A Bachelor of Arts in Health Care Administration was approved. The new degree completion program will begin in August at the North Fresno Center. The program will prepare graduates to develop, plan, lead and manage health care operations and services. Instruction will cover planning, business and financial management, public relations, human resources management, systems operation, policy making and law, all as they apply to heath care. The program has attracted a $100,000 grant from Fresno's Isnardi Foundation.
Board members discussed the campaign to build a performing arts center. The PAC Building Committee, composed of administrators, faculty, staff and board members, has met several times to set requirements for the center's structure and layout. Next steps will be to seek proposals on preliminary designs and cost estimates from architectural firms. The goal is to construct a building that will help FPU gain accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM), as well as future accreditation for the theater and visual arts programs.
The board also approved
- Purchasing land from neighboring Butler Church. The vacant lot is on the northeast corner of Butler and Winery avenues, across from the church building. Fundraising for the project has begun.
- Establishing the Extending Our Reach Fund for the seminary to explore new options in seminary education. Among the ideas discussed so far is a possible pastoral residency program.
- Granting emeritus status to Ron Claassen, D. Min., professor of peacemaking and conflict studies/leadership studies; Wayne Huber, M.A., associate professor of music; and Jo Ellen Misakian, M.L.S., associate professor of teacher librarian program. All three retired this spring, along with Jay Barrett, M.Ed., assistant professor of special education; Vivian Gayles, Ed.D., assistant professor of teacher education; and Larry Metzler, M.A., assistant professor of education.
- Promoting Mark Baker, Ph.D., to professor of theology; Greg Camp, Ph.D., to professor of biblical and religious studies/Greek; Fran Martens Friesen, M.A., to assistant professor of humanities; Henrietta Siemens, Ph.D., to associate professor of education; and Diane Talbot, Ed.D., to professor of school counseling.
- Hiring Ronald Herms, Ph.D., as dean of the School of Humanities, Religion and Social Sciences. Since 2006, Herms has had several positions at Northwest University, Kirkland, WA, including associate and assistant professor of biblical studies and Master of Arts in Theology & Culture program director and instructor. From 2008-2012 he was also on the preaching team of Pleasant Bay Church, Kirkland. He has a doctorate is from the University of Durham, UK; a master's from Regent University, Vancouver, BC, Canada; and a B.A. from Northwest.
- Hiring Susan Cox as assistant professor of business, Hannah Keeney as archivist and Michael Allen as assistant provost for records and research. Cox has an Ed.D. from the University of California, Davis/California State University, Fresno; Keeney will complete her M.L.S. with archives specialization from Indiana University-Bloomington in May 2014; and Allen has an M.P.M. and MBA from Keller Graduate School of Management and an M.Div. from Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary (now Fresno Pacific Biblical Seminary.) Allen came to FPU in 2012 as student success coordinator and also served as director of institutional research.
- A sabbatical for Steve Pauls, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry, for the 2014-2015 academic year.
Board members also enjoyed a poster session in the AIMS Hall Atrium describing many of the university's programs (pictured).