Linfield Magazine Linfield Magazine

Volume 2 Number 1 Summer 2005 Article 5

Summer 2005

Perfecting Their Craft Perfecting Their Craft

Laura Davis Linfield College

Mardi Mileham Linfield College

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Recommended Citation Recommended Citation Davis, Laura and Mileham, Mardi (2005) "Perfecting Their Craft," Linfield Magazine: Vol. 2 : No. 1 , Article 5. Available at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/linfield_magazine/vol2/iss1/5

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When Garry Killgore began the

research for his doctoral dissertation, little did

he know he would end up selling shoes.

Four years and countless designs later, that’s exactlywhat he is doing. But this isn’t just any shoe. It’s theAQx, the world’s first deep-water running shoedesigned to maximize training and rehabilitation whileminimizing injury.

Killgore’s foray into shoe manufacturing is a resultof research exploring the physiology and biomechanicsof deep-water running styles. The project hasresulted in collaborative research with Linfieldstudents and in the founding of a newcompany in McMinnville.

“I didn’t do this with the idea ofdeveloping a new shoe, but for abetter understanding of what deep-water running should do for people,”said Killgore, professor of health,human performance and athleticsand AQx Sports founder and chieftechnology officer.

“My hope was just to shed a little more light on theproper method for using deep-water running and howit could be applied to populations beyond athletes.”

Killgore did that and a whole lot more. Injured ath-letes have long used the pool as part of their therapywhen recovering from injuries. Killgore’s researchshowed that to be effective, the deep-water runningmovement must mimic land-based running. He foundthe cross-country style of motion imitates land-basedrunning better than the conventional high-knee motion.And if you couple that with a shoe, you get even betterresults.

The problem? A shoe designed specifically for usein the pool did not exist.

Enter Jeff Thomas ‘90, a local entrepreneur andmarketing expert, who now serves as president and gen-eral manager of AQx Sports. Thomas had alreadyfounded and sold Coil Solutions, a garden hose compa-ny, so he had the expertise to develop a product andtake it to market. They enlisted the help of four engi-neers who had worked for Hewlett-Packard and a con-sultant on manufacturing in Asia.

Once the team was assembled, the fun really began,when each person was charged with coming up with aprototype shoe for Killgore and his students to try.

The first prototypes – one made of boots andanother sporting metal drawer handles – seemed moreappropriate for Frankenstein’s monster than for train-

ing, Killgore said with a laugh.“We had some very awkward things, but we wereon the right track,” he added.

The boots were replaced with Killgore’srunning shoes, and plastic “scoops” took the

place of the handles to create drag.Killgore, who has tested each model,

kept revising the design, trimming thescoops until their size and locationon the shoe seemed optimal.

“The challenge was to create ashoe that doesn’t have so much resist-

ance that the overall gait pattern is com-promised, which could invite injuries,” Killgore said.

The beauty of the shoe is its broad-based appeal,which goes beyond athletes. Because using the shoe inwater reduces the stress on muscles and joints, individu-als with a wide range of medical conditions can benefitfrom it. For example, people with osteoporosis, diabetes,or balance problems can increase their strength andexercise by using the shoe in the pool.

“Water aerobics enthusiasts will be thrilled, sincethey are always looking for another way to increaseresistance,” Killgore said. “There isn’t a population youcan name that won’t benefit from this.”

Killgore’s work reaches inside his Linfield class-

S U M M E R 2 0 0 5 - 76 - L I N F I E L D M A G A Z I N E

Perfecting their crafthat makes a great teacher? Aninquiring mind, mastery of a subjectand superior communication skills

are essential. But a zest for life, passionateengagement in one’s field and a desire to crossover to other interests and disciplines are hall-marks of the finest professors. Who knew that achemistry professor sings and acts, an exercisephysiology/biomechanics professor inventsspecialized athletic shoes, or an education pro-fessor is nationally recognized for hands-onteaching of math with geometrical solids thatallow visual learners to excel? Linfield faculty arewell-rounded people whose passions are as var-ied as the subjects they teach. Five professorsare profiled here, offering glimpses of how theirwork, both within and outside of their chosenprofessions, makes them better teachers.

WGarry Killgore instructs students in the pool

Barbara Drake

Scott Chambers

Jim Diamond

Garry Killgore

Nancy Drickey

When Garry Killgore began the

research for his doctoral dissertation, little did

he know he would end up selling shoes.

Four years and countless designs later, that’s exactlywhat he is doing. But this isn’t just any shoe. It’s theAQx, the world’s first deep-water running shoedesigned to maximize training and rehabilitation whileminimizing injury.

Killgore’s foray into shoe manufacturing is a resultof research exploring the physiology and biomechanicsof deep-water running styles. The project hasresulted in collaborative research with Linfieldstudents and in the founding of a newcompany in McMinnville.

“I didn’t do this with the idea ofdeveloping a new shoe, but for abetter understanding of what deep-water running should do for people,”said Killgore, professor of health,human performance and athleticsand AQx Sports founder and chieftechnology officer.

“My hope was just to shed a little more light on theproper method for using deep-water running and howit could be applied to populations beyond athletes.”

Killgore did that and a whole lot more. Injured ath-letes have long used the pool as part of their therapywhen recovering from injuries. Killgore’s researchshowed that to be effective, the deep-water runningmovement must mimic land-based running. He foundthe cross-country style of motion imitates land-basedrunning better than the conventional high-knee motion.And if you couple that with a shoe, you get even betterresults.

The problem? A shoe designed specifically for usein the pool did not exist.

Enter Jeff Thomas ‘90, a local entrepreneur andmarketing expert, who now serves as president and gen-eral manager of AQx Sports. Thomas had alreadyfounded and sold Coil Solutions, a garden hose compa-ny, so he had the expertise to develop a product andtake it to market. They enlisted the help of four engi-neers who had worked for Hewlett-Packard and a con-sultant on manufacturing in Asia.

Once the team was assembled, the fun really began,when each person was charged with coming up with aprototype shoe for Killgore and his students to try.

The first prototypes – one made of boots andanother sporting metal drawer handles – seemed moreappropriate for Frankenstein’s monster than for train-

ing, Killgore said with a laugh.“We had some very awkward things, but we wereon the right track,” he added.

The boots were replaced with Killgore’srunning shoes, and plastic “scoops” took the

place of the handles to create drag.Killgore, who has tested each model,

kept revising the design, trimming thescoops until their size and locationon the shoe seemed optimal.

“The challenge was to create ashoe that doesn’t have so much resist-

ance that the overall gait pattern is com-promised, which could invite injuries,” Killgore said.

The beauty of the shoe is its broad-based appeal,which goes beyond athletes. Because using the shoe inwater reduces the stress on muscles and joints, individu-als with a wide range of medical conditions can benefitfrom it. For example, people with osteoporosis, diabetes,or balance problems can increase their strength andexercise by using the shoe in the pool.

“Water aerobics enthusiasts will be thrilled, sincethey are always looking for another way to increaseresistance,” Killgore said. “There isn’t a population youcan name that won’t benefit from this.”

Killgore’s work reaches inside his Linfield class-

S U M M E R 2 0 0 5 - 76 - L I N F I E L D M A G A Z I N E

Perfecting their crafthat makes a great teacher? Aninquiring mind, mastery of a subjectand superior communication skills

are essential. But a zest for life, passionateengagement in one’s field and a desire to crossover to other interests and disciplines are hall-marks of the finest professors. Who knew that achemistry professor sings and acts, an exercisephysiology/biomechanics professor inventsspecialized athletic shoes, or an education pro-fessor is nationally recognized for hands-onteaching of math with geometrical solids thatallow visual learners to excel? Linfield faculty arewell-rounded people whose passions are as var-ied as the subjects they teach. Five professorsare profiled here, offering glimpses of how theirwork, both within and outside of their chosenprofessions, makes them better teachers.

WGarry Killgore instructs students in the pool

Barbara Drake

Scott Chambers

Jim Diamond

Garry Killgore

Nancy Drickey

across the nation are promoting this hands-on learningand incorporating it into their curriculum.

As a result of his training with Drickey, RyanHawkins ’04 uses manipulatives in his third-grade class-room at Grandhaven Elementary School inMcMinnville. He's enthusiastic about their benefits,particularly when teaching students who are not fluentin English.

“I use them for just about every type of math,”Hawkins said. “Not only are they fun to play with, evenfor me, but it helps kids to actually hold objects and seethe solids. For example, they can think back to when I

threw a ball to them and relate that to geometry.”Drickey believes variety is important to teaching, so

neither physical nor virtual manipulatives can be usedevery day. But she hopes math teachers willmove away from traditional lecturing.

“Just because you say it, doesn’tmean it gets in there,” she said.“Kids need to be activelyinvolved in meaningfulmathematics. That’s myphilosophy.”

Diamond, a professor of chemistry at LinfieldCollege, can be found teaching chemistry in classroomsand labs by day. By night, he walks onto a different stage– at Linfield’s Marshall Theatre, McMinnville’s GalleryTheatre or Portland’s Keller Auditorium. He’s appearedin musicals and dramas, sung with the Portland OperaChorus and performed with the Symphonic Choir inPortland and around the world.

His is not the usual path for today’s chemist. Butthen, Diamond’s road to science has been anything butusual. In high school he studied Greek, Latin andFrench. He didn’t take a science class until he attendedSt. Joseph’s College in Philadelphia, Pa., where he wascaptivated by physical chemistry, a field that combinesphysics, chemistry and math. His background in botharts and sciences – like that of his hero, the physicist andNobel Laureate Niels Bohr, who wrote poetry, playedthe violin and was a mountain climber – was morecommon in the past than it is today.

Diamond studied piano and sang as a child. While ingraduate school at Stanford, he joined the UniversityChoir for relaxation. He continues to play the piano forpure enjoyment.

“To me, music is very personal and transforming,”he said. “I would never be able to express myself inwords in the way I can express myself in music.”

While teaching at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, hejoined the local community chorus to get his voice in shape.

“I loved it and it made a huge difference in my abil-ity to project my voice through the din in the laborato-ry,” he said.

After coming to Linfield in 1991 he and his wife,Maureen McCarthy, joined the Portland SymphonicChoir, performing in a number of concerts as well as in aninternational choir festival in Estonia where about 35,000singers in choirs from around the world performed.

He sang for the pure joy of it and never had any for-mal voice training until he approached Gwen Leonard,

Nancy Drickey gives students math

they can hold in their hands.

Sifting through bins full of colorful shapes, she pullsout handfuls of color tiles, pattern blocks and tangrams,and arranges them on a table. Nearby, similar shapes filla computer screen. These physical and virtual tools,called manipulatives, help teach everything from count-ing and patterning to place values and fractions.

The colorful blocks and shapes aren’t playthings, butthey can be fun. That’s the message Drickey, assistant pro-fessor of education, is sharing with her Linfield Collegestudents, many of whom are future math teachers.

“I feel passionate about the need for good mathteachers,” said Drickey, who taught middle school andhigh school for 13 years before pursuing a doctorate.“That’s why I’m here. I want to make a difference.”

Drickey, nationally recognized for her expertise inthe area of physical and virtual manipulatives, brings herknowledge of math education into her Linfield class-room on a daily basis.

As a doctoral student, she compared three methodsof teaching sixth-grade math. She found students usingthe computer programs and manipulatives stayed on taskand scored higher on tests than those in the traditionaldiscussion groups.

“A lot of students are visual learners and using thesetools helps them understand the concepts,” explainedDrickey, who joined the Linfield faculty in 2001.“Think about how you divide – you guess and then youmultiply, and then you subtract and bring down anoth-er number, and then you guess how many times a num-ber will go into that. It’s so abstract.”

Drickey, a visual learner herself, simplifies theprocess using base-10 blocks. She said the hands-onapproach meets students’ different learning styles.

“If I can see these things, I can understand it betterthan just looking at numbers on a page,” she said. “Thekids really like working with the manipulatives and theyreport understanding the math better.”

Drickey takes every opportunity to tout the advan-tages of hands-on math. She has presented her researchat conferences such as the National Council of Teachersof Math, the National Council of Supervisors of Math,Northwest Math Meetings, Teachers of Teachers ofMath and Oregon Math Leaders.

Her Linfield students regularly evaluate and demon-strate new products in class. They've also assistedDrickey with presentations at conferences.

“They are experts,” she said. “They get up in frontof Northwest teachers to talk about it. That is very pow-erful for them.”

Now as her students graduate and set up classroomsof their own, the knowledge is filtering out. Teachers

S U M M E R 2 0 0 5 - 98 - L I N F I E L D M A G A Z I N E

room. In addition to the students who worked on theinitial research, three others are investigating ancillaryissues. The work makes him a better teacher, Killgoresaid, because the students see the passion he brings tothe project and they, too, get excited.

“This challenges me to find a way to communicatemy philosophy of human movement that embraces howinterconnected everything is,” he said. “I’ve learned tonot always think in a linear fashion and to be open tofollowing tangents. Sometimes those tangents lead youto some outstanding revelations.”

Killgore and the team continue to refine and developthe shoe. A patent is pending and the shoe is beingmarketed on the website www.deepwaterrun-ner.com, and will be featured in a number ofcatalogs this fall.

“It’s one thing to have an idea, but ittakes a few people putting their headstogether to make it work,” Killgoresaid. “This was really a group processand without everyone in the group, Idon’t think we would be where weare right now.”

Nancy Drickey and Magen Marshall ’07

Jim Diamond in The Student Prince

What began as an experiment has become a passion for Jim Diamond.

across the nation are promoting this hands-on learningand incorporating it into their curriculum.

As a result of his training with Drickey, RyanHawkins ’04 uses manipulatives in his third-grade class-room at Grandhaven Elementary School inMcMinnville. He's enthusiastic about their benefits,particularly when teaching students who are not fluentin English.

“I use them for just about every type of math,”Hawkins said. “Not only are they fun to play with, evenfor me, but it helps kids to actually hold objects and seethe solids. For example, they can think back to when I

threw a ball to them and relate that to geometry.”Drickey believes variety is important to teaching, so

neither physical nor virtual manipulatives can be usedevery day. But she hopes math teachers willmove away from traditional lecturing.

“Just because you say it, doesn’tmean it gets in there,” she said.“Kids need to be activelyinvolved in meaningfulmathematics. That’s myphilosophy.”

Diamond, a professor of chemistry at LinfieldCollege, can be found teaching chemistry in classroomsand labs by day. By night, he walks onto a different stage– at Linfield’s Marshall Theatre, McMinnville’s GalleryTheatre or Portland’s Keller Auditorium. He’s appearedin musicals and dramas, sung with the Portland OperaChorus and performed with the Symphonic Choir inPortland and around the world.

His is not the usual path for today’s chemist. Butthen, Diamond’s road to science has been anything butusual. In high school he studied Greek, Latin andFrench. He didn’t take a science class until he attendedSt. Joseph’s College in Philadelphia, Pa., where he wascaptivated by physical chemistry, a field that combinesphysics, chemistry and math. His background in botharts and sciences – like that of his hero, the physicist andNobel Laureate Niels Bohr, who wrote poetry, playedthe violin and was a mountain climber – was morecommon in the past than it is today.

Diamond studied piano and sang as a child. While ingraduate school at Stanford, he joined the UniversityChoir for relaxation. He continues to play the piano forpure enjoyment.

“To me, music is very personal and transforming,”he said. “I would never be able to express myself inwords in the way I can express myself in music.”

While teaching at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, hejoined the local community chorus to get his voice in shape.

“I loved it and it made a huge difference in my abil-ity to project my voice through the din in the laborato-ry,” he said.

After coming to Linfield in 1991 he and his wife,Maureen McCarthy, joined the Portland SymphonicChoir, performing in a number of concerts as well as in aninternational choir festival in Estonia where about 35,000singers in choirs from around the world performed.

He sang for the pure joy of it and never had any for-mal voice training until he approached Gwen Leonard,

Nancy Drickey gives students math

they can hold in their hands.

Sifting through bins full of colorful shapes, she pullsout handfuls of color tiles, pattern blocks and tangrams,and arranges them on a table. Nearby, similar shapes filla computer screen. These physical and virtual tools,called manipulatives, help teach everything from count-ing and patterning to place values and fractions.

The colorful blocks and shapes aren’t playthings, butthey can be fun. That’s the message Drickey, assistant pro-fessor of education, is sharing with her Linfield Collegestudents, many of whom are future math teachers.

“I feel passionate about the need for good mathteachers,” said Drickey, who taught middle school andhigh school for 13 years before pursuing a doctorate.“That’s why I’m here. I want to make a difference.”

Drickey, nationally recognized for her expertise inthe area of physical and virtual manipulatives, brings herknowledge of math education into her Linfield class-room on a daily basis.

As a doctoral student, she compared three methodsof teaching sixth-grade math. She found students usingthe computer programs and manipulatives stayed on taskand scored higher on tests than those in the traditionaldiscussion groups.

“A lot of students are visual learners and using thesetools helps them understand the concepts,” explainedDrickey, who joined the Linfield faculty in 2001.“Think about how you divide – you guess and then youmultiply, and then you subtract and bring down anoth-er number, and then you guess how many times a num-ber will go into that. It’s so abstract.”

Drickey, a visual learner herself, simplifies theprocess using base-10 blocks. She said the hands-onapproach meets students’ different learning styles.

“If I can see these things, I can understand it betterthan just looking at numbers on a page,” she said. “Thekids really like working with the manipulatives and theyreport understanding the math better.”

Drickey takes every opportunity to tout the advan-tages of hands-on math. She has presented her researchat conferences such as the National Council of Teachersof Math, the National Council of Supervisors of Math,Northwest Math Meetings, Teachers of Teachers ofMath and Oregon Math Leaders.

Her Linfield students regularly evaluate and demon-strate new products in class. They've also assistedDrickey with presentations at conferences.

“They are experts,” she said. “They get up in frontof Northwest teachers to talk about it. That is very pow-erful for them.”

Now as her students graduate and set up classroomsof their own, the knowledge is filtering out. Teachers

S U M M E R 2 0 0 5 - 98 - L I N F I E L D M A G A Z I N E

room. In addition to the students who worked on theinitial research, three others are investigating ancillaryissues. The work makes him a better teacher, Killgoresaid, because the students see the passion he brings tothe project and they, too, get excited.

“This challenges me to find a way to communicatemy philosophy of human movement that embraces howinterconnected everything is,” he said. “I’ve learned tonot always think in a linear fashion and to be open tofollowing tangents. Sometimes those tangents lead youto some outstanding revelations.”

Killgore and the team continue to refine and developthe shoe. A patent is pending and the shoe is beingmarketed on the website www.deepwaterrun-ner.com, and will be featured in a number ofcatalogs this fall.

“It’s one thing to have an idea, but ittakes a few people putting their headstogether to make it work,” Killgoresaid. “This was really a group processand without everyone in the group, Idon’t think we would be where weare right now.”

Nancy Drickey and Magen Marshall ’07

Jim Diamond in The Student Prince

What began as an experiment has become a passion for Jim Diamond.

Scott Chambers spends most of his

day thinking about the market.

As a Linfield College finance professor, he knows theimportance of keeping up with trends in the fast-pacedworld of business. He feels just as strongly about bringingthat cutting-edge information to his Linfield students.

“I have to be engaged in the professional aspect of whatI do in order to be an effective educator,” said Chambers, atLinfield since 1990. “Finance is a rapidly changing field, andit’s very easy to lose sight of what’s current.”

Outside of Linfield, Chambers puts his investmentknowledge to work in the community, both as a volun-teer and professionally. He volunteers with a number oflocal nonprofit investment portfolios including theWillamette Valley Cancer Foundation, the McMinnvilleLibrary Foundation and the McMinnville EducationFoundation. As a registered investment adviser, he alsoreviews portfolios for individuals, offering advice oneverything from asset allocation to retirement planning.

Chambers’ work with First Federal Savings andLoan offers a direct link for his students. As a member ofthe board of directors, he is involved in strategic plan-ning for the institution and has a broad perspective ofthe bank’s overall management.

“I see the whole operation,” Chambers said, “andthat experience comes directly into the classroom on aweekly basis as we talk about the banking sector and the

structure of banking in the United States.”Chambers’ work experience provides case studies

for most class discussions. He uses examples fromLinfield’s finances after serving as the college’s interimchief financial officer in 1995. When the lesson is bankregulation, Chambers speaks from experience sittingacross from regulators at the local savings and loan.When his class studies portfolio structure and dealingwith large retirement distributions, Chambers relateswalking clients through the process.

“It’s material that can’t be found in a textbook,” hesaid. “These experiences allow me to bring that directlyinto the classroom, which I think students appreciate.”

And they do. Tommy Paterson ’05, a finance major,said class sessions are sprinkled with examples of alumni infinancial careers.

“Each year, as the concepts become second nature,our class time is filled with the real world,” saidPaterson, who plans a career as a certified financial plan-ner. “The purpose of all the perspectives is to beequipped to manage and prepare ourselves for a lifestyle

not where we are rich, rather a lifestyle where we canbe enriched by the things we do.”

Former student Elizabeth Jones ’02, vice president atU.S. Bank and lead banker to Linfield, said besides teach-ing the fundamentals of finance, Chambers also stressedthe importance of interview-ing and networking, skills thatJones said helped her advanceprofessionally.

“He sees value in puttingstudents in real-life situationsto help them learn what acareer in finance is reallylike,” she said.

Chambers’ outside work builds credibility with hisstudents while helping them evaluate possible careers.

“He kept our financial education fresh with currentevents, while also teaching us the nuts and bolts offinancial markets and portfolio management,” Jonessaid. “He understands that students appreciate and learnmore from real situations than just from book learning.”

professor of music, and asked to study voice with her. “She wasn’t quite sure what she was getting into,”

Diamond said with a laugh. “She had known me only asthe chemistry guy who occasionally wore GratefulDead T-shirts around campus.”

With Leonard’s encouragement, Diamond audi-tioned for the Portland Opera chorus and was invited tosing in the augmented chorus. He made the jump intomusical theatre in 2002 when he took on the role of SirJoseph Porter in the Gallery Theatre production ofHMS Pinafore, where he performed his first solo role.

Then an article by a Cornell University physics pro-fessor gave Diamond yet another idea.

He was soon auditing Janet Gupton’s introductoryacting class and enjoyed it so much, he took intermedi-ate and advanced acting. He was cast as Father Jack inDancing at Lughnasa in the old Pioneer Theatre andfound new ways to engage students in his class.

“Getting my students to respond in class is alwaystough,” he said. “Chemistry is a hard subject and verychallenging mathematically and philosophically. Thetheatre classes made me look at teaching differently – asa student and as a teacher. Traditionally, science is taughtin a lecture setting where you are trying to get a set of

concepts across. Now Ihave changed my styleto incorporate what I havelearned.”

He has taken on a new chal-lenge. He now teaches a first-yearInquiry Seminar, Chemistry and theAtmosphere. The course is designed to give non-majorsan understanding of basic chemistry concepts and issuessuch as the formation of the ozone hole, global warm-ing and climate change.

Without the acting classes, Diamond admits he wouldhave been terrified of teaching an Inquiry Seminar, whichemphasizes writing and speaking skills. “I’m not a writingprofessor,” he said. “I know how to write, but my writingwill never get into The New Yorker.”

Diamond knows that Linfield students appreciatethe broad interests of their professors.

“It doesn’t take long before students quickly see thatmost faculty have a wide range of abilities,” he said. “Youhave to be happy with all aspects of your life. If studentssee faculty do these types of things, maybe they will getthe idea that there are some aspects to a broader educa-tion that might be helpful to them.”

1 0 - L I N F I E L D M A G A Z I N E

Barbara Drake at a reading in the Austin Reading Room

Scott Chambers with Gina Sipp ‘05 and Tommy Paterson ‘05

Writing and teaching gohand-in-hand for

Barbara Drake.On any given day, Drake can be

found indulging her passion forboth, along with a number of otherwide-ranging interests includingart, travel and the environment.

“I’m a professional writer, butwith many other interests I’m anamateur in the true sense of theword, a lover of these things but notan expert,” said Drake, LinfieldCollege professor of English.

“When I want to learn some-thing, like keeping bees, I get all thebooks I can get on it, read them,and try to put it into practice.”

And her students reap the bene-fits. Drake, widely published and wellknown in the Pacific Northwest lit-erary world, brings her enthusiasminto the classroom daily. Maintaininga rigorous schedule of readings andworkshops, she finds her outside pro-fessional endeavors complement herwork at Linfield.

Some months are busier thanothers and April, National PoetryMonth, was a blur. Drake led a

S U M M E R 2 0 0 5 - 1 1

writing workshop, judged a poetrycontest, gave a reading and read apoem, “The Owl,” as invocationfor the Oregon House ofRepresentatives “to bring everyonetogether for an elevated momentbefore they started debating issues.”And that was just one week.

Her schedule, although chaotic

at times, adds depth to her teaching.“I feel like I bring something

back and forth between theseactivities,” she said. “If I’m doing aworkshop and pick up new ideas, Ibring them back to my creativewriting classes. If I get into anoth-er area that I'm interested in, I mayoffer a new class.”

Scott Chambers spends most of his

day thinking about the market.

As a Linfield College finance professor, he knows theimportance of keeping up with trends in the fast-pacedworld of business. He feels just as strongly about bringingthat cutting-edge information to his Linfield students.

“I have to be engaged in the professional aspect of whatI do in order to be an effective educator,” said Chambers, atLinfield since 1990. “Finance is a rapidly changing field, andit’s very easy to lose sight of what’s current.”

Outside of Linfield, Chambers puts his investmentknowledge to work in the community, both as a volun-teer and professionally. He volunteers with a number oflocal nonprofit investment portfolios including theWillamette Valley Cancer Foundation, the McMinnvilleLibrary Foundation and the McMinnville EducationFoundation. As a registered investment adviser, he alsoreviews portfolios for individuals, offering advice oneverything from asset allocation to retirement planning.

Chambers’ work with First Federal Savings andLoan offers a direct link for his students. As a member ofthe board of directors, he is involved in strategic plan-ning for the institution and has a broad perspective ofthe bank’s overall management.

“I see the whole operation,” Chambers said, “andthat experience comes directly into the classroom on aweekly basis as we talk about the banking sector and the

structure of banking in the United States.”Chambers’ work experience provides case studies

for most class discussions. He uses examples fromLinfield’s finances after serving as the college’s interimchief financial officer in 1995. When the lesson is bankregulation, Chambers speaks from experience sittingacross from regulators at the local savings and loan.When his class studies portfolio structure and dealingwith large retirement distributions, Chambers relateswalking clients through the process.

“It’s material that can’t be found in a textbook,” hesaid. “These experiences allow me to bring that directlyinto the classroom, which I think students appreciate.”

And they do. Tommy Paterson ’05, a finance major,said class sessions are sprinkled with examples of alumni infinancial careers.

“Each year, as the concepts become second nature,our class time is filled with the real world,” saidPaterson, who plans a career as a certified financial plan-ner. “The purpose of all the perspectives is to beequipped to manage and prepare ourselves for a lifestyle

not where we are rich, rather a lifestyle where we canbe enriched by the things we do.”

Former student Elizabeth Jones ’02, vice president atU.S. Bank and lead banker to Linfield, said besides teach-ing the fundamentals of finance, Chambers also stressedthe importance of interview-ing and networking, skills thatJones said helped her advanceprofessionally.

“He sees value in puttingstudents in real-life situationsto help them learn what acareer in finance is reallylike,” she said.

Chambers’ outside work builds credibility with hisstudents while helping them evaluate possible careers.

“He kept our financial education fresh with currentevents, while also teaching us the nuts and bolts offinancial markets and portfolio management,” Jonessaid. “He understands that students appreciate and learnmore from real situations than just from book learning.”

professor of music, and asked to study voice with her. “She wasn’t quite sure what she was getting into,”

Diamond said with a laugh. “She had known me only asthe chemistry guy who occasionally wore GratefulDead T-shirts around campus.”

With Leonard’s encouragement, Diamond audi-tioned for the Portland Opera chorus and was invited tosing in the augmented chorus. He made the jump intomusical theatre in 2002 when he took on the role of SirJoseph Porter in the Gallery Theatre production ofHMS Pinafore, where he performed his first solo role.

Then an article by a Cornell University physics pro-fessor gave Diamond yet another idea.

He was soon auditing Janet Gupton’s introductoryacting class and enjoyed it so much, he took intermedi-ate and advanced acting. He was cast as Father Jack inDancing at Lughnasa in the old Pioneer Theatre andfound new ways to engage students in his class.

“Getting my students to respond in class is alwaystough,” he said. “Chemistry is a hard subject and verychallenging mathematically and philosophically. Thetheatre classes made me look at teaching differently – asa student and as a teacher. Traditionally, science is taughtin a lecture setting where you are trying to get a set of

concepts across. Now Ihave changed my styleto incorporate what I havelearned.”

He has taken on a new chal-lenge. He now teaches a first-yearInquiry Seminar, Chemistry and theAtmosphere. The course is designed to give non-majorsan understanding of basic chemistry concepts and issuessuch as the formation of the ozone hole, global warm-ing and climate change.

Without the acting classes, Diamond admits he wouldhave been terrified of teaching an Inquiry Seminar, whichemphasizes writing and speaking skills. “I’m not a writingprofessor,” he said. “I know how to write, but my writingwill never get into The New Yorker.”

Diamond knows that Linfield students appreciatethe broad interests of their professors.

“It doesn’t take long before students quickly see thatmost faculty have a wide range of abilities,” he said. “Youhave to be happy with all aspects of your life. If studentssee faculty do these types of things, maybe they will getthe idea that there are some aspects to a broader educa-tion that might be helpful to them.”

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Barbara Drake at a reading in the Austin Reading Room

Scott Chambers with Gina Sipp ‘05 and Tommy Paterson ‘05

Writing and teaching gohand-in-hand for

Barbara Drake.On any given day, Drake can be

found indulging her passion forboth, along with a number of otherwide-ranging interests includingart, travel and the environment.

“I’m a professional writer, butwith many other interests I’m anamateur in the true sense of theword, a lover of these things but notan expert,” said Drake, LinfieldCollege professor of English.

“When I want to learn some-thing, like keeping bees, I get all thebooks I can get on it, read them,and try to put it into practice.”

And her students reap the bene-fits. Drake, widely published and wellknown in the Pacific Northwest lit-erary world, brings her enthusiasminto the classroom daily. Maintaininga rigorous schedule of readings andworkshops, she finds her outside pro-fessional endeavors complement herwork at Linfield.

Some months are busier thanothers and April, National PoetryMonth, was a blur. Drake led a

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writing workshop, judged a poetrycontest, gave a reading and read apoem, “The Owl,” as invocationfor the Oregon House ofRepresentatives “to bring everyonetogether for an elevated momentbefore they started debating issues.”And that was just one week.

Her schedule, although chaotic

at times, adds depth to her teaching.“I feel like I bring something

back and forth between theseactivities,” she said. “If I’m doing aworkshop and pick up new ideas, Ibring them back to my creativewriting classes. If I get into anoth-er area that I'm interested in, I mayoffer a new class.”

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A member of the Linfield faculty since 1983, Drakehas long recognized the importance of cross-disciplinaryeducation. She's teamed up with a number of colleaguesover the years, including Kareen Sturgeon, professor ofbiology, with whom she teaches environmental literature.

“It’s so satisfying,” Drake said. “We have differentareas of expertise and we put them together, learn fromeach other and grow from that. It helps students makeconnections with different things instead of just beingsocked into their majors.”

In 2003, Drake collaborated with Liz Obert, assistantprofessor of art, to teach Text, Image, Narrative and theArtist Book, for which students hand-bound their writ-ing. The experience proved as rich for Drake, who onceconsidered becoming an artist, as for her students. Eachprofessor completed the other's assignments so Drakelearned book binding and desktop publishing skills. Thisspring she offered a new course, Creative Writing and theArt of the Book, in the English Department.

Drake lives on a 20-acre farm near Yamhill, where

she and her husband raise sheep and tend a smallvineyard. Her 1998 book, Peace at Heart,reflects her deep love of the outdoors andcountry living.

“I’ve always gone out in nature forrefreshment and a joyful feeling,” she said. “Sonaturally, when I moved to the country Istarted writing about it. Whatever I'm doing,at work or at home, it’s possible material for my writing.”

Another of Drake’s interests, international travel, isthe focus of her most recent project. Her book, nearingcompletion, chronicles more than four decades ofchanges in the world from her perspective, first as a stu-dent and then as a professor leading Linfield studyabroad courses to Europe.

For Drake, inspiration is all around. “I enjoy all thesethings I do and want to share them with my students,”she said.

– Stories by Laura Davis and Mardi MilehamCollege enters new phase in presidential search

Linfield College is in a newphase in its search for a presidentto replace Dr. Vivian A. Bull.McMinnville attorney DaveHaugeberg, secretary of theBoard of Trustees and a membersince 1982, is chair of the searchcommittee. He has had extensiveexperience serving on searchcommittees, at Linfield and forother organizations. Here, he

shares his insight into the process and what steps will betaken in the coming months.

What is involved in seeking a new president?

The process of identifying top candidates can belengthy, from creating an institutional profile outliningLinfield College’s strengths and challenges to reviewingcredentials and checking references. Campus visits giveour various constituents the opportunity to meet thecandidates and also give the candidates a chance tomeet us as a community. The process is really two-way,we are looking at the candidate and the candidate islooking at us.

Are you disappointed that you have not yet iden-tified a new president?

I am not disappointed. For me, a failed search isone that brings in the wrong person to serve as presi-dent of Linfield College. We have learned a great dealthrough our efforts. The feedback the committeereceived from members of the college community has

helped further define the attributes and experiencesthe next president should possess.

What qualities is the committee looking for in anew president?

We are looking for qualities similar to those exhibitedby our last two extraordinary presidents, Dr. CharlesWalker and Dr. Vivian A. Bull. We need an accom-plished scholar and experienced administrator, a strate-gic thinker who can align the college community to acommon vision. We also need someone with stronginterpersonal skills and who is a respected and articu-late spokesperson on issues relating to higher educa-tion. We need someone well-versed in the importanceof multicultural and global awareness and who has aproven record in generating financial support from thepublic and private sectors.

What are the next steps?

The committee and our consultant are generating apool of candidates with the qualities we are seeking. Wewill begin to narrow that pool in late August and plan tobring candidates to campus in the fall. We encouragemembers of the Linfield community to check the web-site regularly for updates on the search process and toprovide feedback to the committee. The institutionalprofile, which provides an overview of Linfield Collegeand outlines the qualities we seek in the next president,is posted on the web for review by alumni, staff and friends of the college.

Dave Haugeberg

‘Oh happy day’ as 480 graduateCool, cloudy skies – but no rain – greeted nearly 480 candidates for gradu-

ation during the 2005 commencement ceremonies in the Oak Grove May 29.Six faculty and administrators, including President Vivian A. Bull, presiding overher final commencement before retiring, received emerita/us honors.

Doug Tunnell, an award-winning journalist and local winery owner, received an honorary degree for his profes-sional achievements, service to the community and embodiment of a liberal arts education.

Tunnell encouraged students to “hold so-called ‘conventional wisdom’ up to the light and turn it carefully inyour hand…scrutinize its many facets…and even then, be slow to believe.

“Whatever it is you want to accomplish, keep in mind that one gift Linfield has given you,” he said. “What thephilosopher Bertrand Russell called ‘the critical habit of mind.’ You may well forget the data…the dates anddetails learned in classes here. But that other gift will always be with you.”

www.linfield.edu/president_search/index.php

on thewebon theweb