Category: Stories In Focus

Imagine you see Professor of Communication, Douglas Gaerte, and three people from the advancement office sit down at a small table for dinner in the dining hall. The automatic assumption would be that this is a business dinner. It is just as likely, however, that you are witnessing a family dinner. Doug, his wife, and their two children Andrew Gaerte and Emily Spateholts all work for Houghton College.

The Gaerte family hasn’t always been associated with Houghton. Doug and his wife Phyllis met and started dating at Grace College in Indiana, a college not entirely unlike Houghton. Doug said they had a great experience there and upon graduation he decided he wanted to do something similar. The couple had family in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, so Gaerte sent resumés to colleges all over the North East. At that time Houghton had a communication professor who was looking to retire, and Doug was offered the job. According to Doug their original plan was to only stay for a couple years, but they fell in love with the are the wonderful students, and colleagues they found here.

They stayed and Phyllis began work for Houghton as the Director of Alumni and Community Engagement. When it was time for Emily and Andrew to choose their prospective colleges, they both said their parents encouraged them to look elsewhere. However, they knew the people here and knew they could get a great education at Houghton.  Ultimately, both Andrew and Emily decided to attend Houghton.

Andrew graduated from Houghton in 2008 and returned in October 2013, to take the position of  Regional Director of Development at Houghton. He said he was never opposed to coming back to Houghton, but never planned on it. However, he realized that Houghton was doing new and exciting things and he wanted to be a part of it.

Emily Gaerte, now Spateholts, graduated in 2012. After graduation she worked in the campus store as the office and course materials manager. She left in the Spring of 2014 to help her friends start a business. When the business was established, she returned in January 2015 as the Development and Reunion Specialist.

The Gaertes all mentioned how much they enjoy working together. Since three of them work in  the Advancement Offices, their jobs tend to overlap. Emily mentioned how she specifically enjoys getting to work together on something they are all passionate about.  Another unique opportunity this offers is for parent and child collaborations. Doug and Andrew were able to team up with Professor Ryann Cooley, the Associate Professor of Digital Media and Photography, and get the college a $10,000 grant for a new lighting studio. Doug summed up their family’s involvement best when he said “the mission of Houghton College has become such an important thing for our family”. By working together they can serve their family and the college they have all grown to love.

Students and Faculty Work Side by Side

While most students spend their summer sitting by the pool, traveling, or working, this summer a group of students spent their summer on campus, conducting research and experiments.

Physics professor Mark Yuly, helps lead and guide students through research each summer.“It’s a time when professors and students can work on research projects during the summer… and stuff.” Yuly laughed. “It’s nice, because during that time—during the rest of the year, professors and students are still working on research, but in the summer you can really focus.”

According to its webpage, the Summer Research Institute (SRI) allows students “to interact with faculty in a much more collaborative sense than in the classroom setting” through research in physics, chemistry, biology, math or computer science. This research ranges from studying genetic modifications in influenza viruses, to exploring spam message detection on Twitter.

Yuly has been involved with the SRI since it began, writing the initial proposal for the program. He then worked with computer science professor Wei Hu to make the SRI a reality.

Hu is the director of the SRI. He coordinates the research projects, in addition to doing his own research with students each year. Hu said he and Yuly met with Ron Oakerson, the Dean of the College, in 2006, and received approval to launch the program in 2007.

Seniors August ‘Gus’ Gula and Thomas Eckert worked with Yuly this summer on research involving inertial confinement fusion (ICF). Yuly explained ICF as a process “when you take a little tiny pellet of nuclear fuel and hit it with laser beams from every direction.” This results in an implosion which is incredibly dense and hotter than the core of the sun.

Unfortunately, the scientific instruments which may be used to study the implosion are too delicate to withstand the experiment. Therefore, as an alternative, scientists “put a piece of carbon in [the test chamber], a piece of graphite, and the neutrons that are coming out of the explosion cause the graphite to undergo a nuclear reaction.” This can hopefully be used to determine what happened inside the implosion, said Yuly.

For this technique to work, scientists need to know “how likely it is that a neutron would interact with the graphite and not just go right through it,” said Yuly. Until recently, no one knew what that likelihood was, so Yuly and his two students spent the summer finding out.

Yuly’s days at the SRI started early. “A typical day for me would be to get here at 5:30, and work for a couple hours before Gus and Thomas came,” Yuly said.

Once the students arrived, they would meet with Yuly to review their plans for the day. Each student had a focus area, tailored to their individual strengths. “Thomas mostly worked on simulating the experiment using computer codes,” said Yuly. “Gus primarily worked on collecting data.”

The objective of the research project, according to Yuly, was gradually tweaking and improving Eckert’s simulation, so it coincided with the data Gula collected. Yuly said by the end of the summer, all the collected data, aside from one set of results that Yuly is “still not completely sure” about, aligned with the final simulation Eckert had created.

For science students interested in going to graduate school and someday carrying out their own research, hands-on experience during undergraduate school is crucial, said Yuly. “You won’t get [research experience] in a graduate school unless you have some experience that you can point to.” he said. Yuly said the reason graduate programs want students with hands-on experience is because it teaches them key skills that will help them in later research.He said, “You learn a lot of things that you wouldn’t learn just by taking a normal class or listening to a lecture.”

According to Hu, faculty members benefit from the program, as well, “Our SRI faculty learn how to work with students in research, which is not possible in a standard course work.”

While some students may be waiting for a “ring by spring”, four current Houghton students are learning what it’s like to be a student while being married. Juniors Rachel Brunea and Dan Bellerose, as well as seniors Cherith Sylor and Ben Yuly got married over the summer.

Rachel and Dan met as freshman and dated for a year before they got engaged. Both Rachel and Dan lived in the dorms their first two years.  Now they live with their dog Mandy in a rented apartment on route 19.

Cherith and Ben first met in second grade when they played on the same T-ball team.  They forgot about each other after attending separate middle and high schools, but met again during their first year at Houghton. The couple dated for six months before they got engaged. Both Ben and Cherith have been commuters throughout their time at Houghton and are now living in a rented apartment, attached to a professor’s house, on Fancher Drive.  

Although it is a lot of responsibility, both couples have enjoyed having a sense of freedom as well as leaving the dorm atmosphere and living in a real house. Rachel commented, “It’s been a little stressful as we are both working 15-20 hours every week and doing school. It’s been difficult doing that as well as home life and making time for friends.”

In taking on the responsibility that comes with being married, one of their biggest challenges has been finances, both Rachel and Dan doubled their work hours in order to pay rent and taxes.

Dan said, “We had to form a plan and realize, sometimes school isn’t always the most important thing. It’s easy to get sucked into work and school, but it’s important to make sure Rachel and I spend time together.” The couple reflected on a time they got home from classes and instead of doing homework right away, went to Moss Lake, to spend time together.

While being married in college can be difficult, it also has its advantages. As the dynamics of social life around campus have changed for both couples, they have enjoyed the changes and feel like they are not missing out on college life.

On the weekends Rachel and Dan try to fit in everything they haven’t been able to do during the week, like hanging out with friends. The couple take their dog for a walk every Saturday, and carpool with friends to Mt. Irenaeus every Sunday morning for Church. However, despite being busy, the couple has been striving in the classroom. Dan said, “Academically, this has been my best semester yet.”

Cherith and Ben have also had to adjust to the daily life of marriage, but overall they have felt it is less stressful. In the past it was very difficult to try and find time to spend together because they were both commuters, living in separate towns, without cars. While they still don’t have a car, it is much more convenient to be with each other.

Cherith’s father works at Houghton, so she would have to rely on his schedule to get a ride to and from school every day. She commented, “It has been great to sleep in a little bit, walk to school when I’m ready, and just come home and hangout at the end of the day.”

Ben and Cherith eat all their meals at home together and enjoy supporting local businesses when they go out. Ben commented, “Dinner’s not always glorious, sometimes that means ramen on the couch while watching TV, but we love getting to share our meals together.”

On the weekend, they catch up on homework from a busy week and attend church every Sunday. Since both of their families live close, they try to  see them at least once a week. Ben commented, “We see our families pretty consistently on Sunday or we invite them over during the week.”

Since they were both commuting from home, Ben and Cherith have enjoyed the freedom of living away from their parents. They have felt like they have more independence and control in their lives. Ben said, “It’s nice to have our own place to go back to and get away from people when we want.  You can force yourself to relax.”

Cherith commented, “It’s been difficult trying to juggle being my mom and being a student.” In the past both Cherith and Ben could focus on school and work while their parents took care of the house. Now, they have had to create a plan to take on all of the responsibility.

Through the busyness of school life both couples agreed that they still see friends as much as usual. They’ve really enjoyed having a place where they can invite friends. Cherith commented, “We spent more time with friends now because we have a place to invite them to.”

With graduation quickly approaching, both couples have started thinking about future plans. Ben and Cherith will graduate this spring. The couples will move out of Houghton after graduation and travel to a new home based on the outcome of Ben’s grad school applications for Fall 2016.

Dan and Rachel will study abroad in Tanzania this spring semester and will be the first married students to enroll in Houghton’s Tanzania program. Following graduation in 2017, the couple wants to move to Oregon where Dan will attend grad school and Rachel will find a job working with plants and botany.

While Ben, Cherith, Dan and Rachel are all living different lives compared to most college students, through their marriages, they are really very similar to regular students. They take on the same activities and schedules of the everyday student. Marriage has simply made their relationship easier as they get to be with each other every step of the way in a home they can enjoy together.

As you walk into the counseling office in the Campus Center, you immediately feel welcomed by a smile, beautiful paintings, and a quiet atmosphere. This sense of acceptance continues as you walk into Bill Burrichter’s office, the new Director of Counseling Services at Houghton. After graduating from Houghton, Burrichter thought it would be great to return to Houghton someday. Now, 23 years later, he’s back.

While speaking with Burrichter, he reflected on his time in Lancaster, PA where he has spent most of his life. He also spent time working in the Boston area, Philadelphia, and even spent a year in Venezuela. In Venezuela, he served as a house parent alongside his wife, who served as a school nurse where he counseled. “I kept trying to go other places, Burrichter said, but God kept bringing me back to the Lancaster area,” he said. After meeting his wife at a summer camp in Pennsylvania and then marrying, they they pursued their common goal of overseas missions. However, their plan to stay overseas was short-lived when they felt God calling them back home to the U.S. Burrichter said, “Sometimes His path doesn’t make sense to us, but He directs them in ways that we never would’ve imagined.”

Burrichter graduated from Houghton with a Bachelor’s degree in psychology and a minor in sociology. Following his four years at Houghton, he went on to graduate  school at Villanova for counseling and later earned his doctorate from Walden University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Burrichter and his wife now have three kids, who are still making the transition from Lancaster to Houghton. He reiterated, “God has a plan” and is hoping to buy a farm near Houghton for their family and their pets.

Burrichter worked in Lancaster for 15 years, including teaching at Lancaster Bible College, where he started and directed a counseling center for students. While teaching full-time and working at a private practice in addition to his work in the counseling center, Burrichter was contacted by Michael Lastoria , the former counseling director, about the position at Houghton. Lastoria told him that he was retiring and Burrichter fairly quickly declined. After receiving more emails from Houghton faculty about the position opening, Burrichter decided to ask his wife and kids about the job. Upon hearing their approval instead of the “no’s” he was expecting, Burrichter knew he should listen to God. He applied and was offered the job last April after extensive interviews.

When asked about his passion for counseling and reaching students, he replied , “Seeing lives changed, seeing lives impacted by the services they get, it keeps you going.” His love for counseling can be traced back to the  Introduction to Psychology Burrichter took with Professor Richard Stegen, in which he realized he wanted to interact with people and help them. Burrichter also said, “One of the things I think is really cool about Houghton is that it has a Christian faith foundation.” For Burrichter, “the ability to freely integrate [his] faith with what [he does]… and to be able to talk about faith issues is pretty exciting.”

Burrichter is happy to be back at Houghton, to see students and how far they have come and will come, and to be back to the slower pace of life in our open and rural community.

Walking on good intentions is like walking on clouds: it sounds beautiful in theory, but lacks enough substance to support true progress. Good intentions lack the practicality that encourages individuals to seek tangible opportunities for change. This type of change starts from the roots and slowly climbs towards the surface. As a globally engaged campus, social justice issues are at the forefront of Houghton students’ minds. As college students, are there practical ways for action to transcend mere intention? Chris Way, class of 2012 offers an application for this query. The application is enhanced by an abstract cognitive exercise in human relationship that aids in the physical incarnation of development strategies. Way and Princess Nabintu Kabaya began a collaborative work called The Atinga Project. Way works with a team of artisans who create sandals made from repurposed tires. The simple, durable design is not only a resilient shoe, but also a powerful metaphor for Christ-centered relationships. The three core values of the Atinga project: dignity, honor, and humility give diverse meaning to this metaphor.

This three-dimensional value statement applies to many forms. For example, the dignity of artisans is protected when a fair wage is received for the product. Junior International development major, Emily Barry, interned with the Atinga project this past summer as a communications and social media representative. In her work, she conducted research on the average Rwandan salary as published by the World Bank compared to an artisan employed in fair wage artisanship. She found that fair trade artisans make more per year than the average Rwandan. This is one way of directly restoring economic dignity. For this reason, buying fair trade is crucial for restoring dignity to the individual artist and to the art form. According to Barry, fair trade is saying, “I’m doing something, I’m doing it responsibly, and we’re doing it together.” Supply and demand then becomes a collaborative effort of human relationship on an international scale.

Furthermore, artisans honor and protect the environment by recycling a product that might otherwise prove harmful for the atmosphere. Tire waste emits toxins and attracts unwanted pests. As the international demand for Atinga sandals increases, potentially harmful waste has a reliable means of re-entry into a productive market.  

Contributors to the global market engage in a mutual learning relationship because of this exchange of goods and ideas. But sometimes “mutual empowerment” and “mutual learning” according to Barry, are romanticized on a global scale. However, These are more challenging ideas when applied to individual relationships. To embrace the Atinga Project slogan, “Walk a Mile in Their Shoes” is to walk in close connection with the people we encounter everyday. With this slogan, Way encourages Houghton students to “listen with love” as everyday opportunities to learn and grow with fellow classmates present themselves. To listen with love is a response to the Biblical mandate of Proverbs 12:15 to “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.” Consumerism can no longer be about an economic transaction.

Part of the Atinga mission is to walk alongside someone with a humble attitude in order to listen to the needs of another person. The mission is to acknowledge that behind every headline there are individual stories. With global and local interactions, relating to others in a dignifying, honoring, and humbling way gives motion back to the wheel in its reconstructed state.

If you are interested in learning more about the Atinga Project, please visit atingaproject.com or check out their display in the campus store.

“My typical day thus far has been anything but typical,” said Amanda Irwin, member of the Class of 2015. After graduating last spring, Amanda moved to Buffalo to work with the Wesley Service Corps.

“Moving to Buffalo has bombarded me with diversity, my race, and understanding a new concept of community,” Irwin wrote in a recent e-mail interview. “The support of fellow Houghton students in the area has been great and extremely helpful – I don’t know that I could have done this program without that.”

Stephanie Smith, Director of Wesley Service Corps (WSC) and Houghton alumna from the Class of 2007, noted that sixteen Houghton graduates are currently engaged with the program, which was established in 2010. She said that it grew from the many connections Houghton students were building in Buffalo as student teachers, summer AmeriCorps project participants, and full-time AmeriCorps workers. WSC also built upon the work of former Houghton professor Dr. Chuck Massey and the relationships which he had developed in the city. According to Smith, Wesley Service Corps now encompasses year-long opportunities for recent Houghton grads through AmeriCorps as well as Buffalo Urban Mission Partnership (BUMP). The latter, as stated on their website, is a “collaboration of churches and ministries in Buffalo for the purpose of equipping and training women and men for Kingdom work in the City.” This equipping and training, the webpage says, is done through living and worshipping together in fellowship, studying urban missions,  and serving others through non-profit organizations and local churches.

Since beginning the WSC program, Irwin has been grant-writing, working with her hands to assemble things like a candy machine, and compiling a newsletter for senior citizens in the area where she lives. “I go to work every day trying to anticipate the solutions to problems I may be faced with and never really knowing what might arise,” Irwin commented. She lives only two and a half blocks from her office, with two fellow Houghton graduates who are also participating in AmeriCorps programs.

As an AmeriCorps VISTA, Irwin serves a nonprofit agency known as Concerned Ecumenical Ministry, on the west side of Buffalo. According to her description, this organization runs facilities housing youth directors, support centers for Congolese and Burmese communities, a church known as the Dream Center, case managers for service to senior citizens, and a ceramics collective. Assisting with administrative work for the organization, Irwin is in charge of managing room rentals and communicating building maintenance issues to a board of directors.  “I had to learn quickly, be unafraid to ask questions, and be confident enough in myself to make decisions,” she said.

Smith also pointed out that the Wesley Service Corps is not only for alumni. Summer programs through AmeriCorps are available for current students, as well. These include urban agricultural youth development programs and ESL programs for refugee students. There are approximately twelve to fourteen slots in these programs each year.

“Wesley Service Corps members get to engage in a highly formative service experience that is well beyond a typical entry level job,” commented Smith.  “While there are inherent challenges, such as navigating cultural barriers, living at poverty level, and finding work/life balance when surrounded with so much need, these are part of what make WSC opportunities so deeply formative and meaningful.” These sentiments are shared by Irwin, who writes, “This is definitely not for everyone.  But if you have a ready heart and an open mind than it is possible to experience some really amazing things.”

According to Smith, “These WSC members are infusing life, energy, and passion into the communities they serve, reaching beyond themselves and entering into the story of thousands of Buffalonians.”

Houghton Student Enterprises (HSE) is a student-led organization that prepares students with real-life experience through their interactions and work with businesses on campus and in the community. It primarily focuses on building business experience for students in a higher level collegiate environment where students are able to learn valuable communication, teamwork, and leadership skills.  

Under President Joseph Gilligan ‘17 there are vice presidents in each department: Finance, Graphic Design, Marketing, New Ventures, Houghton Events Group, Highlander Concessions, and Consulting Group. VP of Marketing Anna Coryell ‘18 said, “I keep all of the social media platforms up to date including HSE’s and Highlander Concessions’ Facebook page, Instagram page, and Twitter, make flyers and other media related documents for events, do market research on students to get a feel on how they can do their job better, and [we] run marketing campaigns to get ourselves out there so people know about us more.” Coryell is also lead on the Hilton Head Economic Impact Analysis Consulting Group which is working with the Golfweek Amateur Golf Tour in Hilton Head, South Carolina to give them analysis on their economic impact in that area. “Under Tim Leathersich (VP of Consulting Group) which provide consulting pro bono work for local businesses along with national golf tournaments and the Daytona 500,” said Gilligan.

New Ventures is a group that allows students to gain hands-on experience in starting up a new business.  “Under Bjorn Webb (VP of Events Group), we continue to run tournaments with intramurals, but we are now exploring doing other events such as a League of Legends tournament, possibly Battle of the Bands, or a Trivia Night,” said Gilligan. There is a three on three basketball tournament happening this Saturday night that will be donating money to breast cancer awareness.

Highlander Concessions used to be 5Bites, which was ran exclusively by Sodexo in the dorms and at sporting events. But, Sodexo had a big overhead cost because they are a corporation, took huge losses on concessions, and lost their employees because they are no longer any proctors in the dorms. VP of Highlander Concessions Paul Chapman ‘17 said, “I like the fact that we are the student body representing at the athletic events” and that they are having more success because “Students are going to spend money to help other students than help Sodexo.”

“We found an opportunity to partner up with Sodexo to sell at sporting events because of how low our operational expenses would be compared to them, and forged a venture that has been beneficial to both groups,” said Gilligan. Highlander Concessions tries to open up at any athletic event on campus whether it is takes place on Burke Field or at the Nielsen Center. They also work with the Houghton community and sold products at the Fall Festival, which took place on Route 19 last weekend. In addition they are partnering with the Tournament Group to sell concessions at their tournaments and with the Campus Store to sell athletic apparel such as blankets and t-shirts as well as other merchandise like foam fingers at events.

HSE is specific to business majors and minors, but any major can be apply to be a part of the organization. Coryell said, “[It’s] such a great opportunity to build on weaknesses that you may have and make them strengths and build on strengths [to]  make them something that are just so fundamental to who you are as a business person.”