Anchors of Hope
The words penned by the Rev. Albertus C. Van Raalte when establishing the Pioneer School from which Hope grew are among the college’s most foundational: education as an “anchor of hope” for the future. Through all the decades since, that promise has been shepherded by generations of faculty mentors who have not only been at Hope, but in a real sense have been and are Hope. Across campus — in the classroom, in the laboratory, on the stage, on the playing field and in countless ways between and beyond — for a combined 205 years, the eight faculty retirees honored on these pages have embodied and helped realize the vision of transforming tomorrow by shaping young lives today.
NOTE: As with Hope’s faculty retirees of the past several years, our stories about each are online, where they will remain, a lasting tribute available around the world. Just like the thousands of current students and alumni whose lives they helped shape.
Dr. Tom Bultman ’78
Professor of Biology
22 years
Dawn DeWitt-Brinks ’84
Assistant Professor of Communication
34 years
Stu Fritz
Associate Professor of Kinesiology and
Head Baseball Coach
31 years
Dr. Vicki-Lynn Holmes
Associate Professor of Mathematics and Education
15 years
Dr. Laura Pardo
the Evert J. and Hattie E. Blekkink
Professor of Education
19 years
Dr. R. Richard Ray
Professor of Kinesiology / Provost Ermeritus
42 years
Dr. Daina Robins
Professor of Theatre
32.5 years
Dr. David Van Wylen
Principal with the Office of Possibilities
9 years