A conversation with novelist Mari Matthias ‘94, author of “The Runestone’s Promise”
Mari Matthias ‘94 loved diagramming sentences back in the ninth grade. Later, she served on the staff of Saxifrage, PLU’s student-run literary and art magazine, during all four of her years on campus. Matthias describes herself as a self-taught novelist. “Once I decided to write…
PLU interns combat climate change one tree at a time
A group of PLU students interning with the Tacoma Tree Foundation spent the summer increasing the number of trees in the city to reduce polluted stormwater runoff and heat during the summer months and improving the livelihoods of those who live in urban areas. The…
Lute Powered: Port of Tacoma and Northwest Seaport Alliance
Together, the ports of Tacoma and Seattle are the fourth-largest container gateway for containerized cargo shipping between Asia and major distribution points in the Midwest, Ohio Valley and the East Coast. For this installment of Lute Powered, we interviewed three PLU alumni who are serving…
Connecting for Commerce: Port of Tacoma Executive Director Eric Johnson ’83
When Pacific Lutheran University alumnus Eric Johnson ’83 majored in political science and minored in biology, he wasn’t sure how the two would fit together in a career. After he graduated from PLU, he earned a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington…
NW Seaport Alliance CEO John Wolfe ’87 discusses his career in maritime leadership
Shortly after John Wolfe ’87 graduated from PLU he went to work for a Seattle-based company called SeaLand Shipping Line. In the years that followed he worked in sales, marketing, and operations for a variety of marine cargo companies and agencies. Eventually, he was appointed…
Saving the World with a Starship
On day one of PLU Professor of Mathematics Daniel Heath’s Designing a Starship class, students have no idea what they have signed up for — and that’s exactly how Heath wants it. The course is part of PLU’s International Honors Program (IHON), which means it…
Opening Doors to Opportunity: Andrew Whitney ’12, Director of Seed Internships
I had two internships during my time at PLU. One led to a full-time offer and I stayed there for almost seven years. Getting that second internship was about my talent and also about the right place, right time, right skill set, right newsletter subscription.…
Camp Songs: PLU music majors produce free music camp for Parkland students
It’s a warm summer morning and the scent of scrambled eggs drifts from the kitchen at Trinity Lutheran Church into an adjoining room where more than a dozen campers busily make beaded jewelry. Ranging from second to sixth grade, the kids are participants in the…
Centering the City: Lisa Woods ’92 discusses her work as Tacoma’s chief equity officer
Lisa Woods ’92 leads initiatives to help improve systems and services as the City of Tacoma’s chief equity officer. She says her approach to this work starts with listening and continuously thinking about how best to center community voices, experiences and needs. How can centering…
Asking Historic Questions: Beth Griech-Polelle, PLU Kurt Mayer Chair of Holocaust Studies
I think we have all heard the infamous phrase, “Those who do not know the past are condemned to repeat it.” For most historians, asking questions about our shared past forces all of us to confront uncomfortable truths about the past with the hope that…