Equipping Difference Makers in Art History and Art Education

This article was originally published on apu.edu.

For students interested in a graduate degree in Art History or Art Education from a Christian institution, there is no better option than Azusa Pacific University. APU’s graduate art programs top the national rankings of many sources including Forbes, Best Colleges, Intelligent, and Grad School Center. APU’s programs offer students rigorous coursework taught by experienced experts, flexible schedules including fully asynchronous or low-residency classes, and multiple entry points each semester, all while preparing students to become difference makers in the art world after graduation.

Faith Informed Instruction

When APU launched the Master of Art in Modern and Contemporary Art History program in 2012, it became one of the only Christian institutions in the country to offer such a graduate degree. The same was true when APU started the Master of Art in Art Education in 2017.

“Other Christian schools had undergraduate art programs, but didn’t offer graduate art programs,” said Bill Catling, MFA, chair of the Department of Art and interim chair of the Department of Design. “We saw the benefit of equipping graduate students with a Christian art education so they could make a difference as educators and leaders.”

APU’s art history program focuses specifically on modern (1830s to 1960s) and contemporary art (1970s to the present). “It’s interesting that while Christianity is such an essential part of medieval and renaissance art, most schools don’t offer any courses on art and religion in modern and contemporary art, or even allow their students to explore the subject,” said Angela George, PhD, program director of the MA in Modern and Contemporary Art. “We don’t shy away from talking about the intersections between Christianity in art.” While faith components are integrated into every course in APU’s art programs, specific courses offer a deeper focus on the relationship between religion and art. Catling believes the exploration of this connection is essential in creating a well rounded art historian and educator. “Whether someone is a person of faith or not, they’re bringing invisible ideas into the making,” he said. “This really allows us to explore what you see and what’s behind what you see.”

Flexible Schedule and Multiple Entry Points

APU’s Art History program is fully online and asynchronous. This offers students tremendous flexibility in completing their education outside of work hours. “About half of our students are teachers who are looking to advance in their careers,” George said. “Our online format allows them to continue working full-time while completing their coursework on their own schedule.” APU’s Art History program is one of only two in the country to offer a fully online format. The program is 36-units, meaning students can complete it in as little as 18 months, although most take 2-3 years to finish it. “We’ve had a lot of art teachers who have had the program mostly or fully paid for by their school districts.”

Art Education is a low-residency program—meaning the vast majority of courses are offered online while students are required to complete two one-week in-person residency courses as part of the 30-unit program. The access and flexibility caters to a diverse population, including international students who visit the Azusa campus each summer for their residencies. “All of the students love the communal aspects of the residency,” Catling said. “We share meals and do activities together. For many art teachers at the high school, middle school, and elementary level, they’re just consumed by the workload. It’s so intense that they don’t get to make art anymore, so when they come for the summer it’s refreshing for them to get to create artwork. They have a whole week to make art in our caring community and it revitalizes them.”

Both APU’s Art History and Art Education programs offer students five entry-points: two in the spring semester, one in the summer, and two in the fall semester.

“I don’t know of any other institutions that offer five entry-points each year for their master’s arts programs,” George said. “We’re groundbreaking in that respect, and it’s challenging, but we want to offer students that flexibility.”

Learn Essential Skills

APU’s programs equip students with skills necessary to succeed in their chosen career. “We give outstanding art historical training, current critical methods, visual analysis, close reading of texts, and communication and research skills,” George said. All art history students conduct extensive original research using primary sources that they write papers on and present to their classes. Students in the program have had their research published in prestigious industry publications, including MDPI’s Arts Journal, the Coalition of Master’s Scholars on Material Culture, and Visual Inquiry. Art History students must take a foreign language which aids in research of global art. In addition, they learn to read the art itself as a text. “Formal analysis is also like learning a foreign language,” George said. “Analyzing and discussing art is a skill that students in all of our disciplines learn to articulate clearly, translating the visual into the verbal.”

In Art Education, students research various movements of art, how the movements have changed over the centuries, how to break down artwork structurally down to its elements, and principles so they can teach their students in turn how to replicate it.

“In art education, you teach people how to see, observe, and identify the different parts of what you’re seeing, and how to teach it,” Catling said.

Graduate Ready to Impact the Industry

Whether students are seeking to become art curators or historians, advance in their teaching careers, or get ready to pursue a doctoral degree, APU’s Art History and Art Education programs prepare them to become difference makers ready to impact the industry. Graduates from APU’s programs have gone on to serve in a variety positions at renowned institutions, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art. Alumni have also been accepted into prestigious PhD programs at McMaster University, the University of Florida, and Graduate Theological Union, among other prestigious institutions.

Both APU’s Art History and Art Education program have alumni across the country teaching art from elementary to collegiate levels. “We’re a group of professionals trying to change the next generation,” Catling said. “Our program has had a powerful ripple effect and we’re excited to continue to see the impact of our alumni.”

Learn more about APU’s Art Education and Art History programs and apply today.

APU Hosts “Human Flourishing in the Age of AI” Conference

This article was originally published on APU’s website.

While artificial intelligence (AI) is one of the hottest topics in 2023, with countless new developments, many people don’t fully understand what AI is and its possible benefits and potential dangers. Azusa Pacific University’s Center for Research in Science (CRIS) recently hosted a conference entitled “Human Flourishing in the Age of AI,” featuring experts across a variety of fields. “We hope participants walked away from the symposium with a deeper understanding and less fear of AI’s impact on society through actively engaged discussions on how to harness its potential for human flourishing,” said Louise Ko Huang, PhD, director of CRIS. “It was refreshing to hear differing views without arguments. Everyone listened and took the time to understand perspectives different from their own.”

The conference featured plenary speaker Sherol Chen, PhD, a computer science researcher who studied AI and has worked for a big tech company for more than a decade. Chen described the history of AI and how the field has evolved over the years. Among the many misconceptions about AI, Chen noted that most people don’t realize that AI has been around since the 1950s and how much research has gone into it. She said there are countless papers and reports that are easily accessible and many people who aim to teach and explain AI to make understanding it less daunting. “There’s a lot of noise out there,” she said. “I believe that growing our understanding grows our faith which enables us to receive even more wisdom to filter out the distractions, as we see in James 1:5.”

From a Christian perspective on building AI, Chen referenced Romans 8:19, describing how we are called to create. “With all things, we should create with hope and humility. What and how we create is our responsibility,” she said. “This also means understanding the tools we use and the impact our creations make on our neighbors.” While many people are worried about how AI might potentially be used for malice, Chen believes AI can and should be used for good.

“We have to have faith that God will give us the wisdom to use technology appropriately.”

Following Chen’s speech, attendees took part in a four corners activity, moving around to corners in the room labeled agree, disagree, strongly agree, and strongly disagree based on questions Huang asked. The questions included:

• Are there any ethical norms that should be applied to AI?

• Can humans claim credit for AI authorship?

• Can AI influence ministry and how people think about God?

• Can AI destroy humanity? While almost everyone strongly agreed that ethical norms should be applied to AI, the other three questions divided the audience fairly evenly. The thought provoking questions kept participants talking as they enjoyed lunch before hearing from a panel of APU faculty and staff.

The panel featured Mihretu Guta, PhD, professor of philosophy, Mike Truong, PhD, director of digital learning and faculty success, Alex Yu, PhD, director of data analytics, and Karen Lang, PhD, writing program lead instructor. Answering the same questions the participants had been asked earlier, the panel all agreed that ethical framework was crucial in the development of AI. However, claiming credit of AI authorship with tools like ChatGPT split the panel. Yu said using it is just another tool to get a project done, but Lang strongly dissented.

“We don’t want to create better papers. We want to create better writers. We still need to teach thinking, not shortcuts,” Lang said. “Have something to say for yourself; do not let a machine say it for you. I want to know what you think.”

Mihretu shared similar sentiments, describing ChatGPT as a mental crutch that is teaching people to be dependent and not think for themselves. “You can’t use a crutch forever,” he said. “What you get with AI is an artificially learned person. They don’t truly know a subject.” All agreed that AI could potentially benefit ministry in different ways and that AI cannot destroy humanity since only people can do that. As each panel member shared closing remarks, the consensus was clear as summarized by Yu. “AI is here to stay,” he said. “We should embrace it and figure out how we can use it beneficially.”

After the interdisciplinary panel, attendees further unpacked the subject of AI at discipline-based table discussions. The disciplines represented included humanities, healthcare, business, education, ministry, social work and social sciences, natural sciences, and philosophy. A student table was led by computer science and honors humanities alumnus Nicolas Chera ’18, while the other tables were led by APU faculty from several colleges and schools including Rebekah Harris, MS, Monica Ganas, PhD, Valerie Joy Smith, PhD, RN, MSN, CCRN, LaShan Epperson, DBA, Kaitlyn Fizgerald, PhD, Elijah Roth, PhD, and Enson Chang, PhD.

The conference concluded with an address from alumnus Finney Premkumar ’97, the founder and director of Truth Matters International, a Christian apologetics ministry. Premkumar emphasized three points: that we should appreciate AI and the many ways it already benefits us, that we should be apprehensive about AI in terms of respecting its potential if misused, and that we should explore applications of AI in different disciplines, using AI as a means to an end. Premkumar also spoke about the different levels of AI from basic (machine learning) to advanced (machine intelligence) and AI superintelligence (machine consciousness). Premkumar posited that AI as we know it could never get to the point of consciousness. “God created humans. Humans created AI,” he said. “And the image of God in humans is non-transferable.”

This conference was made possible because of the generous funding from the John Templeton Foundation through the Scholarship and Christianity in Oxford Supporting Structures grant. Huang shared her excitement that CRIS is able to put on these kinds of symposiums at least once a year for the community. “For centuries, the academy has been known as the ivory tower. In these rapidly changing times, can the academy be reimagined to be a community of learners who are willing and able to share their resources with the community at large?” she asked. “My aspiration is that APU can be that place to offer intellectual and civic progress rooted in the Christian faith and God’s sovereignty.”

$200,000 NSF Grant Supports Students STEM Identity through Learning Assistant Program

This article was originally published on APU’s website.

Azusa Pacific University is dedicated to cultivating student success in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) programs. The university recently received a $199,996 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to study the effectiveness of learning assistants in the classroom and the experiences of historically underrepresented students in STEM, while providing funding for an additional 10 learning assistants per semester over the next two years. The grant was secured by a team of APU faculty including Bradley “Peanut” McCoy, PhD, Elijah Roth, PhD, Kaitlyn Fitzgerald, PhD, Marian Saleh, MA, MS, and Sharon McCathern, PhD.

The main objective of the NSF grant is to measure the effectiveness of learning assistants on the STEM identity of students. “STEM identity is a sense of belonging in a STEM field, not just being a student in a chemistry or biology class, but feeling like you are a chemist or a biologist,” Roth said. “Our learning assistants help foster a welcoming environment where we’re all scientists in the classroom.”

Research points to three ways that students develop STEM identity: recognition, interest, and performance. “Many talented students will begin in a STEM field, but if they don’t get recognition and develop a STEM identity, they are disproportionately pushed out of the field,” McCoy said. “Recognition can come from teachers, peers, family, friends, and of course learning assistants telling students they are STEM people which can lead to higher performance in the classroom.” Although the learning assistant program is only two years old, preliminary data suggests that it’s leading to decreasing rates of D’s, F’s, and withdrawals (students who don’t pass the course), and is increasing performance across the board so more students are earning A or B grades.

The grant also focuses on how STEM identity is strengthened in the learning assistants themselves. Although they are distinctly different from teaching assistants, learning assistants assist faculty in many ways, allowing for more innovative instruction. “I’ve asked my assistants how they would go about teaching certain topics, how they suggest engaging students, and how I can make the material more accessible,” Roth said. “I’m inviting them in as a co-laborer for helping the students learn, someone who has input, ownership, and responsibility of the course, so that they feel the students’ successes are also their successes.” This helps to cement the assistant’s identity as a STEM person and a leader.

Experience of Historically Underrepresented Students in STEM

A major component to the NSF grant is evaluating the experience of historically underrepresented students in STEM fields. “APU is fortunate to have an incredibly diverse student body, which adds to the richness of our campus and our classrooms. Yet we recognize that diversity does not always equal equity or belonging,” Fitzgerald said. “Insight gleaned from this research as well as the faculty and LA professional development on culturally responsive STEM pedagogy are important steps in our ongoing efforts to ensure APU is an environment where all students can thrive.”

Many of the learning assistants come from historically underrepresented backgrounds, which has a major impact on the success of students in their classes. “It’s critical that students see themselves as leaders in the discipline,” Roth said. “Providing these opportunities for underrepresented students to see learning assistants succeeding in their field encourages them to persist and persevere in the course and beyond.”

Cultivating STEM Leaders Through Research as an R2 Institution

This article was originally published on APU’s website.

Azusa Pacific University recently announced a $2 million investment to purchase equipment which will enable faculty and students to conduct cutting edge research. This commitment to research further bolsters APU’s status as the only institution from the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) to earn a prestigious R2 designation from the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, the most influential rating organization among colleges and universities.

Funding from this investment enables schools across APU to purchase replacements for aging materials and new state-of-the-art equipment. “This allows us to enhance our research and innovation in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS), the School of Behavioral and Applied Sciences, and the School of Nursing, further positioning APU as a leader in academic research,” said Louise Ko Huang, PhD, acting dean of CLAS. “With the integration of Christian faith and ethics in these endeavors, APU is poised to raise skilled leaders who can impact society for God’s kingdom.”

STEM Research Highlights

A major portion of the research funding is dedicated to strengthening APU’s science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) programs. As fast growing fields with high earning job opportunities after graduation, APU has seen an increase in STEM enrollment. The university gives students rare opportunities to conduct research with faculty mentors while in undergraduate studies. Recent faculty STEM research projects include:

• Computer simulation to understand biomolecular motor chemo-mechanics for pharmaceutical usages (Sándor Volkán-Kacsó, PhD, physics)

• Designing better data visualizations to help educators make data-informed decisions (Kaitlyn Fitzgerald, PhD, statistics)

• Exploring the interaction of music and movement in the brain (Aisha Chen, PhD, engineering)

• Developing cybersecurity and satellite communications capabilities for undergraduate research (James H. Yeh, PhD, computer science)

• Exploring the molecular intricacies of human drug-metabolizing enzymes and their substrates (Phil Cox, PhD, chemistry)

• Using an automated high-throughput tracking system in cockroaches to understand brain injury trauma effects on learning and memory (Kenneth Sossa, PhD, biology)

• Enhanced teaching and learning anatomy by using the 3D touch screen technology Anatomage Table (Sossa and Ryan Somers, PT, DPT, biology)

• Exploring novel therapeutics development and biopharmaceutics that minimize the extensive use of animal testing (David Dyer, PhD, MS, biotechnology)

New Bioengineering Facility

In September, APU will introduce a bioengineering facility, the only of its kind among CCCU schools. A new live-cell imaging system and Franz-diffusion chamber system will enable researchers to conduct structure/function analyses. The new equipment also includes a Cell-Ink BIO-X 3-D tissue printer, which can construct three-dimensional tissue models of major organs including skin, liver, intestine, heart, pancreas, and brain. “Using organ-specific models allows us to generate data about the usefulness of such models as an alternative to animal testing,” Dyer said. “This results in two benefits: allowing us to speed up the process of candidate drugs screening at a lower cost and using human-derived cells and tissues, instead of non-human derived cells and tissues, which will provide more pertinent data on the action of drug candidates in human systems.”

The opening of this bioengineering lab is timely. President Joe Biden recently announced an executive order advancing biotechnology and biomanufacturing innovation. “Our new tissue engineering facility will address core components of the President’s policies by improving efficiencies in high-throughput drug candidate screening systems,” Dyer said. “As a Christian university, APU is uniquely situated to provide ethically-sound solutions in keeping with national policy in the area of therapeutics development.” The 2023 BIO Impact Report indicates that biotechnology and biopharmaceutics lead the economic sector divisions for California, meaning there will be continual and rising need for skilled workers in these areas. “With the newly acquired equipment in the bioengineering facility, our MS in Biotechnology (MSBT) program is set to contribute in significant ways towards these needs,” Huang said.

College of the Arts Hosts Industry Spotlight at Warner Bros. Studios

This article was originally published on APU’s website.

Many actors and filmmakers dream of premiering their films on the big screen, but may have to wait a lifetime to get the opportunity. For Azusa Pacific University students, they only waited until the end of their senior year. APU’s College of the Arts (COTA) hosted the 2023 Industry Spotlight on May 4 at the legendary Warner Bros. studios, giving students in cinematic arts, animation, theater, games and interactive media, art, design, music, and journalism a chance to showcase their work in front of industry talent representatives and casting directors.

Cinematic Arts

A highlight of the night involved cinematic arts students premiering films they’ve worked on all year. These included Betting on Innocence, a family comedy directed by Ethan Samartin ’23; Trip, a psychological thriller directed by Trey Dickerson ’23; The Mediocrity of Sabine and the End of Fiction, a Wes Anderson style drama directed by Hope Daniel ’23, and City Streets, a civic engagement documentary directed by Jack Barrie ’23.

For Barrie, this project entailed far more than a chance to display his cinematography and directing skills. He was recruited by APU alumnus Ricky Staub ’06 (director of Netflix’s Concrete Cowboy) to help promote a nonprofit called The City Center, which offers transitional living for homeless families to get back on their feet. “We were able to make something important and special for The City Center. It was truly unlike anything I’ve experienced before,” Barrie said. In the short film, he worked alongside classmates Sarah Cloake ’23 and Grace Berry ’23 to interview two formerly homeless parents, sharing their stories of low points and what brought them to The City Center, along with the impact the center has had on their lives. The film brought many in the audience to tears, including Barrie’s mother. “This documentary was something I couldn’t have written a script for. God was working through us,” he said.

Animation

Animation students also premiered their films, ranging from minute long 2D shorts to longer, more complex 3D stories. These included Coffee Chaos by Anne Farris, Lifeline by Rebecca Hartman ’24, Silhouette by Shelby Uchida ’23, A Lesson in Time by Jasmine Rogers ’23 and Lindsay Weyman ’23, Night Owl by Chloe Weberg ’23, Peter and Wendy by Matthew D’Amico ’23, Sonríe Mi Chiquito by Melinda Almanza ’23, Drome 19 by Madeleine Chaffin ’23, Valerie and Eddie by Seojin Jeong ’23, Skate Bait by Kayla Dennis ’23 and Whitney Hii ’23, and Hooked by Victoria Ortiz ’23 and Kaitlyn Ford ’23. Each film shared a captivating story displaying different animation techniques.

Ortiz was thrilled to share her film, a completely computer generated (CG) animation about a woman who gets catfished on a date with an actual catfish. The film took an entire year to make and Ortiz estimates that her team spent well over 1,000 hours cumulatively in creating it. “Seeing it in the theater at Warner Bros. was indescribable. There was this magical sense of completion and achievement, that all those hours meant something,” she said.

“Then at the very end, when they brought us all up on stage, I could finally see all the hard work and connections I’ve made pay off. I don’t think I realized I was actually graduating until that moment. It felt like the start of something new and exciting.”

Watch cinematic arts and animation student films here.

Theater

In a separate theater, APU theater students screened a showcase of the webseries So That Happened and performed in front of 20 talent representatives and alumni including Staub and Mackenzie Phillips. Each senior delivered a monologue that they had practiced and refined for months under the direction of Jill Brennan-Lincoln, MA, chair of the Department of Theater Arts. “Many talent reps shared with me that the APU’s Spotlight is their favorite university acting showcase to attend,” Lincoln said. “This is high praise because they compared our BFA students to MFA programs from USC, Julliard, and NYU, endorsing the training and talent our students have.”

For senior Abigail Holland, the showcase was the once in a lifetime opportunity that she had been waiting for since she started at APU. Holland performed a minute long monologue from Pretty Theft. “It was so great to present something true to myself. Every time you perform, you’re playing a character, but this time I was playing myself and I was able to show the agents and the world for the first time who I am,” she said. After the showcase, Holland met with an agent who complimented her on her performance and offered to connect her with casting directors from Netflix and Amazon Prime.

“It was a huge win and reminded me that I can do this, that the talent God gave me is coming through.”

Artist Alley & Oceanview Mall

The Industry Spotlight also featured an “Artist Alley” where a group of students from games and interactive media, art, design, and journalism shared their creations. Students in APU’s first ever comic book class shared original comics they designed, showcasing their creative talent and storytelling abilities while journalism students presented documentaries they created.

In the Artist Alley, the first graduating class of APU’s games and interactive media program presented a demonstration of their video game Oceanview Mall. The game centers around a character named Wilson Wyatt who gets lost in an abandoned mall and is forced to face his consumeristic habits while finding a way out. Oceanview Mall was created by six students who spent a full year coming up with the story, designing the graphics, adding sound effects, and playtesting. “It felt surreal to share Oceanview Mall at the Spotlight. This project was our baby,” said Chrisitan Duran ’23. “We saw it through the whole process from when it was just a couple of gray blocks on a computer screen to it being a fully fledged world with music, sound, a beautifully designed environment, and a story playing out in the game.” After a lot of hard work and late nights, Duran felt incredibly relieved to see how much people enjoyed the game.

“I felt like I was putting part of myself out there. I know this is something that’s really good and I can present it to future employers showing what we created.”

APU’s Industry Spotlight has become a signature annual event for COTA, connecting students with industry professionals and paving a way for their God given talent to take them to the next level after graduation.

APU’s School of Business: A Leader in Innovation

This article was originally published on APU’s website.

Azusa Pacific University’s School of Business and Management (SBM) is constantly innovating and adapting to fit the needs of today’s students. Led by interim dean Roxanne Helm-Stevens, DBA, and a host of accomplished faculty, the SBM has expanded their offerings to provide students with ways to get ahead before they graduate.

“We embed credentials and microcredentials in classes along the way, such as Excel, Google Digital Garage, and Hootsuite so students can set themselves apart for internships and jobs,” Helm-Stevens said. “When they meet with a prospective employer, they can showcase their skills and differentiate themselves from the competition.”

Gold Standard IACBE Accreditation

Recently, the SBM received reaffirmation of accreditation through the International Accreditation Council for Business Education (IACBE). “Receiving IACBE accreditation provides great assurance to our students that we continually pursue excellence and self evaluation,” said Todd Pheifer, EdD, director of accreditation, assessment, and grants in the SBM. “We received the maximum length of accreditation—seven years—which is confirmation of not only the exceptional work we’ve been doing, but also where we’re going.”

Graduates from the SBM are currently working in high-level positions at top global companies including all of the “Big Four” accounting firms, Google, NASA, JPL, UPS, Travelers, Target, Kaiser, IEHP, TikTok, and the IRS, among many others. Graduates have also gone on to start their own successful companies. “When IACBE conducted interviews with employers who have hired our graduates, they received stellar reviews about our programs, commending our innovation and creativity,” said Helm-Stevens.

“Our programs are on the cutting edge of business schools. We’re always looking for ways to provide more value for our students.”

Launching APUx to Meet the Needs of Working Professionals

The SBM recently launched APUx, a program dedicated to filling the needs of working professionals through extended learning experiences. “Our goal is to provide a holistic model for nontraditional students and learners at work—nonenrolled students who are looking to learn specific skills or get certifications to advance in their jobs,” said Helm-Stevens.

APUx offers several workshops, certificates, certifications, licenses, and courses that can be taken by students regardless of age or degree status. “Whether you want to upskill in your current position or reskill and shift careers, we’ve got something for you,” said Wendi Dykes McGehee, PhD, CF-LSP, assistant dean and associate professor. Offerings include: How to Buy Your First Home, Investing 101, LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® for Next-Level Teams and Facilitator Certification, ICF Coaching Techniques and Level 1 Certification (ACC), Human Resources aPHR® Prep, The Generationally Diverse Workplace, leadership certificates, project management certificates, nonprofit and government financial management certificates, and more. Cost varies among workshops, certificates, and courses, with some being offered for free or at low cost.

These offerings are available for individuals or groups and are customizable for organizations. “Whether you want us to visit your office and teach employees at your worksite, or you want to come to APU for a conference or workshop, we’re happy to meet your organization’s needs,” Helm-Stevens said. APUx has worked with prominent organizations including LinkedIn, Habitat for Humanity, Kaiser Permanente, Cigna Healthcare, and the U.S. Navy. “We’re building bridges between higher education and the workplace,” said Lizzy King, MS, curriculum and instructional design specialist.

Register for APUx courses here or inquire about potential course offerings by emailing apux@apu.edu.

Sigma Iota Epsilon Finds New Home at APU Under Helm-Stevens

APU’s business students have the opportunity to join Sigma Iota Epsilon (SIE), a prestigious academic honor society founded in 1964. SIE’s mission is to stimulate achievement in the field of management, scholarship, and research. With more than 100 chapters around the U.S. and internationally, SIE has built a strong reputation and is a member of the Academy of Management, the preeminent professional association of management and organization scholars. After serving as APU’s SIE faculty advisor for seven years, in 2017, Helm-Stevens was appointed to the SIE national board, where she oversaw chapter quality, ensured they adhered to SIE standards, and reviewed new potential chapters.

In 2022, Helm-Stevens was unanimously approved as president of the SIE by all board members. After more than two decades housed at Colorado State University and the University of Dallas, SIE moved their national headquarters to APU during the Spring 2023 semester. “I’m honored and humbled to serve as the new president of Sigma Iota Epsilon,” Helm-Stevens said. “My main goals are to get students more involved in serving their local community and to update the existing technology and infrastructure to create more opportunities for students.” Helm-Stevens also plans on implementing case study competitions and offering more scholarships for SIE students. “APU has the prestigious position of now housing one of the world’s leading scholarly and academic management honors societies”

As needs for businesses change, the SBM continues to adapt, equipping students with the tools they need to get hired by top companies, start their own businesses, and make an impact in the world. Learn more about the opportunities available for SBM students at apu.edu/business.

APU Cinematic Arts: Training Transformative Storytellers

This article was originally published on APU’s website.

For students who dream of becoming filmmakers, Azusa Pacific University is the perfect place to be equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to succeed in the industry. Many factors go into this top cinematic arts program including its location next to the entertainment business, its unique opportunity for students to start making films as freshman, its industry-standard software and hardware, its industry experienced faculty, and its small class size providing individualized attention.

Location

Located just 30 miles outside of Hollywood, APU’s proximity to the film industry offers students opportunities they couldn’t get outside of Southern California. APU Cinematic Arts students have interned at Disney, CBS Television, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Scott Free Productions, and a number of other top entertainment organizations. “Internship opportunities here are through the roof,” said Zach Cheney, PhD, assistant professor of Screen Studies. “Being plugged into the places you want to work in Hollywood is invaluable.”

Thanks to the close proximity, the Department of Cinematic Arts, along with other programs in the College of the Arts, holds an annual Industry Spotlight at Warner Bros. studios. “Our students get to premiere their films in the same place that stars like Clint Eastwood premiere theirs,” said assistant professor Jesse Negron, MFA, assistant professor. Many talent agents and recruiters attended the event, and one animation student even got a job at Disney after a representative saw his work. “That happened because of the spotlight,” said Tim Samoff, professor. “I don’t think that could happen anywhere else.”

Creating Films from Day One

While many cinema programs focus on theory in the first couple of years and students aren’t able to put their skills into practice until their junior or senior year, at APU, students have a camera in their hand and begin making films during their freshman year. During this first year, students make three films which have an inciting incident, a belly of the whale (where hope is lost), and a climactic choice—all in two minutes, similar to a Pixar short. “In these freshmen films, you do everything—you script it, you shoot it, you cut it, you do sound design, all of it. It helps you learn the ropes of filmmaking,” Cheney said.

During their sophomore year, students partner up and create 5-8 minute movies, expanding by adding character development in a shot-by-shot film. In their junior year, students decide on their specialties ranging from directing to sound design. They form a team and create a 15-minute film supported by a university-matched budget. Their education culminates in the senior thesis film with a similar team structure. “The idea is that you’re trying to create something that’s going to generate buzz for film festivals and could launch your career,” Negron said. “Students are showing the world what they’re capable of through this film.” Several APU student films such as Remedy and Saigu have won awards including the Best Student Short at the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival.

Industry Standard Software & Hardware

The Department of Cinematic Arts provides all the necessary equipment for students to make the best films possible. “We have some of the best gear and facilities around. I’ve seen them all,” Negron said. “Having a Red Weapon, an Avid S6, a sound stage, a foley stage, and labs with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of the latest gear is incredible. I used to work on the Universal Studios lot and my editing room didn’t compare to the facilities we have.” Students also have access to play their movies on a 7.1 surround system in a mixing theater that seats 78 people, letting them hear what their movie will sound like in a theater.

As part of the Department of Cinematic Arts, the Animation and Visual Effects and Games and Interactive Media programs also have access to the latest industry-standard software and hardware including Toon Boom Harmony for animation, Da Vinci editing software, and Unity and Unreal game engines. “Students aren’t just learning the skills, they’re actually learning on the programs they’ll be using in the industry,” Samoff said.

Faculty in the Industry

The most valuable resource to students is their faculty who have worked extensively and are still active in Hollywood. Professors share insight through what they’ve learned in the industry and help students build meaningful connections that will help them get jobs in the future. “We have faculty who have created television shows with Ridley and Tony Scott, who have directed action sequences in top movies like The Mummy, Van Helsing, and GI Joe, who have written scripts for popular Netflix series, and who have animated numerous characters for Disney and Pixar movies,” Negron said. “Anytime we’re not teaching or helping our students, we’re working in the industry.”

Small Class Sizes

Not only do students get to learn from world class faculty, but they get to do it in small classes. Most production classes contain 8-10 students, allowing professors to give individual attention to each student when reviewing their films. “Our faculty can pore over literally every frame of every shot and every cut and every sound and give the kind of feedback that’s unparalleled anywhere else,” Cheney said. These small class sizes allow students to experience a similar development cycle to what happens at Netflix, Warner Bros., and Amazon Studios.

Versatility of Degrees & Graduating On Time

Students in the Cinematic Arts programs have a unique opportunity to pursue other interests while in undergrad. Many choose to add a minor in disciplines like business or to double major in programs like honors humanities. “I love when our students study humanities because they read great books and develop a perspective which is informed and well rounded,” Cheney said. “When they make films, they can contextualize it, know where they’re recycling and where their story is cliché.” Studying other topics still allows students to graduate on time.

For many cinematic arts programs, graduation rates in four years are very low, sometimes even under 50 percent. APU’s Cinematic Arts students have a graduation rate of over 90 percent in four years. APU also has pathways to help transfer students graduate in two years. “What allows our students to graduate on track is faculty who are so committed to seeing them do so,” Cheney said. “We’re not just invested in that graduation, but we’re constantly dreaming about how we can continue to push that further.”

Over their time at APU, professors truly get to know their students and want to see them succeed after walking across the graduation stage. “Cinema looks glitzy from the outside, but it takes a lot of hard work. When I write letters of recommendation to anybody who’s anybody in town, I’m doing so because I know that student’s driven and has a very strong work ethic,” Negron said. “We’re preparing our students to become incredible storytellers in Hollywood, to go out and create movies that explore truth.”