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University of Colorado Boulder and holds three Master’s degrees—in piano, harpsichord and theory pedagogy—and a graduate performance diploma in piano, all from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Her undergraduate studies took place at the University of the Pacific, where she was the recipient of a prestigious Presser Award and earned her degree summa cum laude. Following her studies at UOP, Lark lived in France for three years where she attended the Conservatoire National de

Sharon Young Contingent Faculty of Marriage and Family Therapy she/her Phone: Email: youngsy@plu.edu Professional Biography Education Ph.D., Marriage and Family Systems, North Central University, 2016 M.S., Theological Studies, Faith Theological Seminary, 2004 M.S., Counseling Psychology, CA State University San Bernardino, 1986 B.A, Psychology, University of Massachusetts, 1979 Areas of Emphasis or Expertise Marriage and Family Therapy Integration of Spiritual Beliefs Clinical Training and

Shelly Myers Lecturer - Oboe she/her Phone: 253-535-7602 Email: myerssd@plu.edu Biography Biography Shelly Myers currently serves as Lecturer of oboe at Pacific Lutheran University and holds the second oboe position in the Olympia Symphony Orchestra. She earned a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Lethbridge, and a Master of Music degree from the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music, where she also pursued doctoral studies. Prior to moving to Seattle, she served

Bruce Kadden Senior Lecturer in Judaism Phone: 253-535-7243 Email: kaddenbj@plu.edu Office Location: Hauge Administration Building - 220-J Professional Biography Education Rabbinic Ordination, Hebrew Union College, 1981 M.A., Hebrew Letters, Hebrew Union College, 1979 B.A., Religious Studies with Honors in Humanities, Stanford University, 1976 Books Teaching Mitzvot: Concepts, Values and Activities co-authored with Barbara Binder Kadden (A.R.E. Publishing, Inc. 2003) : View Book Teaching Jewish

Experience (Wipf & Stock Publishers 2006) : View Book Wrestling with God (Cascade Books 2006) : View Book The Sound of Liberating Truth Buddhist-Christian Dialogues in Honor of Frederick J. Streng - Co-edited with Sallie King (Wipf & Stock Publishers 2006) : View Book Constructing a Relational Cosmology - Edited by Paul O. Ingram (Pickwick Publications 2006) : View Book The Modern Buddhist-Christian Dialogue: Two Universalistic Religions in Transformation (Studies in Comparative Religion) (Edwin Mellen

harpsichord lessons as an undergraduate student. He is the inaugural Paul Fritts Endowed Chair in Organ Studies and Performance at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, WA. At PLU, he teaches a variety of courses in addition to primary and secondary organ study; he also serves as University Organist and accompanies the Choral Union. Previous appointments include Artist Faculty in Organ at the University of Southern Maine and lecturer positions at UC San Diego. From 2023-24, he served as faculty

of courses at the University of Tennessee and Eastern Mennonite University. Ryan has applied his economic expertise to real-world issues throughout his career. During his master’s studies at Colorado State University he estimated the economic impact of conservation easements in Colorado. While working at the U.S. Forest Service, he forecasted water demand across the United States. His academic research covers a range of environmental and behavioral topics: how policy uncertainty affects electric

Renee Simms Fiction, Nonfiction Biography Biography Renee Simms, J.D., MFA, is a recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship, a John Gardner Fiction Fellowship at Bread Loaf, and fellowships from Ragdale and Vermont Studio Center. She’s an associate professor of African American Studies at University of Puget Sound and teaches with the Rainier Writing Workshop, Pacific Lutheran’s low-residency MFA program. Her debut story collection Meet Behind Mars was a Foreword

Patrick Leland Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy Phone: 253-535-7396 Email: leland@plu.edu Office Location: Hauge Administration Building - 222 F Professional Biography Education Ph.D., Philosophy, Johns Hopkins University Selected Publications “Kant, Organisms, and Representation” Studies in History and Philosophy of Biological and Biomedical Sciences 79 (2020) 101223: 1-10 (11,000 words) “Kant and the Primacy of Judgment Before the First Critique,” Journal of the History of

Divinity from Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA and her B.A. in Religion with Gender Studies and Psychology minors from ELCA-affiliated Augustana University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.     Outside of work, Jen enjoys hiking, cooking, running, the Enneagram, reading about minimalism/simple living, tending to her composting worms and exploring Tacoma and the Pacific Northwest with her spouse Deb.  In 2023 Jen completed a certification as a  Liminal Guide (a cross between spiritual direction