From foster care to doctoral degree: Lizbett Benge’s educational journey
Lizbett Benge ’11 describes her educational journey as “a long and winding road.” It began with her immersion into foster care and deeply influenced her time at PLU, where she grappled with a set of life experiences few of her peers could understand. Benge felt…
Carson Bergstrom and Nate Sager start a podcast to showcase capstones of fellow 2020 graduates
Recent graduates Carson Bergstrom ‘20 and Nate Sager ‘20 struggled with quarantine boredom and the bittersweet end of the school year when they thought of a cathartic project to help share the capstone projects of their peers and burn some creative energy. The series, titled…
Homeland Security reverses course on international student directive
We are pleased that earlier today the U.S. Department of Homeland Security rescinded its July 6 policy directive that would have required international students to take in-person college courses in order to remain in the U.S. At PLU, we are deeply committed to fostering a…
Former PLU President Eugene Wiegman will be remembered for his passion for service, advocacy and Tacoma
Former PLU President Eugene Wiegman passed away on July 1 at the age of 90. Dr. Wiegman will be remembered for his remarkable career in education, government, advocacy and ministry—and his unceasing kindness and compassion. “Dr. Wiegman was a pure joy to talk with and…
Tacoma Rescue Mission Executive Director and PLU alumnus Duke Paulson on adapting through the pandemic
Duke Paulson ‘93 graduated from PLU in 1993 with a major in biology and a minor in psychology. While at PLU, he was on the swim and rowing teams, played soccer for a bit, and was heavily involved in Young Life. Today, he’s executive director…
PLU helps celebrate Tacoma Pride Week by raising the rainbow flag on Red Square
On Tuesday, Pacific Lutheran University celebrated Tacoma Pride Week with its second annual pride flag raising. Hosted by the dCenter, the online/campus hybrid event featured five student speakers, who spoke about what pride means to them, especially in 2020. “Although this is only our second…
Special education teacher Erin Azama ’01, MAE ’06 discusses her distance learning transition
Erin Azama ’01, MAE ’06 is a special education teacher at Grant Center for the Expressive Arts, an arts-focused elementary school in Tacoma’s North End. She works with children from kindergarten to fifth-grade, so her work-from-home transition was not only a break from her routine…
Virtual convening of The People’s Gathering to facilitate timely conversations about race
On July 9 PLU’s Campus Ministry and Center for Graduate and Continuing Education will be hosting a virtual edition of The People’s Gathering, a dialogue-based event series focusing in-depth on the topic of race. The People’s Gathering is an annual professional/personal development experience and supportive…