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Find Your Space

Bethel College Convocation by President Barry C. Bartel
September 3, 2007

Good morning. How many of you have embarrassed yourself at least once in the past week here at Bethel College? Congratulations! Taking risks and engaging this place, and yes, even embarrassing yourself, may help you to find your space! Of course there are risks that advance our educational mission, and there are risks that don’t. Part of your responsibility is to discern the difference.

Embarrassing Moments

Language can be a tricky thing when you are trying to find your space. There was a young woman who was trying to learn Spanish, so she went to work in a church in Central America. I don’t actually know if this is a true story, but it might be. This young woman worked hard to learn Spanish, until one Sunday morning the pastor surprised her and asked her to come to the front of the church and say a few words.

This young woman had learned a lot, but she was nervous. And she did what we all probably do at times — she assumed that words familiar to her would make sense to others. In fact, many words in Spanish do sound like the English translation. She wanted to tell the congregation that her poor Spanish made her embarrassed for the pastor who had asked her to come to the front. The word “embarrassed” sounds like the similar word she had heard in Spanish – “embarazada” – so she announced: “Estoy embarazada por el pastor!” Now it turns out that “embarazada” actually means “pregnant,” and “por” doesn’t mean “for” but “by.” Instead of saying “I am embarrassed for the pastor,” she had announced that “I have been impregnated by the pastor!” Language can be tricky. Every place has a culture, and language is a major component of that culture.

This Place Called Bethel College

So what is this place called Bethel College? The language we use to describe ourselves is important. You should know first of all that Bethel means “house of God,” Beth-el. That is a pretty high calling, a high standard. You have come to a good place. Can we be better, and will we improve? Yes. And you will help us. But you have come to a good place.

You have come to a place started by a private corporation in 1887, 120 years ago. Since its inception, Bethel College has sought to serve the Mennonite church. But from its beginning we sought to do more than that, to also, in the words of an early report, “pay the debt of gratitude to other denominations by opening wide the doors of the institution, so that all may have an opportunity to partake of whatsoever advantages may be offered by it.” 1 You have come to a good place.

You have come to a place whose official seal quotes I Corinthians 3:11, reminds us that our foundation is Jesus Christ as Messiah and model, and includes the symbols of a cross, an anchor and a heart to reinforce the concepts of faith, hope and charity. 2 You have come to a good place.

You have come to a place guided by a mission statement 3 that is too long to memorize! But there are key points we emphasize as shorthand expressions. We tend to use a key section as our mission:

Bethel seeks to be a diverse community of learners united by the commitment:

We also emphasize the four ethics, or four central values, coming out of the mission statement:

Each of these has a longer description in the mission statement. 4

And we have defined four core strengths:

This is the place we call Bethel College. You have come to a good place.

A Graphic Depiction

When John Sheriff came to Bethel College in 1967, he was not Mennonite, and he didn’t know much about Bethel. He was looking for a job, and became a professor of English, thinking he would be here for a short time. He stayed, and 38 years later, in 2005, he became interim president. He is now executive vice president for institutional development. He found his place here at Bethel College. As president, he illustrated our mission with three intersecting circles, where discipleship is faith, service is love, and scholarship is reason. The greatest strength, the greatest articulation, the greatest integrity of our mission is in that intersection.

You will all be at different places. I encourage you to find your space. You may find a space that fits you best that is not in the intersection of discipleship, scholarship and service. This is still a good place for you. But as you explore, as you learn, as you ask questions, if you are moving toward that intersection, I believe you will be moving to maximize your potential in this place. Our strength, our core, our distinctiveness, our being as a special kind of academic institution comes through integrity at the intersection of scholarship with discipleship and service.

Expressions of the Core

The intersection of these core values has many expressions. In December of 2005, the faculty approved a general education statement providing that, “through the general education program, Bethel graduates will emerge from college with:

These resulted in approval of a new General Education curriculum in October 2006 with three main components: 6

These are all important parts of Bethel College. The important thing is that these are not accidental or random. They are not copied from some other school. They reflect the kind of education that Bethel College believes is important. They are fundamental expressions of our mission and identity. They are a part of this place.

What Did You Say?

My wife Brenda and I have moved to new places and have tried to learn the language. It takes effort. In many ways that is what you are doing when you come to Bethel – learning a new language. Some of you are studying Spanish or German or speak another language, but other languages can be tricky as well – the languages we could call Bethel or Mennonite or biology or saxophone or soccer or nursing. Each has its formal description. And each has its more nuanced aspects. Each is part of a broader culture.

One of my most vivid memories happened in high school, and you know it was embarrassing if I can still remember it like it was yesterday. I was in marching band, and we were practicing marching down the street, eight rows, ten or twelve deep, all in step, very precise. I was in the front row, on the left. As we marched down the street, the drum major started to signal. I recognized the signal, I thought. We were a finely tuned machine. I was an experienced member of the band. I was a leader; that was why I was in the front row. This signal was the signal to make a sharp left turn. The problem was that we were not at a corner; in fact, we were next to an empty pasture on the edge of town. But if the drum major said turn left, we would turn left. Maybe this was a test! And as front row left, I would lead the way in our square turn. When the drum major whistled, I stepped with my left foot, planted my right foot, swiveled, and started marching left.

Now it turns out that the signal for a sharp 90-degree left turn is very similar to the signal to close ranks. Or at least I thought so. It also turns out that I was the only one in this award-winning marching band who confused the two signals on that morning. And so as I was turning sharply left, all 100 other members of the band were closing rank, toward the center of the street. Can you picture the scene?

It gets worse! We were a good band. We had the admiration of many. And there were a lot of younger kids who aspired to be in the band. They looked up to us and admired us. Some of them would ride along on their bikes to absorb the mystique of this high school group. These kids were smart enough to know that, if the band is marching down the street next to a pasture, it isn’t going to make a sharp turn left, so they rode along the side of the street. To our left. And so as I turned left, I immediately tripped over several kids on bikes, and we all ended up in a pile on the ground, with bikes and baritone sticking out. Remember that everyone else is closing ranks to the middle of the street. What a disaster! How many of you have done something that embarrassing in the past week here at Bethel?

It’s not always easy to read the signals at a new place. And you may even find that your path goes in a different direction than those around you. There is still space for you here! Find your space.

Aligning With Our Mission

We work strategically to make Bethel College reflect our Mission. Let me identify several key activities that reflect who we are and that you will be hearing about this year:

Accreditation: You will be hearing some about accreditation. We must periodically go through a process to be accredited as a college, and this is the year for the self-study process. This year a steering committee led by Brad Born, vice president for academic affairs, will conduct a self-study on our campus in advance of our accreditation review. The accreditation process is an opportunity to assess and improve.

Environmental Stewardship: We will increase our attention to environmental issues. A group will be studying the possibilities for utilizing wind generation for electricity on campus. We need to make sure our recycling program is effective.

Student Involvement: We work hard to provide an excellent education and an excellent student experience. Orientation and student life programming have been strengthened. We have invited student participation in key decisions on campus. Students helped select the new food service. Students participated in the Diversity Seminar last year to move forward our priority in understanding and improving diversity on our campus. Students will be invited to be involved in consideration of wind generation and in the accreditation self-study. While administration will make the decision, we will invite thoughts about the location of this year’s graduation.

Capital Campaign: We are concluding a feasibility study for a major fund raising campaign. 7 You may not realize that about half of my job description involves fund raising and constituent relations. You also may not realize that your tuition dollars pay for only a portion of the total cost of your education. Over the past year, the Development Staff and I have met with over 30 groups of Bethel supporters to seek their feedback on a fund raising campaign. One major component of the campaign is to significantly increase the endowment fund, which is a fund that earns interest that is used for the operation of the college.

Another major component of the campaign is to renovate the Old Science Hall and add a Nursing Wing in what will be called the Academic Center. Here you see a graphic depiction showing the front of the Old Science Hall with the Nursing Wing added to the back. Significant work has gone into planning the inside of each of the three floors. The offices and departments currently housed in Haury Hall will have a permanent home in the Academic Center. The Board of Directors will meet in October to vote on authorizing the Campaign, and then we will have clear direction for this aspect of our work for the coming years.

So why should you care? Unless you take extra time to graduate, you won’t have class in the new Academic Center or see the effect of the increased endowment. First, you’ll be hearing about the plans, so I’d like you to know about the project. Second, I want you to envision our future with us. Other students sat in these seats when the Krehbiel Science Center and the athletic complex were being planned, but graduated before they were completed. Now you are the beneficiaries of those projects. As graduates, you will want to see your alma mater continue to strengthen, and I hope you can envision that with us now. Perhaps your children will take classes in the new Academic Center! Third, the Academic Center demonstrates both the commitment to academic excellence that we are known for, and integrates the nursing program with the rest of the campus more completely. Fourth, strengthened endowment will strengthen the college.

Threshers at the Core

These and many other activities demonstrate who we are. Even our mascot, the Thresher, represents the idea of discernment that is a Bethel education. Our web site describes it:

The Thresher is named after the threshing stone – a wheat harvesting device used by the early Russian Mennonite settlers who brought winter wheat to the Kansas plains in 1874, just a few years before Bethel College was founded. Pulled by horses, the threshing stone was used to separate the head of a stalk of grain from the straw, and then further separate the kernel from the rest of the head. The threshing stone preceded industrial threshing machinery, including the modern combine. 8

The legacy symbol on the web, designed by Ken Hiebert, shows the threshing process in motion. Ken describes it this way:

Its essential meaning . . . is dynamic — historically as a symbol of the agricultural transformation of the plains — but more transcendently or timelessly, as a metaphor for the separation of the grain (valuable inner) from the hull (outer). As such it also has to do with the spirit of discernment. In this sense, the threshing stone is a humble reminder and symbol of the sorting process that is education, here given a connection to the whole teaching and learning enterprise, and more relevant than ever in a world of information overload. Threshers are thus not just playing volleyball or running the relay; they are scientists, musicians, poets, nurses, social workers — in short, persons of any discipline — each bringing a powerful value system to bear on their professional development. ... The threshing stone honors our legacy and reminds us of the key qualities that shape leadership — moral, spiritual and professional. 9

How many schools do you know whose mascot reflects its core values?

Risk and Energy in Learning

There are many other expressions of our core, of integrity at the intersection of discipleship, service, and scholarship, and you can find your space here and help give it shape. If we do this right, there will be a level of creative tension energizing the core.

I am intrigued by this description by Peter Dula of the concept of ecotones: 10

Ecotones are the borders between two different ecological communities, say between a wood and a meadow. Ecologists know that those borders ‘often harbor a greater variety and density of life’ than either the forest or the grassland alone. Lopez calls them ‘special meeting grounds’ and says that ‘the mingling of animals from different ecosystems charges such border zones with evolutionary potential.’

What a wonderful image! As individuals, as students, as scholars, as professors, as servants, as pilgrims, as disciples, as professionals we are shaped by our interactions. We are shaped, not conformed. As a community, those interactions provide opportunities to energize and transform. As we further define who we are we can better engage with others in that special meeting place of opportunity. It is a form of bridge, anchored yet engaging, a special place.

But this is not “melting pot” ecology, where the meadow and the wood become one. The richness of the interaction occurs precisely because both the meadow and the wood are defined and engaged. At Bethel, this is not “melting pot” community where we aspire to sameness, but a special place where diversity enriches all. This is not “melting pot” theology or “melting pot” spirituality where we must understand and experience God in the same way, but a special place where we seek to discern God’s will as disciples and in community. This is not “melting pot” scholarship where academic disciplines merge into one, but a special place where disciplines are enriched by both definition and engagement. Interdisciplinary learning does not erase the disciplines but engages them for expanded potential in this special place, this special space. 11

Bethel College is Unlike Any Other Place in the World

So, integrity at the intersection of discipleship, service, and scholarship is distinctive. The way that is done here at Bethel is unique. Here there is space to think, to question, to worship. Our history, our mission, our priorities, our people, and our culture combine to create a place that is unlike any other in the world.

But if Bethel has its own culture, so, too, do the situations from which you come. Edwin Friedman, a family therapist and ordained rabbi, developed what is called “family system theory.” 12 I am not an expert, but I understand a basic premise to be that families develop as systems of interaction with established patterns. So do organizations. In a way a family is its own culture, and an organization or campus like Bethel is its own unique culture.

These family systems can be complex, and changing established patterns is not easy. What I have found interesting to consider, and what I think you may understand from your own experience, is that the family system has established patterns. As members of the family leave to go to school or move to other stages of their lives, they enter other systems and develop other patterns. But when they return to the original family, people often revert to the previous patterns.

To give a trite example, you may rarely have made your bed growing up, or there may be certain things you never put away (like your laundry, or empty pop cans). For whatever reason, you may develop a new habit here at Bethel, and make your bed regularly each morning, or keep your room tidy. The tendency, when you return to your home, is to revert to the patterns you established in that family system.

Siblings may feel this most acutely, or you may feel it in your relationship with a parent. Even if you are able to act or communicate differently when you are in a different environment, or a different system, or a different culture, there is a tendency to revert back to the norms of the family system when the family is together. If you think about it, you may even be able to feel it happen as you drive up in front of your house and notice that your sibling that you haven’t seen for months is home. That can be positive, and it can have negative aspects.

What does this mean? First, this is not intended as an excuse for reverting to former patterns when you return to a former system. In fact, being aware of that tendency can help you think deliberately about your choices.

But second, I think what this demonstrates is the opportunity that you have in coming to a place like Bethel. This truly is a new culture, and it is a culture that is evolving. It is a culture shaped by history, and mission, and our core values, but it is a culture that is evolving when close to one-fourth of the population changes each year. You can shape your identity in this new place, and by doing so you also continue to help shape Bethel.

Lessons from Language Learning

What does it mean that Bethel College is its own culture? Our words carefully describe who we are, and that is important. But to really understand Bethel, one must experience it.

First, it is important for those who are part of the culture to practice hospitality. My wife Brenda and I have received that kind of hospitality in transitioning to new places several times. There is a keen sense of that hospitality in this community as well. I trust that you experience it. I don’t know if there is a better model than the one Brad Born described from the Rule of St. Benedict in the Formal Opening of School: “Let all guests who arrive be received as Christ, because He will say: ‘I was a stranger and you took me in.’” 13

What more might that hospitality look like? It seems to me that it behooves us to constantly be assessing our patterns and practices and policies. It should not be good enough that we do things because they have always been done that way. Sometimes questions and suggestions from new people to the system can help expose where tradition needs to give way to new ideas. Nor should we change simply for the sake of change.

What does our language say? Are there secret code words that we use? In fact, I think there are! How many of you know what these letters stand for: ACCK, KCAC, CIC, PJCS, MCC, MCUSA? How about these: WDC, PNMC, KICA, MEA, CCL? When we lived in Bolivia, we asked that, if not everyone in the room could speak English, then everyone in the room should speak Spanish. It was an attempt at hospitality and inclusiveness by those who could speak two languages.

Although our situation at Bethel is different, it is also true that this culture we call Bethel has some of its own language. Those who know the lingo and the code words can show hospitality through not speaking in code or through helping others learn. In fact, the marketing and communication team has just launched the BetheLingo page on the web to help unscramble some of the code words we use. 14 Take a look and help them complete the list.

Second, while those who are here will show hospitality, it is also important for those who come to this place to recognize that there is a culture here. This is not a blank slate, an unformed mass, a new venture. There is history, and tradition, and norms, and expectations, and mission, and vision. Come to this place to listen and learn. Ask questions. But just as you would do when you go to a foreign country, recognize that some things will seem strange at first. Try to understand. Be respectful.

I encourage you all to treat this as a new place, a new culture, whether you come from Los Angeles or Kenya or Dallas or Henderson or Cameroon or Goessel or Scotland or Reedley or Newton or Mexico. Don’t assume familiarity, but seek to find your place by learning from others. Don’t be frightened or withdraw if you think this place is strange!

Listening and learning and being respectful does not require that you agree or conform. Immersing ourselves in Haitian culture did not mean that we became Haitian. Immersing ourselves in Bolivian culture did not require us to become Bolivian. Quite the contrary, no one would expect me to become Haitian; but going to Haiti or Bolivia or Bethel does call for a sense of respect of the place. We learned to appreciate things that seemed strange at first.

Third, we can all recognize that our best learning happens when we take risks. It is a risk to go to a new place, to dare to learn something new. Engage that process in the classroom and beyond, for risk creates opportunity for deep learning. That is where the best opportunity for learning comes, at the edge of our comfort zone.

Fourth, learning happens best where there is also grace, where it is safe to take risks. Be gracious and patient with yourself and with others. Learning will happen best here in our community if it is surrounded by affirmation for what is done well and grace when risk taking produces mistakes. It also helps to be able to laugh at yourself when that moment comes.

Fifth, learning happens best through immersion. I learned a lot about Spanish and about Bolivia in the classroom and through books. But there is no real substitute for immersing yourself in what you are learning. Immersion is important because it involves a deeper commitment. We could tell when North American volunteers in Bolivia were immersing themselves and committed to learning; they adjusted better and did better in the long run. Study diligently, practice hard, get involved, immerse yourselves in Bethel!

This is more of a challenge for students who are commuting to Bethel, but you also have many choices about how fully you immerse yourselves. You can complete an education by simply taking classes. But you will benefit so much more by engaging and becoming active much beyond the classroom.

A Sense of Disorientation Can Lead to Growth

If what I am saying about Bethel College being a unique place is true, some of you will also experience a sense of disorientation in the coming weeks, whether you come from down the street or across the globe. In your family system, your relationships with siblings and others were defined. Here relationships are new. In your school or community or church or neighborhood, patterns were established. Here they are new. You may have come with a clear idea of what to study, but other ideas may emerge and confuse you. Be patient!

Many people who have lived overseas have experienced what is called “culture shock.” 15 It is yet another way to describe that point of tension when a person encounters a new culture or a new system. We helped workers coming to Bolivia deal with these feelings, and being aware of the dynamics of culture shock has helped us when we have moved from place to place. It is ultimately an opportunity for growth.

People react differently to moving to a new culture. In a sense it is a process of more extreme reactions becoming more moderate until there is a renewed sense of balance. It is kind of like a pendulum swinging from positive to negative and back again. The first swing may be positive, with a sense of excitement at new things. But when there is difficulty, the swing can be just as strongly negative, with feelings of anger or sadness. In a new culture there can be loneliness, and particularly in a place with new language or unfamiliarity there can be feelings of incompetence. These feelings are not enjoyable, but it can be helpful to know that they are common in adjusting to a new culture, and with that awareness not to overreact.

The negative swing then becomes more balanced with better understanding of the new situation. There is a renewed sense of enjoyment, and competence. Being fully integrated in a new situation usually allows a person to recognize both its positive and its negative aspects.

An important way to deal with the feelings of disorientation that can be called culture shock is to get active, to seek involvement, to take on an attitude of learning and even of suspended judgment. Withdrawing feeds the negative components associated with this sense of disorientation. Recognizing that you are experiencing something normal can help, but staying engaged and active is the key.

Make Bethel a Better Place

You will grow here and learn here and prepare yourself for your next stage in life, and you can help make Bethel a better place. Two highlights stand out for me from the past year, my first year as president. The first is May 20, graduation day for the class of 2007. The whole weekend was exhilarating for me and for the campus community – meeting alumni, seeing the campus mobilized for a special event, recognizing the learning and achievement of graduates, worshiping together for the Baccalaureate service. It was an incredible honor to officially bestow degrees on another class. Years of dedication and work and fun and creativity were focused on that one moment in which the class officially received their degrees.

I chose my words carefully before I bestowed their degrees. These are the 75 words I spoke after asking them to stand:

This is a special day. Bethel College has shaped your lives, and you have shaped us. We are better people because you have touched our lives, and Bethel College is a better place because you have been here. Thank you. As you enter a new stage in your lives, may you never separate faith from learning. As you go from this place, may you always be guided by ethics of discipleship, scholarship, service, and integrity.

I want each of you students to hear me say similar words to you as you graduate from Bethel, in 2008 or 2010 or as many years from now as you want to stay. And that is why the second major highlight of this August and last August was the move-in week for students. Here, the summer is a busy time, but it is different. It is exciting when students arrive in August. The campus comes back to life. That week in August is what we all work so hard for and look forward to. We are glad you have come to Bethel to find your space.

Come, Find Your Space Here! 16

This is a special place, it is a good place. You can make it better as people from different backgrounds, with different stories and perspectives, with different hopes and dreams, come together in this place. And so, whether we engage another culture and learn another language; or engage academic discipline or athletics or the arts or professional training in pursuit of excellence; or engage in dialogue to learn another’s story; may we seek and experience that special place. We will find that holy space if we nurture it. The Apostle Paul sought to build up the community at Ephesus with these words: “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.” Imbedded in Paul’s words is the powerful combination of humility and courage. We nurture that holy space when we engage each other in pursuit of truth, at the intersection of faith and reason, seeking excellence. In seeking truth we encounter God.

Of course in the academy there is no arbiter of “truth” like there is in a court of law. And so we seek truth together, with humility and with courage. Doing so involves risk. It leads inevitably to broader understandings, to passion for justice and equality, and to compassion. We may err, but we will discover. We may even disagree. It requires us to be gracious with one another, to listen and learn, to articulate the other’s perspective, to give each other space. We seek definition and dialogue, not polarization and stereotype. Here you will learn and grow. Here there is space to think, to question, to dream, to renew, to discover, to learn. Come, and find your space here!

1 “The Story of Bethel College,” by Peter J. Wedel, ed. Edmund G. Kaufman (Bethel College 1954) at 53.
2 http://www.bethelks.edu/bc/index.php
3 Bethel College Mission Statement, Bethel College 2007-2008 Catalog, p. 23; the Mission Statement is also available on the web at http://www.bethelks.edu/bc/index.php
4 Id.
5 http://www.bethelks.edu/academics/general_ed/index.php
6 See id.
7 See http://www.bethelks.edu/alumni/giving/campaign.news/index.php
8 http://www.bethelks.edu/bc/aboutbc/thresher.php
9 Id.
10 Peter Dula, in the October-December 2005 MCC Peace Office Newsletter (borrowing from Rom Coles and Barry Lopez).
11 This section, beginning with the description of ecotones by Peter Dula, was previously presented as part of my inaugural response “This special meeting place,” October 8, 2006, reprinted in Context (December 2006) and available on the Office of the President section of the Bethel College web page at http://www.bethelks.edu/bc/administration/president/bartel_address.php#response
12 Edwin H. Friedman, “Generation to Generation: Family Process in Church and Synagogue” (The Guilford Press 1985).
13 http://www.kansasmonks.org/RuleOfStBenedict.html#ch53
14 http://www.bethelks.edu/bc/aboutbc/bethelingo.php?urlid=304
15 For a helpful description of the stages of culture shock, see http://edweb.sdsu.edu/people/CGuanipa/cultshok.htm. For a more scholarly treatment, see Colleen Ward, Stephen Bochner and Adrian Furnham, “The Psychology of Culture Shock,” (2d ed. Routledge 2001)
16 This section is based on my inaugural response. See footnote 11.

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