquette, CPA exam preparation, working styles and skills, mentorship, and internship expectations and preparation. At the end of the program, the participants got to interview with three to four recruiters from various public accounting firms for accounting internships.”

Escalante and the other participants also learned more about Wylie, the first female African-American CPA in the United States. In 1939, Wylie founded her own firm, known today as Washington, Pittman & McKeever. “We learned about her dream of seeing African American and other minority students succeed as accountants. Due to systematic racism and sexism, it was very challenging for her to succeed in a field with a predominant white, male population. Her story is very inspiring to me,” Escalante said.

Participating in the program has already led to an internship, she said. “One of my interviewers at the program works at Deloitte. A few days after the program, I was contacted by the recruiter from Deloitte, who had given a presentation at the program. I was given the opportunity to be interviewed by the firm again,” she said. Escalante recently found out she has been accepted into Deloitte’s summer internship program, known as the Discovery Internship. “I know that this will definitely prepare me well for a career in accounting,” she said.

Dr. Clay Carlson, Ph.D., associate professor of biology, recently returned to campus and regular teaching duties after eight months of sabbatical. “I realized there are no cycles of scholarship, but only curves,” he said. “I spent time thinking about St. Athanasius and whether or not science can offer a worldview.”

Carlson said he accepted sabbatical as a spiritual discipline. “It was a letting go of responsibility so that I am reminded my value comes from God alone.”

Among his projects, Carlson wrote several articles and participated in several panels during his sabbatical, including:

• Thinking with your gut: Gut microbes and their influence on gene expression in the brain. Eastern Michigan University, Chemistry Seminar. Fall 2017. Invited lecturer.
• Is a scientific worldview at odds with a religious one? Eastern Michigan University, Special Event. Fall 2017. Invited Panel Member.
• Writing about science for the church: moving from conflict to thoughtfulness and from fear to gratitude. Dordt College; Culture, Criticism and the Christian mind. Fall 2017.
• Patristics, Genomics, and Finding God in the Cell. Calvin College; Christian Perspectives in Science: Human Origins Seminar Series. Fall 2017. Invited lecture.

Carlson has also recently received a grant from the Scholarship & Christianity in Oxford to participate in the Oxford Interdisciplinary Seminars in Science and Religion: Bridging the Two Cultures of Science and the Humanities II 2017-19. The project is run by SCIO, the UK subsidiary of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities, with funding by Templeton Religion Trust and The Blankemeyer Foundation. His goal project involves seeking wisdom from the Church Fathers to help guide the Church when engaging and challenging science today.

Trinity is a member of Christian Colleges & Universities (CCCU), and College faculty were invited to apply for the grant. This was the second time Carlson applied. “The first time I applied three years ago, I was a finalist, but didn’t make the cut,” he said. The pool of applicants come from nearly every academic discipline and from all over the world,” he said. “My application from three years ago shaped my science and faith research through the years since. I think the productivity I had from that failed grant proposal enabled my current proposal to be accepted.”

Carlson’s sabbatical wasn’t all work, though. “I also watched ‘Stranger Things’ on Netflix,” he joked.

As part of the College Honors Program’s partnership with Ozinga, Inc. and Many Hands for Haiti (MH4H), the Honors Program recently hosted a panel that provided insights into ongoing research on Trinity’s campus and, for two weeks each May, in Pignon, Haiti.

The panelists included:

• Edvard Stevenson Janvier, an electronic engineer who received seminary training at Wheaton and works as a translator;
• Annie Vander Werff, executive director of the Community Health Initiative;
• Alexis Emmanuella, a native of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, who has been trained as a seminarian in the United States;
• Stuart Dykstra, senior vice president, international water of V3; and
• Serena Buffalino, a Canadian activist who builds schools in Haiti.

Dr. Lenore Knight Johnson, assistant professor of sociology; Dr. Aaron Kuecker, Trinity’s provost; Dr. Craig Mattson, professor of communication arts and director of the Honors Program; Tim Brand, president of MH4H, and Aaron Ozinga, president of Ozinga Materials & Logistics, also attended.

The panel was part of an initiative that will allow Trinity students to prepare for, conduct, and report on significant field research in Haiti.

The partnership between MH4H, Ozinga, and the Honors Program began to come about in the Fall 2016, when Brand approached Kuecker and Mattson with an idea for hosting Trinity students in Pignon at the MH4H campus, so they could study aspects of Haitian culture and collaborate on development work ongoing by MH4H staff.

In May of the following semester, Mattson joined a team of Trinity students for service work in Pignon. The success of that trip spurred the conversations between Trinity, MH4H, and Ozinga. Ozinga executives showed great enthusiasm for the project and committed to significantly underwriting the cost of the trip for the students and accompanying faculty. Kuecker and Mattson then designed a provisional working document describing the goals of the project:

• –To respond to a gathering by the Triune God of an inter-institutional collaboration between MH4H, Ozinga Brothers, and Trinity that is dedicated to problem-solving research and service that extends flourishing within Haiti and among partner institutions.
• –To intensify the leadership formation of Trinity’s Honors Program through reflective service and immersive research.
• –To join entrepreneurial and academic energies for the sake of inter-disciplinary problem-solving in Haiti.

The goal of the partnership is to allow Trinity students to engage deeply in the culture and history of Haiti, the challenges, opportunities, and abuses that can be connected with development work, and interdisciplinary problem-solving research that aims to respond to real-time opportunities and challenges in Haiti.

Trinity is pleased to announce its 2017 Alumni of the Year, who were recognized on Dec. 9 at an awards ceremony and luncheon at the President’s Residence.

“We honor and celebrate four people who have made a lasting impact on the College,” said Brad Laninga ’89, Director of Alumni and Donor Relations.

• Alumni of the Year – Vinnie Adams ’10

Adams serves as Special Needs Ministry Director at Faith Church in Dyer, Ind. A special education major at Trinity, Adams was recognized for his compassion and ability to treat every person with dignity. Laninga quoted Ryan Matthysse, Worship & Arts Director at Faith Church: “Vinnie exhibits Christ-likeness by extending grace and love to the marginalized and often overlooked in this world and even in the church. This is evident in his ministry and his life.”

The Alumni of the Year Award is given to a Trinity graduate who has made significant contributions to their field of endeavor, been recognized by their associates for outstanding achievements through vocation or volunteerism; manifest Christian commitment that glorifies God and reflects on the mission of Trinity Christian College; and maintains a connection to the College with time, talent, and resources.

• Honorary Alumni (Faculty) – Dr. Helen Van Wyck

Van Wyck is professor of music and director of choral activities and has been on the faculty at Trinity since 1987. She was recognized for her intense caring for students, love for her work and her devotion to the music program and her craft—and of course, for her love of Bach, noted Dan Thayer ’12, who introduced her.

• Honorary Alumni (Staff) – Mary Tambrini

Tambrini, who attended Trinity from 1969-71, is catering manager for the College. “Mary does everything with a calm spirit, a can-do way and is always willing to try new things,” noted Leah Dykstra, who introduced Tambrini. “We are grateful for the amazing amount of experience she brings to Trinity, for the way she loves her staff, and the way her staff works and loves her. We’re grateful that she keeps our coffee hot, our stomachs full, and our hearts happy.”

• Honorary Alumni (Friends) – Robert Buikema

Buikema chairs the Board of Trustees at the College and is married to Danette Buikema ’81. “They are an incredible couple,” said Trinity President Kurt D. Dykstra in his introduction. “They are people who care deeply about matters of faith, deeply about matters of family, and deeply about how institutions like Trinity live out and do our mission being faithful transmitters of the incredible gifts we’ve been given for the next generation. They are wonderful, wonderful people who have served this College so well.”

To watch a recording of the Alumni Awards, click here.

Trinity has named  Miranda Kortenhoeven of Denver a recipient of the 2018 Founders’ Scholarships. The Founders’ Scholarship is a renewable, full-tuition award available annually.

Kortenhoeven attends Denver Christian High School, where she is student body president and is involved with National Honor Society. She participates in basketball and soccer, and plans to play for Trinity’s Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) champion women’s soccer team.

“Miranda is an articulate communicator, whose quick thinking displays a sophisticated understanding of meaning and context,” said members of the Founders’ Scholarship Selection Committee. “She displays an enthusiastic and joyful integration of academic discipline with the College’s mission.”

The Founders’ Scholarship

The Founders’ Scholarship is a renewable, full-tuition award available. Applicants must:

• Meet the criteria for Trinity’s President’s Honors Scholarship
• Exhibit leadership in their church, school, or community
• Display evidence of personal faith in Jesus Christ

Take an inventory of the very special gifts in your life, and remember that these things are fragile, temporary, and on loan. That is the advice that Wayne Messmer, a local legend for his performances of the National Anthem, recently offered at the final WorldView lecture of 2017.

“As easily as they have been given, those gifts can be taken away,” said Messmer, who has a 2016 World Series ring from the Chicago Cubs, for the number of times he has sung the National Anthem for the team. “Use them. Respect them. Share them.”

Messmer understands how important it is to treasure our gifts. On April 9, 1994, he was shot in the throat during an attempted robbery following a Chicago Blackhawks game. After the shooting, Messmer underwent 10 hours of surgery, and it was unclear for months if he would ever be able to sing again. He credits his recovery to his faith, friends, and family, particularly the encouragement of his wife Kathleen. “She told me that we shouldn’t accept anything except complete recovery,” he said.

Six months later, Messmer’s voice recovered enough to allow him to sing the National Anthem at the inaugural home game for the Chicago Wolves, a minor league hockey team Messmer helped found. Despite finding his voice again, Messmer still felt a great deal of anger toward the 15 year old and 16 year old who were involved in the attempted robbery and shooting. “I realized the only antidote for revenge is forgiveness.” So Messmer eventually visited the older teenager in prison, where they spoke for 2.5 hours. “Somewhere, sometime, someone has to break the chain of hatred and revenge.”

Messmer also discussed how he had four goals that got him through his darkest days after the shooting: to not let anyone ever steal from him the opportunity to sing with his wife; to see the Wolves become a success; to record an album; and to sing the National Anthem for the Chicago Cubs at a World Series game. On Oct. 30, 2016, he was able to realize a version of each of those goals. During that one memorable day, he sang for friends at a party. He serenaded his wife with songs from his album, “So Lucky to be Loving You.” And he sang the National Anthem at a Wolves game before heading straight to Wrigley Field to sing the same song before Game 5 of the World Series.

“And the kicker is, I decided to wear the same shoes I was wearing on the day I was shot,” he said. “It was a symbolic victory for me.”

Messmer mixed his talk with several songs, including leading the audience in singing the “Star-Spangled Banner.” He closed by paraphrasing Lou Gehrig: “We all have so much to live for.”

While controversies have always been part of public discourse, the situation has become even more fraught in recent years, according to Marilyn McEntyre, a writer and professor of medical humanities at the University of California, Berkeley-University of California, San Francisco Joint Medical Program, who presented the 2017 Freshman Lecture.

“Over the past several decades, public conversation has been riddled with new difficulties,” McEntyre told the students, faculty, and community members who gathered in Ozinga Chapel Auditorium for this year’s lecture, which was titled “Preparing for Public Conversation.” “The sheer volume of information available now means that we have to sift through more data than ever before. There is a lot of noise competing with the ‘still, small voice’ that Elijah heard,” said McEntyre, whose books include “Caring for Words in a Culture of Lies.”

According to McEntyre, too many people are comfortable with the use of alternative facts today. “We don’t push back nearly enough. We are stewards of words, just as we are with other resources,” she said.

She suggested several stewardship strategies for engaging in public conversation:

• Love words
• Tell the truth
• Don’t tolerate lies
• Read well
• Share stories
• Love the long sentence
• Practice poetry
• Play
• Ask for definitions
• Unmask euphemisms
• Tell the truth slant
• Find facts and check them
• Honor the complexities
• Claim your logic
• Find an alternative to “winning”
• Remember that words are acts, and make them acts of love

Following the lecture, the audience participated in a question and answer session and workshops.

Trinity’s annual Freshman Lecture enriches the core experience for freshman students by engaging them in a challenging but enjoyable learning opportunity outside the classroom setting. Though organized by the English Department and contextualized in the Composition or Introduction to Literature classroom, the Freshman Lecture aims to be interdisciplinary and perspectival. It offers listeners new avenues of reflection on such topics as cultural engagement, learning, communication, and personhood. Typically, the lectures draw interested senior students and faculty members as well.