Join the Conversation

A sampling of Spring 2018 presentations and performances by Hope College faculty and students through May 19 CULTURE, COMMERCE AND CRITICISM Kruizenga Art Museum With content and presentation developed in collaboration with Dr. Anne Heath and her Art 361 seminar, an exhibition of 50 prints exploring how Western artists have used them to transmit knowledge,… Continue Reading →

Crafting a Theology of Disability

When his 7-year-old son Benedict was diagnosed with autism at the age of 3, it set Dr. Jared Ortiz on a personal, impassioned research track. Georges Rouault, French, 1871–1958, Ecce DolorPlate eight from the Passion, 1936 “I did a lot of reading, and there are wonderful resources in the Holland area, so we’ve been very… Continue Reading →

A New View in Japan

It’s an unusual question for a historian: What is it like for a blind person to live in a world dominated by sighted people? But this inquiry, with a particular focus on Japan, is at the heart of Dr. Wayne Tan’s research. Today, Japan is considered one of the most blind-friendly nations in the world,… Continue Reading →

Culturally Dislocated?

Is Dr. Rajesh Koothrappali, the winsome astrophysicist played by Kunal Nayyar on the long-running CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory, responsible for the alienation many Indian-Americans experience from mainstream U.S. media? That may be overstating matters a bit — but according to recent research by Dr. Marissa Doshi and a colleague, “Raj” is one of… Continue Reading →

Faith and the Bench

In September 2017, the Senate Judiciary Committee questioned Amy Barrett, a federal appellate-court nominee, about whether her Catholic faith would influence her decision-making as a judge and perhaps disqualify her from a seat on the federal bench. From his office in Lubbers Hall, Dr. David Ryden was paying close attention. Ryden has been studying the… Continue Reading →

College Access as a Health Policy Issue

If college attendance can lead to better health, is access to higher education a healthcare policy issue? That question is at the heart of research that Dr. Temple Smith began in 2017. Drawing from a federal study on adolescent health, she is investigating what influences college students’ physical and mental health, compared to young adults… Continue Reading →

Kuyper, the Popes — and an Economist

Where economics, morality and political theory intersect, you’ll find Dr. Sarah Estelle. Intrigued by this trio of issues, Estelle recently began to concentrate on economic theory, theological principles and the role of the state, with a focus on the late Nobel Prize-winning Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek. Hayek, who was skeptical of socialism and central planning,… Continue Reading →

Future of Fitness

More gain, less pain — in America’s fitness-focused society, that’s something everybody can get behind. In summer 2017, Dr. Brian Rider of the Department of Kinesiology tested the effects of wearing compression stockings during exercise. Working with student collaborators, he recruited 10 volunteers between the ages of 18 and 39 to work out on treadmills… Continue Reading →

Real Systems, Real Clients

For Dr. Ryan McFall, scholarship often takes the form of software. “I work with my students to build real systems for real clients,” says McFall, a professor of computer science. Many of those clients are colleagues from the Hope community. In 2017, Hope’s Physical Plant staff came to McFall with a request: find a more… Continue Reading →

Distinctive Hope: Growing Faith

Students on Hope’s spring-break immersion trip to New Orleans work the land at a local schoolyard program that seeks to improve area wellbeing by integrating hands-on organic gardening and seasonal cooking into the curriculum. The trips — 15 this year, around the country and abroad — likewise nurture their 200 Hope participants. Coordinated by Campus… Continue Reading →

Quote, Unquote: Civil Rights Lecture

This year’s annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Civil Rights Lecture marked three anniversaries. First, held on national Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday, Jan. 15, the occasion celebrated the late civil rights leader’s birth and his legacy. Second, it reflected on the 50th anniversary of his assassination on April 4, 1968, at the… Continue Reading →

Campus Scene

Graduation Will be May 6 The college’s 153rd Commencement, celebrating the graduating Class of 2018, will be held on Sunday, May 6, at 3 p.m. at Ray and Sue Smith Stadium. Baccalaureate will be held earlier in the day, at 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. in Dimnent Memorial Chapel. The Commencement speaker will be Dr.… Continue Reading →

The Topic No One Wants to Talk About. Until Now.

Q&A with Sara Dorer Reports by multiple well-known female celebrities. The trial and conviction of Dr. Larry Nassar. The revocation this past fall of the 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter. High-profile news has made sexual assault a national conversation, building awareness of the problem, empowering victims, and turning a spotlight on organizations and how they respond.… Continue Reading →

Serving and Protecting the Garden that is Earth

The Hope College campus buzzes with energy expended, resources in use. Students learning and living. Staff and faculty providing services, teaching classes, doing research. Classrooms, dining halls, housing and offices. All that energy, all those resources support the college mission of educating students for lives of leadership and service. But the activity reflects another calling,… Continue Reading →

A Fond Farewell to Faculty Retirees

While every path to teaching at Hope is unique, among the college’s dedicated faculty there are also at least two traits that are omnipresent: a love of a discipline, and a passion for inspiring and mentoring new generations. This year’s three retiring professors are no exception. One flew above the skies of Europe and honed… Continue Reading →