Tag archives: Westmont College

Examining Mendelssohn, Protestant Music
By Scott Craig   |   December 26, 2023

For two decades, Siegwart ‘Zig’ Reichwald, Westmont’s Adams professor of music and worship, engrossed himself in the sacred music of German composer and performer Felix Mendelssohn. But when he came to his works written for the Berlin Cathedral in 1843-44, he was struck by how unusual they were compared to the rest of Mendelssohn’s musical […]

Winter Stargazing at the ‘Mont
By Scott Craig   |   December 19, 2023

Bundle up and head to the Westmont Observatory, which opens to the public for its free, monthly Stargazing event Friday, December 15, beginning at sunset and lasting several hours. Saturn and many other celestial delights will be targeted by Westmont’s powerful Keck Telescope and the other scopes owned by members of the Santa Barbara Astronomical […]

Four Decades for Brad
By Scott Craig   |   December 19, 2023

This year’s final Christmas chapel of the semester, complete with a paper snowball fight, feted Brad Elliott, who has worked at the college for 40 years. Elliott, the longtime campus photographer, also oversees the audiovisual, sound, and lighting to the college’s numerous events, including Commencement, Midnight Madness, Spring Sing – held annually in the Santa […]

Engineering Students Go for Speed
By Scott Craig   |   December 19, 2023

Overcoming obstacles was the challenge of the day as the Westmont Engineering Department hosted its third annual remote control car competition December 7 in front of Kerrwood Hall.  New this year, students competed in a bowling pin knockout following the traditional figure eight race. The competition was tight and a final race with all three […]

Book Radiates Advent
By Scott Craig   |   December 19, 2023

With the arrival of Advent, Paul Willis, professor emeritus of English and former Santa Barbara poet laureate, has co-edited an anthology of readings A Radiant Birth: Advent Readings for a Bright Season. Madeleine L’Engle, Marilyn McEntyre, Eugene Peterson, Tania Runyan, Luci Shaw, Jeanne Murray Walker, Walter Wangerin, Lauren Winner, and Philip Yancey contribute to the […]

Men’s Soccer Wins National Championship
By Scott Craig   |   December 12, 2023

Westmont men’s soccer beat Campbellsville (Kentucky) 3-1 on December 2 in Kissimmee, Florida, to claim the 2023 National Championship of the National Christian College Athletic Association. This is the second time Westmont Men’s Soccer has claimed a national title. The first was by the 1972 team that won the NAIA National Championship.  “There is nothing […]

Bidding Underway for Five-Inch Artworks
By Scott Craig   |   December 12, 2023

A lively and enthusiastic crowd packed into the Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art for the opening reception of “5×5: Westmont College Celebrating 85 Years” on November 30. There is certainly a lot to see with more than 675 small pieces of art hung in the gallery – all of which are being auctioned off to […]

Mr. Monopoly Goes Straight to Westmont
By Scott Craig   |   December 12, 2023

Westmont is on the board! Monopoly: The Santa Barbara Edition includes a space featuring the Montecito campus in the light purple section where Virginia Avenue sits in the classic game. The only college featured on the board, Westmont appears between two iconic locations: the Santa Barbara Harbor and the Santa Barbara Airport. The square features […]

A Joy-Filled Evening
By Richard Mineards   |   December 12, 2023

Westmont College fielded its full arsenal at the Granada for its 19th annual sold-out Christmas Festival. Always a great start to Yuletide, the concert Fullness of Joy was the third year at the historic State Street theater after years at the First Presbyterian Church. Ruth Lin, chair of the music department, conducted the Westmont Orchestra, […]

‘Poor Clare’ Offers Theater for the Soul
By Scott Craig   |   December 5, 2023

Westmont Festival Theatre reimagines the life of Saint Clare of Assisi as if she spoke like a Beverly Hills teenager in Chiara Atik’s Poor Clare on December 7-9 at 7:30 pm and December 9 at 2 pm in Porter Theatre. Tickets, which cost $20 for general admission and $12 for students and seniors, may be […]

Nursing Program Earns Final Accreditation
By Scott Craig   |   December 5, 2023

The Commission of Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) voted to approve accreditation for Westmont’s Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program. Westmont had to clearly demonstrate that its nursing program, which launched in January 2022, met all four of the CCNE standards: mission and governance, institutional commitment and resources, curriculum and teaching-learning practices, and assessment […]

Program Explores the Meaning of Preaching
By Schuyler Leigh Johnson   |   December 5, 2023

Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded Westmont College a $1.25 million grant to create a unique program exploring the meaning and value of in-person Christian preaching. At a time when much communication takes place online, remotely and impersonally, the Incarnational Preaching Project will invite active and aspiring preachers to investigate the value of preaching live to […]

Project Promotes Fire Resilience, Biodiversity
By Scott Craig   |   November 28, 2023

An ecological restoration project near the Westmont campus has begun with students, faculty, and staff planting about 45 native coast live oaks. This first phase focuses on an area where Montecito Fire removed many dead and dying eucalyptus trees last summer along the Westmont Creek between the Las Barrancas faculty homes and Carr Field. The […]

Celebrating the Start of Advent
By Scott Craig   |   November 28, 2023

Westmont celebrates Advent, the season leading up to Christmas, with “Let There be Light!” a festive gathering, tree lighting, hot cocoa, and opportunity to take photos with Santa on Wednesday, November 29, from 5-7 pm on Kerrwood Lawn. The family-friendly event is free and open to the public.  Children’s photos with Santa begin at 4:30 […]

Luncheon Empowers Future Women Leaders
By Scott Craig   |   November 28, 2023

The Westmont Women’s Leadership Council Luncheon features Natalie Taylor, certified financial planner and behavioral financial advisor, on Friday, January 19, 2024, 12-2 pm in the Global Leadership Center. A limited number of tickets, which cost $100 per person, may be purchased online at westmont.tfaforms.net/4651902. For more information or to learn about sponsorship opportunities, please contact […]

Art Museum Goes Big with 675 Small Works
By Scott Craig   |   November 14, 2023

The Westmont Ridley-Tree Museum of Art’s most popular exhibition and fundraiser returns to Montecito on Nov. 30 to Dec. 15, offering viewers an opportunity to see and bid on more than 675, small five-inch-square works by regional, national, and international artists. The museum hosts a free, public opening reception on Thursday, Nov. 30, from 4 […]

Exploring Creation Care and the Cappadocian Fathers
By Scott Craig   |   November 14, 2023

Westmont senior Katie Knapp presented a paper about the thoughts and practices of the Cappadocian Fathers at the Great Lakes Theology Conference on Nov. 2-3 in Holland, Mich. The religious studies and environmental studies double major from Soquel, Calif., has been working on the major honors project about patristic creation care ethics with professors Helen […]

Christmas Festival Offers ‘Fullness of Joy’
By Scott Craig   |   November 7, 2023

Tickets are on sale now for the 19th annual Westmont Christmas Festival, which marks the beginning of the holiday season for many in Santa Barbara. The concert combines orchestra and choirs at the Granada Theatre, the central coast’s premier performing arts venue in the heart of downtown Santa Barbara, on Saturday, December 2, at 7 […]

Talk Examines Recent Conflicts, Foreign Aid
By Scott Craig   |   November 7, 2023

Katherine Bryant, assistant professor of political science, will speak about “The Changing Geopolitical Landscape and the Role of Foreign Aid” at a Westmont Downtown Lecture on Thursday, November 9, at 5:30 pm at the Community Arts Workshop (CAW), 631 Garden Street, in downtown Santa Barbara. The event is free and open to the public; no […]

American Double Returns
By Scott Craig   |   November 7, 2023

Violinist Philip Ficsor, who served on Westmont’s music faculty from 2006-13, returns to college for a recital with American Double, a violin-piano duo consisting of Ficsor and pianist Constantine Finehouse, on Sunday, November 5, at 3 pm in Deane Chapel. The concert, featuring American masterworks for violin and piano by John Corigliano and Daniel Gee […]