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• The September-October 2010 issue of Mother Jones magazine included the “MoJo Mini College Guide – Our annual (and completely unscientific) guide to schools that combine great values with good value.” Among the eight schools listed from across the country was Bethel, cited as a “Best value for: Students who want to give peace a chance.” Bethel earned the honor thanks to the Kansas Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (KIPCOR), where students can earn a certificate in conflict mediation.


• Athletic Director Diane Sanders Flickner was named the 2009-10 Athletic Director of the Year in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).


• For the third straight year, Bethel is the only private, liberal arts college in Kansas and one of only three institutions of higher education in the state to be ranked in a Forbes.com analysis of top colleges and universities in the United States.


• “Through the desert goes our journey,” the title song for the 2008 documentary on the 19th century Russian Mennonite “Great Trek” to Central Asia, co-produced by Walter Ratliff of Herndon, Va., and Jesse Nathan ’05, San Francisco, took the regional Emmy® award for “Musical Composition/Arrangement” at the Heartland Chapter ceremonies held July 18 in Denver and Oklahoma City (see photo above). In Through the Desert Goes Our Journey, the Bethel College Concert Choir sings the hymn. Andy Gingerich ’05, Albuquerque, also plays the tune on guitar. Named in the award, in addition to Ratliff, Gingerich and Concert Choir director and Professor of Music William Eash, is Dan Graber ’08, Sioux Falls, S.D., who arranged the music for both choir and solo guitar.


• Six athletic teams were named 2009-10 NAIA Scholar Teams. The Bethel women’s tennis team tied for fifth highest GPA among the 857 teams that received Scholar Team awards. The women’s cross country team was not far behind, tying for seventh highest GPA. Other Bethel teams receiving the academic award included volleyball, men’s cross country, men’s golf and women’s basketball.


• Cameron Voth, junior from Goessel, was named KCAC Champions of Character Male Student-Athlete of the Year for 2009-10. Voth was the first recipient of the newly established award.


• In the U.S. News & World Report survey of “America’s Best Colleges,” Bethel appears in the first tier of “Best National Liberal Arts Colleges.” A national liberal arts college is one that emphasizes undergraduate education and awards at least half its degrees in the arts and sciences.


• Earlier this fall, President Perry D. White and Vice President for Academic Affairs Brad Born signed an articulation agreement with Hutchinson Community College that will smooth the path for HCC students seeking a four-year degree.


• Bethel was chosen as one of the first 100 venues to launch a new documentary film on nonviolent response to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Little Town of Bethlehem tells the personal stories of two Palestinians and one Israeli using nonviolent methods to resolve conflict and work towards peace in their countries.


• The volleyball team passed an important milestone in a conference match against McPherson College Oct. 11.The Threshers won their 500th game in the KCAC, in which Bethel has been competing since 1975, when it began recognizing volleyball as a varsity sport.


• The Kansas chapter of the American Association of Teachers of German (KATG) named Merle Schlabaugh German Teacher of the Year. Schlabaugh, adjunct professor of German, began teaching at Bethel in 1985.

Photo at top: Dressed in their best Emmy® finery are William Eash, left, and members of the Bethel College Concert Choir who sang on the recording of “Through the desert goes our journey” that won the award, from left: Caleb Stephens, senior from Lawrence; Monica Schmidt, senior from Mount Hope; Brittany Voth ’10, Newton; Holly Anthony, senior from Sterling; Kelly Reed, senior from Edinburg, Texas; Joshua Powell, senior from Basehor; and Nathaniel Yoder, senior from Kalona, Iowa.