![Julie Foudy headshot](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/03/foudy-plu-web-725x408.jpg)
Soccer legend, advocate, and broadcaster Julie Foudy to deliver PLU commencement address
Pacific Lutheran University will welcome Julie Foudy to the Tacoma Dome on May 28 to deliver a commencement address to the university’s graduating class. Foudy will share reflections inspired by her iconic career as a member of the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team, award-winning storyteller, and…
![Lutes from the Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean course in Greece Photo by professor Antonios Finitsis](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/03/j-term-return-web-header-725x408.png)
After a pandemic hiatus, study away trips returned during J-Term
After a hiatus last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, 65 undergraduate and 22 graduate students from Pacific Lutheran University were able to participate in January term study away trips this year. The program took PLU students all over the world, with courses designed and…
![Morken Center for Learning & Technology](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2015/12/morken-business-banner.jpg)
PLU School of Business renews a mark of distinction with AACSB accreditation
Pacific Lutheran University’s School of Business continues a half-century of excellence by extending its accreditation from AACSB International for its undergraduate and graduate programs. “This is a major accomplishment and signifies academic excellence at PLU,” said Mark Mulder, Ph.D., dean of the School of Business.…
![](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/02/justin-web-725x408.png)
Microsoft Philanthropies VP Justin Spelhaug to speak at PLU on March 10
Big Tech sometimes gets a bad rap, with critics pointing to its potential for spying on us, tricking us or leading us to rack and ruin. But technology can be a greater force for good. Justin Spelhaug, vice president of the Tech for Social Impact…
![PLU students take part in a panel during the 2020 Wang Center Symposium "Disarming Polarization: Navigating Conflict and Difference." (Photo taken prior to COVID-19 safety measures.)](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/02/wang-symposium22-web-725x408.png)
Wang Symposium reaches across disciplines to find the power of healing
Two years ago, the Wang Symposium explored the phenomenon of political and societal polarization, and its effect on our world. This year, the 10th Biennial Wang Symposium comes full circle, with a focus on “Healing: Pathways for Restoration and Renewal.” “Even as I was planning…
![9 members of PLU football team poses on field for a picture together](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/02/zachw-qa-web-725x408.jpg)
The Head in the Game: Q&A with PLU Coach Goes Inside the Mind of an Athlete
Zach Willis ’19 earned a BA in kinesiology with a concentration in health and fitness promotion and minored in sport and exercise psychology while playing on the football team at Pacific Lutheran University Last year he returned to the university to serve as the football…
![](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/02/rc-lecture-web-725x408.png)
Biomimicry 3.8 founder to speak at PLU’s annual Rachel Carson Lecture
Pacific Lutheran University is excited to welcome Dayna Baumeister, a professor at Arizona State University who holds a doctorate in organismic biology and ecology, to deliver the 2022 Rachel Carson Science, Technology and Society Lecture. Baumeister will present “(Re)Buiding a Thriving World–Mentored By Nature’s Genius”…
Confronting Mental Health: How the PLU community is demonstrating transformative care
Walk across campus and you can see the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic everywhere. Masks on faces, signs reminding you to wash your hands, restrictions on classrooms and more. But the pandemic hasn’t just caused physical changes, but also unexpected mental challenges. And that is…
![Portrait Headshot of Prof. Karen McConnell, kinesiology at PLU, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2018. (Photo: John Froschauer/PLU)](https://www.plu.edu/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/573/2022/02/karen-mcconnel-web-725x408.png)
Longtime faculty member Karen McConnell named AVP and Chief Institutional Effectiveness Officer
Karen McConnell, Ph.D., has been named Associate Vice President and Chief Institutional Effectiveness Officer at Pacific Lutheran University. McConnell joined PLU in 1998 as a faculty member in Kinesiology and was appointed Dean of the School of Education & Kinesiology in the fall of 2018.…