In the News

Spectacle of Celtic music and dance comes to Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts stage

The fourth event in the 2011-12 Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts series brings to Bethel College’s (North Newton, Kan.) Memorial Hall stage a wildly popular Irish music spectacle.

Celtic Crossroads will be at Bethel College Thursday, Feb. 23, at 7:30 p.m.

South Central Kansas residents may know Celtic Crossroads from its specials on local PBS station KPTS-Channel 8.

Celtic Crossroads intends “to do [for] Irish music what Riverdance has done [for] Irish dance.” The show incorporates a half-dozen world-class musicians, playing more than 20 instruments – from fiddle to Irish harp, banjo to uilleann pipes, Irish flute to bodhrán – among them. Celtic Crossroads also features high-energy Irish step dancing.

Celtic Crossroads concerts display how Irish music has influenced a multitude of musical genres, featuring a fusion from the Irish music family – including Eastern European Gypsy, North American bluegrass, world classical and jazz, and various forms of Celtic music from around Europe and the rest of the world.

The name “Celtic Crossroads” originates from a time in Ireland when neighboring communities met at the crossroads between towns and villages to socialize (long before the pub tradition began). Celtic Crossroads is intent on keeping the Irish music tradition alive while, by virtue of the performers’ youth and raw talent, high-kicking it into the 21st century (including true high-kicking from some of Ireland’s best Irish dancers).

Interludes from uilleann pipes, whistles and Irish harp, as well as from some of Ireland’s finest exponents of traditional song, transport listeners to that crossroads in Ireland. Tempestuous fiddle playing competes with explosive banjo, intricate mandolin, accordion, mandola and bouzouki and awe-inspiring guitar riffs, while silky flute playing reminds the audience that the fiercely traditional musicians are also classically trained.

On its first American visit, Celtic Crossroads enjoyed a sell-out tour based largely on word of mouth. The HBPA date comes at the very start of the 2012 world tour and is the only one in Kansas and one of a handful anywhere in the Midwest.

The 2012 incarnation of Celtic Crossroads includes Diarmaid Hurley of County Sligo, who has been with Celtic Crossroads since it was founded, on bodhrán, mandolin and bouzouki; Isaac Alderson, American-born, on uilleann pipes; Kate Moloney from County Clare on flute and accordion; Michael McClintock, from Dublin by way of Australia, music director and lead fiddle; James Riley, Dublin, on guitar; and Lisa Canny from County Mayo on vocals.

No one should be surprised to see anyone on stage swapping instruments at any given time, or to hear McClintock or Riley on vocals, in addition to Canny.

The featured dancers for Celtic Crossroads are Marcus Donnelly, County Galway, dance director; Shaunessy Sinnett, a Canadian; and Charlene Morrison, County Mayo.

Single ticket prices for Celtic Crossroads range from $20 to $24, depending on seating section, with discounts available to students and senior citizens.

For more information or to purchase tickets, call 620-327-8158 (Hesston College) or 316-284-5205 (Bethel College), e-mail hbpa@hesston.edu or visit the HBPA website at www.hesston.edu/hbpa.

The final concert in this season’s HBPA series will feature ancient choral music by the Rose Ensemble, April 27 at Hesston Mennonite Church. See www.hesston.edu/hbpa for more information.

This program is presented in part by the cities of Hesston and North Newton, with generous underwriting by area patrons.

The Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts Series, now in its 30th year, started in 1982 as the Hesston Performing Arts Series (HPA) with funding and planning provided by Hesston College and the Hesston community. In 1998, HPA planners launched a partnership with Bethel College (North Newton) and the name changed to Hesston-Bethel Performing Arts. Hesston College and Bethel College host five performances by world-renowned or regionally acclaimed artists each year.

by Melanie Zuercher

Bel Canto Singers to perform at KMEA

The Hesston College Bel Canto Singers under the direction of Bradley Kauffman have been selected to perform as part of the Kansas Music Educators Association annual in-service workshop at 2 p.m., Feb. 23 in the Century II Mary Jane Teall Theater in Wichita, Kan. Guest passes for the workshop will be available at the registration booth in the Century II lobby prior to the performance.

The weekend KMEA conference is a gathering of music educators throughout the state of Kansas. Participants attend workshops, presentations and performances featuring some of the state’s best ensembles across all educational levels. Bel Canto was selected to perform at KMEA by a recorded audition from the spring of 2011.

“This is a chance to highlight the work the Hesston College music department – and specifically Bel Canto – does throughout the year for an audience of distinguished educators from across the state,” said Kauffman.

Bel Canto will present two concerts in preparation for their KMEA performance. They will perform 3 p.m. Feb. 19 in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary on the Hesston College campus. The concert is free for the public.

A concert featuring Bel Canto and the Wichita (Kan.) State University A Capella Choir and Concert Chorale under the direction of Tom Wine will be at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 20 in Wiedemann Hall on the Wichita State campus. Wiedemann Hall is easily accessed from Hillside Avenue, south of 21st Street. Admission is $7 for adults and $3 for students.

Bel Canto is a mixed chamber choir, whose members are selected by competitive audition. The ensemble performs at churches and schools across the country with local performances and annual tours during Fall Break, for a weekend during the spring semester and for two weeks every other May. The 2011-12 group has 21 members.

Family history links baseball and softball at Hesston College

In the ultra-connected community that is Hesston College, it’s quite normal for graduates to send their children off to the place they attended years earlier. Moms and dads, sons and daughters – it’s sort of a family thing.

In the early and mid-1980s three young men from three different communities came to Kansas to study and play baseball. And a generation later, those same three men, now fathers, sent their daughters to Hesston to play Softball for the Larks.

This spring, pitcher Erin Albrecht, Sebewaing, Mich., and infielders Ashlyn Knepp, Millersburg, Ind., and Olivia Miller, Newton, Kan., daughters of Barry Albrecht ’85, Terry Knepp ’82 and Forrest Miller ’85, will be lacing up their spikes as freshman for the Hesston College softball team.

In addition to her father, Knepp also has an uncle, Daryl Haarer ’89, who played baseball for the Larks and encouraged her to start her college career at Hesston.

“When I committed to Hesston, my dad and uncle were excited for me,” Ashlyn said. “I think it’s been fun for my dad and uncle to see me follow in their footsteps.”

“I grew up hearing stories about this place,” said Erin, whose parents, along with an older sister, all attended Hesston. “It’s been fun to see my own story develop as I’m walking around the same campus as my family did. I’ve felt a lot of support from them in coming here.”

Both of Olivia’s parents work on the Hesston campus, with her dad also serving as assistant softball coach. Still, Olivia sees herself carving out her own path as she balances softball with the rigors of the Hesston nursing program.

“It’s been fun to be on a campus that my family has so much history with,” Olivia said. “At the same time I feel like it’s been a new adventure for me – something uniquely my own.”

Anthony Brown to honor Paul Robeson with original tribute

Hesston College and The Orpheum Theatre will partner to present “I Go On Singing” an original tribute to Paul Robeson at The Orpheum Theatre (Wichita, Kan.) at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 21 and a free program for schools at 10 a.m., Feb. 22.

Internationally acclaimed baritone and Hesston College faculty member and artist-in-residence Anthony Brown’s tribute to Robeson, who was an all-American athlete and scholar, champion orator, international recording artist, and star of the stage and screen during the 1930s and 40s, is in honor of Black History Month.

Robeson’s story is a 75-minute song-filled, multi-media presentation that reveals him as a towering figure in 20th century American history. Brown uses Robeson’s own words from his autobiography “Here I Stand” and comments from legendary peace activist and artist Pete Seeger to trace his humble beginnings as a preacher’s son in Princeton, N.J., to his international celebrity and pioneering activism on the world stage.

Accompanied by collaborative pianist Hesston College music faculty member Ken Rodgers, photo projection and narrator Junius Dotson, senior pastor at Saint Mark United Methodist Church in Wichita, “I Go On Singing” is equal parts historical documentary and live concert experience. Musical numbers range from spirituals to Broadway, and include original arrangements of Robeson’s favorites like “Ol’ Man River,” “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child,” “Shenandoah,” “Scandalize My Name,” “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” “All Through the Night,” “Joe Hill,” “Deep River” and many others.

Brown is an international promoter of peace, Hesston College sociology faculty and artist-in-residence and founder of Peacing It Together Foundation, an organization that serves the global community as a resource for peace and social justice. He uses music and the spoken word to bring people together across the divides of race, culture and religion. Brown’s travels have taken him to countries such as Bosnia, Moldova, Northern Ireland, Uganda, Ethiopia, the Philippines, China, Japan, South Korea and Colombia, where he has seen music transform and heal.

“Paul Robeson: I Go On Singing” was written especially for Brown by personal friend and playwright, Andrew Flack, and premiered in Robeson’s hometown of Princeton, N.J., to inspiring reviews.

Benjamin J. Colbert, chairman of The Paul Robeson House Committee in Princeton said of the show, “We were very fortunate to have witnessed Mr. Brown’s portrayal of the music, life, and times of Paul Robeson. His performance in ‘I Go On Singing’ brings new life and inspiration to a generation of admirers.”

“Anthony Brown is a treasure,” said Patricia Fernandez-Kelly, Ph.D of Princeton University. “Endowed with a superb baritone voice, he has assembled an exquisite show that celebrates Paul Robeson and his times. Instructive and deeply touching, Mr. Brown’s performance is extraordinary. More people should have the opportunity to witness it.”

Hesston College, the only two-year liberal arts college in Kansas, was named the number 2 two-year college in the country by “Washington Monthly” magazine in 2010. Hesston offers students a supportive and relational community that values immediate leadership and involvement opportunities in all areas of the student experience. Students build a foundation that starts them toward futures of success and service to others, the church and the world.

Tickets for the Feb. 21 performance are $15 and can be purchased at wichitaorpheum.com or through Select-A-Seat by calling 316-755-7328 or at selectaseat.com.

School groups wanting to attend the free Feb. 22 performance should contact Hesston College at 866-437-7866 and The Orpheum Theatre at 316-263-0884 to reserve seating. The program is best suited for middle school and high school age students.

Hesston College art gallery features young artists

Kids from Newton’s United Methodist Youthville campus, are the featured artists in the Hesston College Friesen Center gallery. The works of art are from “The Monster In Me” project through Youthville’s Expressive Arts Center, directed by Micala Gingrich-Gaylord, and will be displayed through Feb. 18.

“The Monster In Me” project gave kids at Newton’s Youthville campus an outlet to process personal experiences – both of things that have happened to them or they have done – and find ways to grow beyond them. Each unique monster picture is a testament to pain and frustration and is a tangible example of the power of art as a tool for healing and overcoming abuse, violence and trauma.

The pictures drawn and painted by artists ranging from 7 to 18 years old, were collected over the last five years. Although the Newton Youthville campus has downsized the number of children served, the Expressive Arts Center will continue to help at-risk kids in the community and local area find ways to express themselves.

Youthville is a child-welfare agency that specializes in foster care, adoption, counseling and therapy for Kansas children suffering from abuse, neglect, abandonment and trauma.

The gallery is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Hesston College announces fall 2011 honor roll

Hesston College announced the names of full-time students whose fall semester grades earned them a place on the Dean’s List (3.90 to 4.00) and Honor Roll (3.50 to 3.89).

Dean’s List 3.90-4.00
Freshmen

Lauren Adams – Wichita, Kan.
Asbel Assefa – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Seth Bitikofer – Saint George, Kan.
Cory Bowman – Millersburg, Ind.
Lindsey Carter – Alden, Kan.
Mallory Eicher – Berne, Ind.
Grant Fenton – Hesston, Kan.
Taylor Fritz – Atglen, Pa.
Bonita Garber – Bainbridge, Pa.
Sarah Geiser – Apple Creek, Ohio
Gabrielle Guesnier – Olathe, Kan.
Crysta Haury – Pretty Prairie, Kan.
Jordan Hefner – Atchison, Kan.
Adam Heisey – Elizabethtown, Pa.
Andrea Kelley – Archbold, Ohio
Fredrick Lehman – Dalton, Ohio
Mariah Martin – Glenwood Springs, Colo.
Olivia Miller – Newton, Kan.
Mollie Nebel – Hesston, Kan.
Keisei Ohta – Kanagawa, Japan
Logan Orpin – Canton, Kan.
Ty Richardson – Wichita, Kan.
David Rudy – Manheim, Pa.
Alyssa Rychener – Hesston, Kan.
Paul Schoenhals – Archbold, Ohio
Sydney Smith – Inman, Kan.
Kayla Stevenson – Meade, Kan.
Derek Swartzendruber – Shickley, Neb.
Matthew Weaver – Hesston, Kan.
Ron Wenger – Adair, Ok.
Michaela Zook – Hesston, Kan.

Dean’s List 3.90-4.00
Sophomores

Zachary Baumgartner – Hesston, Kan.
Jonathan Burkholder – Warden, Wash.
Shuvo Das – Mohammadpur, Dhaka,Bangladesh
Logan Duerksen – Newton, Kan.
Angela Entz – Whitewater, Kan.
Katie Fiedler – Newton, Kan.
Hayden Goerzen – Newton, Kan.
Karli Graybill – Goshen, Ind.
Ashley Hager – West Liberty, Ohio
Erin Hershey – Mechanicsburg, Pa.
Alyssa Horst – Orrville, Ohio
Leann Johnson-Fast – Inman, Kan.
Jonathan King – Hillsboro, Kan.
Danielle Klotz – Hesston, Kan.
Kendra Litwiller – Hopedale, Ill.
Maria Martin – Harrisonburg, Va.
Kara Meyer – Orrville, Ohio
Katie Miller – Rio Rancho, N.M.
Ronald Moyo – North Newton, Kan.
Joel Murray – Hesston, Kan.
Ashley Oglesbee – Great Bend, Kan.
Krista Rittenhouse – Mount Pleasant, Pa.
Crystal Royer – Lehigh, Kan.
Stefanie Ruhs – Bielefeld, Germany
Grace Schmidt – Wichita, Kan.
Mallory Schroeder – Newton, Kan.
Rebecca Short – Archbold, Ohio
Mara Short-Miller – Bellingham, Wash.
Katharine Steury – New Paris, Ind. 
Kara Stutzman – Hesston, Kan.
Colby Troyer – Waterford, Pa.
Sarah Unruh – Durham, Kan.
Emily Wagner-Davis – Roseville, Calif.
Taylor Waidelich – Stryker, Ohio
Lorena Weymouth – Subiaco, Ark.
Grace Yoder – Bellefontaine, Ohio

Honor Roll 3.50-3.89
Freshmen

Erin Albrecht – Sebewaing, Mich.
Atsushi Ambo – Niigata, Japan
Jennifer Bastian – Dakota, Ill.
Brooke Beckerman – Inman, Kan.
Sarah Blosser – Hesston, Kan.
Neal Brubaker – Goessel, Kan.
Broxton Busenitz – North Newton, Kan.
Brent Cook – Clayton, Kan.
Joel Dick – Wichita, Kan.
Taylor Ermoian – Hays, Kan.
Ryan Gehman – Millersville, Pa.
Jessica Graybill – Gap, Pa.
Jenae Hershberger – Goshen, Ind.
James Hershey – Harleysville, Pa.
Chihiro Hikita – Yamanashi, Japan
Elyse Hooley – Goshen, Ind.
Crystal Huxman – Russell, Kan.
Kayla Kauffman – Hutchinson, Kan.
Russell Klassen – Goshen, Ind.
Jacob Landis – Sterling, Ill.
Jeptha Miller – Millersburg, Ohio
Renita Miller- Kalona, Iowa
Irene Mine – Iwate-ken, Japan
Namrud Miruts – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Alisa Murray – Orrville, Ohio
Tyler Patty – El Dorado, Kan.
Kelly Reimer – Hesston, Kan.
Jacob Rhine – Indianapolis, Ind.
Marissa Schuett – Wichita, Kan.
Jade Southern – Newton, Kan.
Redfa Titihalawa – Papua, Indonesia
Carly Unruh – Wayland, Iowa
Courtney Unruh – Hesston, Kan.
Matthew Weaver – Goshen, Ind.
Alicia Wenger – Hesston, Kan.
Kaitlynn Wills – Kapolei, Hawaii
Natalie Young – Wichita, Kan.

Honor Roll 3.50-3.89
Sophomores

Hannah Bachman – Tiskilwa, Ill.
Andrea DeAvila Balboa – Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Erika Fujimoto – Toyama-ken, Japan
Philip Hochstetler – Strang, Neb.
Courtney Mast – Weatherford, Okla.
Saralyn Mast – Ephrata, Pa.
Bryan Miller – Hesston, Kan.
Leah Mueller – Halstead, Kan.
Cynde Postma – Dallas, Ore.
Stephen Quenzer – Visalia, Calif.
Courtney Reimer – Inman, Kan.
Joey Stoltzfus – Hesston, Kan.
John Swartley – Elkhart, Ind.
Isaac Tice – Salisbury, Pa.
Sierra Wheeler – Bristol, Ind.
Jesse Woodward – Goshen, Ind.
Corey Wyse – Archbold, Ohio

Photo release - Continued education

Ashley Finley, Senior Director of Assessment and Research for the Association of American Colleges and Universities, the leading national association concerned with the quality of undergraduate liberal education, was on the Hesston College campus Jan. 9 for a faculty in-service. The faculty spent the day discussing how to evaluate student learning on the newly revised Hesston College Outcomes and how to develop essential assignments for learning. Hesston College instructors use indirect assessment tools regularly to see how the college measures up on benchmarks and identify places for improvement. “Washington Monthly” magazine used results from the 2009 Community College Survey of Student Engagement and graduation rates to name Hesston College the number 2 two-year college in the country in 2010. Hesston conducts the CCSSE every three years. Pictured from front left are Maria Day, Spanish instructor; David LeVan, business instructor; Finley; and Tami Keim, Education instructor.

Hesston College to honor Martin Luther King Jr. as servant to humanity

The life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be honored with a week of events at Hesston College Jan. 15 to 20.

The week’s events will highlight Dr. King’s emphasis on service to all people. All events are free and open to the public.

“It is good to focus on the memory of King and the service he provided to millions of people,” said Dwight Roth, event co-coordinator and director of the Lifelong Education Aging Development program.

Events during the week include a concert by African-Americans Renewing Interest in Spirituals Ensemble (ARISE) of Wichita at 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 15 in the Hesston Mennonite Church Community Center. A reception will follow the concert.

One of Dr. King’s sermons, “The Drum Major Instinct,” will be the focus of chapel Monday, Jan. 16 at 11 a.m. in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary. The service will include a short viewing of “Following the Drum Major,” which is based on the sermon. Sophomore Aaron Young of Kansas City, Mo., will perform some of his original music.

“Dr. King’s philosophy of service is best captured in ‘The Drum Major Instinct’ when he declared he wanted to be known as a person who tried to help others,” said Maria Day, event co-coordinator and Spanish instructor. “Service is central to the life and teachings of Christ, as well as to the Hesston College Mission Statement.”

Marion Bontrager, Bible and Ministry instructor, and Lorna Harder, biology instructor, will lead a viewing and discussion of King’s Vietnam War speech “Beyond Vietnam: A Time to Break Silence” at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 17 in the Hesston Mennonite Church Community Center. The speech is one of King’s lesser-known speeches, but serves an important role for people interested in peacemaking.

Education instructor Marissa King will share about her experiences with service in Guatemala and Phoenix during chapel at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18 in the Hesston Mennonite Church sanctuary.

On Thursday, Jan. 19, the campus community will have a Service Day with an opportunity to serve residents at Schowalter Villa in various ways.

A panel of alumni speakers will share their experiences with service during chapel forum at 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 20 in Kropf Center 150.

Students, faculty and staff will read poetry and perform music during a coffee house at 9 p.m. Jan. 20 in the Larks Nest.

Unexpected estate gift to build Hesston College endowment

Hesston College is one of six Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren organizations, including four higher education institutions, to receive a generous estate gift from Gunther Henry Schmitt, a doctor from San Bernadino, Calif., who passed away August 2.

Dr. Schmitt’s estate was left to Mennonite Brethren Foundation to be divided equally among the institutions and organizations. Hesston will use the more than $400,000 gift to build the college’s endowment. The endowment fund helps ensure the long-time financial health of the college and its programs.

Dr. Schmitt, who worked as a pharmacologist, internal medicine doctor and radiologist left no family and had no ties to Hesston College. His family was helped financially by Mennonite church agencies during World War II, and his gift to the college was a way of giving back to those who had helped during a time of need.

“We are grateful to Gunther Schmitt and to the Mennonite Brethren Foundation for the welcome and unexpected gift,” said President Howard Keim. “We are thankful that our current financial situation is such that we can use this gift for the long-term benefit of the college. We give thanks for people like Dr. Schmitt, who place a high value on institutions of faith-based higher education.”